“Hitler’ s New Order” refers to the introduction of racism in occupied Europe and ruling eastern Europe so as to benefit Germany. In order to realize this purpose, the “Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia” was formed in 1939. It was one of the mos timportant areas for Germany, especially because some profitable heavy industries, coal mines, and coke coals were located in the “Ostrava‒Karviná industrial district” and “Vitkovice ironwork.” Therefore, this area was the vital target to Nazi not only for business but also for the military strategy to occupy eastern European “Reich Commissariat.” Consequently, the Nazi’ s racial and occupation policy were clearly reflected in the life of the inhabitants of this area.
In Ostrava, the Nazi occupation principle gave preference to hardworking individuals such as miners or Vitkovice ironworkers to join the military. For example, these workers could receive more ration and public welfare goods such as recreation than the other workers, although they were not German but of Czech nationality. However, the Nazi ruling policy was the reason for creating inhumane working conditions for other occupational category workers, which was a result of the deteriorated war situation.
Moreover, Jewish inhabitants in Ostrava were excluded from the society and were transferred to concentration camps. Although Nazi rulers established the goal of “Czech self‒government” in Protectorate, Nazi‒intolerant racism influenced every inhabitant.
For the local society in Ostrava, postwar period from 1945 to 1948 was the more crucial turning point than Nazi rule, because the Czechoslovakian postwar government began to expel Germans from country and implemented the Czech nation settlement policy. Certainly, it seemed that the principle of Nazi racism and the postwar German expulsion policy from Czech lands had some common point, but the Czechoslovakian postwar government placed more importance on the restoration of the industry and the creating of individual ownership for farmers than on national (racial) retaliation.
Although Czech society during Nazi wartime experienced a controlled economy and was prepared for Communism from 1948, the postwar government, influenced by the Communist Party in 1948, gave priority to the Czech farmers in colonizing and distributing property from German inhabitants to contribute to industrial concentration and the nationalization policy. In addition to the policy for expulsion of Germans, the resettlement policy of Czech immigrants from abroad and the beginning of the Cold War resulted in the definitive transformation of postwar Czech society in Ostrava.
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