Alfred Rosenberg around 1935

Alfred Rosenberg (help·info) (January 12, 1893 – October 16, 1946) was an early and intellectually influential member of the Nazi Party. Events 475 - Basiliscus becomes Byzantine Emperor, with a coronation ceremony in the Hebdomon palace in Constantinople Year 1893 ( MDCCCXCIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 456 - Magister militum Ricimer defeats the Emperor Avitus at Piacenza and becomes master of the western Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The, officially National Socialist German Workers' Party, ( abbreviated NSDAP) was a Political party in Germany between 1919 and 1945 Rosenberg was first introduced to Adolf Hitler by Dietrich Eckart; he later held several important posts in the Nazi government. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately Dietrich Eckart ( 23 March 1868 - 26 December 1923) was a German politician one of the important early members of the National Socialist He is considered one of the main authors of key Nazi ideological creeds, including its racial theory, persecution of the Jews, Lebensraum, abrogation of the Treaty of Versailles, and opposition to "degenerate" modern art. Nazism developed several theories concerning races They claimed to scientifically measure a strict hierarchy among "human race " at the top was the " Nordic race See also Antisemitism, History of antisemitism, New antisemitism The persecution of Jews has occurred many times in Jewish history. ( German for " habitat " or literally "living space" served as a major motivation for Nazi Germany 's territorial aggression The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. Degenerate art is the English translation of the German entartete Kunst, a term adopted by the Nazi History of Modern art Roots in the 19th century Although modern Sculpture and Architecture are reckoned to have emerged at the end of the nineteenth He is also known for his rejection of Christianity. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings ^[1] He also played an important role in the development of Positive Christianity. Positive Christianity ( German: Positives Christentum is a term adopted by Nazi leaders to refer to a model of Christianity consistent with Nazism ^[2] At Nuremberg he was tried, sentenced to death and executed by hanging as a war criminal. The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after

Early career

Rosenberg was born to a family of Baltic Germans. The Baltic Germans (Deutschbalten or Baltendeutsche) were mostly ethnically German inhabitants of the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, which today His father was a wealthy merchant from Latvia, his mother from Reval (today's Tallinn, in Estonia, then part of the Russian Empire). Tallinn (historically known by the German, Swedish and Danish name Reval or the Polish name Rewal, among other names Tallinn (historically known by the German, Swedish and Danish name Reval or the Polish name Rewal, among other names Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia ( Eesti or Eesti Vabariik) is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya He studied architecture at the Riga Polytechnical Institute and engineering at Moscow Highest Technical School^[3], completing his Ph.D. studies in 1917. The term architecture (from Greek αρχιτεκτονικήarchitektoniki) can be used to mean a process a profession or documentation Riga (Rīga riːga) the Capital of Latvia, is situated on the Baltic Sea coast on the mouth of the river Daugava. Engineering is the Discipline and Profession of applying technical and scientific Knowledge and The Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Bauman MSTU (Московский государственный технический университет им "PhD" redirects here for other uses see PhD (disambiguation. Buildings that he designed in this period still stand in the central part of Tallinn. During the Russian Revolution of 1917, he supported the counter-revolutionaries and, following their failure, Rosenberg emigrated to Germany in 1918 along with Max Scheubner-Richter who was something of a mentor to Rosenberg and his ideology. See also Russian Revolution (1905 The Russian Revolution of 1916 refers to a series of popular revolutions in Russia, and the events surrounding them A counter-revolutionary is anyone who opposes a Revolution, particularly those who act after a revolution to try to overturn or reverse it in full or in part Ludwig Maximilian Erwin von Scheubner-Richter or Max Scheubner-Richter born Ludwig Maximilian Erwin Richter ( January 21, 1884 - November 9, He arrived in Munich and contributed to Dietrich Eckart's publication, the Völkischer Beobachter (People's Observer). Munich (München; Minga is the capital city of Bavaria, Germany. Dietrich Eckart ( 23 March 1868 - 26 December 1923) was a German politician one of the important early members of the National Socialist The Völkischer Beobachter (" Völkisch Observer" or less strictly "People's Observer" was the newspaper of the National By this time, he was both an antisemite, influenced by Houston Stewart Chamberlain's book The Foundations of the Nineteenth Century (one of the key proto-Nazi books of racial theory) and an anti-bolshevist as a result of his family's exile^[4]. Houston Stewart Chamberlain ( September 9, 1855 - January 9, 1927) was a British -born author of books on political philosophy natural The Foundations of the Nineteenth Century ( Die Grundlagen des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts 1899 was the most critically acclaimed work by Houston Stewart Chamberlain

