Hitler’s Death

On April 30, 1945 Adolf Hitler took his life after realizing he had lost the war, but what did that mean to the world? Did his death bear any real significance? What effects did his death have on his foes, victims, followers and allies? World War II was one of the most influential wars in global history. Along with battles of attrition, another horrific method of killing came to light, genocide. Concentration camps were instilled by the Nazi's through indirect commands from Hitler to Himmler near the beginning of WWII. In Himmler's recently found diaries, there was finally written evidence of Hitler's involvement with the Final Solution. Hitler's command of Germany had many negative repercussions not only on Germany but also on the minority populations that the Nazis terrorized and the rest of the world. While some believe that Hitler's death had no real effect on the world since he and his cause had already failed before his suicide, his death and his life leading up to his suicide impacted the entire world in many ways. His death was a very significant occurrence in the twentieth century. The effect he had on the world is still present today through his followers and systematic reforms that took place in the German government after the war ended. Even today historians and psychologists make Adolf Hitler their specialty so they can try and understand the motives behind his inhumane methods.

Many mysteries surround Hitler's death, which makes his death challenging and interesting to research. For example, there were questions about whether the body Stalin obtained from the base camp was Hitler or not. Many questions followed his death that need to be answered before looking at his actual death, including whether or not Hitler was sane at the latter end of his life, why he decided to take his own life, and if the cause of his death influenced the significance of it or not. Hitler's death was clouded with confusion and was still under investigation as to whether the remains were actually Hitler himself until forensics came along. To understand his death and the significance of it, Hitler's life and the effects it had on the world must be examined as well. Hitler, in his life, was one of the most infamous and influential leaders in the world, why would his death and the way that he died bear any less significance?

Hitler was born on April 20, 1889; therefore he was fifty-six when he committed suicide. Native to Austria, Hitler didn't gain citizenship until 1932 when he decided to run for president, but lost in the elections to von Hindenburg. That same year the Nazi party dominated the elections and won 230 seats within the German government. For nominations of Reich Chancellor, for the elections in January of 1933, Franz von Papen persuaded von Hindenburg to nominate Hitler, who over maneuvered his opponents and won the elections. Soon after his victory, Hitler and other Nazi leaders started eliminating opposing political parties by sending the party officials to concentration camps (Gervasi ). Prior to his coming of power Hitler had lived as a struggling artist in Vienna. It was there that he obtained his rash and unnecessary hatred for the Jewish community. He blamed the Jews for the Germans defeat in WWI, and his biased views against them grew more negative from there. Throughout his reign, Hitler used propaganda and his mass speeches to build anti-Semitism in Germany. His hold and influence over Germany in the mid 1900's was incomparable to anything in Germany past. In November of 1923, Hitler organized the Nazi Beer Hall Putsch in hopes of forcing the Bavarian government into working with the Nazis, which would then lead to a joint march on Berlin. The attempt failed however, and Hitler was sentenced to a few years in jail. Mein Kampf, his memoirs, was written during his stay in prison.

World War II was a war unlike any other war fought in History. Over fifty million people, both soldiers and civilians, were killed during this costly war. Along with the novelty battle tactic