Joseph Goebbels

Reichsleiter Joseph Goebbels
Goebbels in 1933
Chancellor of Germany
In office 30 April – 1 May 1945
President	Karl Dönitz
Preceded by	Adolf Hitler
Succeeded by	Lutz Schwerin von Krosigk (as Leading Minister)[1]
Stadtpräsident of Berlin
In office 7 April 1944 – 1 May 1945
Preceded by	Ludwig Steeg
Succeeded by	Office abolished
Reichsminister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda
In office 14 March 1933 – 30 April 1945
Chancellor	Adolf Hitler
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Werner Naumann
Gauleiter of Berlin
In office 26 October 1926 – 1 May 1945
Führer	Adolf Hitler
Preceded by	Ernst Schlange
Succeeded by	Office abolished
Additional positions
1944–1945	Commander of the Volkssturm in Gau Berlin
1944—1945	Reich Plenipotentiary for Total War
1933–1945	Reichsleiter of the National Socialist German Workers' Party
1933—1945	Member of the Greater German Reichstag
1928–1933	Member of the Reichstag
Personal details
Born	Paul Joseph Goebbels (1897-10-29)29 October 1897 Rheydt, German Empire
Died	1 May 1945(1945-05-01) (aged 47) Berlin, Germany
Cause of death	Suicide (cyanide poisoning or gunshot)
Political party	Nazi Party (from 1924)
Spouse	Magda Ritschel ​ (m. 1931)​
Children	Goebbels children
Education	University of Bonn University of Würzburg University of Freiburg University of Munich University of Heidelberg (PhD, 1921)
Occupation	Propagandist politician philologist
Signature
Joseph Goebbels' voice Joseph Goebbels' famous speech in the Sportpalast in Berlin Recorded on 18 February 1943
^ Formally titled "Leading Minister" or "Chief Minister" (Leitender Minister)

This article is part of a series about Joseph Goebbels
Personal Children Villa Bogensee Volksempfänger Michael Last will and testament of Adolf Hitler Minister of Propaganda Propaganda in Nazi Germany Big lie Goebbels v. Rosenberg Potsdam Day Reich Plenipotentiary for Total War Reich Cultural Senate Nazism and cinema Jud Süß Der Angriff Sportpalast speech Diaries Chancellor of Germany Cabinet Legacy Gap Goebbels: A Biography
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Paul Joseph Goebbels (German: [ˈpaʊ̯l ˈjoːzɛf ˈɡœbl̩s] ^ⓘ; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazi politician and philologist who was the Gauleiter (district leader) of Berlin, chief propagandist for the Nazi Party, and then Reich Minister of Propaganda from 1933 to 1945. He was one of Adolf Hitler's closest and most devoted followers, known for his skills in public speaking and his deeply virulent antisemitism which was evident in his publicly voiced views. He advocated progressively harsher discrimination, including the extermination of the Jews in the Holocaust.

Goebbels, who aspired to be an author, obtained a doctorate in philology from the University of Heidelberg in 1921. He joined the Nazi Party in 1924, and worked with Gregor Strasser in its northern branch. He was appointed Gauleiter of Berlin in 1926, where he began to take an interest in the use of propaganda to promote the party and its programme. After the Nazis came to power in 1933, Goebbels's Propaganda Ministry quickly gained control over the news media, arts and information in Nazi Germany. He was particularly adept at using the relatively new media of radio and film for propaganda purposes. Topics for party propaganda included antisemitism, attacks on Christian churches, and (after the start of the Second World War) attempts to shape morale.

In 1943, Goebbels began to pressure Hitler to introduce measures that would produce "total war", including closing businesses not essential to the war effort, conscripting women into the labour force, and enlisting men in previously exempt occupations into the Wehrmacht. Hitler finally appointed him as Reich Plenipotentiary for Total War on 23 July 1944, whereby Goebbels undertook largely unsuccessful measures to increase the number of people available for armaments manufacture and the Wehrmacht.

As the war drew to a close and Nazi Germany faced defeat, Magda Goebbels and the Goebbels children joined Hitler in Berlin. They moved into the underground Vorbunker, part of Hitler's underground bunker complex, on 22 April 1945. Hitler committed suicide on 30 April. In accordance with Hitler's will, Goebbels succeeded him as Chancellor of Germany; he served one day in this post. The following day, Goebbels and his wife Magda committed suicide, after having poisoned their six children with a cyanide compound.