The Holocaust started in 1933, when Adolf Hitler was appointed chancellor of Germany.
Hitler’s rise to power was fueled by his hatred of Jews, which he blamed for all of Germany’s problems. He believed that the German people were being poisoned by Jewish influences and that the only way to save Germany from destruction was to rid it of Jews.
Hitler’s anti-Semitic rhetoric and policies led to the persecution of Jews in Germany. In 1933, a law was passed that required all Jews in Germany to register with the government, along with their assets and property. By 1935, all Jews had lost their right to vote, hold public office or be employed by the government. In 1936, they were banned from marrying non-Jews or owning businesses or properties. In 1938-1939, thousands of Jewish businesses were vandalized or destroyed by mobs across Germany. The Nazi regime also set up ghettos where Jews were forced to live under brutal conditions; many died from starvation and disease there before being sent off to concentration camps where they would be worked or starved to death.
The Nazi regime’s persecution of Jews culminated in the mass murder of six million Jews in concentration and extermination camps during World War II (the Holocaust). These included Auschwitz-Birkenau.
