CBSE Class 9 History Nazism and The Rise of Hitler Worksheet Set A

Question. What did the term evacuation mean in Hitler's Germany?
Answer :   Evacuation meant deporting people to gas chambers.

Question.  Who was Goebbels?
Answer :   Goebbels was Hitler’s propaganda minister.   

Question.  Name the most infamous film about Jews?
Answer :   The most infamous film was The Eternal Jew. 

Question.  What was the holocaust?
Answer :   Nazi killing operations was called the holocaust.

Question. What is Hyperinflation?
Answer :  Hyperinflation is a situation when prices rise phenomenally high.

Question. State the verdict of Nuremberg Tribunal. Why did the Allies avoid hard punishment on Germany?
Answer : The Nuremberg Tribunal, which was set up to prosecute the Nazis for committing grave crime against humanity which involved killing of innocent civilians in Europe, sentenced only 11 Nazis to death. Some were given life imprisonment. Allies avoided harsh punishment on Germany because :
(i) They did not want to repeat the mistakes committed after the First World War where they imposed harsh terms on Germany by virtue of Treaty of Versailles, which resulted in the rise of Hitler.
(ii) Treaty of Versailles was physiologically damaging for the Germans and also proved to be a national shame. The treaty had sown the seeds of the Second World War. This made the Allies cautious enough of not being much harsh on Germans again.

Question. State three features of Political Radicalism in Germany.
Answer : Features of Political Radicalism :
(i) The Political situation that came into view after the rise of Weimar Republic is termed as Political Radicalism.
(ii) The demand and the uprising for Soviet Style Governance were suppressed by the Weimar Republic and this enraged them to form the Communist Party.
(iii) Both Communists and Socialists wanted Political Radicalism against Hitler’s rule. 

Question. Explain briefly the theory of Herbert Spencer used by Hitler.
Answer : Theory :
(i) Herbert Spencer propounded the Idea of 'Survival of the Fittest'.
(ii) According to this idea, only those species survived on Earth which could adapt them to changing climate conditions.
(iii) Used by Racist Thinkers and Politicians to justify Imperial rule over conquered people. According to Nazi argument, the strongest race would survive and the weak ones would perish. 

Question. How were the ideas of Darwin and Herbert Spencer adopted by Hitler or Nazis ?
Explain. 
Answer : (i) Hitler’s Racism was heavily borrowed from Thinkers like Charles Darwin and Herbert Spencer.
(ii) The ideas written by Darwin in ‘The Origin of Species’ natural selection was used by Hitler to justify his Imperial rule over conquered people.
(iii) Adopting the Idea of the ‘Survival of the Fittest’propounded by Herbert Spencer, the Nazi Government suggested that the strongest race, that is Nordic German Aryans would survive and the weak ones would perish.

Question. Explain the circumstances under which Nazism became popular in Germany.
OR
What is Nazism? How did it become popular in Germany? Explain. 
OR
Discuss why did Nazism become popular in Germany by 1930.
Answer : Circumstances under which Nazism became popular were :
(i) Hitler was a great Orator. His passion and words moved people.
(ii) He promised to build a strong nation.
(iii) He promised to restore dignity of the Germans and undo the injustice of the Treaty of Versailles.
(iv) He promised Employment for those looking for work and a secure future for the youth.
(v) He promised to weed out all Foreign influences and resist all Foreign conspiracies against Germany.
(vi) Hitler devised a new style of politics. Nazis held massive rallies and public meetings as to show the strength and confidence for Hitler.
(vii) The Red banners with the Swastika, ritualised rounds of applause and the Nazi salute after the speeches, were all part of this spectacle of power.
(viii) Nazi propaganda projected Hitler as a Messiah or a Saviour.

Question. What was the impact of Hitler’s attack on Soviet Union in June 1941 ?
Answer : (i) In this historic blunder, Hitler exposed the German Western Front to British aerial bombing and the Eastern Front to the powerful Soviet Armies.
(ii) The Soviet Red Army inflicted a crushing and humbling defeat on Germany a \
Stalingrad.
(iii) The Soviet Red Army hounded out the retreating German soldiers until they reached Berlin, establishing Soviet hegemony over the entire Eastern Europe.

