On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler was appointed chancellor by President Paul von Hindenburg after attempts by General Kurt von Schleicher to form a viable government failed. Hindenberg was put under pressure by Hitler through his son Oskar, as well as intrigue from former Chancellor Franz von Papen following his collection of participating financial interests. Even though the Nazi Party had gained the largest share of the popular vote in the two Reichstag general elections of 1932, they had slim majority in parliament within the Papen-propos ...

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Nazi Germany, Nazi Germany - Chronology of events, Nazi Germany - Pre-War Politics 1933-1939, Nazi Germany - Consolidation of power, Nazi Germany - Social policy, Nazi Germany - Economic policy, Nazi Germany - World War II, Nazi Germany - Aftermath, Nazi Germany - Organization of the Third Reich, Nazi Germany - Head of State and Chief Executive, Nazi Germany - Cabinet and national authorities, Nazi Germany - Reich Offices, Nazi Germany - Reich Ministries, Nazi Germany - Occupation authorities, Nazi Germany - Legislative Branch, Nazi Germany - Military, Nazi Germany - Paramilitary organisations, Nazi Germany - National police, Nazi Germany - Political organizations, Nazi Germany - Service organizations, Nazi Germany - Religious organisations, Nazi Germany - Academic organizations, Nazi Germany - Prominent persons in Nazi Germany, Nazi Germany - Nazi Party and Nazi government leaders and officials, Nazi Germany - SS personnel, Nazi Germany - Military, Nazi Germany - Other, Nazi Germany - Noted victims, Nazi Germany - Noted refugees, Nazi Germany - Noted survivors

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By the summer of 1933, the SA (Sturmabteilung) had grown discontented with the progress of the Nazi regime. Many had taken seriously the "Socialism" of "National Socialism" (due to their years of unemployment) and were angry at Hitler and the other party leaders for abandoning principles of Socialism. They grew increasingly distant from the Nazi leadership as a result and believed further steps needed to be taken to achieve substantive social and economic change. Th ...

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Night of the Long Knives, Night of the Long Knives - Background, Night of the Long Knives - The purge, Night of the Long Knives - Popular culture

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National Socialist German Workers Party - Origins. In the beginning of 1918, a party called the Freier Ausschuss für einen deutschen Arbeiterfrieden (Free Committee for a German Workers' Peace) was created in Bremen, Germany. (6) Anton Drexler, locksmith and poet, formed a branch of this league on March 7, 1918, in Munich. In 1919, Drexler, with Gottfried Feder, Dietrich Eckart and Karl Harrer, changed its name to the Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (German Workers' Party, abbreviated DAP< ...

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National Socialist German Workers Party, National Socialist German Workers Party - Party history, National Socialist German Workers Party - Origins, National Socialist German Workers Party - Struggle for power, National Socialist German Workers Party - Reborn Nazi Party, National Socialist German Workers Party - Seizure of Power, National Socialist German Workers Party - Consolidation of power, National Socialist German Workers Party - Post World War II Nazi Party, National Socialist German Workers Party - Nazi Party Structure, National Socialist German Workers Party - 1921 – 1923, National Socialist German Workers Party - 1925 – 1933, National Socialist German Workers Party - 1933 – 1938, National Socialist German Workers Party - 1938 – 1939, National Socialist German Workers Party - 1939 – 1945, National Socialist German Workers Party - Party composition, National Socialist German Workers Party - General membership, National Socialist German Workers Party - Military membership, National Socialist German Workers Party - Paramilitary groups, National Socialist German Workers Party - Party symbols, National Socialist German Workers Party - Sayings mottos and slogans, National Socialist German Workers Party - Election statistics

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Main articles: European Theatre of World War II, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II, Pacific War, End of World War II in Europe World War II - A debated starting date. [4]The date on which World War II started is a debated subject; historians do not all agree on which event signified the start of the war. The most common date used is 1 September 1939, marking the German invasion of Poland, which resulted in the ...

