1.
Nickel
–
Nickel is a chemical element with symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a golden tinge. Nickel belongs to the metals and is hard and ductile. Meteoric nickel is found in combination with iron, a reflection of the origin of elements as major end products of supernova nucleosynthesis. An iron–nickel mixture is thought to compose Earths inner core, use of nickel has been traced as far back as 3500 BCE. Nickel was first isolated and classified as an element in 1751 by Axel Fredrik Cronstedt. The elements name comes from a mischievous sprite of German miner mythology, Nickel, an economically important source of nickel is the iron ore limonite, which often contains 1–2% nickel. Nickels other important ore minerals include garnierite, and pentlandite, major production sites include the Sudbury region in Canada, New Caledonia in the Pacific, and Norilsk in Russia. Nickel is slowly oxidized by air at room temperature and is considered corrosion-resistant, historically, it has been used for plating iron and brass, coating chemistry equipment, and manufacturing certain alloys that retain a high silvery polish, such as German silver. About 6% of world production is still used for corrosion-resistant pure-nickel plating. Nickel-plated objects sometimes provoke nickel allergy, Nickel has been widely used in coins, though its rising price has led to some replacement with cheaper metals in recent years. Nickel is one of four elements that are ferromagnetic around room temperature, alnico permanent magnets based partly on nickel are of intermediate strength between iron-based permanent magnets and rare-earth magnets. The metal is valuable in modern times chiefly in alloys, about 60% of world production is used in nickel-steels, other common alloys and some new superalloys comprise most of the remainder of world nickel use, with chemical uses for nickel compounds consuming less than 3% of production. As a compound, nickel has a number of chemical manufacturing uses. Nickel is a nutrient for some microorganisms and plants that have enzymes with nickel as an active site. Nickel is a metal with a slight golden tinge that takes a high polish. It is one of four elements that are magnetic at or near room temperature. Its Curie temperature is 355 °C, meaning that bulk nickel is non-magnetic above this temperature, the unit cell of nickel is a face-centered cube with the lattice parameter of 0.352 nm, giving an atomic radius of 0.124 nm
2.
FN Herstal
–
It is currently the largest exporter of military small arms in Europe. FN is a subsidiary of the Belgian Herstal Group, which also owns U. S, Repeating Arms Company and Browning Arms Company. FN Herstal is the parent company of two United States entities, FN Manufacturing and FNH USA, FNH USA, located in McLean, Virginia, is the sales and marketing branch of FN Herstal in the United States. FN Herstals firearms are used by the forces of over 100 nations. FN originated in the city of Herstal, near Liège. The Fabrique Nationale dArmes de Guerre was established in 1889 to manufacture 150,000 Mauser Model 89 rifles ordered by the Belgian Government. FN was co-founded by the major makers of the Liège region, with Henri Pieper of Anciens Etablissements Pieper being the driving force. In 1897 the company entered into a relationship with John Moses Browning. FN was an important manufacturer of vehicles in Belgium, a development championed by Alexandre Galopin as managing director. Cars were produced in Herstal in the early 1900s until 1935, production of FN motorcycles continued until 1965, and production of trucks until 1970. In 1973, FN changed its name to reflect a product line diversified far beyond just weapons of war, John Moses Browning began development of the Browning GP35 High Power pistol, the GP standing for Grande Puissance or high power in French. However, the weapon was finalized by Dieudonné Saive and did not appear until nearly a decade after Brownings death, the FN Manufacturing LLC plant in Columbia, South Carolina is part of the military division of FN. It is primarily responsible for the production of U. S. military weapons, such as M16 rifles, M249 light machine guns, M240 machine guns, barracuda, Double-action multi-caliber revolver that can be switched between three calibers by changing parts of the cylinder. Five-seveN, Lightweight polymer-framed pistol with a 20-round magazine capacity, in service with military and police forces in over 40 nations throughout the world. FNP series, Series of polymer-framed pistols offered in 9×19mm Parabellum.357 SIG.40 S&W, FNX series, Updated and reengineered version of the FNP series pistol in 9×19mm Parabellum.40 S&W and.45 ACP. One of the most widely used military pistols of all time, hP-DA, 9×19mm Parabellum pistol, double-action variant of the Browning Hi-Power. M1903, Blowback semi-automatic pistol chambered for.32 ACP and 9×20mm Long Browning, m1905.25 ACP vest pocket blowback semi-automatic pistol. M1910, Single-action pistol chambered for.32 ACP and.380 ACP, P90, Ambidextrous bullpup personal defense weapon with a top-mounted 50-round magazine and chambered for FNs 5. 7×28mm cartridge
3.
