** Adolf Hitler Biography**

Adolf Hitler (1889–1945) was an Austrian-born German political leader who served as dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. As head of the Nazi Party, he created the Third Reich, a dictatorship that was primarily responsible for starting World War II in Europe and organizing the Holocaust, the systematic murder of six million Jews and millions of other people. His leadership and ideology had a profound and lasting impact on the world.Hitler was born on April 20, 1889, in Braunau am Inn, a town in Austria-Hungary near the German border. His father, Alois Hitler, was a customs officer, and his mother, Klara Hitler, was very devoted to her son. As a youth, Hitler wanted to become an artist. He moved to Vienna in 1907 but was rejected twice by the Academy of Fine Arts. During his years in Vienna, he lived in poverty and developed many nationalist and anti-Semitic ideas, which later shaped his political outlook. He was influenced by pan-German nationalism, racial theory, and the political climate of the time.In 1913, Hitler moved to Munich, Germany. When World War I began in 1914, he volunteered to serve in the German Army. He fought on the Western Front, was wounded, and was awarded for bravery. Germany's defeat in 1918 had a profound impact on him. Like many Germans, he believed in the "stab-in-the-back" fallacy, which falsely claimed that Germany was defeated not by the army but by internal enemies, including Jews and political leftists. This belief further fueled his political radicalism.

After the war, Hitler joined the German Workers' Party, which later became the Nazi Party. His powerful oratory skills and ability to attract followers helped him rapidly advance within the party. In 1923, he attempted to seize power in Munich, known as the Beer Hall Putsch. The coup failed, and Hitler was arrested and sentenced to prison. While in prison, he wrote his political manifesto, Mein Kampf (“My Struggle”), in which he outlined his views on extreme nationalism, racial purity, anti-Semitism, and anti-communism, as well as his desire to expand German territory.After his release in 1924, Hitler reconstituted the Nazi Party and focused on achieving power through legal means. The economic turmoil of the Great Depression in the late 1920s and early 1930s created widespread anger in Germany. The Nazis capitalized on this instability, promising economic reform, new life, and strong leadership. In January 1933, President Paul von Hindenburg appointed Hitler as Chancellor of Germany.Upon coming to power, Hitler swiftly dismantled Germany's democratic institutions. Following the Reichstag fire in February 1933, he issued emergency decrees to suppress political opposition. The Enabling Act, passed in March 1933, granted him dictatorial powers. Political parties were banned, trade unions were abolished, and dissent was brutally suppressed. The government established a police state under organizations such as the SS and the Gestapo.

Hitler's government implemented policies based on racial ideology. Jews were systematically excluded from public life, beginning with boycotts and discriminatory laws such as the Nuremberg Laws of 1935. Over time, the persecution escalated into violence and mass murder. During World War II, the Nazi government carried out the Holocaust, creating ghettos, concentration camps, and extermination camps where millions of Jews and other victims—including Roma, people with disabilities, political opponents, and others—were murdered.In foreign policy, Hitler sought to overturn the Treaty of Versailles and expand German territory to secure "Lebensraum," or living space, for the German people. He resumed military operations in the Rhineland, annexed Austria (the Anschluss) in 1938, and occupied parts of Czechoslovakia. On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, leading Britain and France to declare war and begin World War II. Initial German victories increased Nazi control over much of Europe. However, the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 and the entry of the United States into the war after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor turned the tide against Germany.By 1944, Allied forces were advancing from both the east and west. When defeat became certain, Hitler retreated to his bunker in Berlin. On April 30, 1945, he committed suicide with his wife, Eva Braun, whom he had married the day before. Shortly thereafter, Germany surrendered, ending the war in Europe.Adolf Hitler's legacy is one of unparalleled devastation and human suffering. His dictatorial rule, aggressive war, and genocidal policies transformed the geopolitical landscape and led to the deaths of millions. The atrocities committed under his rule are a stark reminder of the dangers of fanaticism, hatred, and unchecked dictatorial power.