|
|
|
|
Adolf Hitler
|
|
Famous As |
Nazi Leader,
German Dictator and Chancellor of Germany |
|
Born On |
20 April
1889 |
|
Born In |
Braunau am,
Inn, Austria - Hungry |
|
Died On |
30 April
1945 |
|
Nationality |
Germany |
|
|
Adolf
Hitler, an Austrian-born politician, was the leader of the Nazi
Party and a notorious dictator of Germany. Before coming to power as
a dictator, he was the Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945 and
Head of State serving from 1934 to 1945. As a leader of the Nazi
party, Hitler promoted nationalism, anti-Semitism, anti-communism
through establishing a Fascist dictatorship in Germany and espoused
a foreign policy of world conquest. His interpretation of racial
subjugation and anti-Jewish policies caused death of million of
|
|
|
people in Germany with an estimated 6 million
Jews and several other groups of people,
including his political opponents. Atrocities
committed by him during the war including
'genocide' of Jews, widely known as The
Holocaust' put him against the peace and unity
in world and eventually led to his downfall
after his defeat in the Second World War. The
dictator committed suicide with the Russian
troops taking over Germany in 1945. |
|
Childhood and Early Life:
Hitler was born on 20 April 1889 in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungry
to Alois Hitler and Klara Polzl. Of their six children, only Hitler
and his younger sister, Paula could survive into adulthood. His
father Alois, a custom official by profession, was tremendously
violent to his wife and son, and used to beat them often. According
to Hitler’s book, “he had a terrible childhood”. The regular
whipping and violence committed by his father made him extremely
sympathetic to his mother, while having an unfathomable bitterness
towards his father. In spite of his father’s constant pressure to
pursue a career like his, Hitler dropped out of high school without
a diploma, as a revolt against his father. Even after his father’s
death on 3 January 1903, he did not show any liking for studies and
rather tried to be a painter. During 1900’s, Hitler
lived in Vienna with financial support from an orphan’s house; his
mother died of breast cancer on 21 December 1907, at the age of 47.
While living in Vienna, Hitler struggled as a painter after having
been rejected twice by the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna during
1907-1908. According to Hitler, his anti-Semitism came from having
seen an orthodox Jew community in Vienna, a breeding ground of
racial and religious prejudice at that time. Hitler held the Jew
community responsible for Germany’s collapse and economic problems
thereafter. In May 1913, Hitler came into possession of the final
part of his father’s estate and moved to Munich. With Germany
entering World War I in August 1914, Hitler enlisted in the Bavarian
army. |
|
Entry Into Politics: After
World War I, Hitler was appointed as a police spy of an Intelligence
Commando of the Reichswehr as a mean to infiltrate the German
Worker’s Party. Here he came into the contact of its founder Anton
Drexel and got impressed with his anti-Jewish socialism and
anti-capitalist ideas; Hitler became a member of the party. He was
discharged from the Army in 1920 and became an active party member
with his highly effective oratory skills and delivered speeches
against Marxists, Jews and anti-socialists. After a trust vote in
1921, Hitler was made the chairman of the German Worker’s Part who
had changed its name to National Socialists German Worker’s Party.
Hitler was arrested and charged with high treason after his attempt
to instigate a coup against the government and start a march on
Berlin in 1923. A
trial ensued, and he was sentenced to five year’s imprisonment at
Landsbergis Prison on 1 April 1924 but was released from jail in
1924 after receiving a general amnesty. While in the prison, Hitler
wrote his autobiography Mein Kampf (literally 'My struggle'), which
is an elucidation of his ideology. The book was published in two
volumes in 1925 and 1926. On 25 February 1932, Hitler was granted
the citizenship of Germany; thus making him eligible for contesting
presidential election against Hindenburg. Even though he failed in
his attempt, Hitler emerged as a strong alternative in the German
politics. After all attempts of Hindenburg to secure majority in
parliament failed, he agreed to appoint Hitler as the Chancellor of
Germany, as it was obviously impossible for him to form a government
without Nazi’s support. |
|
Chancellor Of
Germany:
On 30 January 1933,
Hitler was sworn in as Chancellor of Germany in a ceremony held at
Hindenburg’s office. Having gained legislative and executive power,
Hitler began his move towards establishing the Nazi’s dictatorship
in Germany. Though Nazi party had failed to gain majority in
parliament, he blocked all attempts of his opponents to come into
power through elections. Hitler’s government further banned
Communist Party of Germany and Social Democratic party and forced
all other parties to dissolve. On 14 July 1933, Nazi Party was
declared the only legal Party in Germany. After the death of
President Hindenburg on 2 August 1934, Hitler was made the supreme
commander of the military and ultimate power of the nation, whose
officers took oath to Hitler’s loyalty.
