Download The Rise of Adolf Hitler and the Beginning of World War II

The Rise of Adolf Hitler
and the Beginning of
World War II
Time Magazine’s “Man
of the Year” in 1938
Adolf Hitler
► Born
on April 20, 1889 in Austria
► Attended a Catholic monastery school where
he was a member of their choir
► Considered becoming a priest
► Wanted to become an artist,
but his father made him follow
in his footsteps
► During high school, Adolf became
a German nationalist
Adolf Hitler
► His
father died when Adolf was 13, and he
became the head of his family’s household
and dropped out of high school
► Five years later, Adolf’s dreams were
fulfilled and he took the entrance exam to
Vienna’s Academy of Fine Arts
► Told that his drawings lacked the talent of
artistic painting, he was rejected
Adolf Hitler
► Hitler
the unemployed slacker tried again to attend
Vienna’s Academy of Fine Art, but his test
drawings were considered so bad that he wasn’t
even allowed to take the exam
► Hitler became homeless in 1909
► Made a modest living by selling his paintings in
Jewish shops
► Living in a town with an anti-Semitic leader, Adolf
began to read anti-Semitic literature and quickly
began to despise Jewish people
Adolf Hitler
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Anti-Semitism: An intense
dislike and prejudice
against the Jewish people
Becoming increasingly
interested in politics, Hitler
joined the German army
Fought in World War I
Was said to have shown
“outstanding bravery in
the face of the enemy”
Germany lost WWI in 1918
Anti-Semitism?
► Why
was Anti-Semitism popular for
hundreds of years:
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Jews were blamed for killing Christ
Kicked out of the majority of European countries
Were forced to live in poverty
Germany after WWI
► Along
with many
Germans, Hitler
believed that Germany
could have won WWI
► They were “betrayed”
from within by the
Jewish
► Germany becomes a
democracy
► Limited to 100,000
soldiers
The German Worker’s Party
► Hitler
joined The
German Worker’s Party
 Strong nationalist, pro
military, anti-Semitic
party
► Hitler
became the
“voice” of the party
because of his strong
ability to speak
► In
1920, Hitler chose
the swastika to
represent the political
party
► Party name is called
“Nazi” for short
Hitler becomes Nazi Leader
► Hitler
threatens to
leave the party unless
they make him the
dictator of the party
 Dictator: A person with
complete authority
 Became “Fuhrer” a.k.a
“leader”
The German Depression
► Germany
forced to pay
for damages caused in
World War I
► Hyperinflation: The
extreme loss in value
of money
► For every American
dollar, one would have
to have 4 billion
German marks
Nazi Revolution
► In
1923, the Nazi Party,
led by Hitler, attempted
to overthrow the
German government
► FAILURE!
► Hitler was charged with
five years in prison
► While in prison, Hitler
wrote “Mein Kampf”
Speaks of Hitler’s
political and racial views
and outlines his plans for
a better Germany
The German Depression Worsens
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October 29, 1929 the
American stock market
crashed
Caused Germany to slip
into a greater depression
Utilizing Hitler’s
outstanding speeches, the
Nazi Party campaigned
throughout Germany and
received 18% of the
German government
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In 1932, Hitler runs for
president against
Hindenburg (who would
have been 92 by the time
his term was over)
Hindenburg wins
Democracy fails
Solution
► In
attempt to recover the government and
to avoid being overthrown, Hindenburg
appointed Hitler the new chancellor of
Germany
► As chancellor (the 2nd highest position in
Germany) Hitler quickly dissolved the
democracy and declared himself dictator of
Germany
► First action: ban on Jewish products
Ban on Jewish Products
“Don’t buy from Jews; shop in German businesses!”
Protecting Hitler
► Birth
of the Third Reichstag: “The Third Rule”
► The S.S: “Schutz-Staffel” were Hitler’s body
guards
► Gestapo: Hitler’s secret police force that
worked to uncover those plotting against
Hitler
► Hitler’s Youth: His attempt to raise young
Germans into his followers
Hitler Youth
“The weak must be chiseled away. I want
young men and women who can suffer
pain. A young German must be as swift as a
greyhound, as tough as leather and as hard
as Krupp’s steel.” - Hitler
“A twelve mile march was considered nothing special for boys who are
trained until they can make a march of fifty miles without any food
other than concentrated rations they carry in their packs. Nupp was
recovering from a heavy cold but he was not excused from the hike. He
had a severe relapse as a result… Later the doctor confided to me that
often after one of these lengthy marches he had as many as thirty boys
in the hospital.”
World Dictators
► By
1930, dictators had seized control of
Germany, Italy, Japan, and the Soviet Union
 Germany: Adolf Hitler
 Italy: Benito Mussolini
 Japan: Emperor Hirohito (Greatly influenced by
Prime Minister Tojo)
 Soviet Union: Joseph Stalin
► Fascism:
An extreme form of patriotism that
is often linked with racism
Dictators
The Axis Powers and War
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Italy, Germany, and Japan
(joined in 1940)
1937: Japan invaded China
1938: Britain and France
attempted to appease Hitler
by allowing him to take part
of Czechoslovakia if he
promised not to expand his
territory anymore
1938: Germany conquered
Austria and Czechoslovakia
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1939: Germany and the
Soviet Union vowed not to
attack each other
September 1, 1939: World
War II began when
Germany attacked Poland
Great Britain and France
declared war on Germany
Total War: A war in which
every available resource is
utilized and every person
is an acceptable target
Blitzkrieg
► Blitzkrieg:
“Lightning War” was a new form of
war which emphasized speed and surprise
 Tanks, troops, and planes
 No trenches!! (Except in the battle for Stalingrad)
► Within
a month, Germany controlled Poland
► 1940: Germany conquered Denmark, Norway,
Belgium, and the Netherlands before turning
its eyes on France
Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg
The Allies
► Poland
► Netherlands
► Czechoslovakia
By the end of the
war,
► United Kingdom (Great
► Greece
Britain)
more than 50 countries
► Soviet Union (joined in
► France
1941)
were
part
of
the
Allies
► New Zealand
► United States (joined
► Australia
► Canada
► Norway
► Belgium
in 1941)
► Etc…
► Etc…
► Do you get the point?
France and Great Britain
► Within
two weeks of fighting, France
surrendered
► Who is left?
► Great Britain
 Bombing of London by the Luftwaffe (German
air force)
 Despite the bombings, Britain does not
surrender
The battle of Stalingrad
► 1941:
Hitler backstabbed Stalin’s Soviet Union
► The battle of Stalingrad (1942)
 Capture meant cutting the Soviet Union’s supply
route
 Immediate success of German army
 Stalin forces all civilians to remain within the city,
resulting in thousands of deaths
 German forces controlled 90% of the city
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad
► Winter
set in
► Unprepared to fight in the severe winter
weather, the German army was defeated
► By the end of the battle, nearly 2 million
casualties were inflicted on both sides
► 1943:First Nazi defeat
► The turning point in the
war