Pictures from Adolf Hitler's worst Christmas ever

[Bucky]

December 1941



Der Fuhrer seems pretty damn glum for a guy celebrating the birth of the Christ Child. This was the Yuletide right after his big blitz into Russia got bogged down fighting "General Winter," despite his own advisors' assurances it'd all be over by Hanukkah. And on top of that, his distant allies in Japan had just gone and done something silly in Hawaii that he was certain would be nothing but trouble in the long run. So, it's no fun for the holidays for Adolf Hitler here. But at least he can look forward to Santa helping him with his coal shortage problems (one stocking at a time!).

[kwassa]

1. so, his holidays later were probably much worse.

worse than a lump of coal in the stocking.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

2. who is that seated to his left? do you know who else are in the photos?

[Aristus]

3. I think that's Robert Ley to Hitler's left.

The head of the Party's Labor Front, which, Orwell-like, was the exact opposite of a labor union. It abolished labor unions, and then forced increased mandatory working hours, productivity goals, penalties for absenteeism, etc on Germany's workforce.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

4. thanks, Aristus. Do you recognize anyone else?

gotta show these to my brother. he is a huge WWII buff.

[Aristus]

6. I can't swear to these, but I think it's Ley in the first photo.

I think the guy to Hitler's left in the 2nd pic is Julius Streicher, the 'philosopher' of the Reich's Nazi ideology. He also published a pornographic, anti-Semitic newspaper called Der Sturmer. He was so repellent, even other Nazis couldn't stand to be around him.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

7. that be one badass mofo. evil.

[Bucky]

5. Yeah, but did he make the reindeer run on time?

That's a Christmas Nazi joke

[Lionel Mandrake]

8. Actually, Hitler was happy about Pearl Harbor in 1941.

Hitler believed that racial purity was what made a nation strong. Therefore he believed that racially homogeneous Japan would be more than a match for the racially diverse USA. His belief was bolstered by the Japanese naval victory over Czarist Russia in 1905.

Nazi Germany declared war on the USA shortly after Pearl Harbor, because Hitler wanted the conflict between America and Japan to become part of the European war as soon as possible. Of course we then declared war on Germany, and Hitler got his wish. But it didn't turn out quite like he expected.

Christmas 1941 may have been worse than any previous Christmas for der Führer, but Christmas 1943 was worse still. By then all but the most fanatical Nazis knew they would lose the war.

On Christmas 1944 Hitler may have thought the Battle of the Bulge would turn the war around. It was certainly a lousy Christmas for the US troops in Europe. But after a while the weather cleared and US Airplanes began to bomb the German tanks as they were running out of gas.

A few months later Hitler committed suicide. Karl Dönitz (the U-boat guy) became the second Führer just in time to surrender to the Allies. V-E day was May 8, 1945.

[Bucky]

9. Donitz

Is there anything he can't do?