The Holocaust
Hitler and his rise to power
Who was Hitler?
How did he come to power?
Hitler was a surprisingly charismatic speaker that captured everyones attention, especially Germans desperate for changes in their society. He promised disadvantaged Germans better lives and a new and glorious Germany. The idea and soon to be real appearances of the Nazis appealed especially to young people and lower-middle classed people such as small store owners and farmers.
The rise to power of Hitler and the Nazis moved quickly. Before the economic depression there were barely any sightings of the Nazi regime, winning only 3% of votes to the German Parliament in elections in 1924, although moving on to win 33% of votes being the most in 1932.
In January the following year, Hitler was given the role of chancellor, the head of the German government and also labelled as a saviour for their nation by the Germans.
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What were Hitler's political views?
His views were developed over the significant years of his life including:
- When he was in poverty as a young man in Vienna and Munich prior to WWI in which he began to read political pamphlets and antisemitic articles due to his lack of trust for mainstream newspapers and political parties.
- The last few months of WWI when Germany lost the war which was the time period of when Hitler developed an extreme sense of nationalism for his country, with a wish to "save" Germany from "enemies" from both inside and outside who in his opinion betrayed it.
- During his early political years in the 1920's when he wrote Mein Kampf. Formally renouncing his Austrian citizenship on 7 April 1925, he did not acquire German citizenship until almost seven years later, allowing him to run for a position for public office. Benito Mussolini (Prime Minister of Italy in October 1922) was an influence to Adolf Hitler after Benito's "March on Rome".