Ruqayyah Snyder
Adolf Hitler, born in Braunau am Inn, Austria, in 1889, left his home country for Germany in 1913, at the age of 24. It is speculated that he left Austria for Germany to avoid compulsory military service in the Austrian army. Hitler found the Austro-Hungarian military repulsive due to their integration of minorities, including Slavs, Jews, and other minority races of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In February 1914, he was exempted from Austrian military service as he was deemed too weak for military or support service. However, with the onset of World War I, Hitler volunteered and served in the Bavarian army, rising to the rank of corporal and receiving the Iron Cross, 1st Class.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Reason for leaving Austria for Germany | To avoid compulsory military service in Austria |
| Reason for aversion to Austrian military | The integration of minorities was seen as a disgrace to Germans |
| Year of exemption from Austrian military service | 1914 |
| Reason for exemption from Austrian military service | Found to be "too weak for military or support service" |
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What You'll Learn
- Hitler left Vienna to avoid conscription into the Austro-Hungarian military
- He found the integration of minorities into the Austrian military repulsive
- Hitler was declared unfit for Austrian military service in 1914
- He served in the German military during World War I
- Hitler's military service was key to his political appeal
Hitler left Vienna to avoid conscription into the Austro-Hungarian military
In 1913, Hitler left Vienna, where he had often been homeless and destitute, for Germany. He was 24 years old and had no job or permanent residence. He had failed to be accepted into art school and, although he likely had a good chance of being accepted into architecture school, he never applied. While he had always had a personal longing for Germany, it is speculated that he left Austria for Germany at that time to avoid conscription into the Austro-Hungarian military. This was not out of cowardice but because he found it repulsive that Slavs, Jews, and other minority races of the Austro-Hungarian Empire could serve in it.
Hitler, an Austrian citizen by birth, dodged the Austrian military service and fled to Munich. He was later caught and had to go to Salzburg. In February 1914, he was finally exempted from Austrian military service. He was found to be "too weak for military or support service" and was declared "unfit for military service."
In August 1914, the army was enlisting anyone they could find, and Hitler was able to join the German army. It is unlikely that they would have asked many questions about his background. If he had been refused on grounds of physical health, he probably would not have become who he did. Half of the Nazi myth was founded on Hitler's image as a brave soldier who fought from start to finish. If he had never served, he would not have gained the respect of veterans and would have been seen as a weakling or a draft dodger.
Hitler served in the Bavarian army from the beginning to the end of World War I. He served bravely and proficiently, receiving both the Iron Cross First and Second Class, and was wounded twice. He was in the hospital recovering from a gas attack when he learned of Germany's defeat. Interestingly, although he served in the war and lived in Germany for some years, he did not become a German citizen until he had risen in German politics to be eligible for the Chancellorship.
In March 1938, after the German annexation of Austria, Hitler's troops were welcomed into Austria without armed resistance. Austrians cheered and threw flowers. Shortly thereafter, Austrian Nazi Chancellor Seyss-Inquart signed the "Reunification of Austria with Germany" law, formally incorporating Austria into Nazi Germany. Austria was no longer an independent country and became a province of Nazi Germany.
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He found the integration of minorities into the Austrian military repulsive
Adolf Hitler left Vienna for Munich, Germany, in 1913 at the age of 24. He was homeless and destitute, and he left Austria to avoid compulsory military service. Hitler found the Austrian military repulsive because it allowed Slavs, Jews, and other minority races of the Austro-Hungarian Empire to serve. He considered their integration of minorities a disgrace to Germans.
Hitler was examined by the Bavarian army and was declared "too weak for military or support service" and "unfit for military service." Despite this, when World War I broke out, Hitler volunteered and served in the Bavarian army from start to finish. He served bravely and proficiently, receiving the Iron Cross First and Second Class, and was wounded twice.
After the war, Hitler remained in Germany and rose through the ranks of German politics. In 1938, he gave the Austrian government a series of ultimatums, threatening to invade with the German military if they were not met. The Austrian government gave in to Hitler's demands, and Austria was formally incorporated into Nazi Germany. Austria was no longer an independent country and became a province of Nazi Germany.
Hitler's service in the German military during World War I and his rise in German politics were crucial steps in his path to power and the implementation of his expansionary policies.
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Hitler was declared unfit for Austrian military service in 1914
Adolf Hitler was declared unfit for Austrian military service in 1914 due to physical unfitness. He had twice refused to respond to letters calling him to join the Austro-Hungarian Army. However, he did attend the third call and reported to the army office in Salzburg in the summer of 1913. After being medically examined on 5 February 1914, he was rejected as being "unfit for combatant and auxiliary duty—too weak. Unable to bear arms." They found evidence of a lung ailment.
Hitler, an Austrian citizen, then moved to Munich, Germany, to avoid conscription into the Austrian Army. He volunteered for the German Army, and on 1 August 1914, he was a member of the cheering, singing crowd that gathered on Odeonsplatz in Munich to listen to the proclamation of the war. Hitler was ecstatic to receive his acceptance letter, and he soon joined the 1st Company of the 16th Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment. After initial training in Munich, Hitler arrived on the Western Front on 21 October 1914, where his regiment took part in the Battle of Ypres. Hitler served in France and Belgium, and it has been claimed that his regiment was reduced from 3,600 to 611 men during this first period of fighting. Hitler, like all those who survived the battle, was promoted to the rank of lance-corporal.
