Less known, Amazing & Interesting Facts About Adolf Hitler

Adolf Hitler, one of the greatest names who defines the meaning of “leadership”. He was the leader of Nazi Party, dictator of Nazi Germany & chancellor of Germany (1933-1945). Here are some less known & very interesting facts about Adolf Hitler which will definitely fascinate you!

Interesting Facts About Adolf Hitler

#1: Birth Of the German Dictator

• The dictator of Germany was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria on April 20, 1889 to Alois Hitler (1837-1903) and Klara Polzl(1860-1907) .

#2: Family and Education

• Hitler was the fourth of six children. His older siblings – Gustav (1885- 1887), Ida (1886-1888) and Otto (1887), all three died in infancy. His younger brother, Edmund died from measles on 2 February 1900.

• Paula Hitler (1896-1960) was the only one of his siblings to survive childhood.

• He also had a step-brother, Alois (b. 1882), and a step-sister, Angela (1883-1949) which were from his father’s earlier marriage.

• In his younger days, the later Chancellor of Germany was calles ‘Adi’. He used to take singing lessons, sang in the choir, and even considered becoming a priest.

• The death of his younger brother, Edmund, deeply affected him. The once confident, excellent student transformed to a sullen, detached boy who often fought with his father and teachers.

• In 1903, his 64-year old father, Alois, died . With his death Hitler’s performance in school deteriorated even more.

• In 1905, he left his school, Realschule , without any clear plans for a career.

#3: Life in Vienna and Munich

• Throughout his youth, he used to dream about becoming an artist. Earlier, he worked as a casual laborer and eventually as a painter and selling water colors.

• He applied two times to the Academy of Arts ( in 1907 and 1908) but was denied entrance both times.

• On 21 December 1907, his mother, aged 47, died of breast cancer.

• By 1909, he used to live in a homeless shelter and by 1910, he settled into a ‘house for poor working men’.

• On May 1913, he recieved the final part of his father’s estate and moved to Munich. Some say this was to avoid serving in the Austrian military.

#4: The Seed of Anti-Semitism

• He lived in the Mariahilf district during his stay in Vienna, a place known at the time for its anti-semitism . This may have been where Hitler picked up his anti-semite views.

• Some also say he was furious at a Jewish doctor that let his mother die. However, none of this has been proved and when exactly he started hating the Jews is yet to be clear.

#5: World War I

• Although He tried to avoid Austrian military service by moving to Munich in Germany, once World War I began, he volunteered to serve in the German Army.

• He was adorned for bravery, receiving the Iron Cross, Second Class in the year 1914 and the Black Wound Badge on 18 May 1918. Recommended by Hugo Gutmann, he received the Iron Cross, First Class in the year 1918.

• He was seriously wounded twice. Once during the Battle of the Somme in October 1916 when he was injured in the left thigh as a shell exploded in the dispatch runner’s dugout. And the other on 15 October 1918 when he was temporarily blinded by a mustard gas attack.

• It was while he was recovering from the gas attack that Hitler heard of the German defeat. He was furious over the surrender of Germany and strongly believed that Germany had been ‘stabbed in the back’ by its leaders and Marxists.

#6: His Entry Into Politics

• In 1919, while monitoring the DAP, Hitler found himself attracted to the founder Anton Drexler’s anti-semitic, nationalist, anti-capitalist and anti-marxist ideas.

• On 12 September 1919, he was made the 55th member of the DAP.

• In 1919, the DAP changed its name to the National Socialist German Worker’s Party (i.e. the Nazi Party)

• He made the party’s banner of a swastika in a white circle on a red background.

• The next few years saw Hitler growing as a leader and an orator. He gave public speeches that gained him followers, much attention and financial support.

#7: Beer Hall Putsch

• On 8 November 1923, Hitler attempted a coup more famously known as the’Beer Hall Putsch’. He was caught and sentenced for ‘high treason’. However he only served 1 year in prison.

• Hitler wrote the first volume of his book Mein Kampf ( My Struggle) while serving his time at the Landsberg Prison. The book laid out his plans for transforming German society into one based on race.

• After getting out of prison, Hitler determinedly built up the Nazi Party in order to take over the German government using legal means.

#8: Chancellor of Germany

• In 1932, He was given German citizenship.

• On January 30, 1933, Hitler was appointed chancellor. He used this position to gain absolute control over Germany. His dreams became a reality with the death of the German President, Paul von Hindenburg in his own office on 2nd August, 1934.

• Hitler went on to take the title of Führer (Leader) and Reichskanzler (Reich Chancellor).

#9: The Führer and World War II

• Hitler wanted to strengthen the German army and expand the German territory. He was willing to break the Versailles Treaty to do so.

• On 12 March 1938, Hitler declared the unification of Austria with Nazi Germany in the Anschluss.

• On 1 September 1939, Germany attacked Poland. In response, France and Britain declared war on Germany on 3 September 1939 ,thus starting World War II.

#10: The Final Days

The final days of his life were very fascinating! Here are the interesting facts about Adolf Hitler’s final days:

• On July 20, 1944, Hitler survived an assassination attempt when one of his top military officers had placed a suitcase bomb under the table during a conference meeting at Hitler’s Wolf’s Lair. The table blocked much of the blast. He survived with minor injuries to his arm and some hearing loss.

• On April 29, 1945, Hitler married Eva Braun in a small civil ceremony in the Führerbunker. Later that day he was informed of the execution of Mussolini which may have increased his determination to avoid capture.

• On 30 April 1945, Hitler and Braun committed suicide. Braun bit into a cyanide capsule and Hitler shot himself. Both their bodies were doused with petrol and set on fire.

• The corpses of Braun and Hitler were fully burned when the Red Army found them. Only a lower jaw with could be identified as Hitler’s remains.