Centerfire ammunition
–
A centerfire cartridge is a cartridge with a primer located in the center of the cartridge case head. Unlike rimfire cartridges, the primer is a separate and replaceable component, centerfire cartridges have supplanted the rimfire variety in all but the smallest cartridge sizes. The stronger base of a cartridge is able to withstand higher pressures which in turn give a bullet greater velocity. Larger caliber rimfire cartridges require greater volumes of priming explosive than centerfire cartridges, reducing the amount of priming explosive would reduce the reliability of rimfire cartridge ignition, and increase the probability of misfire or dud cartridges. Economies of scale are achieved through interchangeable primers for a variety of centerfire cartridge calibers. The expensive individual brass cases can be reused after replacing the primer, gunpowder, the forward portion of some empty cases can be reformed for use as obsolete or wildcat cartridges with similar base configuration. Modern cartridges larger than.22 caliber are mostly centerfire, actions suitable for larger caliber rimfire cartridges declined in popularity until the demand for them no longer exceeded manufacturing costs, and they became obsolete. An early form of ammunition, without a percussion cap, was invented between 1808 and 1812 by Jean Samuel Pauly. This was also the first fully integrated cartridge, true centerfire ammunition was invented by the Frenchman Clement Pottet in 1829. However, Pottet would not perfect his design until 1855, the centerfire cartridge was improved by Benjamin Houllier, Gastinne Renette, Charles Lancaster, George Morse, Francois Schneider, Hiram Berdan and Edward Mounier Boxer. The identifying feature of centerfire ammunition is the primer which is a cup containing a primary explosive inserted into a recess in the center of the base of the cartridge. The firearm firing pin crushes this explosive between the cup and an anvil to produce hot gas and a shower of incandescent particles to ignite the powder charge, Berdan priming is less expensive to manufacture and is much more common in military-surplus ammunition made outside the United States. Berdan primers are named after their American inventor, Hiram Berdan of New York who invented his first variation of the Berdan primer and patented it on March 20,1866, in U. S. A small copper cylinder formed the shell of the cartridge, and this system worked well, allowing the option of installing a cap just before use of the propellant-loaded cartridge as well as permitting reloading the cartridge for reuse. S. Berdan primers have remained essentially the same functionally to the present day, Berdan primers are similar to the caps used in the caplock system, being small metal cups with pressure-sensitive explosive in them. Modern Berdan primers are pressed into the pocket of a Berdan-type cartridge case. Inside the primer pocket is a bump, the anvil, that rests against the center of the cup. Berdan cases are reusable, although the process is rather involved, the used primer must be removed, usually by hydraulic pressure or a pincer or lever that pulls the primer out of the bottom
4.
Pistol
–
A pistol is a type of handgun. In some usage, the term refers to a subset of handguns. In other usage, the term is interchangeable with handgun, some handgun experts and dictionaries make a technical distinction that views pistols as a subset of handguns, others use the terms interchangeably. But UK/rest of Commonwealth usage does not always make this distinction, for example, the official designation of the Webley Mk VI revolver was Pistol, Revolver, Webley, No.1 Mk VI. The English word was introduced in ca.1570 from the Middle French pistolet, the etymology of the French word pistolet is disputed. The first suggestion derives the word from Czech píšťala, a type of hand-cannon used in the Hussite Wars during the 1420s, the Czech word was adopted in German as pitschale, pitschole, petsole, and variants. The second suggestion is less likely, the use of the word as a designation of a gun is not documented before 1605 in Italy, long after it was used in French, the Czech word is well documented since the Hussite wars in 1420s. Other suggestions include from Middle High German pischulle or from Middle French pistole, also it is suggested that early pistols were carried by cavalry in holsters hung from the pommel of a horses saddle. The most common types of pistol are the shot. Single shot handguns were mainly seen during the era of flintlock and musket weaponry where the pistol was loaded with a ball and fired by a flint striker. However, as technology improved, so did the single shot pistol, new operating mechanisms were created, and due to this, they are still made today. It is the oldest type of pistol, and is used to hunt wild game. Multi-barreled pistols were common during the time as single shot pistols. As designers looked for ways to increase fire rates, multiple barrels were added to all guns including pistols, one example of a multi-barreled pistol is the Ducks foot pistol, which generally had either four or eight barrels, although some 20th century models had three barrels. Around 1850, pistols such as the Jarre harmonica gun were produced that had a sliding magazine, the sliding magazine contained pinfire cartridges or speedloaders. The magazine needed to be moved manually in many designs, hence distinguishing them from semi-automatic pistols, with the development of the revolver in the 19th century, gunsmiths had finally achieved the goal of a practical capability for delivering multiple loads to one handgun barrel in quick succession. The semi-automatic pistol was the step in the development of the pistol. By avoiding multiple chambers—which need to be individually reloaded—semi-automatic pistols delivered faster rates of fire, an example of a modern blow back action semi-automatic pistol is the HK VP70
5.
