Adolf Hitler

Adolf Hitler was born on April 20, 1889 in Braunau,
Austria, a small town across the Inn River from Germany.
Soon after Hitler's birth, his father, Alois Hitler, moved
the family to Linz, Austria. Hitler attended school in Linz
and at first was a good student, but in high school he was
a very poor student. Hitler's academic abilities angered
his father because his father hoped that Hitler would study
to become a government worker as he had been. Hitler,
however, wanted to become an artist. In 1907, Hitler went
to Vienna Austria in an attempt to fulfill his dream of
becoming an artist. This attempt ended when he failed the
entrance exam to the Academy of Fine Arts.

When Hitler's mother died in 1907, he decided to remain in
Vienna. He took the entrance exam a year later and failed
again. He did not have steady work in Vienna, but, instead,
took a variety of odd jobs. He lived in cheap rooming
houses or slept on park benches and he often had to get
meals from charity kitchens. During his time in Vienna
Hitler learned to hate non-Germans. Hitler was a
German-speaking Austrian and considered himself German. He
ridiculed the Austrian government for recognizing eight
languages as official and believed that no government could
last if it treated ethnic groups equally. In 1913, Hitler
went to Munich, Germany and when the First World War began
in 1914, he volunteered for service in the German army.
Hitler was given the job of despatch-runner. It was a
dangerous job as it involved carrying messages from
regimental headquarters to the front-line. Hitler won five
medals including the prestigious Iron Cross during the
First World War but only rose to the rank of corporal. When
the First World War ended Hitler was in a hospital
recovering from temporary blindness caused by a poison gas
attack. Hitler went into a state of deep depression when he
heard of the German surrender.

The Versailles Treaty that ended the war stripped Germany
of much of its territory, forced the country to disarm, and
ordered Germany to pay huge reparations. The country was
bankrupt and millions of people were unemployed. In 1919,
Hitler joined the German Workers Party. In 1920 the party
was renamed the National Socialist German Workers Party
(the Nazis) and published its first programme which became
known as the "25 Points". In the programme the Nazis called
for all Germans to unite into one nation, a strong central
government and the cancellation of the Versailles Treaty.
In 1921 Hitler became leader of the Nazi party and built up
membership quickly, mostly because of his oratory skills
and powerful speeches. Hitler organized an army for the
Nazi party called the Storm Troopers ("Brown Shirts") who
were called upon to fight groups seeking to disrupt the
Nazi rallies.

On November 9, 1923, Hitler led more than 2,000 Storm
Troopers on a march to seize the Bavarian government - the
Munich Putsch. The putsch failed and Hitler was arrested
and sentenced to prison for five years for treason. While
in prison, Hitler wrote Mein Kampf (My Struggle). In this
book he stated his beliefs and plans for Germany's future.
Hitler only served nine months in prison and when he was
released, he began to rebuild the party again. He realized
that to gain power he needed to use legal means rather than
violence. He also set up a private elite bodyguard known
as the "Schutzstaffel" (SS). By 1929, the Nazis were only a
minor political party. The Wall Street Crash in 1929 and
subsequent depression gave Hitler and the Nazis their
chance to achieve power. Hitler protested that the Jews and
Communists were the cause of Germany's problems. He
promised to rid Germany of Jews and Communists and to
reunite the German speaking part of Europe.

In July 1932, the Nazis received about 40% of the vote and
became the strongest party in Germany. On January 30 1933,
President Paul von Hindenburg appointed Hitler Chancellor
of Germany. Once in this position, Hitler moved quickly
toward attaining a dictatorship. When von Hindenburg died
in 1934, Hitler already had control of Germany and he gave
himself the title "Fuhrer" (leader). Under Hitler's
government, called the Third Reich, there was no place for
freedom. The government controlled every part of one's
life. Hitler used extensive propaganda to brainwash the
nation into believing his theory about creating the perfect
Aryan race. Therefore, it was Hitler's plan to rid the
nation and eventually the world of Jews, Gypsies, Negroes,
handicapped, and mentally ill persons. This plan was called
the "Final Solution." The Second World War began in 1939
when Hitler invaded Poland to begin his unification of all
German-speaking peoples. By this time extermination camps
were being established throughout Germany, Poland, and
Russia.

Many people tried to assassinate Hitler. The most dramatic
of these attempts was the July Plot. On July 20, 1944,
Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, who was attending one of
Hitler's military conferences, placed a bomb in a briefcase
under the table. When the bomb exploded it killed four
people and seriously injured ten others, but Hitler only
suffered minor cuts and burns.

In January 1945, the Soviet troops entered Nazi Germany.
It was suggested that Hitler should try to escape. Hitler
rejected the idea as he feared the possibility of being
captured. He had heard stories of how the Soviet troops
planned to parade him through the streets of Germany in a
cage. To prevent this humiliation Hitler decided to commit
suicide. Two days before his death Hitler married Eva
Braun. Braun agreed to commit suicide with him. On April
30 1945 the Soviet troops were only 300 yards away from
Hitler's underground bunker. Defeat was inevitable. Hitler
made a will leaving all his property to the Nazi Party.
After saying their farewells Hitler and Eva Braun went into
a private room and took cyanide tablets. Hitler also shot
himself in the head. His body was then cremated and his
ashes were hidden in the Chancellery grounds. Seven days
later, Germany surrendered.

----------------------------------------------------
The author is a teacher and writes on a wide range of
subjects.
http://vondix.com

EasyPublish this article: http://submityourarticle.com/articles/easypublish.php?art_id=57014