Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), was supreme leader, or Fuehrer, of the German Third Reich. He spent his early adult years as a frustrated artist in Vienna, and, after fighting in World War I, joined what would later become the Nazi Party. Hitler rose within the party and developed its political platform — military rearmament, the end of democratic government, and removal of Jews from German society. Under Hitler, the Nazis became the largest party in the German parliament, and in January 1933, he was named Chancellor of Germany.
Once in power, Hitler eliminated all of his political opposition, established dictatorial rule, removed German Jews from public life, remilitarized Germany, and annexed Austria and the Czech Sudetenland. In 1939, Hitler launched World War II by attacking Poland, and, within two years, he controlled most of Europe. He intended to establish a new order in Europe that involved the enslavement of German-occupied nations and the elimination of all the Jews of Europe. In April 1945, as enemy armies approached Berlin, Hitler committed suicide.