FN Model 1910
–
The FN Model 1910 is a blowback-operated, semi-automatic pistol designed by John Browning and manufactured by Fabrique Nationale of Belgium. The FN Model 1910, also known as the Browning model 1910, was a departure for Browning, before, his designs were produced by both FN in Europe and Colt Firearms in the United States. Since Colt did not want to produce it, Browning chose to patent, introduced in 1910, this pistol used a novel operating spring location surrounding the barrel. This location became the standard in such weapons as the Walther PPK. It incorporated the standard Browning striker-firing mechanism and a grip safety along with a magazine safety, offered in both.380 ACP and.32 ACP calibres, it remained in production until 1983. It is possible to switch calibres by changing only the barrel, however, FN never offered packages containing a single pistol with both calibre barrels. A variant of the Model 1910 was known variously as the Model 1922 or 1910/22 and this was a larger model with a longer barrel, slide extension, and a longer grip frame to accommodate an extra two rounds. This model was aimed at military and police contracts and many examples were produced for various agencies, the FN Model 1910/1922 was initially designed for Yugoslavia. 1910/1922 pistols went on to see service in World War Two. These examples carry Nazi production stamps, and most have simple chequered wood grips instead of the horn or plastic grips bearing the FN logo. The FN Model 1922 was also used by the countries, Yugoslavia, Holland, Greece, Turkey, Romania, France, Finland, Denmark. In 1955, the Browning Arms Company introduced the Model 1910 pistol for the American market as the Model 1955, made in Belgium, this model was virtually identical to the European model except for the markings and grips. Importation ceased in 1968 due to the passage of stricter gun-control laws in the U. S, another version, the Model 1971, featured a longer barrel and slide, adjustable sights, a finger-rest magazine, and enlarged target grips. These features were intended to comply with the Gun Control Act of 1968 which had halted import of the Model 1955, north Korea made copies of the Model 1910 without licence as the Type 70 pistol. The weapon is not only for domestic use but also for export. The Hamada Type or Hamada Type Automatic handgun was a semi-automatic pistol developed in 1941 for use by the Empire of Japan during World War II, developed by Bunji Hamada, the pistol took its basic design from the Model 1910 Browning. Production occurred at the Japanese Firearms Manufacturing Company, with minor changes made as the war progressed. Numerous previous sources erroneously cited the FN Model 1900 in.32 calibre as being the weapon Princip used and this has led to confusion over the calibre of the pistol actually used
6.
20th century
–
The 20th century was a century that began on January 1,1901 and ended on December 31,2000. It was the tenth and final century of the 2nd millennium and it is distinct from the century known as the 1900s, which began on January 1,1900 and ended on December 31,1999. It saw great advances in communication and medical technology that by the late 1980s allowed for near-instantaneous worldwide computer communication, the term short twentieth century was coined to represent the events from 1914 to 1991. It took all of history up to 1804 for the worlds population to reach 1 billion, world population reached 2 billion estimates in 1927, by late 1999. Globally approximately 45% of those who were married and able to have children used contraception, 40% of pregnancies were unplanned, the century had the first global-scale total wars between world powers across continents and oceans in World War I and World War II. The century saw a shift in the way that many people lived, with changes in politics, ideology, economics, society, culture, science, technology. The 20th century may have seen more technological and scientific progress than all the other centuries combined since the dawn of civilization, terms like ideology, world war, genocide, and nuclear war entered common usage. It was a century that started with horses, simple automobiles, and freighters but ended with high-speed rail, cruise ships, global commercial air travel and the space shuttle. Horses, Western societys basic form of transportation for thousands of years, were replaced by automobiles and buses within a few decades. Humans explored space for the first time, taking their first footsteps on the Moon, mass media, telecommunications, and information technology made the worlds knowledge more widely available. Advancements in medical technology also improved the health of many people, rapid technological advancements, however, also allowed warfare to reach unprecedented levels of destruction. World War II alone killed over 60 million people, while nuclear weapons gave humankind the means to annihilate itself in a short time, however, these same wars resulted in the destruction of the Imperial system. For the first time in history, empires and their wars of expansion and colonization ceased to be a factor in international affairs, resulting in a far more globalized. The last time major powers clashed openly was in 1945, and since then, technological advancements during World War I changed the way war was fought, as new inventions such as tanks, chemical weapons, and aircraft modified tactics and strategy. After more than four years of warfare in western Europe, and 20 million dead. The regime of Tsar Nicholas II was overthrown during the conflict, Russia became the first communist state, at the beginning of the period, Britain was the worlds most powerful nation, having acted as the worlds policeman for the past century. Meanwhile, Japan had rapidly transformed itself into an advanced industrial power. Its military expansion into eastern Asia and the Pacific Ocean culminated in an attack on the United States
7.
