Above: Hitler and his regime.
When Hitler was elected into his position of power, many were unsure what to make of him and his ideals. Early on in his dictatorship his approval rating was very high. This was due to the economic progress and success in foreign affairs that was seen in the beginning of Hitler's career (257). However, little did the Germans know how Hitler would drastically change Germany forever.
Hitler and his colleagues had big plans for the German Nation. They began plans to expand Germany and to declare war. With the beginning of World War II the terror among the people began. The Allied Powers, in the heat of the war, began to perform air raids all over the German lands. At this point, the German people were forced to live together in shelters and spent each day concentrating on how to survive (270). At this point, the German people felt disconnected from the outside world, and unsure where there loyalties were to lie. The overall feeling within Germany during the war was defeated, terrified, and distant.
Above: Painting outside of the Siegestor Memorial. The painting depicts Hitler youth, a wounded war veteran, and a war widow. The painting is meant to show the suffering of Germany during the wartime.
In the end of the war, Hitler's plans for Germany changed drastically. He was losing the war and had a "if I can't have it, no one can" attitude. Him and his followers were trying to give the order to destroy Germany and it's resources forever. However, those against him made sure this did not happen (286).
Unfortunately, for Germany the war had already done most of this to begin with. The war had left most of Germany in ruins and without the means to survive, leaving the people homeless and hungry (286). People had no sense of right and wrong and certainly no loyalty to the German Nation. All that had been built before the war had collapsed. The German Nation was again only a question in the German people's mind. At this point the only important thing to the German people was surviving (287).
At this same time, the Allied Powers had occupied Germany and began taking over all government operations and aspects of the nation's welfare. The Allied Powers completely disarmed Germany at this time and removed all the National Socialists from office (289). This was also another cause for discomfort among the German people, who were likely feeling powerless and smothered by the Allied Powers.
Above: The Allied Powers, also known as the Big Three: Joseph Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Winston Churchill.
Eventually, there was a push for unification among the occupied territories within Germany. But like most of the Allied Powers plans for the nation, it failed. However, things turned around through the use of the largest airlift in German history. Resources returned, easing the terror of many of the German people. However, the nation was still left to figure out it's government, economy, and the unification of the territories, leaving the people uprooted and still quite uncomfortable.