During Hitler’s rule, Germany witnessed the largest expansion of
infrastructure and reached the level of near full employment. One
of the major policies of Hitler was racial purification, based upon
the ideas of Arthur de Gobineau - misinterpretation though - meaning
survival of the fittest. The policy caused deaths of thousands of
physically disabled, mentally retarded and ill people, who-in
Hitler’s opinion were unworthy of life, and a burden to their
nation. The Holocaust was seen as the only way out to eliminate the
Jews from their land. Though Hitler always denied any mass killing
conducted by the Nazis’, there are evidences, which clearly show the
involvement of Hitler in the executions. |
|
The Second World War:
As
Germany went on gaining strength, Hitler finally ended the informal
alliance that existed between Germany and China since the 1920s. He
thus paved the way for Japan to become Germany's new ally. In an
answer to this Chinese Premier Chang Kai-Shek cancelled all of the
Sino-German economic agreements, thereby depriving the Germans of
raw materials such as tungsten which came from China earlier. In
early 1938, Hitler forced Austria into amalgamation with Germany and
made a victorious entry into Vienna on 14 March.
Strong in his will and withstanding all his challenges, Hitler
ordered his allies to start preparing plans for the invasion of
Czechoslovakia, which thereby increased the tension in Europe. The
famous May Crisis of 19-22 May 1938 in Europe was a terror caused by
rumors that Czechoslovakia would be attacked during the municipal
elections there. This led to a word of warning from London that a
German move against Czechoslovakia could be dangerous. Though plans
had already been drafted in April 1938 for an attack on
Czechoslovakia in the near future, the May Crisis backfired
resulting in Hitler’s political defeat and thus making him the prey
of his own trap. This was enough to make him understand that
expansion without attacking Britain was impossible, and attacking
Britain was a dangerous game that could hit back and create
disaster. |
|
After
the fall of Poland to Germany and the end of the so called Phoney
War in part of north-western Poland; Hitler instructed the two
Gauleiters to Germanize the area. After taking-over of Poland,
another major clash surfaced between different factions. Expelling
the entire Jewish population of Europe into Africa and reducing the
remainder of the Polish population to a leaderless laboring class,
Hitler went on making Europe into a danger zone. As time passed he
went on going from step to step ordering bombing raids on England.
This is famously known in history as the Battle of Britain and
Hitler’s planned attack. The process began by striking the Royal Air
Force bases and radar stations protecting South-East England. Hitler
then ordered the bombing of British cities, including London,
Plymouth and Coventry, mostly at night. |
|
The Road To Fall:
On 22
June 1941, three million German troops attacked the Soviet Union,
thereby breaking the non-aggression pact that was signed between
Hitler and Stalin two years back in 1939. Many historians are of the
view that this attack was a part of the dreams of World Conquest
that Hitler had formulated in 1920’s. This, in course, came as a
hope for Winston Churchill; Hitler gave in private for Barbarossa,
namely that Winston Churchill who wanted the Soviet Union to enter
the war on the Allied side. Hitler's declaration of war against the
United States on 11 December 1941, put him against a noxious union
including the world's largest empire (the British Empire), the
world's greatest industrial and financial power (the United States),
and the world's largest army (the Soviet Union). In
late 1942, German forces were defeated in the second battle of El
Alamein, which strongly hit Hitler's plans to seize the Suez Canal
and thereby the Middle East. Situation became worse with the
progress of the Battle of Stalingrad that ended with a destruction
of German 6th Army in February 1943. On 6 June 1944, the Western
armies landed in northern France, making it one of the largest
victories of European army. It was by this time that defeat became
inevitable, leading to the end of Hitler’s rule in Germany. |
|
The Last Days:
By
late 1944, the Red Army had forced the German troops back into
Central Europe and the Western Allies continued to progress into
Germany. It was then Hitler realized that Germany was doomed. He
ordered complete destruction of Germany’s infrastructure' before
it’s captured by the enemies; preparing the entire Germany go along
with him in his dreadful end. In April 1945, the Soviet forces
attacked the suburbs of Berlin. Hitler disposed his follower’s
advice to take shelter in the mountains of Bavaria, and rather
decided to die in the capital. On 20 April, Hitler celebrated his
56th birthday in the Fuehrer’s shelter without much anguish. As
days went on, the Red Army intensified its attack on Berlin
increasing woes for Hitler and his aides. The violent death of
Italian dictator Benito Mussolini on 28 April added further added
fuel to fire and suddenly 30 April 1945, after intense fighting,
when Soviet troops were within a block or two of the Reich
Chancellery, Hitler committed suicide. He shot himself in the mouth
while simultaneously biting into a cyanide capsule. His mistress Eva
Braun, whom he had married a day before also committed suicide along
with him. Their bodies were secretly buried by the German troops
before the Red Army captured Berlin on 2 May 1945. |
|
Time
Line:
1889 -
Adolf Hitler was born on 20 April
1903 -
His father died on 3 January
1907 -
His mother died on21 December
1933 -
Hitler was sworn in as Chancellor
of Germany on 30 January
1933
- Nazi Party was declared the only
legal Party in Germany on 14 July
1934 -
Hitler was made the supreme commander of the military on 2 August
1939 -
Non-aggression pact was signed
between Hitler and Stalin
1941 -
Three million German troops attacked the Soviet Union on 22 June
1941 -
Hitler declared war against the
United States on 11 December
1942 -
German forces were defeated in the second battle of El Alamein
1943 -
The Battle of Stalingrad ended the destruction of German troops
1944 -
The Western armies landed in northern France on 6 June
1945 -
Soviet forces attacked the suburbs of Berlin
1945 -
Italian dictator Benito Mussolini died on 28 April
1945
-
Hitler committed suicide along with his wife Eva Braun
1945 -
The Red Army captured Berlin on 2
May
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
