Did the Nazis come to power with the intention of eliminating the Jews? This question has been difficult to answer as it is hard to define a clear yes or no answer. To understand the Nazi regime it is imperative to understand its leader; Adolf Hitler, and how he came to power. Hitler made many references to killing Jews in his early writings ‘Mein Kampf’ and various speeches during the 1930’s, aswell as events such as The Wannsee Conference and Operation Reinhard it is fairly certain that the Nazis had an operative plan for the systematic annihilation of the Jews. Hitler also took advantage of the dire economic situation in Germany after World War 1, and accused the Jews of being the cause in order to promote his political agenda. Hitler was known as a powerful public speaker who had the ability to make his listeners believe anything, this ability, coupled with a strong anti-Semitic ideology and the situation of Germany at the time created a deadly concoction of destruction that would stain the pages of history forever.
Hitler believed that the Jews were involved in a great conspiracy to control the wealth of Europe and to dominate and destroy the German or Aryan people. Whether that belief was the basis for his hatred or was a result of it is not something I think can be determined. Hitler’s early writings from Mein Kampf show very clearly his thoughts on the Jews;
“Hence today I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: 'by defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord.”
“...the personification of the devil as the symbol of all evil assumes the living shape of the Jew.”
It is difficult to read Mein Kampf and not discern that Hitler wanted to eliminate the Jews, his hate is obviously passionate, but Hitler, although the leader of the Nazi’s, was only one man. Hitler took advantage of the difficult situation in Germany