Although they were founded as part of a vision of world peace, the 1936 games became a stage for political disputes. The Nazi Olympics takes an in depth look at the efforts the Germans made to show the rest of the world that they had again become a powerful nation under the leader of Adolf Hitler. The events that followed the games in Germany, mainly the Holocaust and World War II overshadowed the Berlin games. However, it is very important to note that a world gathering like the Olympics took place in a country that was in the process of eliminating an entire race of people. The games were a huge success in regards to the Nazi regime, they were able to fool the world and prove to Germany that they were a peaceful and stable nation.
The games were a huge success in this regard, the Nazi regime was able to fool and world and prove to Germany that they were everything the Nazi had said. But did the Olympic Games have any effect on the chain of events that led up the Holocaust and World War II? Germans became quite obsessed with sport in the 1870's following the end of the Napoleonic wars in Europe. Friedrich Ludwig Jahn popularized gymnastics which became a staple of the German education system. At this time gymnastics was not the sport we think of today, but instead more of a show of mass strength and to promote national unity in the newly formed Germany at the end of the nineteenth century.
Hitler, on the contrary, used the Games to promote his propaganda and the rising power of the Nazis. At first, he had shown little interest in the Olympics. After attaining what he could accomplish by hosting the Games, Adolf Hitler did everything in his power to create the best, most innovative Olympics in history. His efforts were shown through the details of the buildings and arenas, and how specific he designed each one. “Hitler provided the broad sweep, kept an eye on the detail and the whole project went on to something resembling a war footing.
The Olympic Games showcase a rare opportunity for the host country to show the world their culture, hospitality, talent, and acceptance of others. The Berlin Olympics of 1936 were no exception. Declared the best of their day, Germany spared no expense to impress the thousands of tourists who flooded the country. By building of a new sports field, an enormous Olympic Stadium, and the first official Olympic Village, Germany was determined to amaze the world. Despite these lavish projects, the Nazi Olympics were, at their very core, a gleaming illusion used to hide a nation on the verge of annihilating a decade of peace.
The 1936 Berlin Olympics was one of the most difficult, yet most memorable of all the Olympics. Even with the Great Depression and tough conditions some athletes still managed to be victorious. This was not an easy task with a Holocaust raging in the background. However, if there was ever a time that people needed to feel victorious it was within this time period when people’s spirits felt squashed by the heavy hand of Hitler. There, in Berlin, people were able to rise above Hitler and show that no matter race or religion-one could be victorious.
A: Plan of Investigation The purpose of this investigation is to analyze the extent to which Hitler used the Berlin 1936 Olympics as propaganda for the Nazis. This investigation will examine Germanys attempt to exhibit a well developed Germany, the Nazis demonstration of Aryan superiority throughout the Olympics, and the association of the coverage and media usage of the Olympics in Nazi Germany, with Hitler’s intentions. This examination will also include an analysis of the Origin, Purpose, Value and Limitations of the 2 main sources used in this inquiry, Jennifer Gross’s article “1936 Olympic Games” and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museums article “The Nazi Olympics Berlin 1936”. B: Summary of Evidence Introduction to situation of Germany prior to the Olympics • Germany lost World War 1 in 1918. • Germany faced harsh punishments after losing the war, and treaties like the treaty of Versailles, which put Germany into debt believed to be at initially 269 billion marks (around 32 billion dollars), and terrible conditions for the next couple of years (Crossland, David).
This meant that they stood against the marching Nazis. Hitler also miscalculated the mood of the German people who weren’t ready for an uprising. Af... ... middle of paper ... ...nt Hindenburg or the army wanted this as the SA’s socialist views were completely against Hitler ruling Germany in a dictatorship. By using the SS to kill members of the SA, Hitler appeased Hindenburg and the army and sent a message to others who may have thought of challenging him. Then President Hindenburg died of old age.
Before the Olympics there were anti-Jewish signs hung around and newspapers had a harsh rhetoric. During the Games, these incriminating items were put out of sight giving foreigners visiting for the Games a false impression of the real Germany (“Nazi” 2).When American swimmer Adolf Kiefer visited Germany in 1935 he said he saw that the acts against Jews were quite obvious, but when he returned for the Olympics in 1936 he did not see one Star of David to single out a Jew (Walters 238-239). To add to their deceit towards the world, the German Olympic Team allowed part-Jewish fencer, Helen Mayer, to compete for them. “She won a silver medal in women’s individual fencing” (“Nazi” 2). After Helen accepted her medal, she gave the Nazi salute.
The Berlin Olympics of 1936 were held under the rule of chancellor Adolf Hitler. Being that the Olympics are a coming together of the world, Hitler used this to promote how rich Germany was, along with their peacefulness and greatness. As all the focus was on how to present the greatness of Germany at the games, some negative sides of the Nazi regime were revealed, for example, even though Hitler did an excellent job on hiding his hate towards the Jews, the belief that Aryans are the greatest still influenced his actions. This paper will point out the importance of the two fundamentals of National Socialism, national unity and race, and how these ideas tied into the Olympic games. Further, a look into not only Jews at the Olympic games, but African American’s and how Hitler went on to accept them.
In 1933, the first of many laws began to be put in place in the new German society. The Nazi Party imposed these laws, as part of their ideology. They were extremely anti-Semitic, forcing Jewish and non-Aryan Germans to quit their jobs. They were under the rule of a dictator, and most did not forget World War I, so how could they possibly be allowed to host such an event as the Olympic Games ? Germany actually won the bid to host the games over Spain in 1931.