The Coming of the Third Reich

Because of the Great Depression, between 200,000 and 500,000 men were unhoused (232). This had a damaging effect especially on men “in a society where men’s prestige, recognition, even identity itself derived above all from the job they did” (232). Following the hyperinflation crisis, the German economic collapse was tied to its dependence on investments from the United States, the largest economy in the world. In 1928, the United States placed restrictions on foreign loans in order to try to stabilize gold prices, which were still the basis for the United States’ and Germany’s currencies. As a result, German industry and financial investments declined.

October 24, 1929 became known as “Black Thursday.” The United States’ stocks fell sharply in a panic. American banks and companies went bankrupt. Investments from the United States in Germany evaporated, causing both industrial and agricultural production to fall apart. “By 1932, roughly one worker in three in Germany was registered as unemployed…” (236). Many who stayed employed found themselves working at reduced pay and hours or having to take new unskilled jobs they were overqualified for. Those who were unemployed found their benefits cut or eliminated.

Unemployed men began to organize in gangs, the “wild cliques” (237).