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World War II, World War II - Causes, World War II - Participants, World War II - Chronology, World War II - A debated starting date, World War II - 1937: Second Sino-Japanese War, World War II - 1939: War breaks out in Europe, World War II - 1940: The war spreads, World War II - 1941: The war becomes global, World War II - 1942: Deadlock, World War II - 1943: The war turns, World War II - 1944: The beginning of the end, World War II - 1945: The end of the war, World War II - Resistance, World War II - The Home fronts, World War II - Technologies, World War II - Civilian impact & atrocities, World War II - Genocide, World War II - Concentration camps labour camps and internment, World War II - War crimes and attacks on civilians, World War II - Aftermath, World War II - Casualties, World War II - A world in ruins, World War II - United Nations, World War II - The Cold War begins, World War II - Main articles, World War II - Media

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In September 1941 Heydrich was appointed Protector of Bohemia and Moravia, replacing Konstantin von Neurath whom Hitler considered insufficiently harsh. During his role as de facto dictator of Bohemia and Moravia, Heydrich often drove alone in a car with an open roof — a show of confidence in the occupation forces and the effectiveness of their repressive measures against the local population. Due to his cruelty, Heydrich was nicknamed The Butcher of Prague, The Blond Beast or The Hangman. ...

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Operation Anthropoid, Operation Anthropoid - Context, Operation Anthropoid - Strategic context, Operation Anthropoid - The operation, Operation Anthropoid - The assassination, Operation Anthropoid - Consequences, Operation Anthropoid - Legend, Operation Anthropoid - Trivia

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The Polish armed forces resisted the German invasion, but their strategic position was hopeless since Poland was surrounded on three sides by Germany and German-controlled Czechoslovakia. It was in Poland that the Germans first used the tactics of Blitzkrieg ("lightning war"): rapid advance of Panzer (armored) divisions, dive bombing to break up troop concentrations, and aerial bombing of undefended cities to sap civilian morale. The Polish Army and Air Force had little modern equipment to match the onslaught. German forces wer ...

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History of Poland 1939–1945, History of Poland 1939–1945 - German and Soviet Invasion, History of Poland 1939–1945 - Dismemberment of Poland, History of Poland 1939–1945 - The General Government, History of Poland 1939–1945 - Treatment of the Poles, History of Poland 1939–1945 - The Holocaust in Poland, History of Poland 1939–1945 - Governments in exile, History of Poland 1939–1945 - Resistance, History of Poland 1939–1945 - Aftermath of the War, History of Poland 1939–1945 - Yalta and the Soviet Occupation 1943–45

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As with any historical event, scholars continue to argue over what exactly happened and why. The Holocaust - Who was directly involved in the killings?. In addition to the direct involvement of Nazi forces, most European countries allied with or occupied by the Axis Powers collaborated with the Nazis in the Holocaust. Collaboration took the form of either rounding up of the local Jews for deportation to the German ex ...

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The Holocaust, The Holocaust - Etymology and usage of the term, The Holocaust - Features of the Nazi Holocaust, The Holocaust - Premeditation, The Holocaust - Efficiency, The Holocaust - Scale, The Holocaust - Cruelty, The Holocaust - Victims, The Holocaust - Jews, The Holocaust - Slavs, The Holocaust - Roma Sinti and Manush 'Gypsies', The Holocaust - Gay men, The Holocaust - Jehovah's Witnesses, The Holocaust - Disabled people, The Holocaust - Others, The Holocaust - Death toll, The Holocaust - Searching for records of victims, The Holocaust - Execution of the Holocaust, The Holocaust - Concentration and Labor Camps 1933-1945, The Holocaust - Pogroms 1938-1941, The Holocaust - Euthanasia 1939-1941, The Holocaust - Ghettos 1940-1945, The Holocaust - Death Squads 1941-1943, The Holocaust - Extermination camps 1942-1945, The Holocaust - Death Marches and liberation 1944-1945, The Holocaust - Resistance and Rescuers, The Holocaust - Resistance, The Holocaust - Rescuers, The Holocaust - Historical interpretations, The Holocaust - Who was directly involved in the killings?, The Holocaust - Why did people participate in authorize or tacitly accept the killing?, The Holocaust - Revisionists and deniers, The Holocaust - Aftermath, The Holocaust - Displaced Persons and the State of Israel, The Holocaust - Legal proceedings against Nazis, The Holocaust - Legal action against genocide, The Holocaust - Impact on culture, The Holocaust - Holocaust theology, The Holocaust - Art and literature, The Holocaust - Holocaust Memorial Day, The Holocaust - Notes, The Holocaust - Resources

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On July 25, 1937, Reichsführer Heinrich Himmler, by special order of the Oberabschnitt (SUD), created the SS Main Riding School in Munich and made Hermann Fegelein the School Commander. Only former royalty from the Hohenzollern and Kaiserzeit dynasties could send representatives, along with the top heads of German industry, who donated to Martin Bormann's German industry fund. Hermann requested his friend, Hauptmann Marten von Barnekow, be allowed to enter ...

