The most decisive battles of WW2
Adolf Hitler's rise to power
It began with Dietrich Eckart (acknowledged by Hitler as the spiritual co-founder of Nazism) who was born on March 23, 1868 in Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz, Bavaria. He was from a wealthy background, the son of a notary and lawyer. He lost his mother when he was still a child, his father a few years later. By the end of his teenage years, he found himself in a Bohemian lifestyle full of alcohol and drugs, which quickly depleted his father's fortune.
Eckart was a German anti-Semitic poet, playwright, journalist, publicist, and political activist. He also was a member of the Thule Society, a group of occultist nationalist and anti-Semitic activists located in Munich, Germany. Eckart saw in a flamboyant young man the new Messiah and helped to shape his political views, particularly his anti-Semitism and his belief in the need for a strong leader to unite Germany. That young man was Adolf Hitler.
Adolf Hitler, born on April 20, 1889, in Braunau am Inn, Austria, a constituent of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at the time, spent his formative years in the vicinity of Linz. In 1913, he made a significant transition by relocating to Germany. His role in World War I was distinguished, as he earned commendations for his service within the German Army. This crucible of conflict deeply influenced his perspective and aspirations.
The Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (DAP) or German Workers Party was officially founded on January 5, 1919, by Dietrich Eckart, Anton Drexler, Gottfried Feder and Karl Harrer, all from the Thule Society. In September 1919, Adolf Hitler joined the Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or DAP. The DAP was a small, right-wing nationalist party that was opposed to the Treaty of Versailles and the Weimar Republic.Hitler's oratorical talent far surpassed that of Drexler. Upon Hitler's recommendation, the DAP changed its name to the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP) or in English the National Socialist German Workers' Party popularly known as NAZI's. They adopted a 25-point program as its party agenda, crafted by Drexler, Hitler, and Gottfried Feder. Drexler was elected as the first chairman of the NSDAP, although Hitler emerged as the true leader (Führer) of the party. In 1921, Hitler became chairman and thereafter, Drexler's role within the party diminished significantly.
The Nazy party increases its power
As the Party evolved, Adolf Hitler took the reins and steered the trajectory towards an ominous and aggressive tone. The embodiment of this shift materialized with the establishment of the paramilitary Sturmabteilung (SA) in collaboration with Ernst Röhm. The party also tapped into public discontent over economic hardships, the Treaty of Versailles (after WW1) and political instability. The interplay of religious affiliations and regional sentiments was evident, particularly as Catholic Bavaria held reservations against governance emanating from predominantly Protestant Berlin. Hitler initially perceived Bavaria as a fertile ground for revolution, a conduit to power.
Mein Kampf
When the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch (an attempt to pull off a military coup and overthrow the Weimar Republic) in Munich failed, Hitler, Eckart, and new members Hermann Göring, Rudolf Hess, and Ernst Röhm were imprisoned in the prison at Landsberg, Germany. That episode that would profoundly impact Hitler's subsequent course. During this incarceration, Hitler wrote 'Mein Kampf', a testament encapsulating his personal worldview and societal perspective.
Recognizing the pitfalls of the failed coup, Hitler recalibrated his approach, opting for legal avenues rather than force to ascend to power. A common adversary emerged in the form of the Jewish populace, serving as a unifying rallying point for the NSDAP and its vision of all-encompassing conflict. Underpinning the party's platform were social Darwinist ideologies, extolling the superiority of the "Aryan" race and advocating for the suppression or eradication of perceived "inferior" races.
Hitler articulated in 'Mein Kampf' that the territorial expanse or "Lebensraum" for the Germanic people was insufficient. Moreover, the party envisioned a transformation of Germany's societal and economic fabric. The Jews were vilified, deemed as inferior, and consequently subjected to systematic exclusion. Subsequent to Hitler's ascension to power in 1933, the first steps were taken to marginalize Jews within German public life. Their freedoms dwindled, and legislative acts such as the Nuremberg Race Laws in 1935 stripped them of citizenship rights. Restrictions on marital and sexual relationships between Jews and non-Jews were imposed, casting a pervasive shadow.
From street fighters to political power
In the parliamentary elections of 1930 and 1932, the Nazi Party's representation in the Reichstag (German parliament) significantly increased. While they did not secure an outright majority, their growing influence made them a force to be reckoned with.
The Weimar Republic, established after World War I, faced challenges in forming stable coalition governments due to the fragmented political landscape. As traditional parties struggled to address economic and social issues, more extreme parties gained ground. In the context of this political turmoil, influential conservative and business figures believed they could use Hitler and the Nazis as a means to stabilize the government and counter the perceived threat of communism. These power brokers engaged in behind-the-scenes negotiations with Hitler and his associates.
January 30, 1933: President Paul von Hindenburg, pressured by conservative advisors, appointed Adolf Hitler as Chancellor of Germany. The hope was that they could control and use the Nazis within a broader coalition government. This decision was based on the belief that they could harness Hitler's popularity for their own purposes while maintaining their influence.
The burning of the Reichstag
The Reichstag Fire was a fire on February 27, 1933, in which the German Reichstag building in Berlin largely burned down. The Dutch communist Marinus van der Lubbe was arrested, prosecuted and executed as the perpetrator. On January 10, 1934, after a four month long trial in Leipzig, he was beheaded by the guillotine.
