In this episode, we’ll explore Nazi Germany's economic policy, focusing on rearmament and the goal of self-sufficiency. We’ll discuss Hjalmar Schacht's initial management of the economy and Hermann Goering's implementation of the Four-Year Plan in 1936, aimed at military expansion and economic independence. While rearmament successfully stimulated growth for major manufacturing businesses, efforts to replace imports with domestic substitutes encountered challenges. We’ll examine the transition to a war economy, which increased working hours and introduced rationing. Although unemployment decreased and wages rose, rising food costs and poor working conditions offset some gains for workers, benefiting large businesses and farmers disproportionately.
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