Hitler - Fact File

Adolf Hitler (born April 20, 1889, Braunau am Inn, Austria—died April 30, 1945, Berlin,
Germany) was the leader of the Nazi Party (from 1920/21) and chancellor (Kanzler) and
Führer of Germany (1933–45). His worldview revolved around two concepts: territorial
expansion and racial supremacy. Those themes informed his decision to invade Poland, which
marked the start of World War II, as well as the systematic killing of six million Jews and
millions of others during the Holocaust.
Hitler’s father, Alois (born 1837), was illegitimate. For a time he bore his mother’s name,
Schicklgruber, but by 1876 he had established his family claim to the surname Hitler. Adolf
never used any other surname.
 Early life
After his father’s retirement from the state customs service, Adolf Hitler spent most of his childhood in Linz,
the capital of Upper Austria. It remained his favourite city throughout his life, and he expressed his wish to be
buried there. Alois Hitler died in 1903 but left an adequate pension and savings to support his wife and children.
Although Hitler feared and disliked his father, he was a devoted son to his mother, who died after much
suffering in 1907. With a mixed record as a student, Hitler never advanced beyond a secondary education. After
leaving school, he visited Vienna, then returned to Linz, where he dreamed of becoming an artist. Later, he used
the small allowance he continued to draw to maintain himself in Vienna. He wished to study art, for which he had
some faculties, but he twice failed to secure entry to the Academy of Fine Arts. For some years he lived a
lonely and isolated life, earning a precarious livelihood by painting postcards and advertisements and drifting
from one municipal hostel to another. Hitler already showed traits that characterized his later life: loneliness
and secretiveness, a bohemian mode of everyday existence, and hatred of cosmopolitanism and of the
multinational character of Vienna.
 In 1913 Hitler moved to Munich. Screened for Austrian military service in February 1914, he was classified as
unfit because of inadequate physical vigour; but when World War I broke out, he petitioned Bavarian King Louis
III to be allowed to serve, and one day after submitting that request, he was notified that he would be
permitted to join the 16th Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment. After some eight weeks of training, Hitler was
deployed in October 1914 to Belgium, where he participated in the First Battle of Ypres. He served throughout
the war, was wounded in October 1916, and was gassed two years later near Ypres. He was hospitalized when
the conflict ended. During the war, he was continuously in the front line as a headquarters runner; his bravery
in action was rewarded with the Iron Cross, Second Class, in December 1914, and the Iron Cross, First Class (a
rare decoration for a corporal), in August 1918. He greeted the war with enthusiasm, as a great relief from the
frustration and aimlessness of civilian life. He found discipline and comradeship satisfying and was confirmed in
his belief in the heroic virtues of war.
 Introduction - Adolf Hitler ruled Germany from 1933 to 1945. He called himself Führer (Leader). Hitler
believed that Germans were born to rule over other peoples. This led to World War II. He also believed that there
was no place in society for Jewish people. This idea led to the Holocaust, when millions of Jews were killed.
Early Life - Adolf Hitler was born on April 20, 1889, in Braunau am Inn, Austria. He grew up in Linz,
Austria. In about 1913 Hitler moved to Munich, Germany. When World War I began in 1914, he joined the
German army. After the war Hitler joined a tiny political group in Munich. In 1921 Hitler took control of the
group. By then it was known as the Nazi Party.
The Third Reich - By 1932 the Nazi Party was the largest party in the Reichstag (Germany’s lawmaking
assembly). Hitler became chancellor, or leader, of Germany in 1933. In 1934 he took complete control. He
created what he called the Third Reich, or empire.Hitler soon put his beliefs into practice. Soon Jews were not
allowed to own businesses or attend certain schools. Many were arrested and sent to concentration camps.
Hitler also strengthened Germany’s military power.
 World War II and the Holocaust Hitler then moved to enlarge the Third Reich. He took over neighboring
countries. When Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, World War II began.
During the war Hitler stepped up his campaign against the Jews. The Nazis killed many in the concentration
camps. Others died while working as slave laborers. Eventually some 6 million Jews died in the Holocaust.
By 1944 the war was going badly for Hitler. Hitler killed himself on April 30, 1945, in Berlin, Germany.
Germany surrendered, and the war in Europe ended on May 8. Did You Know?Hitler was appointed chancellor
by the German president, but he quickly made himself dictator.