Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who became the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until his suicide in 1945
. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming chancellor in 1933 and later assuming the combined title of Führer and Reichskanzler in 1934
. Hitler's aggressive expansionist policies led to the invasion of Poland in 1939, which triggered the start of World War II
. Hitler was central to the Holocaust, the systematic genocide that resulted in the murder of about six million Jews along with millions of other victims deemed undesirable by the Nazi regime
. He promoted an ideology based on territorial expansion, racial supremacy, antisemitism, and anti-communism, which he articulated in his autobiography and political manifesto, Mein Kampf
. Born in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungary, Hitler moved to Germany in 1913 and served in the German Army during World War I, where he was decorated with the Iron Cross
. After the war, he joined the German Workers' Party, which later became the Nazi Party, and became its leader in 1921
. He attempted a failed coup in Munich in 1923, was imprisoned, and wrote Mein Kampf during his incarceration
. Once in power, Hitler dismantled Germany's democratic institutions, establishing a totalitarian regime characterized by terror, propaganda, and the suppression of political opponents
. His rule led to widespread war, destruction, and atrocities across Europe until his death by suicide in Berlin in 1945 as the Allies closed in
