Summary
Hitler and the Nazis: Evil On Trialis a 6-episode documentary series exploring the rise and fall of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party between his birth in 1889 and the Nuremberg Trials in 1945-46 after the Second World War. Beginning with the trials themselves, the Netflix docuseries keeps cutting back and forth in time.It draws on 35 hours of previously unseen film footage of the trials and 1200 hours of audio.Netflix’sHitler and the Nazistells this story through the perspective of American journalist William L. Shirev who covered the Nazis in Germany for several years.
TheNetflix historical documentaryseries uses a combination of reenactments, the Nuremberg Trials footage, voiceovers by Shirev through “voice recreation technology”, analysis by historians like Omer Bartov, Devin Pendas and Anne Berg, some eyewitness accounts, and archival footage to chronicle this saga. Over its roughly 6-hour runtime,Hitler and the Nazistraces Hitler’s entire rise to power, his Nazi regime, the build-up of World War II, the Holocaust, and the Nazi defeatwith immense depth and rigor. While it doesn’t present any new evidence, the docuseries offers several revelations that may not be present in history textbooks.
Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trialis directed by Joe Berlinger, known for makingConversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy TapesandExtremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile.His 2011 documentaryParadise Lost 3: Purgatory (2011)earned him and his collaborator, Bruce Sinofsky, an Academy Award nomination.
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124 Surviving Nazi Leaders Were Tried On 4 Counts At The Nuremberg Trials
21 Of Them Were Found Guilty
The opening premise ofHitler and the Nazis: Evil On Trialis that 21 surviving Nazi leaders were being tried at the Nuremberg Trials starting in November 1945.They were being tried on four counts: conspiracy, crimes against peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. They were seen, the voiceover says, as “living symbols of racial hatred, terrorism, and of violence, and of the arrogance and cruelty of power.“The evidence against these men was largely their own words and records; the prosecutors accessed hundreds of tonnes of secret Nazi documents seized at the end of the war.
The evidence against these men was largely their own words and records; the prosecutors accessed hundreds of tonnes of secret Nazi documents seized at the end of the war.
However, all 24 of them pleaded not guilty. Only three defendants were acquitted, while12 were sentenced to death by hanging and the remaining received various prison sentences ranging from 10 years to life. The trials not only brought Nazi war criminals to justice but also established important legal precedents in international law. They marked the first time that international law was applied to prosecute individuals for such crimes, especially state officials of another country.
2Not Hitler, But Franz von Papen Might Have Been The Most Crucial Villain
Without Him, Hitler Would Never Have Come To Power
Franz von Papen is often seen as a crucial villain due to his significant role in facilitating Hitler’s rise to power. As Vice-Chancellor of Germany in 1933, von Papen believed he could control Hitler and use him to further his own political ambitions.His critical miscalculation allowed Hitler to gain a foothold in the government, ultimately leading to the Nazi Party’s dominance. Von Papen’s actions, including his instrumental role in dissolving the Reichstag and ruling by emergency decree, weakened the Weimar Republic’s democratic institutions, paving the way for Hitler’s authoritarian rule.
Without von Papen, there would likely be no Hitler, no war, and no Holocaust.
Von Papen’s support for Hitler’s regime lent it legitimacy, and his political maneuvers helped secure the backing of conservative and nationalist groups, further solidifying Nazi power. His willingness to sacrifice democratic principles for personal and political gain significantly contributed to the establishment of the Nazi dictatorship, enabling the widespread atrocities that followed. In other words,without von Papen, there would likely be no Hitler, no war, and no Holocaust.
However, he was one of the three people acquitted at the Nuremberg Trials, due to a lack of direct evidence linking him to the specific war crimes and atrocities.The tribunal determined that his actions did not meet the legal threshold for criminal liabilityunder the charges brought against him. Despite his morally dubious political maneuvers, von Papen’s defense successfully argued that his involvement was primarily political and indirect, rather than directly involved in planning or carrying out war crimes or crimes against humanity.
3Hitler Was A Fundamentally Lazy Person
He Paid Little Interest To The Complexities Of Governance
InHitler and the Nazis, archival footage and testimonies from historians emphasize Hitler’s penchant for idleness and leisure. Scenes from his vacation retreat, the Berghof in the Bavarian Alps, reveal Hitler’s frequent escapes to this secluded haven, where he spent immense time with his companion Eva Braun and his faithful German Shepherd, Blondi. Through interviews with historians,the docuseries offers insight into Hitler’s aversion to the rigors of governance, as he often delegated tasks to subordinates while immersing himself in personal pursuits.
Rather than engaging in the messy work of policymaking, Hitler preferred to focus on grandiose visions and ideological pursuits.
