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posted by martyb on Monday October 10 2016, @07:53PM   Printer-friendly
from the Wer-hat-das-geschrieben? dept.

A biography of Adolf Hitler published two years before his autobiography Mein Kampf may also have been written by Hitler:

In the early fall of 1923, when Adolf Hitler was still mostly known for his frenzied speeches at Munich beer halls, a slim biography was published that lauded him as the savior of the German nation and even compared him to Jesus. The book, "Adolf Hitler: His Life and His Speeches," was credited to Baron Adolf Victor von Koerber, a German aristocrat and war hero. Scholars have said that Hitler sought Mr. von Koerber out for the biography because he needed a conservative figure without links to the Nazi Party to help legitimize him as a leader.

However, new research says Hitler penned the work himself. This suggests that Hitler had designs on taking power earlier than many historians have previously thought and manipulated public opinion to get there.

"Adolf Hitler: His Life and His Speeches" was published two years before "Mein Kampf," the autobiography and manifesto that historians consider the moment Hitler went from political propagandist to leader in waiting. The von Koerber biography was published shortly before Hitler helped lead a bungled coup in Munich known as the Beer Hall Putsch.

"It's 1923, and Hitler suddenly decides he needs to boost his national profile," said Thomas Weber, a professor of history and international affairs at the University of Aberdeen, in Scotland, who uncovered documents in Mr. von Koerber's archival papers that he argues reveals Hitler as the biography's true author. The documents included a sworn statement by the publisher's widow.

Dusty old Godwin meme.


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  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 11 2016, @10:01PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 11 2016, @10:01PM (#413138)

    My father fought in Africa, on the other side. I dunno who are the good guys, but the bad guys do not go fight, they count the money. Make a one article martial law, "who makes one penny or earns a square inch of property from the war gets his head chopped off", if you hate wars.

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  • (Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday October 12 2016, @12:19AM

    by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Wednesday October 12 2016, @12:19AM (#413181)

    If your Dad was in the Afrika Korps then my Dad hated him.
    It wasn't until 1945 when the Germans were surrendering in droves, that he realised that these young guys were just like him, and he felt guilty about having killed their mates.
    Not that he ever told me any of this, but he did talk to my Mother about it. It affected him badly until his death.