United Kingdom
–
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
8.
Ian Fleming
–
Ian Lancaster Fleming was an English author, journalist and naval intelligence officer who is best known for his James Bond series of spy novels. Fleming came from a family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co. Educated at Eton, Sandhurst and, briefly, the universities of Munich and Geneva and his wartime service and his career as a journalist provided much of the background, detail and depth of the James Bond novels. Fleming wrote his first Bond novel, Casino Royale, in 1952 and it was a success, with three print runs being commissioned to cope with the demand. Eleven Bond novels and two short-story collections followed between 1953 and 1966, the novels revolved around James Bond, an officer in the Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6. Bond was also known by his number,007, and was a commander in the Royal Naval Reserve. The Bond stories rank among the series of fictional books of all time. Fleming also wrote the childrens story Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang and two works of non-fiction, in 2008, The Times ranked Fleming 14th on its list of The 50 greatest British writers since 1945. Fleming was married to Ann Charteris, who was divorced from the second Viscount Rothermere owing to her affair with the author, Fleming and Charteris had a son, Caspar. Fleming was a smoker and drinker for most of his life. Two of his James Bond books were published posthumously, other writers have since produced Bond novels, Flemings creation has appeared in film twenty-six times, portrayed by seven actors. Ian Fleming was born on 28 May 1908, at 27 Green Street in the wealthy London district of Mayfair and his mother was Evelyn St Croix Rose, and his father was Valentine Fleming, the Member of Parliament for Henley from 1910. As an infant he lived, with his family, at Braziers Park in Oxfordshire. Fleming was the grandson of the Scottish financier Robert Fleming, who founded the Scottish American Investment Trust, in 1914, with the start of the First World War, Valentine joined C Squadron, Queens Own Oxfordshire Hussars, and rose to the rank of major. He was killed by German shelling on the Western Front on 20 May 1917, because the family owned an estate at Arnisdale, Valentines death was commemorated on the Glenelg War Memorial. Flemings elder brother Peter became a writer and married actress Celia Johnson. Fleming also had two brothers, Michael and Richard, and a younger maternal half-sister born out of wedlock, cellist Amaryllis Fleming. Amaryllis was conceived during an affair between John and Evelyn that started in 1923, some six years after the death of Valentine
9.
James Bond
–
The James Bond series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. The latest novel is Trigger Mortis by Anthony Horowitz, published in September 2015, additionally Charlie Higson wrote a series on a young James Bond, and Kate Westbrook wrote three novels based on the diaries of a recurring series character, Moneypenny. The character has also adapted for television, radio, comic strip, video games. As of 2017, there have been twenty-four films in the Eon Productions series, the most recent Bond film, Spectre, stars Daniel Craig in his fourth portrayal of Bond, he is the sixth actor to play Bond in the Eon series. There have also two independent productions of Bond films, Casino Royale and Never Say Never Again. In 2015, the franchise was estimated to be worth $19.9 billion, the Bond films are renowned for a number of features, including the musical accompaniment, with the theme songs having received Academy Award nominations on several occasions, and two wins. Other important elements which run through most of the films include Bonds cars, his guns, the films are also noted for Bonds relationships with various women, who are sometimes referred to as Bond girls. Ian Fleming created the character of James Bond as the central figure for his works. Bond is an officer in the Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6. Bond is known by his number,007, and was a Royal Naval Reserve Commander. Among those types were his brother, Peter, who had involved in behind-the-lines operations in Norway. Aside from Flemings brother, a number of others also provided some aspects of Bonds make up, including Conrad OBrien-ffrench, Patrick Dalzel-Job and Bill Biffy Dunderdale. The name James Bond came from that of the American ornithologist James Bond, a Caribbean bird expert and author of the definitive field guide Birds of the West Indies. He further explained that, When I wrote the first one in 1953, I wanted Bond to be a dull, uninteresting man to whom things happened. When I was casting around for a name for my protagonist I thought by God, is the dullest name I ever heard. On another occasion, Fleming said, I wanted the simplest, dullest, plainest-sounding name I could find, James Bond was much better than something more interesting, like Peregrine Carruthers. Exotic things would happen to and around him, but he would be a neutral figure—an anonymous, likewise, in Moonraker, Special Branch Officer Gala Brand thinks that Bond is certainly good-looking. Rather like Hoagy Carmichael in a way and that black hair falling down over the right eyebrow
10.
