Adolf Hitler's Early Life

Study Notes

Adolf Hitler was born on April 20, 1889, in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungary (now Austria)
He was the fourth of six children born to Alois Hitler, a customs official, and Klara Pölzl
His early childhood was marked by frequent moves and the deaths of several siblings
He showed little academic promise and left school at 16, aspiring to become an artist

Hitler's applications to the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna were repeatedly rejected
In 1907, after the death of his mother, Hitler moved to Vienna, where he struggled to make a living as a painter
During this period, he developed many of his ideas about politics and race, influenced by the prevalent anti-Semitism and nationalist movements in Austria

In 1913, Hitler moved to Munich, Germany
When World War I broke out in 1914, he enlisted in the German army, serving as a dispatch runner
He was wounded twice and awarded the Iron Cross for bravery
Germany's defeat and the subsequent Treaty of Versailles, which he perceived as a national humiliation, fueled his political ambitions

After the war, Hitler joined the German Workers' Party (DAP), which he soon transformed into the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP), or Nazi Party
He was a charismatic orator and used his skills to attract followers
In 1923, he attempted a coup known as the Beer Hall Putsch, which failed, leading to his arrest and imprisonment
During his nine months in prison, he wrote "Mein Kampf" ("My Struggle"), outlining his ideology and political plans for Germany

The economic instability of the Great Depression in the late 1920s and early 1930s created fertile ground for his message of national revival, anti-Semitism, and anti-communism
By 1932, the Nazi Party had become the largest in the Reichstag
On January 30, 1933, Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany
He quickly consolidated power, using the Reichstag Fire in February 1933 to push through the Reichstag Fire Decree, which suspended civil liberties and allowed for the arrest of political opponents
The Enabling Act, passed in March 1933, gave Hitler dictatorial powers
Once in control, Hitler implemented policies aimed at rearming Germany and expanding its territory, leading to the annexation of Austria and the Sudetenland
His aggressive foreign policy culminated in the invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, triggering World War II

During the war, Hitler's regime pursued the genocide of six million Jews, along with millions of others, in what became known as the Holocaust
His military strategies, particularly the invasion of the Soviet Union and the declaration of war on the United States, ultimately led to Germany's defeat
As Allied forces closed in on Berlin, Hitler committed suicide on April 30, 1945, in his bunker