Generalplan Ost
Nazi plan for genocide and colonization of Eastern Europe.
OTFW , Berlin · CC BY-SA 3.0
Generalplan Ost (GPO) was Nazi Germany's master plan for the settlement and Germanization of captured territory in Eastern Europe. It involved the genocide, extermination, and large-scale ethnic cleansing of Slavs, Eastern European Jews, and other indigenous peoples categorized as 'Untermenschen' in Nazi ideology. The plan was a precursor to the planned colonization of Central and Eastern Europe by Germanic settlers and was carried out through systematic massacres, mass starvations, chattel labor, mass rapes, child abductions, and sexual slavery.
Quick Facts
- Title
- de · Generalplan Ost
- Subheader
- Master Plan for the East
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The plan was only partially implemented during the war on the Eastern Front, resulting indirectly and directly in the deaths of millions by shootings, starvation, disease, extermination through labor, and genocide. While the plan envisioned the genocide of the majority of Slavic inhabitants, the figure of around 11 million Slavs is often cited as the estimated number of deaths that would have resulted from full implementation, not the actual number killed directly under the plan. Similarly, the deaths of approximately 3.3 million Soviet POWs captured by the Wehrmacht are generally attributed to broader Nazi policies, not specifically as a direct part of Generalplan Ost's colonization and Germanization framework.
Reader's Guide
Generalplan Ost represents one of the most extreme examples of genocidal planning in history, combining ideological racism with systematic state violence. Its significance lies in its scale and ambition: had it been fully implemented, an estimated more than 60 million people would have perished. The plan was a direct expression of Nazi ideology's 'Master Race' doctrine and scientific racism, which condemned Slavs to permanent domination. Although never fully realized due to Germany's defeat, its partial implementation caused millions of deaths through shootings, starvation, disease, and slave labor. The plan's legacy is a stark reminder of how ideological fanaticism can drive state policy toward mass murder. The plan was gradually abandoned after the German defeat at Stalingrad, when resources were diverted to war efforts.
Did You Know?
- The plan had implementation cost estimates ranging from 40 to 67 billion Reichsmarks, close to Germany's entire 1941 GDP.
- A fundamental change in the plan occurred on June 24, 1941, when the 'solution' to the Jewish question ceased to be part of that framework and gained a lethal, autonomous priority.
- The plan included the Hunger Plan, which aimed to cause the deaths of more than 30 million Slavic inhabitants through deliberate starvation.
- The primary drafter of Generalplan Ost was Konrad Meyer; SS-Standartenführer Hans Ehlich is not historically credited as a co-drafter of the main document.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What was Generalplan Ost?
Generalplan Ost was a Nazi German blueprint for the forced resettlement and 'Germanization' of occupied Eastern European territories. It envisioned the systematic elimination or subjugation of Slavic populations, Jews, and other groups deemed inferior under Nazi racial ideology to clear land for German colonial settlement.
How many people were targeted under Generalplan Ost?
The plan projected the removal or death of roughly 80 million non-German inhabitants of the East over a 25-year period. If fully realized, the cumulative death toll from starvation, forced labor, and direct killing was estimated to exceed 60 million people.
What methods did Generalplan Ost prescribe?
The document called for mass starvation, forced labor to exhaustion, deliberate depopulation through neglect, and outright killing of populations in targeted regions. It also included provisions for the abduction of children deemed 'racially suitable' for Germanization and the use of sexual violence as a tool of population control.
Was Generalplan Ost ever fully implemented?
No; the Soviet counteroffensive and Germany's defeat in 1945 prevented the plan from reaching its projected 25-year timeline. However, its core principles were already being enacted through the Holocaust, the Hunger Plan, and mass deportations well before the war's end.
Why is Generalplan Ost considered significant in WWII historiography?
It is viewed as the ideological and logistical backbone connecting the Holocaust to broader Nazi colonial ambitions in the East. Historians treat it as evidence that the genocide of Jews and Slavs was not merely opportunistic but part of a long-range settlement and extermination strategy.
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