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German History/Anne Frank Background Notes. World War I (1914-1918). Central Powers. Triple Entente. VS. Germany Austria/Hungary Ottoman Empire Kingdom of Bulgaria. France Russia United Kingdom (U.S.). Treaty of Versailles (1918 Peace Treaty). Germany had to agree to the following:
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World War I (1914-1918) Central Powers Triple Entente VS. Germany Austria/Hungary Ottoman Empire Kingdom of Bulgaria France Russia United Kingdom (U.S.)
Treaty of Versailles (1918 Peace Treaty) • Germany had to agree to the following: • Claim sole responsibility for WWI • Give up land • Disarm Military • Pay huge sums of money to T.E. (around $328 billion by today’s value)
German Morale Due to a global depression and the effects of the Treaty of Versailles, many German people lived in a collapsed economy with no jobs and little food. Germans felt angry, embarrassed, and desperate.
Rise of Nazi Party (1918-1929) The party offered jobs and economic reform while promising to restore German pride. The richest and most powerful German citizens were inclined to support the Nazi party in order to keep communist political parties from gaining the support of poor, working class Germans. Hitler was the leader of the Nazi party. He was a very charismatic individual and an exceptional speaker.
Important Events 1933 Hitler was “elected” Germany’s leader. 1935 Hitler broke the Treaty of Versailles by reforming the German army, navy, and air force. 1935 Hitler enforces Nuremburg Laws
Lebensraum – Living Space Hitler wanted the Aryan race to be prosperous and powerful. To do so they needed living space. Jews were first asked to leave Germany of their own accord. The Nazi’s even paid to have some German Jews relocated. Many Jews left Germany at this point. From 1938-1940 Hitler annexes Austria and invades Poland, Denmark, Norway, France, Belgium, Luxemburg, and the Netherlands.
Lebensraum Many of the Jews who left Germany relocated in these areas. Now they were an even bigger threat to Hitler’s Lebensraum. Jews were contained in ghettos and later moved to concentrations camps.
The Final Solution The Nazi’s could not get rid of the Jews quickly or efficiently enough. The Final Solution was ordered to systematically exterminate the Jews. Jews were sent to camps, were for the first time in modern history, industrial means were used to kill human beings. The journey through a gas chamber was as systematic and as calculating as a factory. The product: DEATH for 2 out of 3 European Jews
Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl Information Courtesy of the Anne Frank Museum www.annefrank.org
Anne Frank was a Jewish girl living in Amsterdam in Holland. On 12th June 1942 her parents gave her a small red and white tartan diary for her 13th birthday. She named her diary ‘Kitty’.
The Call • Margot Frank received a call-up on July 5, 1942. The Nazis planned to send the people they have summoned to work camps in Germany. The entire family would be arrested if Margot did not report.
The Plan • Her parents expected such a call-up: the secret hiding place was almost ready. • The Van Pels family was to join them: Hermann and Auguste and their son Peter. Hermann van Pels is co-director of Otto Frank’s company. • The next day, the Frank family immediately left for the hiding place. All of them carried bags filled with their things. Naturally, Anne brought her diary.
The Hiding Place • The hiding place was located in an empty section of the building owned by Otto Frank's company. • While business continued in the front part of the building, Franks and Van Pels were hiding in the rear annex. • Before too long, the entrance to the Secret Annex was concealed behind a movable bookcase.
The Helpers • The people in hiding were helped by Otto Frank’s four employees: MiepGies, Johannes Kleiman, Victor Kugler and BepVoskuijl. • They arranged the food supplies, clothing, books, and other necessities. • In addition, they kept the people in hiding up-to-date with the news from Amsterdam.
The Hiding Place • The hiding place was relatively spacious. The Frank family lived in two rooms on the first floor, the Van Pels family in two other rooms on the second floor. • In November 1942, an eighth person joined the people in hiding: Fritz Pfeffer. • He was a dentist and an acquaintance of both the Franks and the Van Pels family.
Life in the Annex • The people in hiding had to stay indoors around the clock. • They also had to be extremely quiet during the day when people were at work in the warehouse downstairs. • Because the waste pipes for the toilet ran right through the warehouse, the toilet was flushed as little as possible.
The Hiding Place Found On the 4th of August, 1944, somebody told the Germans where Anne and her family were hiding. The secret annex where she hid was raided, and Anne and her family were caught. Anne’s diary was left behind. Anne was sent to a concentration camp called Bergen Belsen, where she later died from disease.