1940: Germany

Territorial Expansion.

The year 1940 was for Germany not only a year of war, but also a year of victory and of great territorial expansion. Not only were certain important territories added outright to the German Reich, but German influence and German political, military and economic domination were carried by the success of German arms into most countries of the European continent west of the Soviet Union. The frontiers of the Reich of 1914 were restored; Alsace-Lorraine, Eupen and Malmedy, Western Prussia, Posen and Upper Silesia were again included within the German frontiers. But beyond that several Polish districts which had never formed part of Germany, like the districts of Lodz and Suwalki, in the east; as well as the grand duchy of Luxembourg in the west, became provinces of the German Reich. Bohemia, Moravia, and Slovakia, which in 1914 had not belonged to the German Reich, as well as Austria, now formed part of Greater Germany, which thus had extended far beyond its frontiers of 1914. There was no longer any question of a restitution of the Germany of 1914.

By the end of 1940 the German armies also dominated Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Belgium, two-thirds of France, and Rumania. The remaining third of France, and also Hungary, although not officially occupied by German troops, were completely under German control. To a much lesser degree, that was also true of Spain, Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, as well as of the Axis partner, Italy, so that by the end of 1940 only Turkey, Greece, Switzerland, Sweden and Portugal remained free from German political or economic control on the European continent.

French Lorraine was incorporated with the Saar territory on Nov. 30 as a new province, Westmark (or the Western March), under Joseph Buerckel, who had formerly been Provincial Governor of Vienna. On this occasion Herr Buerckel declared that Germany's western frontier with France had now been clarified for all time and that the 'century-old battle of the Rhine' was therewith ended. Within Germany's borders henceforth only Germans were to live. In agreement with this policy all French people and all Jews living in Alsace-Lorraine were expelled, and these western border provinces of the Greater German Reich were cleared of French inhabitants as the newly annexed eastern provinces had been of Polish inhabitants. Alsace was united with Baden across the Rhine under Robert Wagner as Provincial Governor. Buerckel's successor in Vienna was the thirty-three year-old leader of the National Socialist youth movement, Baldur von Schirach, who, however, retained his position as head of the education of Nazi youth, and as Inspector of the entire Hitler youth organization. As active head of the Hitler youth movement he was succeeded by Arthur Axmann.

Occupational Statistics.

The Statistical Office of the German Reich published in 1940 the figures of the 1939 census for Germany as comprised within the frontiers in spring of 1939, including therefore Austria, the Sudetenland and Memel, but not yet Danzig and the parts of Poland since annexed. According to this census the population of the Reich, without soldiers and labor corps, numbered 78,000,000. The old territory of the Reich, including the Saar, counted 68,130,000, as against 66,030,000 in the year 1933. It is interesting to note that of this population only 19 per cent were occupied in agriculture and forestry, more than 40 per cent in industry, more than 15 per cent in commerce and trade, and about 10 per cent in the civil service. This is interesting because it shows that all efforts of the National Socialist government to stop the steady trend to the cities, and to increase agriculture, have failed. In 1925, 23 per cent of the population, and in 1933, 21 per cent, had been gainfully occupied in agriculture and forestry. The absolute number of these people has decreased from 16,000,000 in 1882 to 12,000,000 in 1939, while in the same period the number of those occupied in industry increased from 14,000,000 to almost 28,000,000, and of those in trade and commerce from 3,000,000 to 10,000,000. But the National Socialists hope that the limitation of the right to migrate or to change one's place of work will help to slow down the process of transition from the villages to the cities. The number of civil servants has increased by a third from 1933 to 1939. As a result of the large number of state economic enterprises, the number of people gainfully occupied in commerce and trade is somewhat less than in 1933. Generally the number of wage-earners and salaried persons has very much increased in the last seven years. In 1882, 38½ per cent of the population were independent business men and artisans, compared with 21 per cent in 1925, and only 17 per cent in 1939.

Education.