Rosenberg was one of the earliest members of the German Workers Party (later the National Socialist German Workers Party, better known as the NSDAP or the Nazi Party), joining in January 1919; Hitler did not join until October 1919. The, officially National Socialist German Workers' Party, ( abbreviated NSDAP) was a Political party in Germany between 1919 and 1945 Rosenberg had also been a member of the Thule Society, with Eckart. The Thule Society (Thule-Gesellschaft originally the Studiengruppe für germanisches Altertum 'Study Group for Germanic Antiquity' was a German Occultist Rosenberg became editor of the Völkischer Beobachter, the Nazi party newspaper, in 1921. The Völkischer Beobachter (" Völkisch Observer" or less strictly "People's Observer" was the newspaper of the National

In 1923 after the failed Beer Hall Putsch and Hitler's subsequent imprisonment, Hitler appointed Rosenberg as a leader of the Nazi movement, a position he held until Hitler was released. The Beer Hall Putsch (also known as the Munich Putsch) was a failed Coup d'état that occurred between the evening of Thursday November 8 Hitler remarked privately in later years that his choice of Rosenberg was strategic, based on Rosenberg's weak personality and lack of self-motivation. Hitler did not want the temporary leader of the Nazis to be a very popular or power-hungry man, as a person with either of the two qualities might not want to cede the party leadership after Hitler's release.

In 1929, Rosenberg founded the Militant League for German Culture. He later formed the Institute for the Study of the Jewish Question, dedicated to identifying and attacking "Jewish" influence in German culture and to recording the history of Judaism from an anti-Semitic perspective. He became a Reichstag Deputy in 1930 and published his book on racial theory The Myth of the Twentieth Century (Der Mythus des 20. The Reichstag ( German for "Imperial Diet " was the Parliament of the Holy Roman Empire, the North German Confederation, The master race ( German: die Herrenrasse) is a concept in Nazi Ideology, which holds that the Germanic and Nordic The Myth of the Twentieth Century ( Der Mythus des zwanzigsten Jahrhunderts) is a book by Alfred Rosenberg Jahrhunderts) which deals with key issues in the national socialist ideology, such as the Jewish question. It was intended as a sequel to Houston Stewart Chamberlain's above-cited book. Houston Stewart Chamberlain ( September 9, 1855 - January 9, 1927) was a British -born author of books on political philosophy natural Despite selling more than a million copies by 1945, its influence within Nazism is doubtful. It is often said to have been a book that was officially venerated within Nazism, but that few actually read beyond the first chapter or even found comprehensible. ^[5] Hitler called it "stuff nobody can understand"^[6] and disapproved of its pseudo-religious tone. ^[7]

More influential were Rosenberg's attitude towards Soviet Bolshevism. He persuaded Hitler of the threat of Communism and the supposed fragility of the Soviet political structure. "Jewish-Bolshevism" was accepted as a target for Nazism during the early 1920s^[8].

Rosenberg was named leader of the Nazi Party's foreign political office in 1933 but he played little practical part in the role. His visit to Britain in that year was designed to reassure the British that the Nazis would not be a threat, and to encourage links between the new regime and the British Empire. It was a notable failure. When Rosenberg laid a wreath bearing a swastika at the tomb of the unknown soldier, a British war veteran threw it into the Thames. The swastika (from Sanskrit: svástika sa स्वस्तिक Hindu IS CORRECT if 'ि' is positioned incorrectly see -->) is The British tomb of The Unknown Warrior holds an unidentified British soldier killed on a European battlefield during World War I. ^[9] In January 1934 he was deputized by Hitler with responsibility for the spiritual and philosophical education of the Party and all related organizations.

