Hitler's Nationality: German Or Austrian?

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungary, in 1889. He was raised near Linz and lived in Vienna in the first decade of the 1900s before moving to Germany in 1913. Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until his suicide in 1945. He was decorated during his service in the German Army in World War I, receiving the Iron Cross. He joined the German Workers' Party (DAP), the precursor of the Nazi Party, in 1919 and was appointed leader of the Nazi Party in 1921. In 1933, he became the chancellor of Germany and then took the title of Führer und Reichskanzler in 1934.

Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungary, in 1889

Adolf Hitler was born on 20 April 1889 in Braunau am Inn, a town in Austria-Hungary (present-day Austria). The town is located close to the border with the German Empire. Hitler was born to Alois Hitler and his third wife, Klara Hitler (née Pölzl). He was the fourth of six children, three of whom (Gustav, Ida, and Otto) died in infancy.

Hitler's father, Alois, was a local customs official. He was harsh and distant, and young Hitler had a strained relationship with him. Hitler's mother, on the other hand, was someone he was close to, and her death from cancer when he was 17 was traumatic for him.

Hitler received a normal education and showed no special talents as a young man. He wanted to study art and moved to Vienna after his mother's death, hoping to get accepted into an art school, but was rejected due to a lack of talent. After this rejection, Hitler lived a bohemian life in homeless shelters and dormitories, earning money as a labourer and by painting and selling watercolours of Vienna's sights.

Hitler's birthplace in Braunau am Inn continues to attract attention, with four Germans being detained for placing white roses in memory of Hitler at the residence in 2024.

He moved to Germany in 1913, aged 24

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungary, in 1889. He moved to Germany in 1913, aged 24.

Hitler's early life was marked by his mother's death when he was 17, which was traumatic for him. He wanted to study art, and moved to Vienna after his mother's death, but was rejected by the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. He lived a bohemian life in homeless shelters and dormitories, earning money as a labourer and by painting watercolours of Vienna's sights. During this time, he developed an interest in architecture and music, and was exposed to racist rhetoric. He read local newspapers that promoted prejudice and utilised Christian fears of being swamped by an influx of Eastern European Jews. Hitler also read pamphlets by philosophers and theoreticians such as Houston Stewart Chamberlain, Charles Darwin, Friedrich Nietzsche, Gustave Le Bon, and Arthur Schopenhauer.

Hitler received the final part of his father's estate in May 1913 and moved to Munich, Germany. He was conscripted into the Austro-Hungarian Army, but was deemed unfit for service. He returned to Munich and, at the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, he voluntarily enlisted in the Bavarian Army. Hitler was decorated during his service in the German Army, receiving the Iron Cross.

Hitler's time in the German Army and the events of World War I had a profound impact on him and reinforced his German patriotism. He was shocked by Germany's capitulation in November 1918 and, like other German nationalists, believed the Dolchstoßlegende (stab-in-the-back myth), which claimed that the German army had been "stabbed in the back" by civilian leaders, Jews, Marxists, and those who signed the armistice.

After the war, Hitler returned to Munich and remained in the Army. In July 1919, he was appointed as an intelligence agent of a reconnaissance unit of the Reichswehr. He was tasked with infiltrating the German Workers' Party (DAP), the precursor of the Nazi Party. Hitler was impressed by the party's anti-Semitic, nationalist, anti-capitalist, and anti-Marxist ideas, and he joined within a week.

Hitler's move to Germany in 1913, at the age of 24, thus marked a significant turning point in his life. It was during this period that he began to develop his extreme nationalist and racist ideologies, which would eventually lead to his rise as the dictator of Nazi Germany.

Hitler was an Austrian citizen and served in the German Army during World War I

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungary, in 1889. He was raised near Linz and lived in Vienna in the first decade of the 1900s before moving to Germany in 1913. Hitler was an Austrian citizen and, despite being rejected by the Austrian army, he volunteered to serve in the German Army at the start of World War I. He served throughout the four-year conflict and was decorated for bravery, receiving the Iron Cross, Second Class, in 1914, and the Iron Cross, First Class, in 1918.

Hitler's wartime experience reinforced his German patriotism, and he was shocked by Germany's capitulation in November 1918. He believed the Dolchstoßlegende (stab-in-the-back myth), which claimed that the German army had been "stabbed in the back" on the home front by civilian leaders, Jews, Marxists, and those who signed the armistice that ended the fighting. This belief began to shape his ideology and set him on the path to becoming the dictator of Nazi Germany.