While the German universities were closed at the beginning of the war in 1939, with the exception of only five, all of them were reopened in January 1940. However, the required time of study was considerably reduced; the academic year was divided into three trimesters instead of two semesters. From then on lawyers and college teachers had to study only two years instead of four at the universities; engineers, chemists and physicists two years and a third; and physicians four years. A labor service for students was introduced, according to which they had to help in agriculture, in offices, and in all other places where there was need of workers. Another new institution was the Studentische Kriegs-propagandaeinsatz, according to which the students had the duty of doing research in the political, cultural and economic history of all peoples of the globe to find arguments against Great Britain. The results of this research were to be put at the disposal of the central institutes of German propaganda. After Easter 1940, all schools within the Reich were working under a new plan, the aim of which was 'to serve the educational and professional needs of those circles of people in whose profession mental and physical labor are joined.' Schools were no longer to impart simply knowledge and skill, but were to stress above all their duty in the education of children to National Socialism. A number of 'antiquated' subjects were replaced by such subjects as the study of 'racial laws.' The number of school years was reduced from nine to eight. English remained an obligatory subject, and might be supplemented by another foreign language in the upper classes.

Internal Affairs.

Internal measures during 1940 were directed towards two aims: to keep up the morale of the population in living through the unbelievable hardships of a cold and snowy winter, with a great lack of coal and nourishing food, especially fats; and to make the workers believe that after the war a Socialist Paradise would dawn for them in Germany. Chancellor Hitler emphasized that the present war was a war for the 'liberation' of proletarian workers from the 'yoke' of plutocracy and capitalism. The old violent slogans of the struggle against Marxism and Communism were entirely abandoned in 1939, and suddenly replaced by an emphasis on proletarian world revolution which would emanate not from Moscow but from Berlin. The struggle against Western democracies was presented as a Socialist war. But German economy, in spite of all proclamations, remained far from any kind of Socialism. It is true that state capitalism is playing a more and more important role, that government is regulating business completely, and that the freedom of the industrialist and of the business man is as much curtailed as is the freedom of the worker and the laborer; but private property is still fully existent and the profit motive is given full scope. In reality National Socialism is neither capitalistic nor Socialist; it has no economic doctrine. It will adopt any doctrine or any mixture, even of conflicting doctrines if, when, and as far as it suits the achievements of its political aims. At the end of 1940 the law expired according to which dividends exceeding 6 per cent had to be invested in temporarily frozen public bonds. The most important instrument of the new state capitalism is the 'Reichswerke Hermann Göring,' an immense concern combining steel, coal, armament, machinery and shipping enterprises and employing about 600,000 workers.

Conquered Poland.

Strict censorship made it impossible to gain a true picture of the situation and events in the Reich. This was especially true of conditions in the conquered lands — above all in Poland, where sixteen months after the conquest no foreign visitors and no foreign correspondents were allowed. Even Germans needed special permission to enter Poland. The horrors of the situation were partly described in a lengthy report presented by Cardinal Hlond, the Archbishop of Gniezno and Poznan, to Pope Pius and released by the Vatican Jan. 28, 1940. Polish circles in Paris and London accused the German administration of aiming at a systematic humiliation and Germanization of Poland and a confiscation of all Polish property. The many hundred thousands of Polish workers sent to Germany had to wear on their garments a purple letter 'P' on a yellow background, so that they could immediately be recognized, because the Germans were forbidden not only to intermarry with Poles but even to have any kind of comradeship with them, to show them any kindness, or to enter into any contract with them. All colleges and high schools in Poland were closed, and only elementary schools and trade schools were allowed. Private teaching for the Poles was strictly forbidden. In these elementary schools the teaching of Polish history and geography has been abolished. (See also FASCISM.)

Jewish Situation.

