WOMEN IN NAZI GERMANY

1
WOMEN IN NAZI GERMANY

• MOTHER AND WIFE
• THE CULT OF THE FAMILY

2
WOMEN IN NAZI GERMANY

• Women in Nazi Germany played an important role in
  the idea of the Volksgemeinschaft. They were to
  provide the foundations of the racially pure
  community that Hitler hoped to create.
• Hitler said every child that a woman brings into
  the world is a battle, a battle waged for the
  existence of her people.

3
Separate but equal?

• Women and men were supposed to exist in separate
  spheres according to Nazi ideology. The Nazis
  said that these separate spheres had a biological
  basis.
• Hitler said the world of women is a smaller
  world. For her world is her husband, her family,
  her children , and her house.
• The role of women was celebrated and held up as
  important, however it is difficult not to see
  women in Nazi Germany as inferior to men.

4
Children, Church and Kitchen

• The three Ks (Kinder, Kirche, Kuche) motto for
  women. Children for motherhood, Church for
  morality and Kitchen for wife and domestic
  provider.
• The entire focus of a females existence in Nazi
  Germany was supposed to be on domesticity and
  motherhood.
• Girls were educated in domestic and child-rearing
  skills at school and in the Jungmadel and German
  Girls league.

5
Weimar woman versus Nazi maiden

• During the years of the Weimar Republic women had
  become more modern. They were given the vote and
  enjoyed more employment opportunities (especially
  in the professions).

• The Nazis felt that modern woman was a
  degenerate threat to racial purity and the idea
  of Volksgemeinschaft.
• Wanted women to return to their traditional role.

6
Guidelines for women

• Women in Nazi Germany were discouraged from
  wearing modern clothing (i.e. trousers), told
  instead to imitate the peasant-style clothing of
  the past.
• Make-up, permed or dyed hair and smoking were all
  frowned upon.
• Women were banned from senior positions within
  the Nazi party and there were no Nazi female
  deputies in the Reichstag.

7
Money for motherhood

• Women were encouraged to have as many children as
  possible.
• Financial incentives were offered for prolific
  childbearing grants, tax-free loans and tax
  relief.
• Family allowance payments were increased.

• The Nazis wanted to increase the birth-rate so
• -anti-abortion laws were passed.
• -access to contraception and advice about
  contraception was limited.
• - women were given medals to reward them for
  having large families these medals had to be
  saluted

8
Other changes

• Womens interests were represented by the Nazi
  Womens League. They used propaganda extensively
  to encourage women to embrace the three Ks.
• Many professional women lost their jobs and the
  number of female university students was
  restricted.

9
Nazi policy on women a success?

• Some German women (non-professional,
  non-academic) were positive about the changes
  made as they enjoyed the increased status of
  motherhood and the domestic role.

• Nazi policy on women was incoherent and
  inconsistent many women kept their jobs
  (especially teachers) and many women were
  employed (and became powerful) by the Nazis (Nazi
  Womens League etc)

10

• The birth-rate did not increase as the Nazis had
  hoped in fact after 1935 the number of births
  actually declined steadily.
• Many women had to be re-employed to help with the
  preparations for war and with the war itself.

• Divorce rate increased.
• The cult of the family was unsuccessful as Nazi
  policy actually caused an increased tension in
  many families. Many women were unhappy about
  their new roles (mother versus woman) etc.