Racial theories

Rosenberg was also the Nazi Party's chief racial theorist, in charge of building a human racial ladder that justified Hitler's policies. Rosenberg built on the works of Arthur de Gobineau, Houston Stewart Chamberlain, and Madison Grant, as well as the beliefs of Hitler. Joseph Arthur Comte de Gobineau ( July 14, 1816 — October 13, 1882) was a French Aristocrat, novelist and man of Houston Stewart Chamberlain ( September 9, 1855 - January 9, 1927) was a British -born author of books on political philosophy natural Madison Grant ( November 19, 1865 &ndash May 30, 1937) was an American Lawyer, known primarily for his work as a Rosenberg, lacking knowledge of anthropology, did not have the scientific resources over which Grant and others disposed, and thus chose to base his racial theories on philosophical ideas rather than scientific research. Rosenberg considered blacks as well as Jews to be at the very bottom of the ladder. At the very top was the white or Aryan race. Rosenberg promoted the Nordic theory which considered Nordic peoples to be the master race, superior to all others, including other Aryans. The Nordic race was one of the racial categories into which the Europeans were divided by anthropologists in the first half of the twentieth century This master race included the Scandinavians (including Finns), Estonians, Baltic nations, Germans, Dutch (including the Flemish people of Belgium), and the British Isles. The Berbers from North Africa were also considered as belonging to the Aryan race^[10]. Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley.

Rosenberg would reshape Nazi racial policy throughout the years, but it would always consist of White Supremacism, extreme German nationalism, and harsh anti-Semitism. Rosenberg was also an outspoken opponent of both male and female homosexuality, notably in his pamphlet "Der Sumpf" ("The Swamp"), viewing homosexuality (particularly lesbianism) as a hindrance to the expansion of the Nordic population.

Rosenberg's attitude towards the Slavs of Eastern Europe was more uncertain. Many Nazis, including Hitler himself, considered Slavs to be part of an inferior race to be subjugated, but Rosenberg suggested that they were also Aryans who could be integrated into the German Reich.

Religious theories

Rosenberg argued for a new "religion of the blood," based on the supposed innate promptings of the Nordic soul to defend its noble character against racial and cultural degeneration. He believed that this had been embodied in early Indo-European religions, notably ancient European (Celtic, Germanic, Baltic, Roman) paganism, Zoroastrianism and Vedic Hinduism. This is a list of Celtic tribes and associated Celtic peoples with their geographical localization The Germanic peoples are a historical group of Indo-European -speaking peoples originating in Northern Europe and identified by their use of the Germanic The Balts or Baltic peoples (People who live by the Baltic Sea) defined as speakers of one of the Baltic languages, a branch of the Indo-European The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial Paganism (from Latin paganus, meaning "country dweller rustic" is a word used to refer to various religions and religious beliefs from across the world Zoroastrianism (ˌzɔroʊˈæstriəˌnɪzəm is the religion and philosophy based on the teachings This article discusses the historical religious practices in the Vedic time period see Hinduism and Indian religions for details Unlike Himmler, he had less attachment to Buddhism. Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices Following the ideas of Chamberlain, he condemned what he called "negative Christianity," the orthodox beliefs of Protestant and Catholic churches, arguing instead for a so-called "positive" Christianity based on Chamberlain's claim that Jesus was a member of a Nordic enclave resident in ancient Galilee who struggled against Judaism. Positive Christianity ( German: Positives Christentum is a term adopted by Nazi leaders to refer to a model of Christianity consistent with Nazism "Galil" redirects here For the weapon see IMI Galil. Galilee (הגליל ha-Galil, lit the province, For Rosenberg religious doctrine was not important, what mattered was that a belief should serve the interests of the Nordic race, connecting the individual to his racial nature. Doctrine (Latin doctrina) is a codification of beliefs or "a body of teachings quot or "instructions" taught principles or positions as the Rosenberg stated that "The general ideas of the Roman and of the Protestant churches are negative Christianity and do not, therefore, accord with our (German) soul. "^[11]

Wartime activities

In 1940 Rosenberg was made head of the Hohe Schule (literally "high school"), the Centre of National Socialist Ideological and Educational Research. He created a "Special Task Force for Music" (Sonderstab Musik) to collect the best musical instruments and scores for use in a university to be built in Hitler's hometown of Linz, Austria. A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified for the purpose of making Music. Linz is the third largest city of Austria and capital of the state of Upper Austria (Oberösterreich Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich The orders given the Sonderstab Musik were to loot all forms of Jewish property in Germany and of those found in any country taken over by the German army and any musical instruments or scores were to be immediately shipped to Berlin. Looting ( Hindi lūṭ akin to Sanskrit luṭhati steals also Latin latro, latronis PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany.