Anti-Semitism in Germany was, if possible, even worse than in 1939. Constant new curbs were put on the Jews, who at the beginning of 1939 had already lost the last chance of making even the most modest living in Germany. While their radio sets had been confiscated in 1939, in 1940 they were denied telephone service. The rations fixed for them were much smaller than those for the non-Jewish population; they were not allowed any of the additional small quantities of food granted from time to time to non-Jews; Jews were only allowed to buy in certain shops and at certain late hours. No clothing cards or cards for shoes were granted to them. By the end of 1940, practically only older persons of the Jewish race remained in Germany; several thousands of them living in Baden and in the Palatinate were ejected in November at only a few hours' notice, and were sent without money or baggage to unoccupied French territory. Even worse was the fate of Jews in the German-occupied parts of Poland. In Warsaw about 500,000 Jews were herded together in a ghetto district which was shut off by a concrete wall from the rest of the city. (See also RELIGION: Jews.)

Christianity in Germany.

Little is known of the religious life of the Christian communities in Germany. Pastor Martin Niemöller, who had been arrested on July 1, 1937, remained in a concentration camp as a result of his challenge denying the National Socialist authorities the right to interfere with the spiritual freedom of the Protestant Church. Rev. Helmuth Gollwitzer, pastor of the church formerly served by Niemöller, was expelled from the church by the police on Sept. 6, 1940, and was forbidden to make speeches. The official Vatican radio denied on November 19 an assertion by the Spanish Fascist newspaper Alcazar that National Socialism was not contradictory to Christian ideals. The Vatican complained that while in 1933 almost the entire Catholic youth of Germany was educated in Catholic schools, that magnificent school organization has now been completely destroyed. National Socialist literature, the Vatican said, has attacked Christianity and the Catholic Church as a whole, as well as its personnel and its institutions, and has even attacked the most essential dogmas of the Church. The attack has been carried out, the Vatican said, with the greatest possible efficiency. At the end of August the Catholic bishops of Greater Germany met as usual in conference at Fulda, but their deliberations and decisions were not made public.

Foreign Policy.

Germany's foreign policy was dominated entirely by the exigencies of the war. From its beginning German propaganda effort was concentrated on Great Britain and against British democracy and wealth as the archenemy of Germany and of other 'have-not' nations. Propaganda towards France tried to convince the French that the Germans had no intention of harming France, and that it was Great Britain who misused the French by fighting its own war against Germany with the help of French blood. The Frenchmen were called upon not to fight England's battles. To the smaller nations of Europe, Germany repeatedly asserted her firm intention to respect their neutrality. The alliance with Italy was maintained, though not overstressed, while relations with the Soviet Union remained correct, although lacking in cordiality; but Germany resented every hint of a possible break between the two Powers and insisted that hints of that kind were only due to British propaganda which was interested in sowing discord between the two peoples.

Conduct of the War.

The first three months of the year, often regarded by Americans as a period of 'phony' war, were used by Germany to intensify its armament production and to prepare everything for a knock-out blow to be struck at the enemy in the spring. To secure better bases for the struggle against England, in April Germany occupied Denmark, which did not resist, and Norway, where the resistance lasted for several weeks, but Great Britain and France were much too unprepared to be able to come to Norway's aid with any appreciable effectiveness. (See also DENMARK; NORWAY.)

In the following month Germany struck at the Low Countries, in spite of her repeated solemn assurances of non-aggression. Again the British and French were not able to give sufficient assistance, especially in view of the fact that the Belgian and Dutch governments and general staffs had refused to agree to any concerted action with the Allies, so as not to infringe in the slightest upon their declared neutrality. The breakdown and the final surrender of the Belgian army put the French position in mortal danger and forced the British to evacuate their troops from the continent (see GREAT BRITAIN). France had to capitulate in June, and a new semi-Fascist government in France was eager to collaborate with Germany. At that time the Germans expected to be able to invade Great Britain during the summer, to end the European war, and then to dictate the peace terms which would make the whole of Europe and Africa subservient to German interests. (See also BELGIUM; EUROPEAN WAR; FRANCE; NETHERLANDS.)

