Memorable Photographs of Nazi History: Within three years of their first electoral success, the Nazis took hold of political power in Germany when Adolf Hitler became chancellor on January 30, 1933. That beautiful, clear evening, Hitler stood in the window of the Reich Chancellery, waving proudly to thousands of stormtroopers who staged parades through the streets of Berlin. At the end of June 1940, Adolf Hitler toured Paris as the conqueror of the French nation, which the Wehrmacht had beaten in a matter of weeks.
The Nazis declared that their third Reich would be the best civilization in history and last for a thousand years. The meteoric rise of Hitler and national socialism was followed by equally swift defeat. The Third Reich lasted a mere twelve years. In the year 1945, Hitler was forced to retreat to his underground bunker, where, surrounded by the remains of his empire, he took his own life.
Moreover, within the entire scope of modern history, the Nazi era occupies a minuscule span of time. Yet during that brief period, the Nazis instituted one of the most oppressive dictatorships known, launched a world war, dominated most of the European continent, and perpetrated crimes against humankind of staggering enormity. Certainly, the Third Reich drastically distorted the political structure of Europe and the course of world history. Below are concise images of the history of the Nazis.
(left to right) Deputy Führer Rudolf Hess, Hitler, and Gauleiter Julius StreicherHermann Göring and Rudolf Hess at the Nuremberg TrialsHitler and his generals ponder wartime strategy.Hitler meets with German workers.Hitler’s motorcade through Nuremberg.Nazi mass rally at the Berlin Sportpalast.Nazi Storm Troopers on parade.Russian winter halts the German offensive.Storm troopers are advancing with Nazi colors.The annual Nuremberg party rallyThe Brandenburg Gate after the Allied bombing of BerlinWehrmacht tanks quickly advancing across the Russian steppes.The Hitler YouthThe Blitzkrieg bogged down in the Russian thaw.Hitler as charismatic orator.Reich propaganda minister Josef GoebbelsNazi parade through Nuremberg.Hitler was in Paris after the swift defeat of France in 1940.Nazi History: German troops on the eastern front