Reich Minister for the Occupied Eastern Territories

Following the invasion of the USSR, Rosenberg was appointed head of the Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories (German Reichsministerium für die besetzten Ostgebiete) was created in July 1941 and headed by the Nazi Alfred Meyer was his deputy and represented him at the Wannsee Conference. Dr Alfred Meyer ( October 5, 1891 &ndash April 11, 1945) was a Nazi official achieving the rank The Wannsee Conference was a Meeting of senior officials of the Nazi German regime held in the Berlin suburb of Wannsee on Another official of the Ministry, Georg Leibbrandt, also attended the conference, at Rosenberg's request. Georg Leibbrandt ( September 5, 1899 - June 16, 1982) was a scholar and politician in the Nazi Party.

Rosenberg had presented Hitler with his plan for the organization of the conquered Eastern territories, suggesting the establishment of new administrative districts, to replace the previously Soviet-controlled territories with new Reichskommissariats. A soviet (сове́т, "council" originally was a workers' local council in late Imperial Russia. Reichskommissar (rendered as Commissionary of the Empire or as Reich - or Imperial Commissioner) in German history, was an official gubernatorial These would be:

• Ostland (Baltic countries and Belarus),
• Ukraine (Ukraine and nearest territories),
• Kaukasus (Caucasia area),
• Moskau (Moscow metropolitan area and the rest of nearest Russian European areas)

Such suggestions were intended to encourage non-Russian nationalism and to promote German interests for the benefit of future Aryan generations, in accord with geopolitical "Lebensraum im Osten" plans. Reichskommissariat Ostland was the German name for the Nazi civil administration of part of the occupied Eastern territories of the Third Reich, occupied The Baltic states (Balti riigid Baltijas valstis Baltijos valstybės or Baltic countries are three countries in Northern Europe, all members of the Belarus ( Belarusian Беларусь / Biełaruś is a Landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered by Russia to the north and east The Reichskommissariat Ukraine (Ukraine Reich Commission was the civil administration of much of German-occupied Ukraine (which included adjacent areas of modern Ukraine (Україна Ukrayina, /ukrɑˈjinɑ/ is a country in Eastern Europe. Reichskommissariat Kaukasus ( Caucasus in English was the name given to Nazi Germany 's theoretical political division and supposed civilian occupation regime in conquered The Caucasus ( also referred to as North Caucasus) is a geopolitical region located between Europe Asia & Middle East The Reichskommissariat Moskau was the proposed Nazi civilian regime in central and northern European Russia, during World War II, established by Führer Moscow (Москва́ romanised: Moskvá, IPA: see also other names) is the Capital and the largest city of Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The " Aryan race " is a concept in European culture that was influential in the period of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries ( German for " habitat " or literally "living space" served as a major motivation for Nazi Germany 's territorial aggression They would provide a buffer against Soviet expansion in preparation for the total eradication of Communism and Bolshevism by decisive pre-emptive military action. Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists ( Большевик Большевист (singular, derived from bolshe, "more" were a faction