Hitler's military career can be divided into two distinct portions of his life. The first period was during World War I, when he served as a Gefreiter (lance-corporal) in the Bavarian Army. The second period was during World War II, when he served as the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Wehrmacht (German Armed Forces) through his position as Führer of Nazi Germany.
Hitler's time in the German military during World War I was marked by his enthusiasm for the war effort and his German nationalist ideas. He considered the war the best years of his life. One of his superiors, Reserve-Lieutenant Horn, noted Hitler's bravery and potential as a dispatch carrier, stating that Hitler's skills as a runner behind the lines were invaluable to the regiment. However, Horn also acknowledged that Hitler showed no interest in becoming a leader or seeking promotion. Another superior, Lieutenant Gutmann, whom Hitler often sought preferential treatment from, declared that he did not want Hitler to become a non-commissioned officer due to his mental instability.
After the war, Hitler continued his military career and was appointed as an intelligence agent (Verbindungsmann) in a reconnaissance commando (Aufklärungskommando) of the Reichswehr. In this role, he was tasked with influencing other soldiers and infiltrating the German Workers' Party (DAP). He was attracted to the founder Anton Drexler's antisemitic, nationalist, anti-capitalist, and anti-Marxist ideas and soon joined the DAP himself in 1919. Hitler's military and political careers became increasingly intertwined as he rose to power, eventually becoming the Führer of Nazi Germany during World War II.
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He served in the German military during World War I
Adolf Hitler, born in Braunau am Inn, Austria, in 1889, left his home country for Germany in 1913. He was 24 at the time and had been struggling to find a job or a permanent residence in Vienna, where he had often been homeless. He also failed to be accepted into art school and never applied to architecture school, despite his probable eligibility.
It is speculated that Hitler left Austria for Germany to avoid compulsory military service in his home country. He found the Austro-Hungarian military repulsive because of their integration of minorities, including Slavs, Jews, and other minority races of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In February 1914, he was exempted from Austrian military service, deemed "too weak for military or support service."
When World War I broke out, Hitler immediately volunteered and served in the Bavarian army from start to finish. He served bravely and proficiently, receiving both the Iron Cross First and Second Class, and was wounded twice. He was in the hospital recovering from a gas attack when he learned of Germany's defeat in the war and the abdication of the Kaiser.
Hitler's service in the German military during World War I was an important aspect of his appeal and rise to power. Half of the Nazi myth was founded on his image as a brave soldier who fought from the first shot to the last. His status as a "Frontkampfer" or frontline soldier, earned him respect, especially from veterans.
After the war, Hitler remained in Germany and eventually rose to prominence in German politics. Despite his long residence in Germany, he did not become a German citizen until it was necessary for him to do so to be eligible for the Chancellorship.
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Hitler's military service was key to his political appeal
Adolf Hitler's military service was key to his political appeal. Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria, in 1889. He moved to Germany in 1913, at the age of 24, to avoid compulsory military service in Austria, which he found repulsive due to its integration of minorities. In February 1914, he was exempted from Austrian military service due to poor health. However, when World War I broke out, Hitler volunteered for the Bavarian army and served from start to finish, receiving the Iron Cross First and Second Class and being wounded twice.
Hitler's military service and his status as a decorated war veteran were crucial to his political appeal and the growth of the Nazi Party. The image of Hitler as a brave soldier who fought throughout the war helped him gain respect and support, especially among veterans. His military background also allowed him to present himself as a strong and capable leader, appealing to Germans seeking a strong leader after the nation's defeat in World War I.
Hitler's political rise began in the early 1920s, a period of social, economic, and political turmoil in Germany. He joined the Nazi Party, then a small and fringe movement, and quickly rose through the ranks to become its leader by 1921. In 1923, Hitler led an unsuccessful attempt to seize power through violence, resulting in his imprisonment. During this time, he dictated his political manifesto, "Mein Kampf."
Hitler's military experience continued to shape his political career as he leveraged his appeal to gain power. He was appointed chancellor of Germany in 1933, following a series of electoral victories by the Nazi Party. Once in power, Hitler swiftly dismantled democratic institutions, abolished non-Nazi political parties, and expanded the military, setting Germany on a course to become a war state. His invasion of Poland in 1939 triggered World War II in Europe, and during the war, Nazi forces perpetrated the Holocaust, executing 11 million victims deemed "inferior" or "undesirable."
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Frequently asked questions
Hitler left Austria for Germany in 1913, at the age of 24, to avoid compulsory military service in Austria. He disliked the Austro-Hungarian military's integration of minorities, which he considered a disgrace to Germans.
Yes, Hitler served in the German army. In August 1914, the army was enlisting anyone they could find, and Hitler was accepted despite his Austrian nationality. He served bravely and proficiently, receiving both the Iron Cross First and Second Class, and was wounded twice.
Yes, Hitler returned to Austria in 1938 after the German annexation of the country. Austrian Nazis took over the country without firing a single shot, and were welcomed by Austrians with cheers and flowers.
