Having been born prior to World War II I consider this less history than personal life experience, that is, things I grew up understanding. Understanding about Hitler is part of that experience. Even so, there is a great deal of information available to understand Hitler and his personal view of the world and one such source is ‘Mein Kampf’.
In this book Hitler expressed his beliefs and his goals for the future. There is at least a dozen references to Jews in the book covering a number of subjects. The following cite from Mein Lampf in the chapter on Nation and Race, expresses Hitler’s basic feelings about Jews:
“ . . . The Jew forms the strongest contrast to the Aryan. Hardly in any people of the world is the instinct of self-preservation more strongly developed than in the so-called ‘chosen people.’ The fact of the existence of this race alone may be looked upon as the best proof of this. Where is the people that in the past two thousand years has been exposed to so small changes of inner disposition, of character, etc., as the Jewish people? Which people finally has experienced greater changes than this one – and yet has always come forth the same from the most colossal catastrophes of mankind? What an infinitely persistent will for life, for preserving the race do these facts disclose!
Also the intellectual abilities were schooled in the course of centuries. Today the Jew is looked upon as ‘clever,’ and in a certain sense he has been so at all times. But his reason is not the result of his own development, but that of object lessons from without. For also the human mind is not able to climb the heights without steps; for every step forward he needs the foundation of the past, and, moreover, in that comprehensive meaning which can be revealed only through general culture. All thinking will rest only to a very small extent on one’s own realization, but to the greater extent on the experiences of the time past. . . . “
This continues as an extensive documentation of Hitler’s belief in the subspecies status of the Jews and I only offer it here as a foundation to support that which subsequently to the war at the Nuremberg Trials, some small selections follow:
Note: the German word Aktion is the rough equivalent of the English word Action and that is mentioned because a number of official ‘Aktions’ are part of the record and were known to Hitler and even initiated by him.
The extermination camps began relatively small (small only in the context of the ultimate numbers) and can be traced back to a written order by Hitler.
Berlin, September 1, 1939
Reichsleiter Bouhler and Dr. Brandt are charged with the responsibility for expanding the authority of physicians, who are to be designated by name, to the end that patients who are considered incurable according to the best available human judgment after critical evaluation of their condition can be granted mercy killing.
Adolf Hitler
With this order Hitler doomed about 100,000 Germans. More significantly this set in motion the machinery that produced the extermination camps in which millions of Jews perished.
Since no system existed for the carrying out the secret order, new systems had to be improvised. This began with a questionnaire being sent to German hospitals requesting information about patients suffering from a number of medical problems. Those which received a ‘red’ mark (as opposed to a blue mark) were slated for death. This was a totally secret operation and the operation had the code name ‘Aktion t 4.
At first these patients were rounded up, herded into prisons and abandoned castles, and allowed to die of starvation. These first camps came into operation in November of 1939. A more systematic method was required, and by early December (1939) Aktion t 4 had evolved a primitive gas chamber fed by exhaust fumes from internal combustion engines. This was not a preferred method because it took people a long time to die. However, by the spring of 1940 this ‘gas chamber’ had evolved into nearly its final form with the chamber disguised as a shower room. The patients were ordered to undress completely and told they were to take a bath. To make them feel more at ease they were given fake medical examinations during which they were examined for gold teeth and there chest was then stamped as to whether they had gold teeth or not.
All of this and far more is recorded in absolute detail from the Nuremberg Trials and those transcripts are available.
The point is, Hitler not only knew about this, but it was initiated by him and fit fully within his view of those (including Jews) that were undesirable.
Hitler's suicide was done because he didn't have the guts to face the enemy in the final hour. That so many died (men, Women, children) had no impact on him at all.
That such atrocities have occurred in other times by other people is of no consequence to this specific question. It is also true that the sins of the past impact current and future times. This is particularly true when those of the latest generations are not aware of these acts, or worse, do not seem to care enough to delve into the facts. For example, today there is a war occurring between the Western Cultures and the Eastern Cultures that does have a link to these times of World War II. Specifically, the uncle of the past dictator Sadam Housain was a officer in the German SS with the express duty of bring 20,000 Islamic soldiers into the war specifically to fight the Jews. We today, in part live with this legacy from World War II.