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Hitler becomes Chancellor
The enabling acts give Hitler sole power of Germany after the Reichstag Fire. -
From citizens to Outcasts
Many Germans continued to enter
the Jewish stores despite the
boy-cott, and it was called off after
24 hours. In the subsequent weeks
and months more discriminatory
measures against Jews followed
and remained in effect. -
Nazi Race Laws
Among other things, the laws issued in September
1935 restricted future German citizenship to those
of “German or kindred blood,” and excluded those
deemed to be “racially” Jewish or Roma. The laws prohibited marriage and sexual
relation-ships between Jews and non-Jews. -
The Science of Race
Members of the Hitler Youth receive instruction in
racial hygiene at a Hitler Youth training facility. The
Nazis divided the world’s population into superior and
inferior “races.”According to their ideology, the “Aryan race,” to which
the German people allegedly belonged, stood at the top
of this racial hierarchy. The Nazi ideal was the Nordic type, displaying blond
hair, blue eyes, and tall stature. -
Night of Broken Glass
Nazi regime unleashed
orchestrated anti-Jewish violence
across greater Germany. Within 48 hours, synagogues
were vandalized and burned,
7,500 Jewish businesses were
damaged or destroyed, 96 Jews
were killed, and nearly 30,000
Jewish men were arrested and
sent to concentration camps. -
Enemies of the state
Within the concentration camp system, colored,
tri-angular badges identified various prisoner
categories, as seen in this image of a roll call at the
Buchenwald concentration camp. Although Jews were their primary targets, the Nazis
also persecuted Roma (Gypsies), persons with mental
and physical disabilities, and Poles for racial, ethnic, or
national reasons. Millions more, including homosexuals. -
Search for Refuge
Jews in Vienna wait in line at a
police station to obtain exit visas.
Following the incorporation of
Austria by Nazi Germany in
March 1938, and the unleashing
of a wave of humiliation, terror,
and confiscation, many Austrian
Jews attempted to leave the
country. Before being allowed to leave,
however, Jews were required to
get an exit visa, plus pay large
sums of money in taxes and
additional fees. -
The War begins
Sections of Warsaw lay in ruins following the invasion
and conquest of Poland by the German military that propelled Europe into World
War II. For most of the next two years German forces
occupied or controlled much of continental Europe.