by President von Hindenburg on January 30, 1933. Over the next 6 years, Hitler undertook a series of measures designed to rid Germany of its obligations under the Treaty of Versailles (imposed on Germany after World War I), restore the economy which had been devastated by the Great Depression, rearm the country, and acquire Lebensraum ("living space") for Germany. In Mein Kampf, he had written of the need for this "living space" which he said could only be acquired at the expense of countries to the east, notably Russia. In 1938, by a series of intrigues, Germany annexed Austria and the Sudeten portion of Czechoslovakia, and, in 1939, occupied the remainder of Czechoslovakia. During this time, Hitler implemented a series of measures designed to eliminate the Jews from German life. Among these were gradual exclusion from most spheres of professional activity, rules as to where they could live, prohibition of marriage and other relations between Germans and Jews, economic sanctions and many others. Jews were harassed, attacked, beaten, and otherwise persecuted. Many were incarcerated in concentration camps under "protective custody" orders, which were tantamount to indefinite imprisonment. There they were beaten, abused and frequently murdered. World War II began in September 1939 with the German attack on Poland. By mid-1940, Germany had conquered Poland, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, and France, and had Britain at its mercy. At this time, Hitler began to think about attacking the Soviet Union, with which he had concluded a non-aggression pact just before the outbreak of the war. His motivation was both to acquire the "living space" he had talked about in "Mein Kampf" and to exterminate Communism, which he saw, intertwined with Jewry. The attack took place in June 1941. It was roughly at this time that Hitler ordered the extermination of the Jews, which the Nazis called die Endlsung ("the Final Solution"). There is some deb...