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Hermann Fegelein, Hermann Fegelein - Early career, Hermann Fegelein - Membership of the SS, Hermann Fegelein - Relationship with Himmler, Hermann Fegelein - Marriage, Hermann Fegelein - Death, Hermann Fegelein - Possible survival?, Hermann Fegelein - Portrayal in media

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Czecho-Slovakia or Czechoslovakia (1918 - 1939; 1945 - 1992) Austria-Hungary (until 1918) (Bohemia, Moravia, a part of Silesia, northern parts of the Kingdom of Hungary (Slovakia and Carpathian Ruthenia) Czecho-Slovak/Czechoslovak Republic (ČSR) (1918-1938) County Sudetenland + other German territories (1938-1945) "Highland territories" of Hungary (1938-1945)See also:

Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia - From creation to dissolution – Overview, Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia - References

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By 1945, Himmler's Waffen-SS numbered 800,000 members, with the Allgemeine-SS (at least on paper) hosting a membership of nearly two million. However, by the spring of 1945 Himmler had lost faith in German victory, probably partially due to his discussions with his masseur Felix Kersten and Walter Schellenberg2. He came to the realization that if the Nazi regime was to have any chance of survival, it would need to seek peace with Britain and the United States. Toward this end, h ...

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Heinrich Himmler, Heinrich Himmler - Early life, Heinrich Himmler - Early Nazi Party activity, Heinrich Himmler - Rise in the SS, Heinrich Himmler - Consolidation of power, Heinrich Himmler - Himmler and the Holocaust, Heinrich Himmler - Poznań speech, Heinrich Himmler - The Second World War, Heinrich Himmler - Peace negotiations capture and death, Heinrich Himmler - Conspiracy theories, Heinrich Himmler - Historical view, Heinrich Himmler - Surviving family

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An ambitious bureaucrat named Franz Rademacher, recently appointed leader of the Judenreferat III der Abteilung Deutschland, or Jewish Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, set the plan in motion on June 3, 1940 with a memorandum to his superior Martin Luther. The memorandum included a definition of the mechanics of Jewish evacuation out of Europe. Rademacher espoused the division of eastern and western Jews. The eastern Jews, he felt, were the source of the "militant Jewish intellgentsia", and should be kept close at hand in ...

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Madagascar Plan, Madagascar Plan - Origins of the Plan, Madagascar Plan - Planning Begins, Madagascar Plan - Logistics, Madagascar Plan - Collapse of the Plan, Madagascar Plan - Reference

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While the early Christianization of the Goths, the Irish, the Franks and the Alamanni was achieved by peaceful missionary activity, facilitated by the prestige of the Christian Roman Empire among European pagans, in the Middle Ages, conversion of remaining Germanic pagans was less peaceful. Charlemagne in the 8th century converted Saxon pagans by force. In 772 he destroyed their Irminsul, and in 782 he ordered t ...

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Persecution of Heathens, Persecution of Heathens - Middle Ages, Persecution of Heathens - Nazi Persecution, Persecution of Heathens - Contemporary

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List of military engagements of World War II - European Theatre. Blitzkrieg Polish September Campaign (Operation Fall Weiss) - see also Timeline of the Polish September Campaign Phony War Norwegian Campaign - see also Timeline of the Norwegian Campaign Invasion of Denmark and Norway (Operation Weserübung) Allied campaign in Norway Battle of France (Fall Gelb) Battle of Britain ( + Operation Sealion, The German p ...