The failure to subdue England in the summer and the successful resistance of Great Britain for the rest of the year, forced Germany to turn towards other Powers for support. Efforts to win the active support of France and Spain in the war against Great Britain have failed so far, because Germany was unable to offer these countries conditions which would not conflict with the imperialistic aims of her ally, Italy. On Sept. 27, Germany and Italy concluded an alliance with Japan. As a result it was agreed that the important Dutch, British and French possessions in the Far East, which Germany had regarded as important sources of raw materials for herself, should fall under Japanese control.

Germany's efforts to strike a decisive blow at the British Empire either in the Eastern Mediterranean or, with the help of Spain and France, in the Western Mediterranean, so as to break the essential lines of imperial communication and to gain for herself access to the raw materials of Africa and Western Asia, were unsuccessful up to the end of 1940. On the contrary, the Italian reverses in Greece and Egypt strengthened the British position and prestige in the Mediterranean. (See also EGYPT; GREECE; ITALY.)

Although Germany's war in the air and her naval efforts to destroy British merchant ships wrought immense havoc on British wealth and life, so far they have not been of decisive importance. The German air bombings have been counter-balanced by R.A.F. attacks on Germany (see GREAT BRITAIN). In her relations with the United States, Germany never left any doubt as to how she felt regarding American democracy, but she followed a very cautious course and put herself under heavy restraint, because she was above all anxious not to provoke the United States into active participation in the war or efficient help to Great Britain.

Economic Conditions.

At the beginning of the year Marshall Hermann Göring assumed direct leadership of Germany's war economy so as to bring about a greater coordination among its different branches. The bitter winter cold seriously affected Germany's communications. In March Major General Fritz Todt, the Inspector-General of the German road system and of the building industry, became Minister for Arms and Munitions. General Todt was well known as the builder of the German West Wall. In view of the fact that Germany does not publish any detailed accounts of income and expenditure in its budgets, wartime expenditure can only be estimated. The average may amount to four or five billion marks monthly, of which about half is met from tax revenue and the other half by loans. Currency circulation was at a peak, but prices were maintained at a comparatively low level through strict control, in spite of the severe limitation of supplies, not only of food but of all consumer goods. The foreign trade balance of Germany in the later half of 1940 showed great differences compared with that of previous years. The main supply centers of Germany were Sweden, Italy and the Soviet Union.

While Germany entered the war with a public debt of 34,100,000,000 marks, the public debt at the end of the first year of war amounted to 62,800,000,000 marks. The wage level has been kept low, so that wages are sufficient only to provide for food and lodging, while new clothing or even repairs can be afforded only with the help of social welfare organizations or the so-called Winterhilfswerk, which is maintained in spite of the fact that there is practically no unemployment in the Reich. The question of the income of mobilized soldiers has been regulated in a way different from that of the first World War; the families of those mobilized have been guaranteed an income equivalent to that received in peacetime. Every change in the place of occupation and all dismissals or hiring of workers, require permission by the authorities, so as to assure the fullest and most efficient exploitation of labor resources. The average working week amounts to 49.3 hours. In spite of all efforts to keep prices low, they show a mounting tendency; the index number for food was 133 in 1940 as against 124.9 in 1939 and 112.3 in 1933 (with the year 1913-14 as 100), while clothing mounted from 106.7 in 1933 to 133.6 in 1939, and 140.1 in 1940. For the much advertised 'people's car' more than 400,000,000 marks had been paid in advance as installments by the German workers, but the factory built for the construction of these 'people's cars,' in Fallersleben, has been used thus far solely for the production of war materials. According to official German publications, taxes in different forms take much more than half of the nation's income. In view of the great increase in the public debt a reduction of taxation after the end of the war cannot be expected, except in case of a complete victory with resulting tribute.

See also articles on the various countries involved in the European War and articles on BULGARIA; HUNGARY; INTERNATIONAL BANKING AND FINANCE; JAPAN; TAXATION; TURKEY, and WORLD ECONOMICS.