Walther PP
–
The Walther PP series pistols are blowback-operated semi-automatic pistols, developed by the German arms manufacturer Walther. It features an exposed hammer, a traditional double-action trigger mechanism, a magazine. The series includes the Walther PP, PPK, PPK/S, various PP series are manufactured in either Germany, France, or the United States. Since 2002, the PPK variant is manufactured by Smith & Wesson in Houlton, Maine, United States. The PP and the PPK were among the worlds first successful double action semi-automatic pistols and were widely copied, but are still made by Walther. The design inspired other pistols, among them the Soviet Makarov, the Hungarian FEG PA-63, the Polish P-64, the American Accu-Tek AT-380 II, the PP and PPK were both popular with European police and civilians, for being reliable and concealable. During World War II, they were issued to the German military, including the Luftwaffe, the original PP was released in 1929. It was designed for use and was used by police forces in Europe in the 1930s. The semi-automatic pistol operated using a blowback action. The PP was designed with safety features, some of them innovative, including an automatic hammer block, a combination safety/decocker. The most common variant is the Walther PPK, a version of the PP with a shorter grip, barrel and frame. A new, two-piece wrap-around grip panel construction was used to conceal the exposed back strap, the smaller size made it more concealable than the original PP and hence better suited to plainclothes or undercover work. PPK is an abbreviation for Polizeipistole Kriminalmodell, kriminal referring to the detective division. Adolf Hitler shot and killed himself with his PPK in the Führerbunker in Berlin, south Korean dictator Park Chung-hee was shot and killed by Kim Jae-gyu, using the Walther PPK. Fleming had given Bond a.25 Beretta 418 pistol in early novels, no on the advice of firearms expert Geoffrey Boothroyd. Singer Elvis Presley owned a silver-finish PPK, inscribed TCB, the PPK/S was developed following the enactment of the Gun Control Act of 1968 in the United States, the pistols largest market. One of the provisions of GCA68 banned the importation of pistols and revolvers not meeting requirements of length, weight. The PPK failed the Import Points test of the GCA68 by a single point, Walther addressed this situation by combining the PPs frame with the PPKs barrel and slide to create a pistol that weighed slightly more than the PPK
11.