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List of military engagements of World War II, List of military engagements of World War II - Major Campaigns, List of military engagements of World War II - European Theatre, List of military engagements of World War II - Asian & Pacific Theatre, List of military engagements of World War II - Middle East Theatre, List of military engagements of World War II - African & Mediterranean Theatre, List of military engagements of World War II - Battles, List of military engagements of World War II - 1939, List of military engagements of World War II - 1940, List of military engagements of World War II - 1941, List of military engagements of World War II - 1942, List of military engagements of World War II - 1943, List of military engagements of World War II - 1944, List of military engagements of World War II - 1945, List of military engagements of World War II - Sieges, List of military engagements of World War II - Naval engagements, List of military engagements of World War II - Major bombing campaigns, List of military engagements of World War II - Operations, List of military engagements of World War II - Raiding Operations, List of military engagements of World War II - Raiding Units, List of military engagements of World War II - Defensive lines, List of military engagements of World War II - Contemporary wars, List of military engagements of World War II - Pre-World War II wars

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The victims of the Holocaust were Jews, Polish, Russian, Communists, homosexuals, Roma (also known as gypsies), the mentally ill and the physically disabled, intelligentsia and political activists, Jehovah's Witnesses, some Catholic and Protestant clergy, trade unionists, psychiatric patients, some Africans, common criminals and people labeled as "enemies of the state". These victims all perished alongside one another in the camps, according to the extensive documentation left behind by the Nazis themselves (written and photographed), eyewit ...

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The Holocaust, The Holocaust - Etymology and usage of the term, The Holocaust - Features of the Nazi Holocaust, The Holocaust - Premeditation, The Holocaust - Efficiency, The Holocaust - Scale, The Holocaust - Cruelty, The Holocaust - Victims, The Holocaust - Jews, The Holocaust - Slavs, The Holocaust - Roma Sinti and Manush 'Gypsies', The Holocaust - Gay men, The Holocaust - Jehovah's Witnesses, The Holocaust - Disabled people, The Holocaust - Others, The Holocaust - Death toll, The Holocaust - Searching for records of victims, The Holocaust - Execution of the Holocaust, The Holocaust - Concentration and Labor Camps 1933-1945, The Holocaust - Pogroms 1938-1941, The Holocaust - Euthanasia 1939-1941, The Holocaust - Ghettos 1940-1945, The Holocaust - Death squads 1941-1943, The Holocaust - Extermination camps 1942-1945, The Holocaust - Death marches and liberation 1944-1945, The Holocaust - Resistance and rescuers, The Holocaust - Resistance, The Holocaust - Rescuers, The Holocaust - Perpetrators and collaborators, The Holocaust - Who was directly involved in the killings?, The Holocaust - Who authorized the killings?, The Holocaust - Who knew about the killings?, The Holocaust - Historical interpretations, The Holocaust - Why did people participate in authorize or tacitly accept the killing?, The Holocaust - Revisionists and deniers, The Holocaust - Aftermath, The Holocaust - Displaced Persons and the State of Israel, The Holocaust - Legal proceedings against Nazis, The Holocaust - Legal action against genocide, The Holocaust - Impact on culture, The Holocaust - Holocaust theology, The Holocaust - Art and literature, The Holocaust - Holocaust Memorial Days, The Holocaust - Notes, The Holocaust - Nazi plans related to the Holocaust, The Holocaust - Eugenics, The Holocaust - Individuals and the Holocaust, The Holocaust - Nazi concentration camps, The Holocaust - Ghettos, The Holocaust - Massacres and pogroms, The Holocaust - Jewish resistance

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July 31 - 1900 to Present. 1914 - Jean Jaurès, French politician (d. 1859) 1917 - Francis Ledwidge, Irish poet (b. 1881) 1944 - Antoine de Saint-Exupery, French pilot and writer (b. 1900) 1953 - Robert Taft, U.S. Senator from Ohio and Presidential candidate (b. 1889) 1972 - Paul-Henri Spaak, Prime Minister of Belgium (b. 1899) 1980 - Mohd. Rafi, Indian playback singer (b. 1924) 1993 - King Baudouin I of Belgium (b. 1930) 2001 - Poul Anderson, A ...

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July 31, July 31 - Events, July 31 - Births, July 31 - Deaths, July 31 - 1900 to Present, July 31 - Holidays and observances, July 31 - Fiction

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Joseph Stalin - Industrialization. Main article: Industrialization of the USSR. The Russian Civil War and War communism had a devastating effect on the country's economy. Industrial output in 1922 was 13% of that in 1914. A recovery followed under the New Economic Policy, which allowed a degree of market flexibility within the context of socialism. Under Stalin's direction, this was replaced by a system of centrally ordained Five-Year Plans in the late 1920s. These called for a highly ambitious program of state-g ...

