Introduction (150 words)
As a result of the Holocaust, a clear link can be made between Nazi racial ideologies and Hitler’s foreign policy. Firstly, Nazi ideologies were a fundamental facet to the Holocaust, as it included the philosophies of who constituted as a Jew, and the consequent treatment of those diagnosed as Jews. Secondly, Hitler’s foreign policies were another significant aspect of the holocaust, as it was a fundamental part in the construction of Hitler’s ultimate goal. Thirdly, the foreign policy and racial ideologies are revealed to be inextricably linked through the invasion of Poland in 1939. Fourthly it is evident that these foreign policies and racial ideologies contributed to Germany’s involvement in World War Two. Finally, it is revealed that not all historians agree on the connection between Nazi racial ideology and Hitler’s foreign policy, and their theories will be examined. In this context, it though not all historians agree, there is clear evidence that Nazi racial ideologies and foreign policy are intricately linked.
Paragraph 1: Nazi Racial ideologies
In this context, it is important to understand the Nazis’ racial ideologies. Anti-Semitism was in no way a new idea, as hatred towards the Jews had been around for centuries; including the Crusades of the 12th Century. The Nazi party, however, did bring a new element to anti-Semitism, with the idea that people are Jewish by race, not religion. This concept of ‘Jewishness’ being hereditary was made obvious in Hitler’s conversation with Himmler when he said “The discovery of the Jewish virus is one of the greatest revolutions that has taken place in the world” . Hitler went on the state that many of the diseases which has plagued Europe for centuries wa...
... middle of paper ...
...871-1945 Allen & Unwin, 1986
Hillgruber; A, F. ‘Hitlers Strategie: Politik und Kriegführung, 1940-1941’ Bernard & Graefe Verlag für Wehrwesen, 1965
Hilberg, R, The Destruction of the European Jews, Holmes and Meier, New York, 1985 p. 189
Kershaw, Ian, and Moshe Lewin, eds. Stalinism and Nazism: Dictatorships in Comparison. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997.)
Lee, Stephen J. 2005, Hitler and Nazi Germany, e-book, accessed 15 April 2014, .
Murrus, M, ‘The Holocaust in History’, Penguin, London, 1987
Marrus, MR 1997, ‘Crimes against humanity’, The Nuremberg war crimes trial, 1945-46 : a documentary history 1997, Bedford, Boston, pp. 55
Weitz, Eric D. 2009, A Century of Genocide : Utopias of Race and Nation, e-book, accessed 15 April 2014,
Gottfried, Ted, and Stephen Alcorn. Nazi Germany: The Face of Tyranny. Brookfield, CT: Twenty-First Century, 2000. Print.
From the time Hitler and the Nazi’s took control of Germany in 1933 until the collapse of the Third Reich in 1945, the aim of the regime under the calculating guidance of Hitler himself sought no less than global conquest. This ambitious objective can be further dissected into short term and long term goals that provide insight into Hitler’s character, thoughts and actions.
It is my belief that the author presents a very controversial view of the causes and implementation of the Holocaust. The root of the controversy is his contention that the German people, as a society, are responsible for the attempted extermination of the Jews. According to Mr. Goldhagen, in the eyes of the Germans, the Jews as nothing more than a cancer that must be removed in order to cure the ills of their nation. In the book Mr. Goldhagen has gone to great extents to prove his views. However, “…his theories will probably remain a point of contention with historians for years to come.”4 The brutality and horror that is described throughout the book is, at times, overwhelming. To realize that one group of people can treat their fellow man with such heartlessness and savagery in what we call a civilized world is almost beyond comprehension.
Many religious conflicts are built from bigotry; however, only few will forever have an imprint on the world’s history. While some may leave a smear on the world’s past, some – like the homicide of Semitic people – may leave a scar. The Holocaust, closely tied to World War II, was a devastating and systematic persecution of millions of Jews by the Nazi regime and allies. Hitler, an anti-Semitic leader of the Nazis, believed that the Jewish race made the Aryan race impure. The Nazis did all in their power to annihilate the followers of Judaism, while the Jews attempted to rebel, rioted against the government, and united as one. Furthermore, the genocide had many social science factors that caused the opposition between the Jews and Nazis. Both the German economy and the Nuremberg Laws stimulated the Holocaust; nevertheless, a majority of the Nazis’ and Hitler’s actions towards Jews were because of the victims’ ethnicity.
