The Holocaust

Anti-Semitism: “The Longest Hatred” intense hatred of Jewish (Semitic) people the heart of Nazism widespread in Europe for a very long time led to the Holocaust – the systematic murder of European Jews during World War II by the Nazis Jews were scapegoats

Why did Europeans hate or distrust Jews? there is no definitive answer to this question religious and cultural differences made Jews stand out among other Europeans they were often viewed as more intellectual and successful and less nationalistic and patriotic many Jews were very well educated, very prosperous

Why did Hitler and the Nazis hate Jews? again, no clear definitive answer possible identity crisis – Hitler may have “found himself” or his “calling” in his hatred of Jews and other non-German groups possibly it was exposure to Völkisch (anti-Semitic ideas in Austria) thinking during his youth what is known is that anti-Semitism was the heart and soul of Nazi ideology

Hitler’s Claims Germans or “Aryans” were the master race and all others were inferior inferior groups included: Jews Gypsies Poles Russians/Slavs communists homosexuals the physically and mentally handicapped the Nazis wanted to eliminate those inferior groups and other undesirables

Jewish Persecution in Germany Nuremberg Laws passed by the Nazis in 1935 denied German citizenship to Jews prevented Jews from marrying non-Jews Jews were forced to wear the Star of David as identification Kristallnacht – “Night of Broken Glass” November 9, 1938 huge race riots all over Germany, Austria, and the Sudetenland Jewish synagogues and businesses were destroyed about 100 Jews were murdered and about 30,000 Jews were arrested and put in concentration camps

The “Final Solution” this was Hitler’s plan of genocide – to kill all Jews it was carried out by Nazi death squads – special mobile killing units the Einsatzgruppen were elite SS and Nazi troops attached to the regular military whose job was to locate and exterminate any and all Jews

The Camps many Jews and political prisoners were sent to concentration camps – basically prison camps where they were used for slave labor starting in 1942, the Nazis built camps for the specific purpose of killing Jews – these were the death camps in the death camps, Jews were taken to huge gas chambers and executed – then cremated in huge ovens

The Camps the first concentration camp to open was Dachau in March of 1933 the death camps were ordered built by Heinrich Himmler in 1942 as part of the Final Solution there were six death camps Auschwitz-Birkenau (the largest) Belzec Chelmno Majdanek Sobibor Treblinka

Results of the Holocaust camps began to be liberated in summer 1944 around 6 million Jews were killed and 3 million or more survived up to 6 million more were killed in addition to the Jews (Poles, Russians, disabled people, etc.)

Nuremberg Trials and Aftermath trials of 22 Nazi leaders for “crimes against humanity” military tribunal from 23 countries conducted the trials 10 of the Nazi leaders were hanged and had their bodies burned at a concentration camp others received penalties of life in prison and some were set free Zionism (support for a Jewish state) increased after the Holocaust Israel became a country in 1948 as a response