Editing Denazification (section)

==== {{lang|de|Fragebogen}} ====
In 1946, the U.S. zone implemented a comprehensive survey known as the {{lang|de|Fragebogen}} (questionnaire).<ref>{{Cite web |title=GHDI - Image |url=https://ghdi.ghi-dc.org/sub_image.cfm?image_id=1012 |access-date=2024-12-20 |website=ghdi.ghi-dc.org}}</ref> The survey was used to identify the level of involvement post-war Germans had had with the Nazi regime. It was the initial tool in the process of identifying and purging Nazi influence from positions of power and public life. The survey consisted of 131 questions that asked about personal information, political affiliation, military service, professional activities, financial and social status, and cultural and educational activities. The vast variety of questions gave the Allies an ability to assess, categorize, and determine eligibility for positions in government, education, and business. 

An early version was created in 1944 by the [[Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force]] (SHAEF).<ref name="StaffStudy1944">Staff Study, "Measures for Identifying and Determining Disposition of Nazi Public Officials in Germany," May 28, 1944, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), RG 331, SHAEF, GS, G-5, IB, HS, Box 104, p. 7, Doc. 9959/181.</ref> This original version of the {{lang|de|Fragebögen}} set the foundation of later questionnaires that were created by the Allies in the different occupation zones. The early version consisted of 78 questions and asked about one's profession. In comparison, the 131 question survey asked more personal questions and gave respondents the ability to write comments and explanations for any responses that may need clarification. 

The inspiration for both variations of the questionnaire came from the {{lang|it|[[Scheda Personale]]}}, which was created in 1943 by political scientist Aldo L. Raffa.<ref name="RaffaFile">Aldo L. Raffa, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), RG 331, SHAEF, GS, G-5, IB, HS, Box 119, Doc. 5601/620; Personnel File, "Rafta, Aldo L.," NARA, RG 226, OSS, Box 630.</ref> The goal of the document was similar to the denazification questionnaire but was aimed at the defascization of Italy from the former fascists under [[Benito Mussolini|Mussolini]].<ref name="Dack2023">Dack, Mikkel. ''Everyday Denazification in Postwar Germany: The Fragebogen and Political Screening during the Allied Occupation''. Cambridge University Press, 2023, p. 70.</ref>

In addition to the removal of Nazis from influential positions in government, education and business, Mikkel Dack argues that the Fragebogen had the effect of forcing a large part of Germany's postwar population to confront their relationship to the Nazi regime. Moreover, the Fragebogen gave many Germans the opportunity to rewrite their past and construct a new anti-Nazi identity, further helping to distance the country from National Socialism.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dack |first=Mikkel |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/9781009216326/type/book |title=Everyday Denazification in Postwar Germany: The Fragebogen and Political Screening during the Allied Occupation |date=2023-03-31 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-009-21632-6 |edition=1 |pages=227–238 |doi=10.1017/9781009216326}}</ref>