HITLER, ADOLF,

born April 20, 1889, Braunau am Inn, Austria died April 30, 1945, Berlin byname Der Fhrer (German: The Leader) leader of the National Socialist (Nazi) Party (from 1920/21) and dictator of Germany (193345). He was officially chancellor (Kanzler) from Jan. 30, 1933, and, after President Paul von Hindenburg's death, assumed the twin titles of Fhrer and chancellor (Aug. 2, 1934). A brief account of the life and works of Adolf Hitler follows; for a full biography, see Hitler. Hitler spent his early life in Linz, Austria, and in Vienna. He was a lonely, frustrated artist and moved to Munich in 1913. While serving in the German army during World War I, he was wounded (1916) and gassed (1918). He began his political career as an army political agent in the German Workers' (later National Socialist, or Nazi) Party in 1919 and became head of its propaganda arm in 1920. Hitler was soon made president of the party and began his creation of a mass movement and his climb to power. After the abortive Munich (Beer Hall) Putsch of 1923, he served nine months in prison and began the writing of Mein Kampf, in which he condemned democratic government and expressed his hate and fear of Jews. Throughout the 1920s Hitler continued to gain strength; he unsuccessfully opposed Paul von Hindenburg in the presidential election of 1932 but was appointed chancellor in 1933. After Hindenburg's death, Hitler merged the offices of chancellor and president in 1934 and adopted the title of Fhrer (leader). After establishing a totalitarian police state in Germany, Hitler then turned his attention to foreign policy, and his aggressively expansionist policies triggered World War II (193945). At its height, Hitler's Germany briefly occupied most of Europe. His new order for Europe called for the indiscriminate extermination of whole peoples; the Jews were the most serious victims of his barbarism. After Germany's adversaries had turned the tide of war, Hitler retreated to the chancellory in Berlin in January 1945 and, in the face of impending capture by advancing Soviet troops, committed suicide. Additional reading Writings and speeches Hitler's speeches have been collected by Max Domarus, Hitler: Speeches and Proclamations, 19321945 (1990 ; originally published in German, 2 vol., 1962). Hitler's words are also recorded in Secret Conversations, 19411944 (1953, reissued as Hitler's Secret Conversations, 19411944, 1976; also published as Hitler's Table Talk, 194144: His Private Conversations, 2nd ed., 1973). The first part of Mein Kampf, trans. from German by James Murphy, 2 vol. in 1 (1939, reissued 1981; originally published in German, 2 vols., 192527), is his autobiography. Hitler's Secret Book (1961, reprinted 1986), is a translation of a manuscript dictated by Hitler in 1928. Biographies Biographical studies include Ian Kershaw, Hitler, 18891936: Hubris (1998, reissued 2000); Alan Bullock, Hitler: A Study in Tyranny, completely rev. ed. (1962, reissued 1995), also available in an abridged ed. with the same title (1971, reissued 1991); Joachim C. Fest, Hitler (1974, reissued 1992; originally published in German, 1973); Bradley F. Smith, Adolf Hitler: His Family, Childhood, and Youth (1967, reissued 1979); William Carr, Hitler: A Study in Personality and Politics (1978, reprinted 1986); Charles Bracelen Flood, Hitler: The Path to Power (1989), which traces Hitler's life and politics through 1923; Konrad Heiden, Der Fuehrer: Hitler's Rise to Power, trans. from German by Ralph Manheim (1944, reissued 1969; also published as The Fhrer, 1999), which deals with the period up to 1934; Hugh Trevor-Roper, The Last Days of Hitler, 7th ed. (1995); and Sebastian Haffner, The Meaning of Hitler (1979, reissued 1997; originally published in German, 1978), a profound and well-written biographical essay. Eberhard Jckel, Hitler in History (1984), briefly examines Hitler's rise to power and military involvement; and John Lukacs, The Hitler of History (1997), is a study of the biography and biographers of Hitler. Reminiscences Reminiscences of Hitler include Otto Wagener, Hitler: Memoirs of a Confidant, ed. by Henry Ashby Turner, Jr. (1985, reissued 1987; originally published in German, 1978), recounting the memories of a Nazi Party official; and Gertraud Junge, Voices from the Bunker, ed. by Pierre Galante and Eugne Silianoff (also published as Last Witnesses in the Bunker, 1989; originally published in French, 1989), translating the memoirs of Hitler's private secretary from 1943 to 1945. Special topics Other topics are dealt with in Harold J. Gordon, Jr., Hitler and the Beer Hall Putsch (1972); Ernst Hanfstaengl, Unheard Witness (1957; also published as Hitler: The Missing Years, 1957, reissued, 1994), covering the years 192234; Albert Speer, Inside the Third Reich (1970, reissued 1997; originally published in German, 1969); Ian Kershaw, The Hitler Myth: Image and Reality in the Third Reich (1987, reissued 1989; originally published in German, 1980), discussing Hitler's image as portrayed through German propaganda; and Richard F. Hamilton, Who Voted for Hitler? (1982); and Thomas Childers, The Nazi Voter (1983), analyzing his political support. Gerald Fleming, Hitler and the Final Solution (1984, reissued 1994 with new documentation; originally published in German, 1982), reviews Hitler's connection with the mass exterminations. Two important recent contributions are Brigitte Hamann, Hitler's Vienna: A Dictator's Apprenticeship (1999; originally published in German, 1996); and Fritz Redlich, Hitler: Diagnosis of a Destructive Prophet (1999), a medical and psychological history. Alan Bullock, Baron Bullock Wilfrid F. Knapp John Lukacs The Editors of the Encyclopdia Britannica