ADOLF, AS PROMISED,
LESS THAN FOUR YEARS LATER

TOTAL QUALIFIED VOTES 45,453,691
TOTAL VOTES CAST 45,001,489 (99%)
VOTES 'NO' OR INVALID 540,211
VOTES FOR HITLER'S NSDAP 44,461,278 (98.8%)

True to his word, on March, 29th, 1936, the German nation was given the opportunity to accept or reject the National Socialist state. It was a free election without fear or intimidation with ample provision made for monitoring by neutral observers.

Man of the People

"It is not for any reward or benefit that I have taken office"

Also true to his word, Adolf never drew a salary in his career as Chancellor. He had sufficient private income for his needs and always returned his monthly paycheque unopened. The only leader in modern history that never benefited financially from his term in office.

ADOLF: VOTE WINNER IN THE SAAR

The Versailles Treaty had deprived Germany of the Saar territory. Adolf gave the local population the chance to choose for themselves:

IN FAVOUR OF UNIFICATION WITH GERMANY 477,119
THOSE FAVOURING NO CHANGE 46,513
IN FAVOUR OF REMAINING FRENCH 2,124

ADOLF: VOTE WINNER IN AUSTRIA

On March, 13th, 1938, the people of Austria and Germany voted
to decide on the re-unification of Austria with Hitler's Germany.

AUSTRIA: THE RESULTS

ENTITLED TO VOTE 4,474,138
ACTUAL VOTE 4,460,778 (99.07%)
TOTAL VALID VOTES 4,455,015
VOTES IN FAVOUR OR UNIFICATION 4,443,208 (99.73%)
VOTES AGAINST UNIFICATION 11,807
SPOILT PAPERS 5,763

 

GERMANY: THE RESULTS

ENTITLED TO VOTE 45,073,303
ACTUAL VOTE 44,872,702 (99.55%)
TOTAL VALID VOTES 44,803,096
VOTES IN FAVOUR OF UNIFICATION 44,362,667 (99.02%)
VOTES AGAINST UNIFICATION 440,429
SPOILT PAPERS 69,606

Twelve days after assuming office (30 January 1933) Adolf announced his vision of a network of major roads that would link all cities in Germany. These would be the first double-lane highways in the world. Adolf was now 43 years of age.

The League of Nations was, in Adolf's view, a ganging-up by the victors to ensure that they could confiscate from the
vanquished. He approached Field Marshall Hindenburg with the proposal that Germany pull out of the League, and Hindenburg was delighted that Adolf had the courage of his convictions to consider this step. Public opinion was requested in a plebiscite, and 95 percent of votes cast supported Adolf in his new policies.

A serious threat now ensued from the SA, the NSDAP's security division that had protected party meetings before 1933. The SA had now swollen to two and a half million men, far larger than the regular army, which was puny due to limitations in the Versailles treaty. The SA leader, Rohm, wanted the SA to merge with the regular military, and himself as chief. But the lack of military discipline and disrespect from Rohm, who referred to the Chancellor as "that ignorant World War corporal", made Rohm's demands undesirable and dangerous. The regular military were deeply suspicious of the NSDP and their SA troops and this polarized and poisoned the situation.

Rohm began negotiating with foreign nations without knowledge of his own government, and the SA began stockpiling weapons for a revolution in which the NSDAP would be ousted and Rohm installed as head of state. Shadow ministers were nominated and plans were made to conduct the coup at the end of June. Civil war loomed and Adolf took steps to terminate the cancer.

Ernst Rohm other senior collaborators were arrested executed.
Adolf ordered that a state pension be paid to their next-of-kin. He was extremely upset at the turn of events. Hindenburg sympathized with him : "‘My dear Chancellor, those who make history must be able to shed blood."

Warlike maneuvering was commonplace for many European countries at that time. Czechoslovakia was constructing 25 huge airfields, way in excess of anything legitimately required. It turned out that France and the Soviet Union had an unofficial alliance with Czechoslovakia and preparations were being made to attack Germany. France was preparing to invade the Rhineland. Germany planned counter-offensives to these looming invasions that included the re-conquering of the Rhineland and occupying part of Czecholslovakia.

Hitler invades the Sudetenland

The persecuted German population in regions confiscated by the Versailles treaty welcomes the invading army and Hitler with flowers

"I wish very much that your tourists would visit us not merely when sporting events are on but also that they could visit the country, I mean the whole country. There will be no organised propaganda tours to conceal the truth from them. We shall not tell them that Germany is a paradise, for there is no such thing on earth. But your tourists can travel here unhampered and complete freedom and see for themselves that Germany lives in peace and order and at work. They will observe our revival, the efforts we are making and our good will for peace. That is all I hope." - Adolf Hitler,
Paris Soir, January 26th 1936

During his term in office, Adolf Hitler's house was treated as a sort of shrine by men and women, who would walk past the house in large groups on weekends.

After the war the pilgrimage of faithful men and women continued as before. To stop this practice the Berghof was completely demolished down to the last brick, a security fence was erected wide around the property and it was made a criminal offense to approach the ruins inside the fence.

At the very end of his life, to be sure, his back had become bent, but his mind remained as clear as a flash of lightning. The testament he dictated with extraordinary composure on the eve of his death, at three in the morning of April 29, 1945, provides us a lasting testimony. Napoleon at Fontainebleau was not without his moments of panic before his abdication. Hitler simply shook hands with his associates in silence, breakfasted as on any other day, then went to his death as if he were going on a stroll. When has history ever witnessed so enormous a tragedy brought to its end with such iron self control?
- General Leon Degrelle