George Carpozi writes “The issue of Nazi gold was then and is today tied inevitably to the Nazi policy to exterminate the Jews, the ‘Holocaust’” (21). According to Louis Weber, German armies swept through Europe, raiding the property of murdered Jews (318). Apparently, the Nazis robbed people blind because they needed gold to fund the economy and gain resources for future Nazi plans (Carpozi 4). According to Anne Rothefeld, The Nazis’ mission was to rid Germany of art during the Weimar Republic. Weimar’s retrogression angered Hitler highly, so he began to close art schools the same year as the Holocaust. During the Holocaust, countless amounts of people were killed. Reva Shefer was a victim of this crisis, for her father was thrown to the ground and shot before her eyes (Carpozi 10). Shefer was given a $400 dollar check from Switzerland to compensate for her suffering (14). Shefer thought that this was enough. She stated “‘the amount means nothing,’ Mrs. Shefer stated as her rich voice wavered only briefly. ‘I care about the fact of it. No matter what it took, finally, after these decades, somebody is saying ‘you suffered and we know it’’” (15). In this case gratitude is gold; however, the grass is not always greener on the other side. According to the article “Swiss Banks and Nazi Gold”, Edward Fagan works at a system which handles compensation for the victims who have suffered due to the Holocaust. He reports that system refuses to pay the survivors money. He thinks that they should be paid up $54 billion for their pain. The subject Nazi Gold consists of three main points: from where the treasures were looted, Swiss banks, and what treasures are being discovered.
First, an important subcategory in Nazi gold is from where the ...
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... the Nazis over 70 years ago. Later on officials discovered that the elderly man’s name was Cornelius Gurlitt and to everyone’s surprise, he is the son of a famous Nazi-era art dealer.
Late in 2011, officials raided Gurlitt’s home again. They kept mute, for they discovered that is was his truthful property (“Raid”). It was last reported that the German government involved themselves for the mere purpose of untangling the matter.
In conclusion, Nazi Gold is an extremely elaborate subject. It is important to know why the Nazis decided to loot gold and what their plans were. Although few think that the Nazis have only taken what was fine to take; the subcategories prove that Hitler’s actions were inhumane and uncalled for. The subject Nazi Gold consists of three main points: from where the treasures were looted, Swiss banks, and what treasures are being discovered.
On Hitler’s Mountain is a memoir of a child named Irmgard Hunt and her experiences growing up in Nazi Germany. She herself has had many experiences of living during that dark time, she actually met Hitler, had a grandfather who hated Hitler's rule, and had no thoughts or feelings about the Nazi rule until the end of WWII. Her memoir is a reminder of what can happen when an ordinary society chooses a cult of personality over rational thought. What has happened to the German people since then, what are they doing about it today and how do they feel about their past? Several decades later, with most Nazis now dead or in hiding, and despite how much Germany has done to prevent another Nazi rule, everyone is still ashamed of their ancestors’ pasts.
“Nazi Hunting: Simon Wiesenthal.” United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 10 June 2013. Web. 06 Feb. 2014
Occurring in 1942, the Germans believe they have built an ‘escape proof’ camp in which they plan to house their most troublemaking prisoners. What they do not realize, is that they have put all of their greatest masterminds in one place and allowed them to speak to one another. If unable to escape, the prisoners believe it is their job to make the German officials pay as much attention to their confinement as possible and away from other military expenditures. Unlike previous escape plans from the past, Royal Air Force Squadron Leader, Bartlet, plans a massive escape of 250 men through a series of tunnels.
Goldhagen's book however, has the merit of opening up a new perspective on ways of viewing the Holocaust, and it is the first to raise crucial questions about the extent to which eliminationist anti-Semitism was present among the German population as a whole. Using extensive testimonies from the perpetrators themselves, it offers a chilling insight into the mental and cognitive structures of hundreds of Germans directly involved in the killing operations. Anti-Semitism plays a primary factor in the argument from Goldhagen, as it is within his belief that anti-Semitism "more or less governed the ideational life of civil society" in pre-Nazi Germany . Goldhagen stated that a
Hall, Claire M. An Army of Spies? The Gestapo Spy Network 1933-45, Journal of Contemporary History, Vol. 44, No. 2 (Apr., 2009)
The victims’ identities are neutralized, as the German officers try to ignore the individuality of the people who would soon become their prey. From the very incipient stages of his experience, Wiesel is stripped of his own possessions, things that contribute to his family’s own identity: “[...]The Hungarian police burst into every Jewish home in town: a Jew was henceforth forbidden to own gold, jewelry, or any valuables. Everything had to be handed over to the authorities, under penalty of death” (10-11). This marks the beginning of the careless, inhumane treatment of the Jewish people. Although one can usually survive without their valuable jewelry, the police assert their power and their willingness to take complete control over the victims’ lives from
“The United States and the Holocaust.” United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 10 June 2013. Web. 10 Feb. 2014.
Grenville, John A.S. “Neglected Holocaust Victims: the Mischlinge, the Judischversippte, and the Gypsies.” The Holocaust and History. Ed. Michael Berenbaum and Abraham J. Peck. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1998. 315-326.
Because of the length of the war and the devastation of this genocide, Germany will forever be remembered for the Holocaust and the effect it had on multiple people groups. This event sparked from the idea of absolute supremacy and would continue until the damage was complete. People’s views of the German population and the Jewish people alike will be changed, and the Holocaust forever remembered as one of the largest racist genocides in
While some believe that bringing former Nazi’s to justice is a noble cause, it is a task where the negatives far outweigh the positives. Finding individuals that have remained hidden for
Griffin explores Heinrich Himmler and the secrets that are hidden within him. Throughout his childhood Himmler’s secrets and thoughts were hidden, overshadowed by a mask or barrier formed by his upbringing and culture.
soldiers during the Jewish Holocaust, knew that the Nazi’s actions were inhumane and cruel; hence, he commanded his soldiers to not confiscate property from the Jews. Although the Nazi soldiers did not take valuables away from the Jews, they still dehumanized and exterminated the Jews, rega...
The Holocaust is marked as one of the most horrifying events of the 20th century.The person who was responsible for the Holocaust was Adolf Hitler, the leader of the Nazi Party. The question is, how, and why was Hitler able to do this? The actual truth behind all this is that, Hitler could make the world his, just by using words. In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, it tells a story about a young girl growing up when Nazi Germany was invincible. The author explores some very meaningful, yet, controversial themes for the most part of the novel. Out of all themes, he believes that words hold a remarkable power. He explores how words manipulate, divide, and connect people.
"A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust-Victims." A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust-Victims. University of South Florida. Web. 19 May 2014.
Pushing aside the major setbacks Germany had undergone, people today know Nazi Germany as the country that had always found a solution and pushed through, even during the least hopeful times. However, people also know the Third Reich as the horrific time of oppression and discrimination by Hitler and his colleagues; according to some, these actions that made Hitler all-powerful and everyone else weak or nonexistent actually led Germany to their success. This time period will always remain a many-sided topic of debate because of the many ways the Nazis were victors, victims, and totalitarians. Works Cited Fritzsche, Peter. The 'Standard'.