| 1938 propaganda photo of Josef Goebbels (October 29, 1897 – May 1, 1945) in Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP; “National Socialist German Workers Party”) uniform. The Nazi Party Propaganda Minister from 1928, he backed Führer (“Party Leader”) Adolf Hitler (April 20, 1889 – April 30, 1945) in the 1932 elections against Gregor Strasser’s socialist wing, ensuring Hitler’s support for his office of National Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda. He was Gauleiter (“District Leader”) of Berlin from 1926 until his death. Goebbels, like Hitler, would dress for the audience he was addressing, wearing his party uniform or civilian clothes depending on which clothes suited his attendees best. Goebbels’s public appearances after the defeat at Stalingrad, where he rallied the German public on February 18, 1943, in his “Total War” speech at the Berlin Sportspalast (“Sports Palace”), were in sharp contrast to Hitler and other Nazi leaders who eschewed contact with the populace. This rehabilitated his public image and earned him the title “Plenipotentiary for Total War” on July 23, 1944, to draft 100,000 men, mostly age 45 to 60, from Berlin alone. The draft was deeply unpopular. He presided over a rally in Berlin in October 1944 to see the new Volkssturm (“People’s Storm”) units on their way to the front. Most had antiquated or captured weapons and little artillery, and would suffer high casualties. | |
| Image Filename | wwii0503.jpg |
| Image Size | 638.52 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 2256 x 2950 |
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| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | January 1, 1938 |
| Location | |
| City | Berlin |
| State or Province | Berlin |
| Country | Germany |
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| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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