Introduction
Adolf Hitler was born on 20 April 1889 in Braunau-am-Inn on the Austrian-German border. His parents were Alois (1837 – 1903) and Klara (1860 – 1907) Hitler. Hitler left school at 16 with no qualifications and struggled to make a living as a painter in Vienna. This was where many of his extreme political and racial ideas originated.

In 1913, he moved to Munich and, on the outbreak of WW1, enlisted in the German army. In 1919, he joined the fascist German Workers' Party (DAP). He played to the resentments of right-wingers, promising extremist 'remedies' to Germany's post-war problems which he and many others blamed on Jews. By 1921, he was the unquestioned leader of what was now the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP or Nazi Party).

In 1923, Hitler attempted an unsuccessful armed uprising in Munich and was imprisoned for nine months, during which time he wrote his book 'Mein Kampf' outlining his political views. On his release, he began to rebuild the Nazi Party and used new techniques of mass communication, backed up with violence, to get his message across. Against a background of economic depression and political turmoil, the Nazis grew stronger and in the 1932 elections, the Nazis became the largest party in the German parliament.

In January 1933, Hitler became chancellor of a coalition government. He quickly took dictatorial powers and began to institute anti-Jewish laws. He also began the process of German militarisation and territorial expansion that would eventually lead to WW2.

How Hitler ruled Germany
When Hitler was elected, he quickly turned Germany from a fair democracy, into a Fascist dictatorship. At the time Germany was in a deep depression, they lost WW1 and had not enough money to rebuild quickly. Therefore, a dictatorship was the best way to run the country so far. However, unfortunately Hitler did not like or respect the Jews as he thought that they were evil, independent beings who were selfish.
Guided by racist and authoritarian ideas, the Nazis abolished basic freedoms and sought to create a "Volk" community. In theory, a "Volk" community