Defined by the messianic, iconic figure of Adolf Hitler, the twelve years of the Third Reich were one of the pivotal periods of the modern age. From small beginnings in the 1920s, the Nazi Party rose to a position of absolute power in Germany, bringing with it the militarization of society, the apparatus of state terror and vicious discrimination against political opponents, the gypsies, homosexuals, and, above all, the Jews. Hitler's ambition thrust the world into a destructive and bloody conflict that led to the annihilation of millions of Europeans and, eventually, the total collapse of his regime.The Third Reich: A Chronicle charts the rise and fall of Nazi power in a concise and compelling narrative of the period, amplified by extensive quotations from documents, letters, diaries and oral testimony. Authoritative, informative and sumptuously illustrated, written by a scholar steeped in knowledge of the period, The Third Reich: A Chronicle brings the bloody realities of war, conquest and genocide vividly to life.