Question. Describe any three effects of the Great Depression (1929-1932) on Germany. 
OR
What was the impact of the ‘Great Economic Crisis’ on the economy of Germany? Explain.
Answer : Great Economic Depression :
(i) Industrial output fell by 40 per cent; Workers lost their jobs and they were paid low wages.
(ii) Sharp fall in agricultural prices
(iii) Women were severely affected.

Short / Long Answer 

Question. What was the attitude of the Allied Powers at the Nuremberg Tribunal?
Answer :  The Nuremberg Tribunal sentenced only eleven leading Nazis to death. Many others were imprisoned for life. The Allies did not want to be as harsh on defeated Germany as they had been after the First World War.

Question. What do you mean by Nazism? 
Answer : Nazism or National Socialism, German: Nationalsozialismus is a set of political beliefs associated with the Nazi Party of Germany. It started in the 1920. Party gained power in 1933 starting the Third Reich. They lasted in Germany until 1945 at the end of World War II.

Question. What did the International Military Tribunal do?
Answer : At the end of the war an International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg was set up to prosecute Nazi war criminals for Crimes against Peace for War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity.

Question. What led to the rise of Hitler?
Answer : Hitler rose to power through the Nazi Party an organization he forged after returning as a wounded veteran from the annihilating trench warfare of World War I. He and other patriotic Germans were outraged and humiliated by the harsh terms of the Treaty of Versailles which the Allies compelled the new German.

Question. What was regarded as Hitler's historic blunder?
Answer : Hitler attacked the Soviet Union in June 1941. This attack was a historic blunder because it exposed the German western front to British aerial bombing and the eastern front to the powerful Soviet armies. 

Question. Describe the problems faced by the Weimar Republic.
Answer : The problems faced by the Weimar Republic were:
→ Versailles treaty: The Versailles Peace Treaty at the end of the First World War dispossessed Germany of its territories, its resources and its pride as a nation. He also had to pay 6 billion pounds as war compensation. In spite of the harsh terms, the Weimar Republic accepted the humiliating treaty, thereby making it unpopular amongst the German masses.
→ Economic Crisis: The German state was financially crippled due to overwhelming war debts which had to be paid in gold. Subsequently, gold reserves depleted and value of German mark fell. Prices of essential goods rose dramatically.
→ Political defects: The Weimar Republic was weak due to inherent constitutional irregularities such as proportional representation and Article 48 (which gave the President the power to impose emergency and rule by decree). The democratic parliamentary system seemed to give the people no solutions or benefits in the times of the severe economic crisis.

Question. What are the peculiar features of Nazi thinking?
Answer : The peculiar features of Nazi thinking were
→ A belief in racial hierarchy and Lebensraum or living space.
→ Nordic German Aryans were at the top, while the jews formed the lowest rung of the racial ladder.
→ They believed that only the strongest race would survive and rule.
→ New territories must be gained for enhancing the natural resources and power of Germany.

Question. Explain what role women had in Nazi society. Return to Chapter 1 on the French Revolution. Write a paragraph comparing and contrasting the role of women in the two periods.
Answer : Role of women in Nazi society followed the rules of a largely patriarchal or male-dominated society. Hitler hailed women as "the most important citizen" in his Germany, but this was true for only Aryan women who bred pure-blood, "desirable" Aryans. Motherhood was the only goal they were taught to reach for, apart from performing the stereotypical functions of managing the household and being good wives. This was in stark contrast to the role of women in the French Revolution where women led movements and fought for rights to education and equal wages. They were allowed to form political clubs, and schooling was made compulsory for them after the French Revolution.

Question. State any five steps taken by Hitler to establish his Dictatorial rule in Germany. 
OR
Explain any five features of Political Policy adopted by Hitler after coming to power in 1933.
Answer : Features of Political Policy adopted by Hitler :
(i) Suspended Civil Rights and introduced the Enabling Act.
(ii) Communists sent to Concentration camps.
(iii) All Political Parties and Trade Unions except the Nazi Party were banned in Germany.
(iv) State control over Economy, Media, Army and Judiciary.
(v) Creation of special Surveillance and Security Forces.

