Antisemitism and Nazi Power
Did antisemitism help or hinder the Nazis’ bid for world domination?
Introduction
The Nazis weren't just patching Germany up after the First World War. Their leaders were dreaming much bigger than that... a huge empire that would run Europe and turn the whole world order on its head. You can see it in everything they talked about: Hitler's "Greater German Reich," the drive eastward for Lebensraum, the fight with other big powers that everyone knew was coming. None of that was about getting back on their feet. It was about reaching for something far, far more.
Antisemitism sat right at the core of this vision. Jews were cast as enemies of the German nation, scapegoated for every political and economic crisis, and eventually marked out for systematic persecution and mass murder. What this website explores is the tension at the core of all this: how much did antisemitism actually help the Nazis seize and consolidate power, and how much did it drag them into choices that ended up sabotaging the very goals they were chasing?
“This site is designed for A‑level and university‑level readers interested in Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. Use the menu at the top to jump to any section, or move through the pages in sequence to follow the argument from Nazi aims to the final ‘to what extent’ answer.”
What this site covers?
What the Nazis wanted
Sets out Hitler’s long‑term goals and explains what ideas like “world domination” and a “new order” actually meant in concrete terms
So, to what extent
Brings this evidence together to offer a clear, balanced answer to the central question, drawing on major historical debates and your own research findings.
How antisemitism supported Nazi power
Explores how hostility towards Jews helped the regime gain support, reshape law and society, and present the war to Germans as necessary and justified.
How antisemitism undermined Nazi power
Shows how genocide, ideological warfare in the East, and the loss of Jewish scientists and experts weakened Germany’s ability to win the war.
This wartime poster shows a stereotyped Jew presented as the real force behind Germany’s enemies, suggesting that Jews were to blame for the war. It sums up the Nazi claim that ‘international Jewry’ was directing Britain, the USA and the USSR, a belief that linked antisemitism directly to the regime’s view of global politics.
Why this still matters?
Antisemitism was not just background prejudice in Nazi Germany; it sat at the heart of government policy and drove the Holocaust. These ideas did not disappear in 1945. Antisemitic myths and other racist conspiracy stories still surface in public life. Looking at how such beliefs shaped Nazi choices can help us question messages of hate, recognise manipulative propaganda, and think more carefully about the political decisions we face today.