5 Surprising Facts About Joseph Goebbels
Hitler’s chief propagandist
Joseph Goebbels was born on October 29, 1897, in the small industrial town of Rheydt, near Düsseldorf. His father was a German factory worker. His mom was part-Dutch and worked as a housewife.
From the outside looking in, the young Goebbels seemed to have had a relatively normal childhood — in contrast with Adolf Hitler whose father was an abusive psychopath, and some of the other high-ranking Nazi officials.
But this man did end up being one of the most notorious Nazis to have lived and he caused great suffering to millions as Hitler’s Minister of Propaganda. He was fiercely anti-Semitic, a narcissist, and a big part of the reason why Germany continued to fight so hard when everything was already lost. Here are five facts you probably didn’t know about him.
1. He considered becoming a priest
Goebbels’ family were all deeply religious Roman Catholics. He himself attended a Catholic high school during his teenage years.
He excelled academically and got along well with all the priests who taught the classes. At the end of his time there, Goebbels was the top student in his class and, as tradition dictated, he got to give a speech at the awards ceremony which followed the graduation…
