Chapter 1: Introduction On July 20, 1944, a group of high ranking German military officials attempted to carry out one of the most daring assassination plots in history, which, had it been successful, would have changed the course of WWII and the world. On that fateful day, a young staff officer, Colonel Claus Schenk Graf Von Stauffenberg planted a bomb in the Wolfsschanze (Wolf’s lair), the Prussian field headquarters of Third Reich Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler, who was meeting with his generals, in an attempt to assassinate him and bring peace to warring Europe. The conspirators involved in the plot were driven by a patriotic desire to save Germany from absolute destruction in what had been deemed a hopeless war. Colonel von Stauffenberg and his
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Additionally, it was feeling the effects of the 1929 stock market crash which had occurred in the United States. The world was in economic turmoil. Millions of people were unemployed. The Germans despaired of their defeat in WWI. Conditions were ripe for a change. Enter Adolf Hitler, a skillful politician and orator, the likes of which, Germany and the world have never seen. He quickly rose to power in the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi party) by vilifying the existing government. Hitler’s first attempt to overthrow the government in 1923 ended in his arrest. While in prison he began work on his book Mein Kampf, in which he praised the Germans as the superior race, blaming the Jews for all of Germany’s troubles. Once out of prison, Hitler focused on rebuilding the Nazi party. After Germany agreed to make reparation for the damages it caused in WWI, Hitler seized even more control by condemning the agreement and blaming Germany’s defeat on the Jews. By 1932, the Nazi party was the strongest in Germany. One year later, Hitler was appointed Chancellor of …show more content…
By 1943, however, Germany was suffering huge losses and their defeat was imminent. Two attempts were made to kill Hitler, both of which failed. He remained heavily guarded and protected. Late that same year, a group of military men devised a new plan to eliminate Hitler which they called Walkure or Operation Valkyrie. The members of the plot included Colonel Henning Von Tresckow, Brigadier general Hans Oster, and General Friedrich Olbricht. Olbricht and Tresckow had planned other plots to assassinate Hitler in 1942 and early 1943. These earlier failed plans served as necessary stepping stones for the major July 20 plot. Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg was the main proponent of the assassination plot. Born in Germany, he had served in the German army but became disillusioned by the brutality he had witnessed against the Jews and the Slavs. Claus was politically conservative, a German Nationalist, and a Roman Catholic. He was convinced that Germany was doomed with no hope of salvation for its horrific actions. He joined the plotters deciding that Hitler’s removal was absolutely critical, even knowing he was committing treason. Claus was key in uniting the co-conspirators in this common goal, inspiring them to carry out this daring murder that most would have ran away from at just the thought. He decided to personally carry the bomb into that fateful
Additionally, it was feeling the effects of the 1929 stock market crash which had occurred in the United States. The world was in economic turmoil. Millions of people were unemployed. The Germans despaired of their defeat in WWI. Conditions were ripe for a change. Enter Adolf Hitler, a skillful politician and orator, the likes of which, Germany and the world have never seen. He quickly rose to power in the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi party) by vilifying the existing government. Hitler’s first attempt to overthrow the government in 1923 ended in his arrest. While in prison he began work on his book Mein Kampf, in which he praised the Germans as the superior race, blaming the Jews for all of Germany’s troubles. Once out of prison, Hitler focused on rebuilding the Nazi party. After Germany agreed to make reparation for the damages it caused in WWI, Hitler seized even more control by condemning the agreement and blaming Germany’s defeat on the Jews. By 1932, the Nazi party was the strongest in Germany. One year later, Hitler was appointed Chancellor of …show more content…
By 1943, however, Germany was suffering huge losses and their defeat was imminent. Two attempts were made to kill Hitler, both of which failed. He remained heavily guarded and protected. Late that same year, a group of military men devised a new plan to eliminate Hitler which they called Walkure or Operation Valkyrie. The members of the plot included Colonel Henning Von Tresckow, Brigadier general Hans Oster, and General Friedrich Olbricht. Olbricht and Tresckow had planned other plots to assassinate Hitler in 1942 and early 1943. These earlier failed plans served as necessary stepping stones for the major July 20 plot. Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg was the main proponent of the assassination plot. Born in Germany, he had served in the German army but became disillusioned by the brutality he had witnessed against the Jews and the Slavs. Claus was politically conservative, a German Nationalist, and a Roman Catholic. He was convinced that Germany was doomed with no hope of salvation for its horrific actions. He joined the plotters deciding that Hitler’s removal was absolutely critical, even knowing he was committing treason. Claus was key in uniting the co-conspirators in this common goal, inspiring them to carry out this daring murder that most would have ran away from at just the thought. He decided to personally carry the bomb into that fateful