Following these plans, when Wehrmacht forces invaded Soviet-controlled territory, they immediately implemented the first of the proposed Reichskomissariats of Ostland and Ukraine, under the leadership of Hinrich Lohse and Erich Koch respectively. Wehrmacht (literally "defense force" was the name of the unified Armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945 Hinrich Lohse (born 2 September 1896 in Mühlenbarbek, Schleswig-Holstein; died 25 February 1964 in Mühlenbarbek was Erich Koch ( June 19, 1896 &ndash November 12, 1986) was a Gauleiter of the Nazi Party (NDSAP in East Prussia The organization of these administrative territories led to conflict between Rosenberg and the SS over the treatment of Slavs under German occupation. The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the Rosenberg was appalled at the displacement, enslavement, and sometimes genocide of non-Jews in occupied Eastern countries. As Nazi Germany's chief racial theorist, Rosenberg considered Slavs, though lesser than Germans, to be Aryan. Rosenberg often complained to Hitler and Himmler about the treatment of non-Jewish occupied peoples. He made no complaints about the murders of Jews. At the Nuremberg Trials he claimed to be ignorant of the Holocaust, despite the fact that Leibbrandt and Meyer were present at the Wannsee conference. The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after The Holocaust (from the Greek el ''ὁλόκαυστον'' (el-Latn holókauston holos, "completely" and kaustos, "burnt" also known as

Wartime propaganda efforts

Because the invasion of the Soviet Union was essentially a war of conquest and extermination, German propaganda efforts designed to win over Russian opinion were patchy and inconsistent. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behaviors of large numbers of people Alfred Rosenberg was one of the few in the Nazi hierarchy who advocated a policy designed to encourage anti-Communist opinion.

Amongst other things, Rosenberg issued a series of posters announcing the end of the Soviet collective farms (kolkhoz). A kolkhoz () plural kolkhozy, was a form of Collective farming in the Soviet Union that existed along with state Farms ( Sovkhoz, He also issued an Agrarian Law in February 1942, annulling all Soviet legislation on farming, restoring family farms for those willing to collaborate with the occupiers. But decollectivisation conflicted with the wider demands of wartime food production, and Hermann Göring demanded that the collective farms be retained, save for a change of name. Hermann Wilhelm Göring (also spelled Goering) (12 January 1893 15 October 1946 was a German Politician, Military leader and a leading member Hitler himself denounced the redistribution of land as "stupid".

There were also numerous German armed forces (Wehrmacht) posters asking for assistance in the Bandenkrieg, the war against the Soviet partisans, though, once again, German policy had the effect of adding to their problems. Wehrmacht (literally "defense force" was the name of the unified Armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945 The Soviet partisans were members of a Resistance movement which fought a Guerrilla war against the Axis occupation of the Soviet Union Posters for "volunteer" labour, with inscriptions like "Come work with us to shorten the war", hid the appalling realities faced by Russian workers in Germany. Many people joined the partisans rather than risk being sent to an unknown fate in the west.

Another of Rosenberg's initiatives, the "Free Caucasus" campaign, was rather more successful, attracting various nationalities into the so-called Eastern Legion (Ostlegionen), though in the end this made little difference. Ostlegionen or Ostgruppen (literally "Eastern Legion" were conscripts and volunteers from occupied territories who fought in the German Army ( Wehrmacht

Trial and execution

Alfred Rosenberg at the Nuremberg trials. Rosenberg is first from right, with Hans Frank (centre) and Alfred Jodl (left)

Alfred Rosenberg after his hanging

Rosenberg was captured by Allied troops at the end of the war. Hans Michael Frank ( May 23 1900 &ndash October 16 1946) was a German Lawyer who worked for the Nazi party Alfred Jodl (10 May 1890 – 16 October 1946 was a German military commander attaining the position of Chief of the Operations Staff of the Armed Forces High In general allies are people groups or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose He was tried at Nuremberg and found guilty of conspiracy to commit crimes against peace; planning, initiating and waging wars of aggression; war crimes; and crimes against humanity. The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after A crime against peace, in International law, refers to "planning preparation initiation or waging of wars of aggression, or a war in violation of international A war of aggression is a Military conflict waged in the absence of "a necessity of self-defense instant overwhelming leaving no choice of means and no moment of deliberation War crimes are "violations of the laws or customs of war" including but not limited to "murder the ill-treatment or deportation of civilian residents of an occupied In Public international law, a crime against humanity is an act of Persecution or any large scale atrocities against a body of people and is the highest level of ^[12] He was sentenced to death and executed with other condemned co-defendants at Nuremberg on the morning of October 16, 1946. Capital punishment, the death penalty or execution, is the Killing of a person by judicial process as Punishment. Events 456 - Magister militum Ricimer defeats the Emperor Avitus at Piacenza and becomes master of the western Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ^[13] Throughout the trial, it was agreed that Rosenberg had a very decisive role in shaping Nazi philosophy and ideology; such examples include: his book, "Myth of the Twentieth Century", which was published in 1930, where he incited hatred against "Liberal Imperialism" and "Bolshevik Marxism"; furthering the influence of the "Lebensraum" idea in Germany during the war; facilitating the persecution of Christian Churches and the Jews in general; and opposition to the Versailles Treaty during the war. ( German for " habitat " or literally "living space" served as a major motivation for Nazi Germany 's territorial aggression ^[14]

