Did Hitler Know the Truth of the Death Camps?

Question

I am ignorant about history, but there are so many highly intelligent and educated people on here can I ask a question that bugs me -

I have been told on more than one occasion, and I have read in books now and then, that Hitler was aware of the concentration camps for Jews (and Gay's) but he did not know they were 'Death Camps'

I have been told that the 'Death Camps' were conceived and run by the German SS.

Apparently, when Hitler was told the truth about the mass slaughter in these camps, he was horrified and that contributed to his ultimate suicide.

I would appreciate answers from intelligent people with reliable sources - leave emotion out of this please.

Thanks.

Answer 1

Why are you trying to justify Hitlers action?

His signature was on ALL of the documents at the Death Camps when they were finally stopped.

He personally negotiated the deal that supplied the chemicals used to kill many thousands.

He suicided because he was a nut and was beaten.
There are 2 things to do when you are insane. Get help and be cured, or take the rest of the world with you.

I wonder which Hitler went for?

As for sources for this information, the Nazi propaganda groups admit that Hitler knew all about the Concentration camps and was fully aware of the death toll.
If you want to become a Nazi then just do it.
Don't try to justify Hitlers actions as someone who did not know what was happening or was misunderstood.

With regards to keeping emotion out of this, thats very difficult because my father was a survivor of one of these camps.
The rest of our family was murdered at these camps.
It may simply be History now, but it is still strong in those who were directly affected.

Answer 2

Hitler was a psychopath, he ordered the "final solution," and placed a top priority on the building and managing of the death camps and concentration camps. He knew every phase of their operation. Far from being horrified, he was pleased with the numbers of people being gassed, particularly at the end of the war. He visited these camps to make sure they were "efficient," and promoted Eichmann for his contribution to this horror. Hitler committed suicide because he did not want to face the charges for the crimes he had committed, and because even at the end, he could not stand to lose. A review of "Mein Kampf" (My Life) will clear up any doubt you have about Hitler's attitude about Jews, Gays, Gypsies, Negros and other races that he believed were inferior. His illusion of a "master race" is still plaguing the world. We are all descended from a single African Mother who lived 150,000 years ago, so racism is simply a really stupid form of self-hatred. Try to resist "revisionist" history - which is just another way of saying "propaganda."

Answer 3

Yes Hitler was aware of the camps, he may not have been aware of the finer points of the camps, but he certainley did know about the differances between Concentration, Work and Extermination Camps and squads and approved of the 'Final Soloution' of the Jewish Question as documented by the 'Wanasee' Conferance in 1941.
Indeed with so many camps, foreign workers and infrastructure devoted to this area it would easy to say that 75% of the Population residing inside of Germany knew about them and numerous front line units would have heard rumours, whispers and even participated in some of the crimes

Answer 4

What wonderful question.
And what if what has been told is only misunderstanding? Just a big manipulation event?

As you said, all those intelligent and cult people in YR are aware that concentration camps got gipsy, polish, russian, colored people and other religions than hebrew, but history usually talks olny about one minority.

History does not talk about compensations to other minorities that had fallen in this terrible situation during the second war.

History talk neither about many documents, newpapers articles and published stories that illustrates German discourse about hebrew. But documents published everywhere in europe 20 years before 1st. war adn nto related to Germans (!). Documents talking about control and domination. Basis for the War II discourse. Same anti semitic argue that comes from all persecutions happened in many different centuries before, in many different cultures and countries.

I'm glad that finally Anti-Semitic discourse belongs to the past.

As a open minded, I'm really interested in hear the "If" possibility. Try to not be blind by dogmas and try to see surroundings of the tragic events of the second war.

Despite my lack of culture, I'm sure that is well know that History is made by the Winner and ask is always important to find the real true's path.

I'll read these answers and try to find logic explanations instead of reage and wrath and fury.

Answer 5

Yes, there are somewhere the minutes of the meeting between Him, Himmler Goring and all the top brass of the Nazis, where they made the decision to begin the killing, they laid out the whole process from the ghettos to the concentration camps, even German officers who where there or knew of this meeting have given evidence, this is where the term the final solution was coined from Hitlers own words during this meeting.