Adolf Hitler
–
Adolf Hitler was a German politician who was the leader of the Nazi Party, Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and Führer of Nazi Germany from 1934 to 1945. As dictator of the German Reich, he initiated World War II in Europe with the invasion of Poland in September 1939 and was central to the Holocaust, Hitler was born in Austria, then part of Austria-Hungary, and raised near Linz. He moved to Germany in 1913 and was decorated during his service in the German Army in World War I and he joined the German Workers Party, the precursor of the NSDAP, in 1919 and became leader of the NSDAP in 1921. In 1923 he attempted a coup in Munich to seize power, the failed coup resulted in Hitlers imprisonment, during which he dictated the first volume of his autobiography and political manifesto Mein Kampf. Hitler frequently denounced international capitalism and communism as being part of a Jewish conspiracy, by 1933, the Nazi Party was the largest elected party in the German Reichstag, which led to Hitlers appointment as Chancellor on 30 January 1933. Hitler aimed to eliminate Jews from Germany and establish a New Order to counter what he saw as the injustice of the post-World War I international order dominated by Britain, Hitler sought Lebensraum for the German people in Eastern Europe. His aggressive foreign policy is considered to be the cause of the outbreak of World War II in Europe. He directed large-scale rearmament and on 1 September 1939 invaded Poland, resulting in British, in June 1941, Hitler ordered an invasion of the Soviet Union. By the end of 1941 German forces and the European Axis powers occupied most of Europe, failure to defeat the Soviets and the entry of the United States into the war forced Germany onto the defensive and it suffered a series of escalating defeats. In the final days of the war, during the Battle of Berlin in 1945, Hitler married his long-time lover, on 30 April 1945, less than two days later, the two killed themselves to avoid capture by the Red Army, and their corpses were burned. Hitler and the Nazi regime were also responsible for the killing of an estimated 19.3 million civilians, in addition,29 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of military action in the European Theatre of World War II. The number of civilians killed during the Second World War was unprecedented in warfare, Hitlers father Alois Hitler Sr. was the illegitimate child of Maria Anna Schicklgruber. The baptismal register did not show the name of his father, in 1842, Johann Georg Hiedler married Aloiss mother Maria Anna. Alois was brought up in the family of Hiedlers brother, Johann Nepomuk Hiedler, in 1876, Alois was legitimated and the baptismal register changed by a priest to register Johann Georg Hiedler as Aloiss father. Alois then assumed the surname Hitler, also spelled Hiedler, Hüttler, the Hitler surname is probably based on one who lives in a hut. Nazi official Hans Frank suggested that Aloiss mother had been employed as a housekeeper by a Jewish family in Graz, and that the familys 19-year-old son Leopold Frankenberger had fathered Alois. No Frankenberger was registered in Graz during that period, and no record has been produced of Leopold Frankenbergers existence, Adolf Hitler was born on 20 April 1889 in Braunau am Inn, a town in Austria-Hungary, close to the border with the German Empire. He was one of six born to Alois Hitler and Klara Pölzl
12.
Death of Adolf Hitler
–
Adolf Hitler killed himself by gunshot on 30 April 1945 in his Führerbunker in Berlin. His wife Eva Braun committed suicide with him by taking cyanide, records in the Soviet archives show that their burnt remains were recovered and interred in successive locations until 1970, when they were again exhumed, cremated, and the ashes scattered. Accounts differ as to the cause of death, one states that he died by poison only, contemporary historians have rejected these accounts as being either Soviet propaganda or an attempted compromise in order to reconcile the different conclusions. One eye-witness recorded that the body showed signs of having been shot through the mouth, there is also controversy regarding the authenticity of skull and jaw fragments which were recovered. In 2009, American researchers performed DNA tests on a skull Soviet officials had believed to be Hitlers. The tests and examination revealed that the skull was actually that of a less than 40 years old. The jaw fragments which had recovered were not tested. By early 1945, Germanys military situation was on the verge of total collapse, poland had fallen to the advancing Soviet forces, who were, by then, preparing to cross the Oder between Küstrin and Frankfurt with the objective of capturing Berlin,82 kilometres to the west. German forces had recently lost to the Allies in the Ardennes Offensive, with British, American forces in the south had captured Lorraine and were advancing towards Mainz, Mannheim, and the Rhine. In parallel to the actions, the Allies had met at Yalta between 4–11 February to discuss the conclusion of the war in Europe. Hitler, presiding over a rapidly disintegrating Third Reich, retreated to his Führerbunker in Berlin on 16 January 1945, to the Nazi leadership, it was clear that the battle for Berlin would be the final battle of the war in Europe. Some 325,000 soldiers of Germanys Army Group B were surrounded and captured on 18 April, by 11 April the Americans crossed the Elbe,100 kilometres to the west of the city. On 16 April, Soviet forces to the east crossed the Oder and commenced the battle for the Seelow Heights, by 19 April the Germans were in full retreat from Seelow Heights, leaving no front line. Berlin was bombarded by Soviet artillery for the first time on 20 April, by the evening of 21 April, Red Army tanks reached the outskirts of the city. Hitler launched a tirade against the treachery and incompetence of his commanders, Hitler announced that he would stay in Berlin until the end, and then shoot himself. Later that day he asked SS physician Dr. Werner Haase about the most reliable method of suicide, Haase suggested the pistol-and-poison method of combining a dose of cyanide with a gunshot to the head. Hitlers influential secretary, Martin Bormann, convinced Hitler that Göring was threatening a coup, in response, Hitler informed Göring that he would be executed unless he resigned all of his posts. Later that day, he sacked Göring from all of his offices, by 27 April, Berlin was cut off from the rest of Germany