According to Howard K. Smith, who covered the executions for the International News Service, Rosenberg was the only condemned man, who when asked at the gallows if he had any last statement to make, replied with only one word: "No". Howard Kingsbury Smith ( May 12, 1914 - February 15, 2002) was an American Journalist, Radio Reporter International News Service (INS was a US-based News agency - or wire service - founded by newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1909

Rosenberg and Hermann Göring were born on the same day (12 January 1893), and had Göring not committed suicide the night before his planned execution, they would also have died the same day. Hermann Wilhelm Göring (also spelled Goering) (12 January 1893 15 October 1946 was a German Politician, Military leader and a leading member Events 475 - Basiliscus becomes Byzantine Emperor, with a coronation ceremony in the Hebdomon palace in Constantinople Year 1893 ( MDCCCXCIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

Nazi Policy and Rosenberg's Views

Hitler was a leader oriented towards practical politics, whereas, for Rosenberg, religion and philosophy were key.

Rosenberg's influence in the Nazi Party is controversial. He was perceived as lacking the charisma and political skills of the other Nazi leaders, and was somewhat isolated. In some of his speeches Hitler appeared to be close to Rosenberg's views: rejecting traditional Christianity as a religion based on Jewish culture, preferring an ethnically and culturally pure "Race" whose destiny was supposed to be assigned to the German people by "Providence". For conservative political views within Christianity see Christian right. In others, he adhered to the Nazi Party line, which advocated a "positive Christianity".

After Hitler's assumption of power he moved to reassure the Protestant and Catholic churches that the party was not intending to reinstitute Germanic paganism. Germanic paganism refers to the religious beliefs of the Germanic peoples preceding Christianization. He placed himself in the position of being the man to save Christianity from utter destruction at the hands of the atheistic Communists of the Soviet Union. Atheism Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 ^[15] This was especially true immediately before and after the elections of 1932; Hitler wanted to appear non-threatening to major Christian faiths and consolidate his power. Further, Hitler felt that Catholic-Protestant infighting had been a major factor in weakening the German state and allowing its dominance by foreign powers.

Some Nazi leaders, such as Martin Bormann, were anti-Christian and sympathetic to Rosenberg. Martin Ludwig Bormann (17 June 1900 – 2 May 1945 ^[16] Once in power, however, Hitler and most Nazi leaders sought to unify the Christian denominations in favor of "positive Christianity. " They privately complained about Rosenberg's radical, openly anti-Christian views and did not support small neo-pagan groups, supported by the latter, seeking parity with Christianity. However, Goebbels and Hitler both agreed that after the Endsieg (Final Victory) the Reich Church should be pressed into evolving into a German social evolutionist organisation proclaiming the cult of race, blood and battle, instead of Redemption and the Ten Commandments of Moses, which they deemed outdated and "Jewish. Endsieg is German for "final victory" It is used in the meaning that a victory is taken for granted even though all odds are against it The Protestant Reich Church ( Reichskirche) was formed by Adolf Hitler in 1933 by merging 28 regional churches into one Church Sociocultural evolution(ism is an umbrella term for theories of cultural evolution and Social evolution, describing how Cultures and societies In Theology, salvation can mean three related things being saved from or Liberation from something such as Suffering or the punishment of The Ten Commandments, or Decalogue, are a list of religious and moral imperatives that according to Judeo-Christian tradition were authored by God and given Moses ( Latin: Moyses,; Greek: grc Mωυσής in both the Septuagint and the New Testament; Arabic: ar موسىٰ "^[17]

While Rosenberg knew that he had powerful enemies in Goering, Himmler, and Goebbels, he believed that he still maintained favor with Hitler to the end according to his autobiography which he wrote shortly before his execution.