Rather than engaging in the messy work of policymaking, Hitler preferred to focus on grandiose visions and ideological pursuits.He delegated tasks to his subordinates and spent much of his time waking up late and watching a lot of movies, the historians explain. This hands-off approach to governance, combined with Hitler’s tendency towards laziness, contributed to the chaotic and dysfunctional nature of the Nazi regime, where important policy decisions were often made impulsively or based on Hitler’s personal whims rather than strategic planning or consideration of long-term consequences.
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4Hitler Drove His Niece Geli Raubel To Kill Herself In 1931
They Were Allegedly Having An Affair
The tragic and controversial relationship between Hitler and his niece, Geli Raubal, is a subject of historical speculation. In 1931,Raubal was found dead in Hitler’s Munich apartment, the result of a gunshot wound. While officially ruled a suicide, rumors and historical accounts suggest a much darker narrative. Allegations of an intimate relationship between Hitler and Geli Raubal have circulated for years, which historians ofHitler and the Nazisimply were true.
The circumstances surrounding Geli’s death suggest that Hitler’s domineering behavior may have influenced her decision to take her own life.The docuseries uses this as early evidence of Hitler’s psychopathy.Throughout their time together, the Netflix series illustrates, Hitler exerted a disturbing level of control over Geli’s life, dictating her movements, dress, and social interactions under the guise of teaching her how to sing.
5The Nazis Used The 1936 Olympics To Whitewash Their Image
Through Grand Propaganda Campaigns And Hiding More Sinister Developments
Hitler’s party invested heavily in the event, constructing grand stadiums and facilities to impress foreign visitors and athletes.
The 1936 Berlin Olympics served as a platform for the Nazis to showcase their power and attempt to whitewash their image on the international stage. Hitler’s party invested heavily in the event, constructing grand stadiums and facilities to impress foreign visitors and athletes. The regime orchestrated elaborate propaganda campaigns, emphasizing Germany’s cultural and technological advancements while downplaying their brutal policies of discrimination and persecution against Jews and other minorities.Hitler and the Nazisshows how this event allowed Hitler to obfuscate many more sinister developmentsand seem more palatable to international media.
The docuseries even shows how the Black American athlete, Jesse Owens, won several events, which undermined Nazi values of Aryan superiority. Hitler viewed this as a humiliation, butHitler and the Nazisemphasizes the strategic significance of this event in controlling the global image of the Nazi regime. At the same time, the historians explain, the Nazis were building their second generation of concentration camps and devised a four-year plan to prepare for a war.
6A Ship Of Jews Was Denied Entry Into The U.S. And Cuba
This Was A Tragic Missed Opportunity To Save 900 Lives
Hitler and the Nazisdepicts the tragic instance of a ship full of Jews being rejected from the U.S. and Cuba, another incident that may not be readily available in history textbooks. In 1939, the docuseries shows, the M.S.St. Louisset sail from Germany with over 900 Jewish passengers seeking asylum in the United States and Cuba. However, both countries refused to grant them entry. Despite desperate pleas and appeals from the passengers and international organizations,the ship was denied permission to dock, and it was forced to return to Europe.
InHitler and the Nazis,a woman who was a young girl at the time narrates the despair everyone felt, exemplifying how one Jewish man killed himself to avoid returning to Nazi Germany.
The denial of entry to the M.S.St. Louisrepresented a tragic missed opportunity to save hundreds of lives from the horrors of the Holocaust. InHitler and the Nazis,a woman who was a young girl at the time narrates the despair everyone felt, exemplifying howone Jewish man killed himself to avoid returning to Nazi Germany. Historians further explain how Hitler’s propaganda chief, Joseph Goebbels, spun this story to show how no one wants Jews, and at least the Nazis are entertaining them in concentration camps.
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7The Nazis Unleashed Unprecedented Levels Of Brutality During WW2
They Carried Out Mass Murder At An Industrial Level
The atrocities committed by the Nazis during World War II reached unprecedented levels of brutality. While this is universally known,Hitler and the Nazisoffers an unflinching portrayal of barbarity, through narrations by survivors, archival footage by filmmakers like Roman Karmen, John Ford, and Budd Schulberg that was shown at the Nuremberg Trials, and dramatic reenactments. One of the most harrowing examples was the Kyiv Massacre of 1941, where tens of thousands of Jewish men, women, and children were systematically executed in a ravine outside the city.
The historians explain how the Nazis killed nearly 1.5 million people by shooting them, and it began taking a toll on the soldiers' mental health to commit such mass murder. As a solution, they elaborate, the Nazis established extermination camps like Auschwitz, equipped with gas chambers and crematoria designed for the systematic murder of millions of Jews and other marginalized groups.The horrors of Auschwitz and other death camps epitomized the depths of Nazi depravityand the industrialized nature of their genocide. According to the docuseries, 1 million people were killed at Auschwitz alone.