Even more damning evidence is his own book written while in exile before he came to power "Mein Kampf"

In his book, Hitler divides humans into categories based on physical appearance, establishing higher and lower orders, or types of humans. At the top, according to Hitler, is the Germanic man with his fair skin, blond hair and blue eyes. Hitler refers to this type of person as an Aryan. He asserts that the Aryan is the supreme form of human, or master race.

And so it follows in Hitler's thinking, if there is a supreme form of human, then there must be others less than supreme, the Untermenschen, or racially inferior. Hitler assigns this position to Jews and the Slavic peoples, notably the Czechs, Poles, and Russians.

Hitler describes the struggle for world domination as an ongoing racial, cultural, and political battle between Aryans and Jews. He outlines his thoughts in detail, accusing the Jews of conducting an international conspiracy to control world finances, controlling the press, inventing liberal democracy as wells as Marxism, promoting prostitution and vice, and using culture to spread disharmony.

Throughout Mein Kampf, Hitler refers to Jews as parasites, liars, dirty, crafty, sly, wily, clever, without any true culture, a sponger, a middleman, a maggot, eternal blood suckers, repulsive, unscrupulous, monsters, foreign, menace, bloodthirsty, avaricious, the destroyer of Aryan humanity, and the mortal enemy of Aryan humanity...

I really don't think he would commit suicide over the deaths of people he thought of as parasites !

Answer 6

It's one of the great questions of the 2 nd world war.

We will never know to what extent Hitler had knowledge of the death camps. It would have been inevitable that he would have known about it but he did a great job at working on his deniability in case things went wrong. Officially Hitler knew nothing of the entlösung (final solution) he never put his own signature on any documents concerning this and even his staff or direct surroundings never involved themselves or noted having knowledge of them. If you check the movie der untergang you see an interview with his personal secretary in which she declares that even she nor any other of his direct surroundings knew about it. The only real involvment that is found is a document signed by one of his staff members stating that Hitler allowed a mother to terminate the life of her mentally handicapped son. The theory put forward by many historians is that the SS took things in their own hands inspired by this case. It is however highly unlikely that they could have set up such an operation without the knowledge of the head of state. But again due the fact that there is no physical evidence the question remains. We'll never know if and how much Hitler did actually know about the final solution

Answer 7

National Socialism focuses less on the short term and more on the long term. Although to many the idea of exterminating people with unwanted genes sounds gruesome and is harmful in the short run, it is beneficial for future generations to live in a world without genetic diseases, without jewry, or communists. Now Hitler realized although he may get a bad impression and holocausting people of his current generation would not directly benefit him or his current generation he did this as a gift to the future generations who he may never see. Thus he was never selfish and his intentions were virtuous. My only wish is Americans would stop being short sighted and sympathize for their own generation and instead make sacrifices for the better of future generations much like selfless Hitler did.

Answer 8

Oh he knew all right. He was largely responsible for the "final solution" himself. The reason he killed himself was to prevent capture by the Russians. And he had his body burned so the Russians wouldn't even have his corpse as a trophy. He was a bitter, hateful man, and lashed out at anyone he could.

I've seen people try to claim the Hitler either didn't know, or was not responsible, but that's usually someone trying to justify their admiration of him. He was a brilliant politician, and he did some good things for Germany before the war. But that's all been overshadowed by the horrors he perpetrated later.

Answer 9

hitler definitely knew about the deathcamps... they where part of his " final solution" with dealing with the jews... they where his plan to exterminate the undesirables in his 3rd reich ...hitler knew the truth about the whole thing and the only reason he commited suicide was because in april 1945 the red army had overrun berlin and defeated his army...he knew the 3rd reich was over and didn't want to be captureda nd he or his boby put on display like his alley mussilinis had! ... if he really commited suicide because of the camps ... why would he take his mistress and dog with him...jst adding to the daeth toll really!...whoever told you that was an idiot or joking...il hope 4 the latter!

Answer 10

dying camps opened the door for each little thing it is merciless, undesirable and sadistic in people. Who ever believed that a complicated and civilized u . s . as Germany could desire to commit so super atrocities? via the way, the comparable ingredient did the Russians, with their gulags, and the Serbians. And the comparable ingredient do the Jews to the Palestinians, too. it appears that evidently people learn very straight away the thank you to torture and kill their fellow creatures.