Question. Mention five important consequences of Nazism in Germany.
Answer : Consequences of Nazism :
(i) It pulled the country out of economic crisis.
(ii) Hitler tried to make Germany a powerful country, enhanced its Military.
(iii) All Political Parties except Nazi party were banned.
(iv) The Socialists, the Communists and the Jews were given harsh treatment as they were blamed of German defeat in World War I.
(v) Trade Unions were banned.
(vi) A Massive programme of Militarism was launched and preparation for War began in a big way.

Question. Explain briefly the main causes of the rise of Nazi Dictatorship in Germany.
Answer : The main causes of rise of Nazi Dictatorship in Germany were as follows :
(i) The First World War defeat.
(ii) Weakness of Weimar Republic : The Weimar Constitution had some inherent defects which made it unstable and vulnerable to Dictatorship. Due to proportional representation, One Party Rule became an impossible task, leading to a rule by coalitions. Another defect was Article 48, which gave the President the power to impose emergency, suspend Civil Rights and Rule by Decree.
(iii) Treaty of Versailles : Germany was forced to sign the Treaty of Versailles with the Allied Powers. This made Germany to lose its Overseas Colonies, a tenth of its population, 13 per cent of its territories and many more. The Allied Powers demilitarised Germany. The Allied Armies also occupied the resource rich Rhineland. The War guilt clause forced Germany to pay £ 6 Billion as War Damages to the Allied Powers.
(iv) The Economic crisis : German Economy was worst hit. Industrial production was reduced to 40 per cent. Due to Great Economic Depression, the National Income of the USA fell by half, leading to shut down of the Factories. The Exports fell down and Farmers suffered the most during the Depression. (v) Mass unemployment : Workers of Germany lost their jobs and were paid reduced wages. Unemployed youth played cards or lined up at Local Employment Exchange. Jobs disappeared and youth took to criminal activities.
(vi) German people thought that Hitler would be a Good Dictator as he promised to undo the injustice of Treaty of Versailles. He also promised to give Employment to those looking for work. Later, the Nazi Party became the largest Party with 37 per cent votes in Reichstag.

Question. Why was Nazi Propaganda effective in creating a hatred for the Jews? Explain any five reasons.
Answer : Reasons : (i) The Nazi regime used Language and Media with care.
(ii) They used chilling terms. They never used the words ‘kill’ or ‘murder’.
(iii) Mass killing was termed as special treatment leading towards the final solution (for the Jews).
(iv) Nazi ideas were spread through visual images, films, radio, posters, etc.
(v) Propaganda films were made to create hatred for Jews.
(vi) They were referred to as vermin, rats, pests. Nazism worked on minds of the people.

Question. Highlight any five peculiar features of Nazi thinking.
OR What are the peculiar features of Nazi thinking ?
Answer : The peculiar features of Nazi thinking are :
(i) There was no equality between people, but only a Racial Hierarchy. In this view, blond, blue-eyed, Nordic German Aryans were at the top, while the Jews were located at the lowest rung. All other coloured people were placed in between, depending upon their external features.
(ii) The Aryan Race was the finest. It had to retain its purity, become stronger and dominate the world.
(iii) Nazis glorified war. Their only aim was to unite All people of the Aryan race under one state that is Germany.
(iv) Hitler believed that new territories had to be acquired for settlement. It would enhance the material resources and power of the German nation.
(v) Nazis wanted only a society of pure and healthy Nordic Aryans They alone were considered ‘Desirables’.
(vi) Nazis hated Jews. They terrorised, pauperised and segregated them and compelled them to leave the Country.
(vii) Children were taught to be loyal and submissive, hate Jews and worship Hitler.
(viii) While Boys were taught to be aggressive, masculine and steel-hearted, girls were told that they had to become Good Mothers and rear pure-blooded Aryan children.