Alois was a very “hands on” father and husband.
Beatings were nearly a daily event for little Adolf.
This is probably what led the Austrian born Adolf to identify with the Germans instead of his Austrian heritage.
Having failed in his father’s eyes, Adolf continued to fail when his dream of a career as an artist crashed and burned.
He saw fighting for the mighty German army as a way to finally be a winner.
Epic fail.
It didn’t help that the victors used the Treaty of Versailles as a blank check.
It didn’t help that the German Army used Adolf to spy on extremist groups post war.
That introduced him to what would become the NAZI party.
An entire life as one perfect storm of failure and rejection which created the most hated man in history.
According to most accounts Adolf idolized his mother and was devastated by her death.
We can only imagine how things would have turned out if Alois had been a good husband and father.
As a side note, the last two men of Adolf’s family bearing the Hitler name live here in the US under assumed names.
They have never married and have never allowed themselves to have children.
They intend for the blood line to die with them.
And Hitler just happened to come along at a time when the new media forms of radio and newsreels were tailor-made for skilled orators such as himself.