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The beginning of World War 1. It started shortly after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Heir to the imperial throne of the Austro-Hungarian empire. This ignited the war between the two sides Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire and (named The Central Powers) and Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Romania, Japan and the United States (The Allied Powers). Even before the inevitable war, these countries still had tension amongst them. Even more reason for war -
After 1567 days of fighting the War the Central Powers were defeated by the Allied Powers. The Central Powers fought well with multiple powerful fronts in all the territory they could infiltrate with their troops. The Central Powers seemed to have a promised victory with Germany fighting for them until the United States finally stepped in on April 6, 1917 to help the Allied Powers win once and for all. Slowly all of the Central powers dissolved and Germany was forced to surrender on 11/11/1918.
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After the War all these countries needed a peace treaty, the Treaty of Versailles was created in 1919 to ensure that they could prevent further world conflicts with no devasting scale like WW1 which killed over 16 million people in the years it lasted. Germany lost a lot of territory, power and money due to the War and now the treaty added onto that which made them basically powerless. For almost 21 years the treaty was intact and peace was kept. -
After the Treaty of Versailles put Germany into an economic & political corner (hyper inflation due to having to pay a War compensation fee, causing the great depression, everything basically in hell). So, a new democratic government was elected and created a constitution to appease to the German people. Quite literally, only German lives were protected under these laws. Laws such as old laws that denied freedoms continued, including one that discriminated against homosexual men and “Gypsies”. -
After the constitution was created for Weimar there was high hopes for things to improve for the German Citizens who lived there but even with their efforts things didn't change as fast as they wanted to. This era of despair lasted for years and even the President was unable to guide his people into a better tomorrow in the way he wanted. In 1933 he decided to place his faith into a chairman for the NSDAP, electing him Chancellor in hopes of helping the people of Germany.
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When Hitler was finally elected Chancellor he became the head of the Government, which means he could pass any law he pleases. He slowly began to eliminate anything that goes against his personal beliefs. His word was absolute law. He became the dictator and made the country believe he was the greatest thing to ever happen to it. Resorting the economic stability in Germany and making every German feel special to be German. Slowly building up his plan to systemically kill millions of Jews. -
From the years leading forward from his dictatorship he made sure that it was possible to brainwash every German in the country into his antisemitic propaganda and lies to try and cleanse Germany from Jewish people, seeing them as a race rather than a religion. Oppressing them to the point where some cannot leave their homes without being harassed. Children were even taught in schools to hate Jews and Hitler made sure of it. Only allowing German-related things in the Country for "purity".
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The night of the broken glass; on this night of November 1938, Nazis attacked the Jewish people of Germany, by harassing them, lighting synagogues on fire, destroying their homes, their businesses. This was done to Justify the murder of a German diplomatic official, Ernst vom Rath, in Paris. This same night 30,000 Jewish men got arrested for being Jewish and taken into concentration camps. Even after the severe vandalism all Jews were ordered to pay a destruction fee even after everything.
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After The Night of Broken Glass all Jewish residents and citizens living in Germany were forced to transfer all of their businesses and companies to the Aryans, ¨pure blooded Germans¨ or they will be taken by force and sent to jail. A few days after that all Jewish children were ordered to leave all German schools and they were expelled completely and stripped away from their education.
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The second World War breaks out and Hitler uses this to his advantage to gather up as many Jews as possible and send them to them to his camps of death. He had all his Soldiers go to different parts of Europe and round up every Jew they could find and send them to the Concentration camps built inside of Germany and other neighboring countries. If you were lucky you would be sent to a camp that only requires labor, for some they were sent to a camp where they would be cremated on arrival. -
There is never an exact date when these systematic murders began but Jewish people scattered all over Europe were transported in large trains into concentration camps where they would either work until they cant work anymore or die the second they arrive on grounds. They wee treated terribly with daily abuse and torment from guards, barely any rations of food to eat and all day labor. If they were lucky they could stay with family but for the most part they were all separated from each-other. -
As time progressed, so did the camps. More were being built in Europe, specifically in Germany to send hundreds and thousands of Jews being sent there everyday, some were able to pass off as non jews such as french or hungarian but regardless they worked in labor camps along with jewish people in the camps. Everyday felt like a nightmare for them. -
Shortly after the War and his loss, Hitler killed himself. He couldn't stand to be defeated and ended his own life. He killed himself days before the War ended which resulted in the Central Powers surrendering to the Allied Powers causing the 1000 year Reich to end and his reign. He swallowed a cyanide pill and shot himself in his underground bunker because he is a cowardly leader. Unfit to accept his loss and take his own life. -
The Holocaust finally came to an end on May 8th, 1945 when the Allied Powers finally won the second world war against the central powers. Every prisoner that has held captive for years was finally free to go , resume regular lives as best as they can. Some prisoners were freed beforehand when tanks (usually Russian or American) came to rescue them from the camps but most of them were freed when the War finally ended. At that point they were looking for revenge, but to live like they did before.