Adolf Hilter
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When the topic of dictators is brought up who comes to mind? Most anyone will say Adolf Hitler. Why was he so cruel? What drove his hatred for the Jews? Why did he want a so-called “perfect” race? Well the answer to all these questions might be answered from Hitlers childhood. Adolph Hitler was born on April 20, 1889, in Braunau am Inn, Austria. He was the son of Alois, a customs official, and Klara Hitler. Alois was a very mean and stern father. His death, in 1903, came as a
relief to Adolf. His relationship with his mother was totally opposite than his relationship with his father, Adolf idealized his mother so when she died in 1907 it was a very traumatic experience to him. This led to many problems, especially school.
While living in Vienna, Hitler made his living by drawing small pictures of famous landmarks, which he sold as post cards. But he was always poor. He was also a regular reader of a small paper, which claimed that the Arabian race was superior to all and was destined to rule the world. The paper blamed Communists and Jews for all their problems and Hitler agreed to those views. Hitler agreed with most of the points made in the publication. He continued to live a poor life in Vienna and in 1913 decided to move to Munich. Still living in Vienna and being Austrian by birth, Hitler showed more loyalty to the country of Germany. He thought that the Aryan race was destined to rule the world. Many believe that he tried to escape the draft but it was never proven. His life in Munich was not much better then before and he continued to be poor. Then in 1914 World War I broke out and Hitler saw this as a great opportunity to show his loyalty to the “fatherland” by volunteering for the Imperial army. He did not want to fight in the Austrian Army. Hitler was a good soldier. Many of his political opponents claimed that he was a coward but records clearly show that he was not. He received two awards of bravery but never achieved a high rank.
In 1918 Germany surrendered and Hitler was very upset about the loss. He believed that it was the Jews and the Communists who betrayed the “fatherland” and it was here that his disliking of the Jews most likely began. Germany, after the war, was in chaos. With no real Government to control the country, mangroups tried to take control. One day a big communist group staged a big riot but another group of ex-soldiers, including Hitler, managed to hold them back. Hitlers political rise starts to take off in the year of 1919.
Since there were not many chances for employment Hitler stayed in the army. Hitler was assigned the job of going to various meetings of groups, which came up frequently, and to report on them. One day on September 12, 1919 – a fateful day in history, Hitler was sent to investigate a small group, which called itself the “German Workers Party”. Hitler was not too happy about his assignment. He thought it wouldnt be worth it to even go. At the group they mainly talked about the Countries problem and how the Jews, communists, and others where threatening the master race and offered their own solutions. Hitler was bored by the meeting but when a man stood up and claimed that Bavaria should separate from Germany, Hitler got up and argued that point. He argued that Germany and Germans must unite into one to survive. His natural ability to speak impressed the leader of the group and at the end of the meeting he gave Hitler a pamphlet and an initiation the next meeting. He wasnt interested in attending but after reading the hand out he accepted. He later joined the German Workers Party and was in charge of propaganda. The party was small at first but Hitlers great skill at deliberating speeches attracted more and more listeners and it soon became a major party with many followers. Eventually Adolf Hitler became its leader and the rest as they say is history, as the Nazi Party had come to the forefront of Germany.
While spending time in prison for trying to overthrow the government Adolf Hitler wrote his famous book “Mein Kampf”, in which he describes many problems and where he states that the Jews and communists were responsible for those problems. He also decided on the “Final Solution” to the “Jewish Question”. It was his goal to eliminate the Jewish race from the European continent. It is interesting to look and see how a small time boy from Austria with no education, money or political background could become within a few years the leader of a big nation such as Germany. Historians believe that Hitler saw a great opportunity to get his views across to the German people who had lost all hope. Of course people did not start to support him right away. After he came into power, the Nazi party took control over every aspect of every day life. Hitler ordered the creation of a special police force to make sure that all opponents would be eliminated, the Gestapo. He also gave orders to set up a special force, which would be used to transport and take care of all political prisoners, and people who were thought to be inferior. The name of the force was the feared SS. Mass propaganda was used to persuade the German people that the “Fuhrer” would make the country strong and powerful again. They also used propaganda against the Jews and other minority groups that were considered enemies. Teachers had to belong to the Nazi party, and children were taught that Jews were the very the source of all their problems. Since the country was in chaos after the war, and was forced to pay billions in damages, the Germans saw hope in Adolf Hitler. In the late 20s the depression hit which made the situation even worse. Hitler, in his speeches, blamed the Jews and Communists for their misfortunes and many listed problems. Unemployment was very high at that time, standing at about 25%. Hitler also spoke out against the unfairness of the Versailles treaty. Germany lost a lot of its territory. The Empire was no more. He believed the pure Arabian race is destined to rule the world and wanted to build an Empire that would last a 1000 years. He preached that all Germans must unite in order for this goal to succeed. Hitler publicly stated his views on the Jews. But the Jews of Germany didnt see Hitler as a great threat at first. However when Hitler became chancellor and eventually took over totally they changed their mind.