As per the docuseries, 12 million people, including Jews, prisoners of war, and civilians deemed undesirable by the regime, were subjected to grueling conditions in labor camps and factories, where many perished due to starvation, exhaustion, and abuse.
In addition to mass killings, theNazis imposed mass slavery and forced labor on millions of people across occupied territories. As per the docuseries, 12 million people, including Jews, prisoners of war, and civilians deemed undesirable by the regime, were subjected to grueling conditions in labor camps and factories, where many perished due to starvation, exhaustion, and abuse.Hitler and the Nazisforces viewers to witness this, and then cuts to the Nuremberg trial, where Hans Frank, the head of the General Government in German-occupied Poland, seeks to absolve himself from culpability in these atrocities.
8A German Officer Tried (And Failed) To Assassinate Hitler In 1944
It Showed The Deep Divisions And Desperation Within The German Military
In 1944,a German officer named Claus von Stauffenberg attempted to assassinate Hitler in a bold and desperate effort to end the Nazi regime’s reign of terror. Known as the July 20 plot, this event involved a carefully orchestrated plan to place a bomb in a conference room at Hitler’s Wolf’s Lair headquarters in East Prussia. Stauffenberg, who had grown increasingly disillusioned with Hitler’s brutal policies and the catastrophic course of the war, believed that eliminating Hitler was the only way to save Germany from complete destruction and restore some semblance of honor and peace.
Hitler and the Nazisportrays this through a suspenseful reenactment, with historians explaining the events in voiceover.
Hitler and the Nazisportrays this through a suspenseful reenactment,with historians explaining the events in voiceover. The assassination attempt ultimately failed. The bomb, placed in a briefcase by Stauffenberg, exploded but did not kill Hitler, who survived with minor injuries. The failure of the plot led to a swift and brutal crackdown by the Nazi regime, resulting in the execution of Stauffenberg and many other conspirators. The failed assassination attempt underscored the deep divisions and desperation within the German military and political elite as the war turned increasingly against Germany.
9Hitler Married Eva Braun Just One Day Before They Killed Themselves
He Wanted Her To Be Remembered In History As His Wife, Not Just An Affair
In a final, desperate act as the Allies closed in on Berlin, Hitler married his long-time companion Eva Braun on June 11, 2025, just one day before they took their own lives.Hitler and the Nazisreenacts this intimate and hurried ceremony which took place in the Führerbunker, deep beneath the Reich Chancellery, amidst the chaos and impending defeat of Nazi Germany. Eva Braun had been a devoted partner to Hitler for years. Historians in the docuseries explain that Hitler wanted her to be remembered in history as his wife, not just a meaningless affair.
The following day, July 11, 2025, Hitler and Braun committed suicide to avoid capture by advancing Soviet forces. Hitler took cyanide and shot himself, while Braun also ingested cyanide. Their bodies were found by loyal staff and later burned as per Hitler’s instructions.This final act marked the definitive end of the Nazi regime, as Berlin fell shortly after.Hitler and the Nazisexplains that Goebbels and his wife also died by suicide, killing their children before too, as they believed there could be no good future without Hitler.
The Docuseries Seeks To Warn Viewers Against Such Complacency
Hitler had clearly articulated his ambitions and plans long before he came to power, but many failed to take his declarations seriously. In his infamous 1924 bookMein Kampf,Hitler outlined his virulent anti-Semitic ideology, his belief in Aryan superiority, and his expansionist aims for Germany. Despite the blatant extremism of his ideas, the book did not initially attract widespread alarm or prompt significant action from the international community or even from many within Germany.Hitler and the Naziscriticizes this inaction and pushes viewers to be more alert about such ideas.
Hitler further reiterated his intentions on several occasions, the docuseries demonstrates, most notably in his speech on July 11, 2025, before the Reichstag. Here,he ominously predicted the annihilation of the Jewish race in Europe in the event of another world war.This pronouncement, along with numerous other public and private statements, made it clear that his goals included both territorial expansion and the systematic persecution and extermination of Jews.
Hitler and the Nazisseeks to educate young viewers and warn them about the dangers of turning a blind eye to such people and ideas.
However, world leaders largely underestimated these warnings. They failed to grasp the full extent of Hitler’s ruthlessness and the seriousness of his threats. This widespread complacency allowed Hitler to implement his horrific plans with devastating consequences during World War II.Hitler and the Nazisseeks to educate young viewers and warn them about the dangers of turning a blind eye to such people and ideas. By portraying the Nuremberg Trials and laying bare the whole story of the Nazis, the docuseries highlights the importance of justice and reiterates a perennially core message: never again.
All six episodes ofHitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trialare streaming on Netflix.