Hitler's Austrian origins are often overlooked because he renounced his citizenship in 1925 and because he was so closely associated with Germany during his time as chancellor and Führer. However, his Austrian background is important for understanding his rise to power and his extreme ideology. Hitler's early life in Austria, his experiences during World War I, and his post-war activities in Germany all contributed to the formation of his nationalist, anti-Semitic, and racist beliefs, which had devastating consequences for millions of people during World War II.

He was obsessed with German nationalism and considered himself ethnically German

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungary, in 1889. He was raised near Linz and lived in Vienna in the first decade of the 1900s before moving to Germany in 1913. Despite being born in Austria, Hitler considered himself ethnically German. He was obsessed with German nationalism and believed that all ethnic Germans should live under one German state.

Hitler's favourite teacher regularly espoused German nationalism and was part of the underground Nazi SS. During his time in Vienna, Hitler consumed countless books about German nationalism, which helped form his later beliefs. He expressed loyalty only to Germany and despised the declining Habsburg monarchy and its rule over an ethnically diverse empire. Hitler and his friends used the greeting "Heil", sang the "Deutschlandlied" instead of the Austrian Imperial anthem, and supported the idea of pan-Germanism.

Hitler volunteered to serve in the German Army at the start of World War I, despite being an Austrian citizen. He identified completely with the German cause and was decorated for his service, receiving the Iron Cross. After the war, he joined the German Workers' Party (precursor of the Nazi Party) and became its leader in 1921. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and then taking the title of Führer und Reichskanzler in 1934.

Hitler's invasion of Poland in 1939 marked the start of World War II. He was closely involved in military operations throughout the war and was central to the perpetration of the Holocaust: the genocide of about six million Jews and millions of other victims. Hitler's policies resulted in the killing of nearly two million non-Jewish Polish civilians, over three million Soviet prisoners of war, communists, and other political opponents, homosexuals, the physically and mentally disabled, Jehovah's Witnesses, Adventists, and trade unionists.

Hitler's obsession with German nationalism and his belief in ethnic Germans led him to pursue Lebensraum (living space) for the German people in Eastern Europe. His aggressive, expansionist foreign policy is considered the primary cause of World War II in Europe.

Hitler's Austrian origins were suppressed and Austria was renamed Ostmark

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, a town in Austria-Hungary, in 1889. He was raised near Linz and lived in Vienna in the first decade of the 1900s before moving to Germany in 1913. Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until his suicide in 1945.

Hitler's Austrian origins were suppressed, and his rise to power in Germany was facilitated by his ability to exploit the country's fragile political climate. In the aftermath of World War I, Austria was stripped of its empire and faced economic instability and political fragmentation. The Austrian Nazi Party, inspired by Hitler's rise to power in Germany, gained significant traction. Hitler wanted to unify all German-speaking peoples under the Third Reich, and his pressure on Austria led to the country's new Chancellor, Kurt Schuschnigg, agreeing to appoint Austrian Nazis to key government positions.

On March 11, 1938, under the threat of military invasion by Germany, Schuschnigg resigned, paving the way for Arthur Seyss-Inquart to become Chancellor. Within hours, Seyss-Inquart appealed to Germany for military support, marking the beginning of the Anschluss, the union of Austria with Nazi Germany. On March 12, German forces crossed the Austrian border and were greeted by many Austrians with enthusiasm and support. On March 13, 1938, Austria was incorporated into Nazi Germany, and the country was renamed "Ostmark."

Hitler himself entered Austria on March 14 and received a hero's welcome in Vienna. The annexation was followed by a referendum on April 10, 1938, which retrospectively asked the Austrian people to ratify the Anschluss. The official results showed overwhelming support, though the fairness and freedom of the referendum were compromised by Nazi propaganda and intimidation.

The suppression of Hitler's Austrian origins and the renaming of Austria to Ostmark were part of a broader effort to suppress traditional Austrian identity and promote a German-centric identity. Civil administration, education, and cultural institutions were all Nazified, with a strong emphasis on loyalty to Hitler and the Nazi ideology. Austrian civil servants, soldiers, and police officers took a new oath to Hitler, and a variety of organizations and institutions adopted Nazi ideas and implemented Nazi policies.

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