Persecution of Jews in Germany

Boycotts and restrictions

Anti-Semitism in Europe dates back to the Middle Ages and continued into the 20th century. But during the Nazi era, Jews were persecuted and murdered on a previously unknown scale. It is the darkest chapter in German history.

With the Nazi Party under Hitler's leadership assuming power in the German Reich, systematic discrimination and persecution of the Jewish population began. Anti-Semitism was at the core of Nazi ideology; the Jews were to be driven out of Germany and thus out of the “national community”.

Shortly after the Reichstag elections in 1933, there was a call to boycott Jewish stores. Stores owned by Jews were marked with smearings, and the nationwide boycott was accompanied by violent riots.

In 1935, the Nazi government passed th...