Pictures of Adolph Hitler

Close-ups

Adolph Hitler was elected chancellor of Germany in 1932, but he had been active in politics since 1920. As the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party, he quickly developed a reputation as an emotional speaker whose vitriolic tirades against communists, Jews, and others. Hitler cultivated a cult of personality and often would give signed photos of himself to friends and supporters.

The Nazi Salute

One of the ways Hitler and the Nazi Party attracted followers and built their reputation was through the staging of elaborate public rallies, both before and after they came to power. These events would feature military parades, athletic demonstrations, dramatic events, speeches, and appearances by Adolph Hitler and other German leaders. In this image, Hitler salutes attendees at a Reichsparteitag (Reich Party Day) in Nuremberg, Germany.

World War I

During World War I, Adolph Hitler served in the German Army as a corporal. In 1916 and again in 1918, he was wounded in gas attacks in Belgium, and he was twice awarded the Iron Cross for bravery. Hitler later said that he relished his time in the service, but that Germany's defeat left him feeling humiliated and angry. Here, Hitler (first row, far left) poses with fellow soldiers.

During Weimar Republic

After being discharged from the army in 1920, Hitler because involved in radical politics. He joined the Nazi Party, a staunchly nationalist organization that was strongly anti-communist and anti-Jewish, and soon because of its leader. On Nov. 8, 1923, Hitler and several other Nazis took over a beer hall in Munich, Germany, and vowed to overthrow the government. After a failed march on the city hall where more than a dozen people died, Hitler and several of his followers were arrested and sentenced to five years in prison. Pardoned the following year, Hitler soon resumed his Nazi activities. In this image, he displays a Nazi flag used during the notorious "beer hall putsch."

As the New German Chancellor

By 1930, Germany's government was in disarray and the economy in shambles. Led by the charismatic Adolph Hitler, the Nazi Party had become a political force to be reckoned within Germany. After elections in 1932 failed to produce a majority for a single party, the Nazis entered into a coalition government and Hitler was appointed chancellor. During elections the following year, the Nazis consolidated their political majority and Hitler was firmly in control of Germany. Here, he listens to election returns that will bring the Nazis to power.

Before World War II

Once in power, Hitler and his allies wasted little time seizing the levers of power. Opposition political parties and social organizations were violently suppressed or outlawed, and dissidents were arrested or killed. Hitler rebuilt the German military, withdrew from the League of Nations, and began openly agitating for expanding the nation's borders. As the Nazis openly celebrated their political glories (including this rally commemorating the Beer Hall Putsch), they systematically began arresting and killing Jews, homosexuals, and others considered enemies of the state.

During World War II

After securing alliances with Japan and Italy, Hitler struck a secret deal with the U.S.S.R.'s Joseph Stalin to divide Poland. On Sept. 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, overwhelming the nation with its military might. Two days later, Great Britain and France declared war on Germany, though there would be little military conflict until Germany invaded first Denmark and Norway, then Holland, Belgium, and France in April and May of 1940. World War II would eventually draw both the U.S. and U.S.S.R. and last until 1945.

Hitler and Other Nazi Officials

Adolph Hitler was the leader of the Nazis, but he wasn't the only German who held a position of power during their years in power. Joseph Goebbels, far left, had been a Nazi member since 1924 and was Hitler's minister of propaganda. Rudolph Hess, to Hitler's right, was another long-time Nazi official who was Hitler's deputy until 1941, when he flew a plane to Scotland in a bizarre attempt to secure a peace treaty. Hess was arrested and jailed, dying in prison in 1987.

Hitler and Foreign Dignitaries

During Hitler's rise to power, he courted many of the world's leaders. One of his closest allies was the Italian leader Benito Mussolini, shown in this photo with Hitler during a visit to Munich, Germany. Mussolini, the leader of the radical Fascist Party, had seized power in 1922 and established a dictatorship that would last until his death in 1945. 

Meeting Roman Catholic Dignitaries

Hitler courted the Vatican and the leaders of the Catholic Church from his earliest days in power. Vatican and Nazi officials signed a number of agreements that allowed the Catholic Church to practice in Germany in exchange for a promise not to interfere in German national affairs. 

Sources

• Bullock, Allan; Bullock, Baron; Knapp, Wilfrid F.; and Lukacs, John. "Adolph Hitler, Dictator of Germany." Brittanica.com. Accessed 28 February 2018.
• Cowley, Robert, and Parker, Geoffrey. "Adolph Hitler" (excerpted from "The Reader's Companion to Military History." History.com. 1996.
• Staff writers. "Adolph Hitler: Man and Monster." BBC.com. Accessed 28 February 2018.