Life for women in

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St.Cenydd History Department
Life for women in Nazi Germany
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What do you think is meant by
Kinder, Kirche, Kueche
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What do you think is meant by
Children, Church, Kitchen
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This phrase was often used by the Nazis to
describe their vision of what life for women
should be like. As the lesson progresses, see
how far they succeeded in creating this vision of
a virtuous, domestic and family orientated
lifestyle for women within Germany.
Virtuous - Having good qualities. Being morally
good. Domestic - Spending a lot of time living
and working in the home
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Aims of the lesson

• To compare
• Life for women in Weimar and Nazi Germany
• To find out
• What Nazi policies regarding women were
• Whether Nazi policies regarding women were
  successfully implemented (carried out)

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Read Life for women in Weimar Germany
(Worksheet 1) and complete this diagram
What was life like for women in Weimar Germany?
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What does Hitler mean when he states that mans
world is the State?
Women, as a distinct social group, had a clearly
defined place in the Nazi world. In a rally at
Nuremberg in 1934 Hitler said that mans world
is the State, while the world of woman is a
smaller world. For her world is her husband, her
family, her children and her house.
Stephen Lee, The European Dictatorships 1918-1945
(Routledge, 1987)
According to the Nazis how were the roles of men
and women different?
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Who was Joseph Goebbels and what was his role
within Nazi Germany?
In 1929, Goebbels stated The mission of women
is to be beautiful and to bring children into the
world. This is not at all as.........un-modern as
it sounds. The female bird preens herself for her
mate and hatches eggs for him. In exchange, the
male takes care of gathering food, and stands
guard and wards off the enemy.
Discuss the words and description given by
Goebbels.
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Why do you think that Goebbels refers to the
animal world?
In 1929, Goebbels stated The mission of women
is to be beautiful and to bring children into the
world. This is not at all as.........un-modern as
it sounds. The female bird preens herself for her
mate and hatches eggs for him. In exchange, the
male takes care of gathering food, and stands
guard and wards off the enemy.
What is womans role within society (the mission
of women) according to Goebbels?
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How did the Nazis try to ease women out of the
workplace?
The initial policy was to ease women out of the
top levels of the civil service, law, medicine
and politics. Women were induced to stay at home
by new marriage credits and child bonuses. The
gradual decline of unemployment, however, created
a new demand for labour. The result was the
steady recruitment of women into both
agriculture and industry, the total reaching 5.2
million by 1938.
Stephen Lee, The European Dictatorships 1918-1945
(Routledge, 1987)
Did the Nazis remove women completely from the
workplace? Give reasons for your answer using
the source and your own knowledge.
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Read Life for women in Nazi Germany (Worksheet
1) and complete this diagram
What was life like for women in Nazi Germany?
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How did life change for women in Germany 1919 -
1945?
Pre 1933
Post 1933
Married and unmarried women were encouraged to
have children
Next Statement
Discuss whether each statement has been put in
the right place
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How did life change for women in Germany 1919 -
1945?
Pre 1933
Post 1933
Married and unmarried women were encouraged to
have children
Loans were offered to brides who agreed not to
take a job
Next Statement
Discuss whether each statement has been put in
the right place
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How did life change for women in Germany 1919 -
1945?
Pre 1933
Post 1933
Married and unmarried women were encouraged to
have children
Loans were offered to brides who agreed not to
take a job
The ideal man was a matter of personal choice
Next Statement
Discuss whether each statement has been put in
the right place
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How did life change for women in Germany 1919 -
1945?
Pre 1933
Post 1933
Married and unmarried women were encouraged to
have children
Loans were offered to brides who agreed not to
take a job
The ideal man was a matter of personal choice
Women sat in the Reichstag
Next Statement
Discuss whether each statement has been put in
the right place
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How did life change for women in Germany 1919 -
1945?
Pre 1933
Post 1933
Married and unmarried women were encouraged to
have children
Loans were offered to brides who agreed not to
take a job
The ideal man was a matter of personal choice
Women sat in the Reichstag
Married women were encouraged to have children
Next Statement
Discuss whether each statement has been put in
the right place
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How did life change for women in Germany 1919 -
1945?
Pre 1933
Post 1933
Married and unmarried women were encouraged to
have children
Loans were offered to brides who agreed not to
take a job
The ideal man was a matter of personal choice
Women sat in the Reichstag
Married women were encouraged to have children
Women were told that the ideal husband would be
an Aryan
Next Statement
Discuss whether each statement has been put in
the right place
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How did life change for women in Germany 1919 -
1945?
Pre 1933
Post 1933
Married and unmarried women were encouraged to
have children
Loans were offered to brides who agreed not to
take a job
The ideal man was a matter of personal choice
Women sat in the Reichstag
Married women were encouraged to have children
Women were told that the ideal husband would be
an Aryan
The Honour Cross of the German Mother was awarded
according to how many children you had
Next Statement
Discuss whether each statement has been put in
the right place
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How did life change for women in Germany 1919 -
1945?
Pre 1933
Post 1933
Married and unmarried women were encouraged to
have children
Loans were offered to brides who agreed not to
take a job
The ideal man was a matter of personal choice
Women sat in the Reichstag
Married women were encouraged to have children
Women were told that the ideal husband would be
an Aryan
The Honour Cross of the German Mother was awarded
according to how many children you had
Women were free to smoke and wear make-up
Next Statement
Discuss whether each statement has been put in
the right place
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How did life change for women in Germany 1919 -