Lieutenant-Colonel W. H. Dunn wrote a medical and psychiatric report on him in prison to evaluate him as a suicide risk:

He gave the impression of clinging to his own theories in a fanatical and unyielding fashion and to have been little influenced by the unfolding during the trial of the cruelty and crimes of the party. (Cecil, p. 219)

Summarizing the unresolved conflict between the personal views of Rosenberg and the pragmatism of the Nazi elite:

The ruthless pursuit of Nazi aims turned out to mean not, as Rosenberg had hoped, the permeation of German life with the new ideology; it meant concentration of the combined resources of party and state on total war. (Cecil, p. 160)

Family life

Rosenberg was married twice. He married his first wife, Hilda Leesmann, an ethnic Estonian, in 1915; after eight years of marriage, they divorced in 1923. Estonians ( Estonian: eestlased, previously maarahvas) are a Finnic people closely related to the Finns and inhabiting primarily the country He married his second wife, Hedwig Kramer, in 1925; the marriage lasted until his death. He and Kramer had two children; a son, who died in infancy, and a daughter, Irene; who was born in 1930. His daughter has refused contact with anyone seeking information about her father.

See also

• Nordische Gesellschaft

References

Further reading

• Cecil, Robert (1972). The Myth of the Master Race: Alfred Rosenberg and Nazi Ideology. Dodd Mead & Co. . ISBN 0-396-06577-5.  
• Chandler, Albert R. (1945). Rosenberg's Nazi Myth. Greenwood Press.  
• Gilbert, G. M. (1995). Gustave Mark Gilbert (1911 - 1977 was an American Psychologist best known for his writings containing observations of high ranking Nuremberg Diary. Nuremberg Diary (ISBN 0-306-80661-4 is Gustave Gilbert 's account of and interviews he conducted during the Nuremberg Trials of Nazi Leaders Da Capo Press. ISBN 0-306-80661-4.  
• Goldensohn, Leon (2004). Leon N Goldensohn ( October 19, 1911 &ndash October 24, 1961) was an American Psychiatrist charged with caring for the mental health Nuremberg Interviews. Knopf. ISBN 0-375-41469-X.  
• Nova, Fritz (1986). Alfred Rosenberg: Nazi Theorist of the Holocaust. Buccaneer Books. ISBN 0-87052-222-1.  
• Rosenberg, Alfred (1930). Der Mythus des zwanzigsten Jahrhunderts. The Myth of the Twentieth Century ( Der Mythus des zwanzigsten Jahrhunderts) is a book by Alfred Rosenberg  
• Rothfeder, Herbert P. (1963). A Study of Alfred Rosenberg’s Organization for National Socialist Ideology (Michigan, Phil. Diss. 1963). University Microfilms, Ann Arbor.  
• Rothfeder, Herbert P. (1981). Amt Schrifttumspflege: A Study in Literary Control, in: German Studies Review. Vol. IV, Nr. 1, Febr. 1981, p. 63–78.  
• Steigmann-Gall, Richard (2003). The Holy Reich: Nazi Conceptions of Christianity. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-82371-4.  
• Whisker, James B. (1990). The Philosophy of Alfred Rosenberg. Noontide Press. ISBN 0-939482-25-8.  

See also

• Antisemitism
• Myth of the Twentieth Century
• Racism

External links

• Alfred Rosenberg at the Internet Movie Database
• Rosenbergs 1946 memoirs, at archive.org
• Der Protestantische Rompilger at archive.org. In German.
• An die Dunkelmänner unserer Zeit at archive.org. In German.
• Tradition und Gegenwart - Reden und Aufsätze 1936-1940 at archive.org. In German.
• Die Protokolle der Weisen von Zion und die jüdische Weltpolitik at archive.org. In German.
• Unmoral in Talmud at archive.org. In German.
• Wesen, Grundsätze und Ziele der NSDAP - Das Programm der Bewegung at archive.org. In German.
• United States Holocaust Memorial Museum - Alfred Rosenberg