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Joseph Stalin, Joseph Stalin - Childhood and early years, Joseph Stalin - Marriages and family, Joseph Stalin - Rise to power, Joseph Stalin - Campaign against the Left and Right Opposition, Joseph Stalin - Stalin and changes in Soviet society, Joseph Stalin - Industrialization, Joseph Stalin - Collectivization, Joseph Stalin - Science, Joseph Stalin - Social services, Joseph Stalin - Culture and religion, Joseph Stalin - Purges and deportations, Joseph Stalin - World War II, Joseph Stalin - Post-war era, Joseph Stalin - Stalin as theorist, Joseph Stalin - Death, Joseph Stalin - Cult of personality, Joseph Stalin - Policies and accomplishments, Joseph Stalin - Other names, Joseph Stalin - Stalin in arts, Joseph Stalin - Notes

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After his lifetime, Hitler continued to be depicted as incompetent or foolish. However, whilst Hitler's anti-Semitic policies were well known during his lifetime, it was only after his death that the full horrors of the Holocaust became known. This, coupled with Hitler no longer being a current threat, has meant that the way he is depicted in popular culture has changed since 1945 as a sinister and diabolical figure. Mel Brooks' comedy The Producers featured a play-within-a-play called Springtime for Hitler, featured dan ...

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Hitler in popular culture, Hitler in popular culture - How Hitler was represented during his lifetime, Hitler in popular culture - How Hitler is represented after his lifetime, Hitler in popular culture - Fiction about Hitler's death, Hitler in popular culture - Hitler in fiction, Hitler in popular culture - Other

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After the Austrian Anschluss, Czechoslovakia was to become Hitler's next target. Hitler's strategy was to exploit the existing Sudeten German minority problem as a pretext for German penetration into eastern Central Europe (see Germans in Czechoslovakia (1918-1938)). Sudeten German leader Konrad Henlein offered the SdP as the agent for Hitler's campaign. Henlein met with Hitler in Berlin on March 28, 1938, and was instructed to raise demands unacceptable to the Czechoslovak government. In the Carlsbad Decrees, issued on April 24, the SdP dem ...

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Occupation of Czechoslovakia, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - The Munich Agreement and the first Vienna Award, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - After Munich and Vienna The Second Republic October 1938- March 1939, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - Division of Czechoslovakia, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - Rationale for occupation, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - Czech Resistance, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - Slovak National Uprising, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - Czechoslovak Government-in-Exile, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - End of the War, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - Annexation of Carpatho-Ukraine Subcarpathian Ruthenia by the Soviet Union, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - Minorities and Population Transfers, Occupation of Czechoslovakia - From creation to dissolution – Overview

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Kristallnacht - Prelude. In the 1930s, many Jews of Polish origin had lived in Germany. On Friday, October 28, 1938, 17,000 of them had been gathered without warning in the middle of the night and forcibly deported from Germany to Poland. (Many of them had been in Germany for most of their lives; some were decorated German veterans of the First World War.) The Polish government refused to admit them, resulting in their trudging between the German and Polish border posts in the cold day and night, until the German authorities finally per ...

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Kristallnacht, Kristallnacht - Terminology, Kristallnacht - The events, Kristallnacht - Prelude, Kristallnacht - Kristallnacht, Kristallnacht - Contemporary foreign response, Kristallnacht - Follow-through, Kristallnacht - Footnotes, Kristallnacht - Modern response

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List of Germans - Chancellors of Germany before 2nd World War. Gustav Stresemann, (1878-1929), chancellor and statesman of the Weimar Republic (DVP) Joseph Wirth, (1879-1956), Chancellor of the Weimar Period (Centre) Franz von Papen (1879-1969), chancellor and politician of the Weimar Republic Philipp Scheidemann, (1865-1939), chancellor in the Weimar period (SPD) Kurt von Schleicher - general and chancellor in the Weimar period Georg Michaelis, (1857-1936), Impe ...

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List of Germans, List of Germans - Actors, List of Germans - Artists, List of Germans - Composers, List of Germans - Filmmakers, List of Germans - Royalty, List of Germans - Musicians and singers, List of Germans - Philosophers, List of Germans - Politicians, List of Germans - Chancellors of Germany before 2nd World War, List of Germans - Chancellors of Germany after 2nd World War, List of Germans - Presidents of Germany, List of Germans - Politicians in East Germany, List of Germans - Personalities of the Nazi Party and Regime, List of Germans - Scientists and engineers, List of Germans - Sportspersons, List of Germans - Theologians, List of Germans - Writers, List of Germans - Others

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