Joseph Goebbels was born on October, 29th 1897 in Rheydt, Prussia, Germany. His family was Catholic and of modest means, and his father was a factory clerk.
Joseph was born with a deformed club foot and the fact that he couldn't serve in the military due to this infirmity always bothered him, and he actually made up stories and claimed his club foot was a war injury sustained in combat.
THE NAZI PARTY:
Goebbels joined the Nazi party in late 1924 or early 1925 while its leader, Adolf Hitler was serving time in prison for an attempted coup of Germany called the "Beer Hall Putsch." In 1926 after his release from prison, Hitler became politically active once again and began searching out powerful allies to help further the cause of the Nazi party.
Initially Goebbels and Hitler had different political views and ambitions and were not at all friends or allies. But Hitler immediately understood that Goebbels could be very useful to him because of his experience as a writer and his talent for distributing propaganda.
It was clear to Hitler that what Goebbels craved most of all was recognition. Seizing upon Goebbels needs, Hitler recruited Goebbels to be his “Minister of Hate” and his beacon of “spiritual enlightenment” for Germany and gained Joseph’s unyielding loyalty for life.
GERMAN PROPAGANDA:
Joseph Goebbels officially became Hitler’s propaganda minister in 1933 and this gave him control over all German radio, press, and cinema.
He staged elaborate rallies which helped the Nazi party eliminate all rival parties, especially communists. He erected banners, attached loud speakers, and created media spectacles glorifying the Nazi Party and portraying Adolf Hitler as Germany’s savior.
Once the Nazi Party was in firm control of Germany, Goebbels tactics would soon take a new and vicious turn. It had been part of Josephs job to soften the German people’s anti-war sentiments and convince the German people to support the military build-up and preparations for war. Once the Nazi’s were in control, Goebbels usefulness seemed to wane. In an effort to stay prominent within the Nazi hierarchy Goebbels turned his attention to the Jews.
KRISTALLNACHT:THE NIGHT OF BROKEN GLASS
Goebbels shared Hitler’s anti-Semantic views and his most dire legacy was his support of “The Final Solution” which was the basis for the extermination of the Jewish race. Goebbels eagerly jumped on the hate bandwagon and turned his considerable talents to a doctrine of persecution.
Joseph allied himself closely with Heinrich Himmler, who was one of the primary architects of the Holocaust. He helped create an air of ethnic hatred for Jews, undesirables, misfits, and other inferior races.
In November of 1938 Goebbels planned and incited ferocious attacks on German Jews called “Kristallnacht” or “The Night of Broken Glass” in which nearly 100 Jews were murdered outright and over 25,000 were rounded up and sent to concentration camps. Hundreds of Synagogues were destroyed in that single and violent night. This action helped prove his devotion to the Nazi cause and helped him rise to further importance in Hitler’s eyes.
GOEBBELS SHARES HITLER’S FATE:
Joseph Goebbels relationship with Hitler before, and during the war was not always rosy. His position within the Nazi Party changed several times depending upon alliances and changes of fortune. Hitler intervened in Goebbels personal affairs in regard to his wonton womanizing which infuriated Goebbels.
But from his first official post in 1933 up until both of their deaths in 1945, Joseph ‘s loyalty never wavered, the same cannot be said of many of Hitler’s top circle.
After it was obvious that the war was lost, Goebbels convinced Hitler to stay in Germany and defend the motherland to the bitter end. After Hitler committed suicide on April 30th, Goebbels arranged for the poisoning of his own three children and later both Joseph and his wife also took their own lives. The method of Joseph’s demise is disputed but the charred remains of the entire Goebbels family was discovered within the same complex as that of Hitler and his mistress Eva Braun in May 1945.
Resorces: The Everything WWII Book
by David White & Daniel Murphy Ph.D.
Adams Media 2002
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