Young Hitler. Formative years of a dictator 1889 - 1914

75 years ago, the Second World War ended, unleashed by Adolf Hitler and the National Socialists. We take this as an opportunity to ask about the beginnings: Where did militarism, racial hatred and anti-Semitism come from? To what extent were they already anchored in society before the First World War broke out? A parallel narrative presents Hitler's biography up to 1914 and the political trends of that time.

The exhibition is curated by: Christian Rapp, Andrea Thuile, Benedikt Vogl & Hannes Leidinger

Press reviews:

"Eine Ausstellung, die durchaus den Ausflug nach St. Pölten lohnt."
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

"In addition to tracing Hitler's personal history, the exhibition also seeks to explore the political and social context at the turn of the 20th century."
Daily Mail, London

"Ein neues Buch und eine Ausstellung im niederösterreichischen St. Pölten zeigen: Die rassistische Ideologie Adolf Hitlers wurzelt in den Linzer Jugendjahren des Diktators."
SRF, Zürich

"L’exposition explore la face cachée de la Belle Époque, c’est-à-dire le contexte politique et social d’Autriche au tournant du XXe siècle."
Le Figaro, Paris

"Die Schau zeichnet das Bild eines großspurigen Jünglings, der mit Niederlagen nicht umgehen kann, während sich Rassenwahn und Nationalismus in der Gesellschaft breitmachen."
Die Presse, Wien

"In particular, it tries to explain how many of the ideas that would gain such prominence in Nazi ideology — racism, anti-Semitism, militarism — had long since reached the mainstream of Austrian society, including among sections of the left."
Times of Israel

"Den Kuratoren geht es darum, die Wurzeln von Hitlers Gedankengut offenzulegen."
Der Standard, Wien

As part of the current special exhibition "The Young Hitler. Formative Years of a Dictator. 1889-1914" a scientific workshop entitled "Hitler and the Fin de Siècle" took place on September 16th, 2020 in the Niederösterreichischen Landesbibliothek. A workshop on the prehistory of National Socialism took place. 

The event was a cooperation between Haus der Geschichte im Museum Niederösterreich, Niederösterreichischen Landesbibliothek and Niederösterreichisches Landesarchiv. In the one-day workshop, new insights and questions about Hitler's childhood and youth as well as the Fin de Siècle world surrounding him were discussed by experts.