Essay/Term paper: Adolf hitler

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Biography

Adolf Hitler


1. THE BEGINNING
At half past six on the evening of April 20th, 1889 a child was born in the
small town of Branau, Austria. The name of the child was Adolf Hitler. He was
the son a Customs official Alois Hitler, and his third wife Klara.
As a young boy Adolf attendated church regulary and sang in the local choir.
One day he carved a symbol into the bench which resembled the Swastika he later
used as the symbol of the Nazi party. He was a pretty good student. He
received good marks in most of his classes. However in his last year of school
he failed German and Mathematics, and only succeeded in Gym and Drawing. He
drooped out of school at the age of 16, spending a total of 10 years in school.
From childhood one it was his dream to become an artist or architect. He was
not a bad artist, as his surviving paintings and drawings show but he never
showed any originality or creative imagination. To fullfil his dream he had
moved to Vienna the capital of Austria where the Academy of arts was located.
He failed the first time he tried to get admission and in the next year, 1907 he
tried again and was very sure of success. To his surprise he failed again. In
fact the Dean of the academy was not very impressed with his performance, and
gave him a really hard time and said to him "You will never be painter." The
rejection really crushed him as he now reached a dead end. He could not apply
to the school of architecture as he had no high-school diploma. During the next
35 years of his live the young man never forgot the rejection he received in the
dean's office that day. Many Historians like to speculate what would have
happened IF.... perhaps the small town boy would have had a bit more
talent....or IF the Dean had been a little less critical, the world might have
been spared the nightmare into which this boy was eventually to plunge it.

2. WORLD WAR I
While living in Vienna Hitler he 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 Araban 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 agree
with most of the points made in the publication. He continued to live a poor
live in Vienna and in 1913 decided to move to Munich. Still living in Vienna
and being Austrain by birth, Hitler showed more loyalty to the Geramny. 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 live 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 political
opponents claimed that he was a coward but records clearly show that he was not.
He received to 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, many
groups 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.

3. THE NAZI PARTY
Since there were not many chances for employment Hitler stayed in the army.
Hitler was assigned the job of going go to various meetings of groups which
sprang up like mushrooms and to report on them. One day 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 to happy about his
assignment. He thought it wouldn't be worth it to even go. At the group 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 imprest
the leader of the group and at the end of the meeting he gave Hitler a pamphlet
and an initiation the next meeting. He wasn't 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 Hitler's great
skill at deliberating speeches attracted more and more listeners and it soon
became a major party with many followers. Eventually Adolf Hitler became it's
leader and the rest as they say....is history.

4. HITLER IN POWER
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 big
nation such as Germany. Historians believe that Hitler saw a great opportunity
to get his views across to the German people who have 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
elimanted, the Gestapo. He also gave orders to set up a special force which
would be used to transport and take care of all political prisioners and people
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 which were considered enemies. Teachers had to
belong to the Nazi party, and children were taught that Jews 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
20's the depression hit which made the situation even worse.
Hitler in his speeches blamed the Jews and Communists for their misfortunes
and many listed. 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
Araban 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
didn't see Hitler as a great threat at first. However when Hitler became
chancellor and eventually took over totally they changed their mind. The first
thing he did was to take the Jews their right to vote. Soon they were not
allowed to marry with a pure german, they could not hold positions such as
teachers, doctors lawyers,..and so on. Many Jews only then realized that he was
serious and many fled Germany. Why did so many Germans follow Hitler? When he
took power the economy was basically non existent. Many looked for answers and
hope. Hitler was their answer. He promised to rebuild the Glorious Germany of
the past. First he started to build up the Wehrmacht. Germany was not allowed
to have more than 100,000 men, but Hitler broke the treaty and gave orders to
increase that number. Factories started putting out weapons and people now had
jobs. To the Germans this was a very good sign. Mass rallies were held, where
Hitler continued to use his powers of speech on the German people.

5. THE ROAD TO WAR
At first the allies did nothing about the fact that Hitler broke the Treaty.
He gave speeches in which he indicated that the German people needed living
space. Later he Marched into the Reihnland, and area which Germany lost. Next
He moved into Austria, his home country and annexed it without a shoot being
fired into the Reich. Following Austria, he wanted control of the Sudetenland,
a part of Czechoslovakia which was mainly German speaking. He also achieved
that goal. The allies didn't want another war so they led Hitler do what he
wanted to, but when he Attacked Poland on September 1st, 1939 the allies no
longer stood by and watched. Britain and France declared war on Germany a few
days after later, World War II began.

6. THE DARK SIDE
After the Wehrmacht conquered and occupied a territory the SS quickly
followed. They would round up Jews, Communists, Gypsies, Homosexuals and others
which were viewed as "Inferior" according to Nazi racial theory and enemies of
the German people and put on trains. They were all sent to Concentration camps,
which were set up to implement the 'final solution'. Camps such as Auschwitz,
Treblinka, Bergen Belsen were all equipped with gas chambers to make the killing
process quick and efectfull. In those camps 6 million Jews and many others were
killed by the Nazis. Hitler's army seemed unstoppable but in the end, the
allies managed to win many decisive battles. Eventually on Aril 30th, 1945
Hitler committed suicide in his bunker by shooting himself in the mouth. His
body was burned, but no ones knows what happened to the "Fuhrer's" ashes. On
May 7th, 1945 Germany surrendered unconditionally.

7. THE MAN
Hitler was one of the most, if not the most cruel man to ever walk the face
of the earth. His believe of the superiorority of the "Aryan" race made him
hate all others. He believed that the slaws to the east should be made work for
the German people. He thought of blacks as being "Sub-human". And Most of all
he hated the Jews. So much that in early 1945, when equipment and manpower was
badly needed on the front Hitler insisited on man and equipment staying and
continuing to tranport Jews to the camps. In his Testament he left his money to
his family. And message to the Germany people "Above all I charge the leaders
of the nation and those under them to scrupulous observance of the laws of race
and to merciless opposition to the universal poisoner of all peoples,
international Jewry."
The only people which would be spared where the Scandinavians to the north,
since they were closely related to the German race. With Hitler's death the
Nazi party quickly fated. But there is still a lot of tension in todays Germany.