The Minds Behind the Holocaust: Nazi Leaders

Thesis

• Hitler promised all Jews that soon, Germany would be better than ever. In order to fulfill his promise, Hitler and all Nazi leaders would begin exterminating people of the Jewish religion.

Jewish Religion

• Unfortunately in 1933, Germans didn't view Judaism as a religion, but a race.

Untitled Slide

• Judaism dates back all the way to 3,500 years ago to Abraham. Abraham was the first Jew.

Untitled Slide

• Jews believed that if they obeyed and worshipped then they would reach the "promised land". People who did not practice Judaism blamed Jews for Jesus' death.

Hitler's Mind

• Adolf Hitler had all the power he desired. Since he had become a highly skilled public speaker, it was easy for him to manipulate his crowd to believe what he wanted them to believe.

Untitled Slide

• Hitler's Goal was to make all Germans think as he did. In his mind, Jews were evil. He treated them as if they were not human. Jews were put into concentration camps, extermination camps, and ghettos, in which living conditions were unbearable in all three places.

Untitled Slide

• In the concentration camps, people were forced to work; some were even worked to death. Jews were sent to extermination camps where they would be killed.

Hitler's "Right-Hand" Man

• Reinhard Heydrich was a very intelligent man as were all of the Nazi leaders that worked for Hitler.

Untitled Slide

• Heydrich had fully earned Hitler's trust and Hitler relied on him to organize anything he needed. His organization skills are what gothic noticed by Hitler.

Untitled Slide

• Eventually, Reinhard Heydrich became chief of the Reich Security Head Office. This gave him complete control over the secret police.

Erich Von Manstein

• When Erich Von Manstein was just 13 years old, he entered the corps of cadets. With high expectations from his family to enter the military, Manstein did just as his family wished.

Untitled Slide

• During WWI, Manstein was an adjutant, (assistant to commanding officer) of a regiment in the Second Guards. In 1936, he was promoted to a major general.

Untitled Slide

• Despite Manstein's negative opinion of Hitler, he continued to work with him. Von Manstein started to tell Hitler how he felt about him, Hitler decided to let Manstein go in March of 1944, since they had different opinions.

Untitled Slide

• In 1945, he was captured by the British and turned over to the Soviets. Manstein was in prison until 1953. He was let out of jail beacause of health issues; he later died in 1973.

Paul Hausser

• In addition to Von Manstein, Paul Hausser was another man who failed to obey a few of HItler's orders. That certainly didn't stop him from being a powerful Nazi leader.

Untitled Slide

• Hausser was involved in the Motorized division, being commander of "Das Reich". At Kursk, he commanded over 400 armored vehicles, he was also a part of the S.S. In 1941, Hausser was involved in the fighting around Yelnya Bend.

Karl Doenitz

• Commander of the German Navy's U-boats was Karl Doenitz. In 1934 he was shifted to the position of the Commander in chief of the Navy.

Untitled Slide

• Hitler fully trusted and respected Doenitz. After Hitler's death, Doenitz became the head of state. Karl Doenitz was only sentenced to ten years in prison.

Field Marshalls

• From 1938 to 1941, Walter Von Brauchitsh was Commander in chief of the German Army. His health, the failure of the German Army at Moscow, and Hitler's refusal to listen to any of his advice, influenced him to make the decision of resigning from his position in 1941.

Untitled Slide

• Chief of High Command of the Armed Forces was Wilhem Keitel. Keitel was a simple man, therefore he gave Hitler advice when he asked for it and never questioned Hitler.

Karl Adolf Eichmann

• The sixteenth member of the Nazi Party on July 1, 1920 was Karl Adolf Eichmann. In 1932. On April 21, 1933, Karl Eichmann was assigned the role of Deputy Fuhrer. A year later, Eichmann joined the Austrian Nazi Party, and eventually became a member of the S.S.

Untitled Slide

• Eichmann was in charge of Gestapo Department IV B4 for Jewish affairs. He was also in power of the trains that traveled from Europe to the death camps where Jews were killed. In 1987, Eichmann committed suicide at 97 years old. He was one of the last prisoners tried at Nuremburg.

Nuremburg Trials

• At the Nuremburg Trials, most Nazi leaders were found guilty for crimes against humanity. Everyone found guilty served time and prison, some were sentenced to death and hung. A few people including Adolf Hitler committed suicide before the trial.

Untitled Slide

• This devastating time in history can only teach the world how to be better. We can only hope that the amount of hatred that occurred during the Holocaust never has to be experienced again.