1945?
Pre 1933
Post 1933
Married and unmarried women were encouraged to
have children
Loans were offered to brides who agreed not to
take a job
The ideal man was a matter of personal choice
Women sat in the Reichstag
Married women were encouraged to have children
Women were told that the ideal husband would be
an Aryan
The Honour Cross of the German Mother was awarded
according to how many children you had
Women were free to smoke and wear make-up
There were 3000 female doctors
Next Statement
Discuss whether each statement has been put in
the right place
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How did life change for women in Germany 1919 -
1945?
Pre 1933
Post 1933
Married and unmarried women were encouraged to
have children
Loans were offered to brides who agreed not to
take a job
The ideal man was a matter of personal choice
Women sat in the Reichstag
Married women were encouraged to have children
Women were told that the ideal husband would be
an Aryan
The Honour Cross of the German Mother was awarded
according to how many children you had
Women were free to smoke and wear make-up
Female doctors and civil servants were sacked
There were 3000 female doctors
Next Activity
Discuss whether each statement has been put in
the right place
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Preparing for war ...but don't stop having
babies!
The Lebensborn Programme Unmarried mothers
'donated a baby to the Fuhrer'. SS officers would
father the children.
Next Fact
Discuss each fact as a class with your teacher.
Do there seem to be some contradictions within
Nazi Policy?
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Preparing for war ...but don't stop having
babies!
The Lebensborn Programme Unmarried mothers
'donated a baby to the Fuhrer'. SS officers would
father the children.
Women's employment increased. Employers preferred
to employ women - it was cheaper.
Next Fact
Discuss each fact as a class with your teacher.
Do there seem to be some contradictions within
Nazi Policy?
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Preparing for war ...but don't stop having
babies!
The Lebensborn Programme Unmarried mothers
'donated a baby to the Fuhrer'. SS officers would
father the children.
Women's employment increased. Employers preferred
to employ women - it was cheaper.
Hitler believed that a woman's place was in the
home. He wanted women to be at home with the
children.
Next Fact
Discuss each fact as a class with your teacher.
Do there seem to be some contradictions within
Nazi Policy?
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Preparing for war ...but don't stop having
babies!
The Lebensborn Programme Unmarried mothers
'donated a baby to the Fuhrer'. SS officers would
father the children.
Women's employment increased. Employers preferred
to employ women - it was cheaper.
Hitler believed that a woman's place was in the
home. He wanted women to be at home with the
children.
The Nazis encouraged women to have more and more
children
Next Fact
Discuss each fact as a class with your teacher.
Do there seem to be some contradictions within
Nazi Policy?
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Preparing for war ...but don't stop having
babies!
The Lebensborn Programme Unmarried mothers
'donated a baby to the Fuhrer'. SS officers would
father the children.
Women's employment increased. Employers preferred
to employ women - it was cheaper.
Hitler believed that a woman's place was in the
home. He wanted women to be at home with the
children.
The Nazis encouraged women to have more and more
children
As more men joined the armed forces the Nazis
needed more women to go to work
Next Activity
Discuss each fact as a class with your teacher.
Do there seem to be some contradictions within
Nazi Policy?
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What does this propaganda poster tell you about
Nazi beliefs concerning the role of women within
Germany?
Discuss What can you see?
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Comment on the atmosphere and mood created by the
artist?
E.G. Think about the background scene
Why do you think that the sun has been placed
where it is taking up much of the background?
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How does this idyllic scene fit in with The Nazi
vision of perfect society?
What kind of society did the Nazis wish to
create? Think about Family Life Community
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Task 1 Think of three questions you would like
to ask about this poster
Question 1
Question 2
Question 3
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Task 2 Click on the areas of the poster that
you would like to explore
If you cant decide click here for help
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Task 2 Click on the areas of the poster that
you would like to explore
Try these areas
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The National Socialist German Workers Party
safeguards the National Community The Party
ensures togetherness of the people in the
Community.
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The eagle represents the Nazi Party. Notice that
its wings are wrapped around the family
suggesting the family are being protected. The
eagle looks very powerful.
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The father is shown as the head of the family.
He rises above his family with his shirt sleeves
rolled up. He is the worker protecting the
family. His arms are wrapped around the family,
further suggesting he is looking after them.
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The mother is shown with a scarf holding her hair
back as if she has been carrying out domestic
chores. She is gently cradling her baby and
looks both healthy and happy to be surrounded by
her family.
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The baby provides the central focus of the
poster. All of the children conform to the Aryan
ideal (blonde hair and fresh complexion, etc).
The little girl is close to the mother, and the
boy next to his father. They are portrayed as a
happy family, with the baby illustrating that
this is a growing family.
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Comrades, if you need help and assistance ask
your local branch of the NSDAP
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What does this source tell you about Hitlers and
the Nazis attitude towards women and the family?
What can you see in this source?
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Remember that some women resisted Nazi ideas
concerning the role of women within society.
Even though there was very little organised
opposition to Hitler some women remained loyal to
their church groups and others actively sought
employment (usually low paid and mundane jobs)
Some women joined opposition political parties
such as the Social Democrats, or the Communists
in protest
Some women spoke out and argued that they had
special talents for certain jobs and should not
be tied to the home
Some women argued that they had an equal right to
the same education, jobs and experiences enjoyed
by men
END