Those of half and quarter Jewish descent remain largely forgotten in the history of the Third Reich and genocide of the Holocaust. Known as Mischlinge, persons of deemed “mixed blood” or “hybrid” status faced extensive persecution and alienation within German society and found themselves in the crosshairs of a rampant National Socialist racial ideology. Controversially, these people proved somewhat difficult to define under Nazi law that sought to cleave the Volk from the primarily Jewish “other”, and as the mechanization toward Hitler’s “Final Solution” the Mischlinge faced probable annihilation. The somewhat neglected status of Mischlinge necessitates a refocusing on German racialization as well as reconsideration of the implications wrought by the alienation and ultimate persecution of the thousands of half and quarter Jews subjugated in Nazi Germany.
It is the intention of this paper to explicate the United States’ entrance into World War II. In order to achieve current purposes, this essay will advance as follows: Section 1 will explain how Adolf Hitler defied the Treaty of Versailles and turned a depression-wracked country into a major military power, Part 2 will discuss Hitler’s strategies concerning the “Jewish problem” in Germany and his military conquests from 1936 to 1940 in his attempt to control Europe, Portion 3 will expound the provisions of the Neutrality Acts and how the United States gradually repealed the provisions as Hitler became a serious threat to the world, and finally, Section 4 will both explain the position of the United States regarding the rise and threat of the Nazi power and how the United States began to slowly shed its isolationist beliefs in the wake of Hitler’s power and will conclude this essay.
"The Holocaust." World War II Reference Library. Ed. Barbara C. Bigelow, et al. Vol. 1:
Berger, Ronald J. “Holocaust and Genocide Studies: Lessons and Legacies of Mass Atrocity” Humanity & Society. 2007. 31:1-5. Acquired December 14th 2013. (http://0-web.ebscohost.com.ignacio.usfca.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=8&sid=9abebdd2-3265-4435-be82-ecfc94754e93%40sessionmgr114&hid=120)
n January of 1933 the Nazi regime took control of Germany with the belief that Germans were “racially superior.” Throughout this time period called the Holocaust, which is a Greek word meaning “sacrifice by fire,” the Jewish people were deemed inferior, and were the main threat to the German racial community. Though the Holocaust was a systematic and bureaucratic war, racism is what fueled the persecution and murder of six million Jews by the Nazi regime. Racism is defined as “a belief or doctrine that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.” This framework of racism was what Hitler believed would “carve out a vast European empire.” (Perry,
The word “Holocaust”, was originated from the words “Holos” meaning whole, and “kaustos” meaning burned. To Adolf Hitler, Jews were an “inferior” race. After years of Nazi rule, Hitler’s “final solution” came under the cover of world war, with mass killing centers constructed in the concentration camps. Jews, Jehovah's Witnesses, Roma Gypsies, Priests and Pastors, homosexuals, and black children were all victims of the holocaust. Most of the victims left were from other countries. 6,000 Jehovah's witnesses, over 15,00 homosexuals, 400 “colored” children, and over 5,000,000 jews were killed.
Stanton, Gregory H. "Genocides and Conflicts." World Without Genocide. World Without Genocide, 7 May 2013. Web. 14 Apr. 2014. .
Dwork, Deborah, and R. J. Van Pelt. Holocaust: a History. New York: Norton, 2002. Print.
The Holocaust was one of the most tragic and harmful things to befall the human race. Yet not a lot of people understand just how terrible it was. But if we don't know about it, how will we know if history will ever repeat itself or not? We need to know because we can't let it happen ever again. There is so much to know as well. From the life of Anne Frank to World War II as a whole, there are so many things involved its unbelievable. But what exactly is the full depth of the Holocaust, and what was all a part of it.
Historians are often divided into categories in regard to dealing with Nazi Germany foreign policy and its relation to Hitler: 'intentionalist', and 'structuralist'. The intentionalist interpretation focuses on Hitler's own steerage of Nazi foreign policy in accordance with a clear, concise 'programme' planned long in advance. The 'structuralist' approach puts forth the idea that Hitler seized opportunities as they came, radicalizing the foreign policies of the Nazi regime in response. Structuralists reject the idea of a specific Hitlerian ideological 'programme', and instead argue for an emphasis on expansion no clear aims or objectives, and radicalized with the dynamism of the Nazi movement. With Nazi ideology and circumstances in Germany after World War I influencing Nazi foreign policy, the general goals this foreign policy prescribed to included revision of Versailles, the attainment of Lebensraum, or 'living space', and German racial domination. These foreign policy goals are seen through an examination of the actions the Nazi government took in response to events as they happened while in power, and also through Hitler's own ideology expressed in his writings such as Mein Kempf. This synthesis of ideology and social structure in Germany as the determinants of foreign policy therefore can be most appropriately approached by attributing Nazi foreign policy to a combination as both 'intentionalist' and 'structuralist' aims. Nazi foreign policy radicalized with their successes and was affected by Hitler pragmatically seizing opportunities to increase Nazi power, but also was based on early a consistent ideological programme espoused by Hitler from early on.