The Rise of Adolf Hitler (Fall 2012)

Adolf Hitler could be considered a great example for the “Roles of Specific Individuals” History Force because he was a man that had many influences (some even good but most bad) during his time of power. There is not a person in the world that has not heard of Adolf Hitler. For the destructive actions he allowed upon certain races, to attempting to better his country initiating the attack of the Treaty of Versailles, to even attempting to end communism… he can be remembered in time as a terrible, horrific man, but also as a man who before all the bad stuff, tried to do good for his country too. Because of all these actions he attempted and fulfilled, he would be a perfect exemplification for “Roles of Specific Individuals” within the History Forces.

Adolf Hitler (born April 20 1889 - passed April 30 1945) was a huge, influential German politician, along with being the leader of the Nazi party (NSDAP). He became Chancellor of Germany between the years of 1933 up until 1945. He was also the master plotter of Nazism, the Holocaust, and had a great deal of contributions to the start of World War II.

Adolf Hitler was born on April 20, 1889 to the couple of Alois Hitler and Klara Pölzl. Alois was twenty-three years her senior. The two had trouble finalizing their matrimony because they were related to each other. In order to make their marriage successful, Alois and Klara had a special dispensation made up from Rome in 1884. After the marriage was finalized, the couple had six children; although on two of the six survived: Adolf (fourth child of the six) and his young sister Paula.

While growing up, Adolf received a lot of abuse from his father. Alois had a raging temper that would arise for no reasons at all, probably stemming from him being a Customs Official. Adolf’s sister Paula explained how Adolf would be the “punching bag” of his father’s anger and strict discipline: "Adolf challenged my father to extreme harshness and got his sound thrashing every day. He was a scrubby little rogue, and all attempts of his father to thrash him for his rudeness and to cause him to love the profession of an official of the state were in vain. How often on the other hand did my mother caress him and try to obtain with her kindness where the father could not succeed with harshness ..."

Adolf was Austrian born, but when Adolf was three, the family packed everything and moved to Passau, Germany where he gained the language from the lower Bavaria, rather than the Austrian German, which marked his speaking throughout his lifetime. A few years after in 1894, the family moved again to Leonding. A year after, they moved again to Hafeld where they would reside in a small landholding so his father could keep and farm bees. Adolf attended school in Fischlham, which was nearby, and was the opposite of disciplined while he attended the school. Again, in 1897, the family packed up and moved to Lambach following the failure of Alois’s farming. Then, in 1898, the family returned to Leonding where they would reside permanently. Although the family had never really stayed in the same place for too long for about ten years, Adolf still was an outgoing person, and had changed from being a poorly disciplined child to an excellent student. However, in the beginning of February in 1900, Adolf’s younger brother Edmund lost his battle with the measles and that is when everything about Adolf had changed. He became an ill-tempered, disconnected young boy who loved to pick a fight with his teachers and even his highly- strict father.

As years went on, Alois wished for Adolf to follow in his footsteps and pursue a career in the customs bureau; Adolf in fact, did not. Adolf had dreams of attending a classical high school then to become an artist. Alois disagreed with his wishes and instead sent him to Realschule in Linz. Adolf made it a point to do poorly with the curriculum, so his father would see that the technical school was not servicing Adolf and would show that he belonged in an Art school.

Towards the beginning on January in 1903, Alois suddenly passed, and that was when Adolf’s school ethics seemed to deteriorate even more. In 1904 he enrolled at Realschule in Steyr, and his study habits and behavior were showing signs of improvement. Then, in 1905, his mother allowed him to quit schooling just after passing the final exam. He left without any concrete career plans and now plans of further schooling.

As Hitler grew older, he seemed to keep quiet about his background and personal life. In Mein Kampf, he disclosed a vague description of his parents. Nobody knows why he kept such a secretive life when it came to the thoughts of his family.

Klara, Hitler’s mother, died when Adolf was at the young age of nineteen. According to Klara’s doctor, him and his mother shared a special bond, and he had “never witnessed a closer attachment.” (YOUNG ADOLF HITLER PAGE) Some say that his mother was probably the only person he really loved throughout his whole life.

In 1907, Hitler packed up and moved to Vienna where he would attempt to enroll at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts. Much to his dismay, he failed to receive admission due to inadequate test results. The following year, Adolf tried to enroll again. This time, his paintings were so below par that he was not allowed to even take the test. In Mein Kampf, Hitler stated that he wanted an explanation from the rector of the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts. Hitler explains, "That gentleman assured me that the drawings I had submitted incontrovertibly showed my unfitness for painting, and that my ability obviously lay in the field of architecture; for me, he said, the Academy's School of Painting was out of the question, the place for me was at the School of Architecture." (Hitler, 20)

After the failures to get into the art schools that he desired, Adolf also found himself without any money. The money he had received from an orphan pension had run out, and the also spent all the money he borrowed from various family members. After finding himself with literally nothing, he found shelter in men’s hostels where he would reside from 1909 – 1913. Although he was considered perished, he actively participated within a political and intellectual domain.

In 1913, Adolf made the decision to move to Munich based on his wanting to steer clear from the military service for the Habsburg Empire. Munich was thought of to be his favorite city. He was able to pull off this move by receiving a small inheritance of his father’s estate. While living in Munich, he lived a similar life as he did in Vienna until the starting of the war in 1914. He then decided to volunteer to serve for the Bavarian force. This made Adolf feel like he actually had a purpose in life.

Adolf’s rise to power first started in Germany during the year of 1919 when he joined the Nazi Party that had been known as the Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (DAP). This party encouraged extreme nationalism, opposed the Treaty of Versailles and the government of the Weimar Republic. They also advocated the act of anti-Semitism. On November 8, 1923, Adolf commenced a rally that would occur in Berlin to abolish the government of communists and the Jewish people. The rally was held at a Munich beer hall. The next day, he led a march to which approximately 2000 people were involved. This marched was an attempt to take over the Bavarian government. Unfortunately for him, this was not successful. After the Beer Hall Putsch collapsing, Hitler and his comrade were examined for treason, and then were sentenced to five years of imprisonment. Hitler served 8 months of the 5 years, and while imprisoned, he wrote Mein Kampf (My Struggle). This book was considered an autobiography, but also displayed his plans to better the government.

In 1933, President Paul von Hindenburg assigned Adolf to the position of Chancellor. After Hindenburg’s death in 1934, Hitler was considered the consensus successor. In order to magnify his powers, he forced the public officials and armed forces members to swear an oath of loyalty to Hitler, not the constitution. He made life better within Germany by improving economy, and terminating the challenges from various political parties and different government organizations. However, the position of Chancellor and president went to his head, and became a terrorizing dictator by attempting to pull off racial cleansing; specifically targeting the Jews.

1. Author Unknown (2012) Adolf Hitler: The Rise From Unknown to Nazi Dictator. Retrieved December 3, 2012, from http://www.adolfhitler.dk/index.htm
2. Hitler, Adolf, and Ralph Manheim. Mein Kampf,. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1973. Print.
3. Meier, David A. (2000) Hitler’s Rise to Power. Retrieved December 3, 2012, from http://www2.dsu.nodak.edu/users/dmeier/Holocaust/hitler.html
4. Noakes, Jeremy. (2011) The Rise of Adolf Hitler. Retrieved December 3, 2012, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/hitler_01.shtml#two
5. Wikipedia. (n.d.) Adolf Hitler. Retrieved December 3, 2012, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Hitler
6. Wikipedia. (n.d.) Adolf Hitler’s Rise to Power. Retrieved December 3, 2012, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Hitler's_rise_to_power