WWII+Hitler+Page+VAAY

=The Secret of the Infamous Dictator=

**Early Life**
Adolf Hitler was born on April 20, 1889 in the Austrian town of Braunau-am-Inn. Both of Hitler's parents died when he was at a very young age. Alois, Hitler's father, died when Hitler was only thirteen years old and Klara, Hitler's mother, passed away when Hitler was at the age of nineteen. He also had a younger sister named Paula, but nobody was available to take care of her, so somebody else cared for her. Hitler did not do very well in school. He dropped out of school at the age of sixteen, and applied for the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts because his dream was to become an artist. Unfortunately, he was rejected. During the World War I, he volunteered in the 16th Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment and won two Iron Cross metals for his performance in battle. When the war ended, Hitler was in the hospital because of a gas attack injury to his eye. After he recovered, he joined the German Workers Party. While in the German Workers Party, he attracted many people to his speeches with his energetic speaking style. This party eventually became known as the Nazi Party.

**Problems from WWI**
The Treaty of Versailles ended World War I. However, this treaty didn't help Germany at all. The first part of the treaty was the League of Nations. The purpose of this League was to negotiate conflicts to preserve peace, rather than just to go straight into a war. Germany then was hit hard with the reparations. First, they lost 10% of their territory. Then, they had to admit that they were the cause of World War I due to the "war guilt clause." Finally, Germany also had to pay for all the damages from the war; but the amount was described as "an amount so high that it was too much for Germany to pay." This heavily weakened Germany's economy. Historians believed the Treaty of Versailles and the ending of World War I was a cause of the next world war because these losses gave Germany more lust for power. Because of the heavy reparations and the fact they had to admit they were the start of World War I, Germany had a new goal to become more powerful than the other nations.

**Rise of Hitler and Nazis**
The Nazis use the good luck symbol of the Swastika to indicate a belief that it could trace a superior line of "German blood" back to an ancient Aryan empire. The biggest threat to the Aryans was interracial and intermarriage breeding. Certain groups such as: Jews, Marxists, and Catholics also "threatened" the Aryan race. Hitler's goal was to destroy all of the groups of people that "threatened" the Aryan race. On November 23, 1923, Hitler led the Munich Beer Hall Putsch, which was a revolt against the Bavarian government. Hitler was then captured and sent to jail. There, he wrote an autobiography, //Mein Kampf//, that explained Nazism in further detail, described the opposition to Jews, and his dream of racial purification. Even though Hitler was sentenced to five years in prison, he was released after serving only nine months. He then moved to recruit more men to strengthen the Nazi party.

**Hitler Becomes Leader**
In 1932, Adolf Hitler ran for president, but he lost to Paul von Hindenburg, who was the retired hero of World War I. However, he later received the help from the 230 Reichstag seats, who made up 37% of the vote. With the help Hitler received, Hindenburg appointed him as the Chancellor of Germany. On February 27, 1933, arsonists destroyed the Reichstag. Many believed that the Nazi's started this but the Nazis used the event as an excuse to arrest all communist deputies to the government. On July 14, Hitler declared that the Nazis were the only political party in Germany. That was also the time when he requested the first concentration camps to be constructed. In 1934, he ordered his special police forces to execute the S.A. leaders and political opponents including former Chancellor Kurt von Schneider. Later that year, the Nazis decided to combine the offices of President and Chancellor, and that is how Hitler became dictator. Ninety percent of all Germans approved of this.

**Additional Points**
Anti-Semitism was the abhorrence of Jews. Hitler and the Nazis practiced anti-Semitism by limiting the rights of the Jews and sending them labor and concentration camps.

The Gestapo (Geheime Staatspolizei), created on April 26, 1933, was the political police of Nazi Germany. They operated within the country and eliminated all opposition to the government and the Nazi party.

Blitzkrieg means "lightning war" and it is an attack tactic and strategy used in World War II that overwhelms the defenders with fast, violent, mobile action. This strategy also disrupts the defenders' communication and supply.

Josef Goebbels was the propaganda director of the Nazi Party. He was named district leader of the Nazis in Elberfeld, and his occupation was editing the //National Socialist// and //Der Angriff// magazine.

Adolf Eichmann was a German high official. He was appointed to the SS and exterminated Jews in Vienna during World War II.

**Primary Sources**
"Those unanswerable words of the Chancellor will be read through the entire world. All peoples from now on will believe that Germany is freed of payments when, in truth, she must pay 410,000,000 marks [about $98,000,000] annually." []

In this excerpt, Alfred Rosenberg declares that Germany is free from war debt. He also states that Adolf Hitler should not be talked back to and that everyone will hear his words loud and clear.

"For the first time in his spectacular and tempestuous career Hitler is now called upon to prove in deed what he has been promising in word to the many millions of his supporters. He takes his office at a time when his own party is passing through a severe internal crisis, expressed in a bitter factional struggle between extremists who have insisted on extra-constitutional action and the more moderate elements who have maintained that the party could not continue in the Opposition forever and could survive only through constructive participation in the government." []

According to this excerpt, all of the citizens are excited to see what Adolf Hitler is going to do to restore Germany. He takes office when German government is slowly crumbling down, and provides order to the people asking for a stronger leader.

**Databases Used**
Witherbee, Amy, Adolf Hitler. EBSCOhost, 2009, 2011 [|http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=3&hid=25&sid=22b43475-17c7-4cf4-97da-396cc1038a08%40sessionmgr15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=b5h&AN=15259513]

Axelrod, Alan, "Hitler, Adolf." Facts on File, 2011, 2011 []

Edelen, Annamarie, "Treaty of Versailles." Facts on File, 2011, 2011 [|http://www.fofweb.com/NuHistory/default.asp?ItemID=WE52&NewItemID=T]

Axelrod, Alan, "Goebbels, Joseph." Facts on File, 2011, 2011 []

Axelrod, Alan, "Gestapo." Facts on File, 2011, 2011 []

Axelrod, Alan, "Blitzkrieg." Facts on File, 2011, 2011 []

Queen II, Edward L., "anti-Semitism." Facts on File, 2011, 2011 []

Berenbaum, Michael, "Eichmann, Adolf." EBSCOhost, 2010, 2011 [|http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=5&hid=125&sid=927923e6-f9f1-4f83-b374-d054bd117132%40sessionmgr14&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=b5h&AN=32409066]