Howerver, in 1955, SA man Hans Martin Lennings had a statement notarially recorded in which he claims that Van der Lubbe could not have set the fire. He drove the Dutchman to the Reichstag by car. Upon arrival, he and some colleagues noticed the smell of fire and light smoke. This indicates that the fire had already been started, probably by the Nazis themselves, way before Van der Lubbe arrived.
As a result of the fire, on March 23, 1933, the Nazi Party passed the Law for the Protection of the People and the State, granting the government extensive authority to quell opposition. This pivotal legislation marked a significant step towards the Nazi Party's establishment of absolute control over the state.
Hitler's political manifesto
Adolf Hitler embarked on writing Mein Kampf while incarcerated after his unsuccessful coup in Munich. The book was published in two volumes in 1925 and 1926 respectively.
Hitler becomes Chancellor
Adolf Hitler and German President Paul von Hindenburg, pictured shortly after Hindenburg's invitation for Hitler to assume the position of chancellor in 1933.
The 'Kristallnacht'
In the wake of the expulsion of Polish citizens of Jewish descent residing in Germany, a pivotal moment unfolded when a 17-year-old named Herschel Grynszpan shot German diplomat Ernst vom Rath at the German embassy in Paris. This act was a direct response to the expulsion of Grynszpan's parents, who had called Germany home since 1911. Vom Rath succumbed to his injuries two days later, sparking tensions that led to hostility against the Jewish community within Germany.
The night of November 9 to November 10, 1938, marked a significant turning point as a notable anti-Jewish incident occurred. Termed Kristallnacht, or the "Night of Broken Glass," this episode earned its name from the fragments of shattered windows strewn across German streets. Synagogues, private homes, and businesses owned by Jewish individuals were targets of vandalism and looting that evening. Numerous buildings were set ablaze. The aftermath resulted in the apprehension and deportation of numerous Jews to concentration camps.
The 'Endlösung' or Final Solution
Known as the "Endlösung" or "Final Solution" for short, the National Socialists adopted this term in July 1941 to summarize their goal of systematically eliminating individuals they identified as Jews throughout Europe and beyond. This pursuit persisted until the Wehrmacht's unconditional surrender. The process began with the segregation of Jews in ghettos and culminated in the implementation of the Nazi policy labeled the "Final Solution to the Jewish Question."
This policy was worked out by Nazi officials during the Wannsee Conference in Berlin on January 20, 1942. Regrettably, this course of action led to the Holocaust, a tragic phase marked by the systematic and extensive extermination of European Jews.
The Holocaust history
The history and therefore the definition of the Holocaust also known as the Shoah (Hebrew) is exceptionally complex. Basically it can be stated that it was the murder or genocide of the European Jews during world war 2.
I made the visit deliberately, in order to be in position to give first-hand evidence of these things if ever, in the future, there develops a tendency to charge these allegations merely to “propaganda.””
Discover the history of the Nazi concentration camps
June 6 1944, D-Day Normandy
What was D-Day?
D-Day was the the Allied answer to occupancy and hostile regime of Nazi Germany with the end goal of putting an end to WW2. At 06:30 am on Tuesday June 6th, 1944 Operation Neptune or D-Day (amphibious assault) is unleashed along a 60 mile stretch of coast between the Cotentin Peninsula and the Orne River in Normandy, France. The invasion on the shores of Normandy were part of Operation Overlord (Allied invasion of Normandy).
Planning for D-Day
Planning for the operation began in 1943. Overlord was an Allied military operation of unprecedented scale, with an amphibious assault from Allied troops on the beaches combined with Allied airborne operations behind enemy lines inland. The Allies conducted a substantial military deception, codenamed Operation Bodyguard, to mislead the Germans as to the date and location of the main landings.
D-Day was originally planned for June 5
In the months leading up to the invasion, the weather was far from ideal and the operation had to be delayed 24 hours until June 6th, 1944. A further postponement would have meant a delay of at least two weeks, as the invasion planners had requirements for the phase of the moon, the tides, and the time of day that meant only a few days each month were deemed suitable.
The landings beaches in Normandy
The amphibious assault focused on five separate beaches in Normandy codenamed Omaha, Utah (American sector), Gold, Sword (British sector), and Juno (Canadian sector). At the end of the day small beachheads had been secured. It would turn out to be the turning point of World War 2 in western Europe.
Dodenherkdenking
The Netherlands celebrates it's liberation
Liberation Day (Dutch: Bevrijdingsdag) is celebrated each year in the Netherlands on 5 May to mark the end of the occupation by Nazi Germany during WW2. It follows the Remembrance of the Dead (Dodenherdenking) on 4 May. Holland was liberated by Canadian forces, British infantry divisions, British I Corps, 1st Polish Armoured Division, American, Belgian, Dutch and Czechoslovak troops. Parts of the country, in particular the south-east, were liberated by the British Second Army which included American and Polish airborne forces (see Operation Market Garden) and French airbornes (see Operation Amherst). On 5 May 1945 the Canadian General Charles Foulkes and the German Commander-in-Chief Johannes Blaskowitz reached an agreement on the capitulation of German forces in the Netherlands in Hotel de Wereld in Wageningen. One day later the capitulation document was signed in the auditorium of Wageningen University.
