In Germans Into Nazi’s we see the nationalism of the summer of 1914 on display by they incredibly large public demonstrations. War was in the air, and many people thought that was a very good thing. Worth noting is the fact that Fritzsche emphasizes that there were strong anti-war feelings among the masses. History has deemed it easier writing to ascribe a blanket support for the war through this blind nationalism. When the war effort turned southward, as viewed by the public, discontent rose with the political authorities rises as the angst of a miserable existence was commonplace throughout the empire. This discontent can only have been strengthened by, or around, those who initially thought war could lead to less than a glorious international empire.
Built upon an era of economic prosperity, imperial Germany was the leading industrial power of Europe when war broke out. This high standard of living was immediately put under strain by the immense drain of male labor due to military positions needing to be filled. Intoxicated by the early glories of having gone to war, the masses eventually became frustrated with their elected government. This frustration eventually led to skepticism, which ultimately killed the second Reich.
Food may have been the most prominent issue in leading to the national discontent. With an ineptly designed and executed rationing system, by the third year of the war people were going without common commodities such as bread, meat, and milk. Fritzsche emphasize the incredible role that turnips played in the diet of German citizens. It evolved to the extent where, according to a woman spotlighted in the book, they “went to bed hungry, and woke up hungry,” and their diet was only turnips “cooked in water.” That would be a terrible existence. It didn’t make matters easier that many families were constantly hearing the reports of their dead loved ones.
Following the failure of the Schlieffan plan, German authorities arguably supported and fought an arguable impossible war. This message was obviously not conveyed to the public. As the years passed, and death tolls reach historical levels, citizens began to see the flaws in the state which they had entrusted under the veil of German nationalism. This process reoccurs time and again throughout history and, no differently here, the people wanted change from the authority that had been making decisions.
Following defeat in November of 1918, the people of Germany underwent drastic political change in order to construct a republic. This was a result of a failed war philosophy and the extreme economic stress put upon the German people in the time of war. Both of these factors, inextricably linked, create an interesting narrative as the twentieth century progresses. While I have not read any further into Germans Into Nazi’s, I have a hunch that the rise of the third Reich was influenced just as heavily by severe economic distress as was the fall of the second Reich.
You do a great job of pointing out the strains that WWI put on German society and how it created the grounds for growing unrest and discontent. These circumstances certainly play a role in the November 1918 Revolution but Fritzsche argues that it was not the suffering that turned people against the regime as much as the perceived inequality of the suffering and the unwillingness of those in power to acknowledge the suffering of the people by initiating politics reforms that would open the goverment to broader political participation.
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