Born in Austria, Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) spent his young adult years as an aspiring artist in Vienna before moving to Munich, Germany in 1913. When the First World War began, Hitler refused to enlist in the Austrian army and volunteered instead for a Bavarian infantry unit, separate from the main German Army. He served on the Western Front, mostly as a dispatch runner, and suffered minor wounds.

When the war ended, Hitler became politically active, joining with other embittered war veterans to protest the “November criminals” – German officials accused of betraying their country by ceding German land and prestige in the peace settlement. Hitler joined the German Workers’ Party, then became its leader, reshaping the organization into the Nazi Party and using incendiary, nationalistic rhetoric to assail the political elite, Jews, and communists.

In 1932, Hitler ran for the presidency but lost to the aging incumbent, Paul von Hindenburg. Hoping to placate the opposition and unify the country, von Hindenburg named Hitler as chancellor – essentially the head of government. But the following year, when the Nazis won control of the Reichstag (parliament), they passed the Enabling Act, transferring broad political powers to Hitler. The Nazi Party became the official party of Germany, and all opposition parties were banned. When von Hindenburg died in 1934, Hitler abolished the office of president and declared himself the sole leader of Germany. Supported by the military, his power was absolute.

As Germany’s political and military leader during World War II, Hitler presided over a string of early successes followed by a series of strategic blunders. That included his invasion of the Soviet Union and needless declaration of war on the United States, both in 1941. Both decisions proved catastrophic, leading to eventual defeat. He died in April 1945 by putting a gun to his head as Soviet forces inched closer to his underground bunker in Berlin.