History UsefulNotes / HeinrichHimmler

He was also one of the few Nazis who was heavily into esoteric mysticism, which has fueled many a {{Ghostapo}} story. Rejecting Christianity entirely[[note]]The Nazis were varied in their religious views, some identifying themselves as Christians and some not, but the official NSDAP policy was to strip Christianity of its "Judaic" elements in favor of an alternative, "positive" Christianity once they would be done with Jews and the war[[/note]], Himmler instead sought to resurrect worship of Germanic pagan gods and sponsored archeological digs inside Germany through the ''Ahnenerbe'' organization to prove the "superiority" of the German race. Most of his peers, Hitler included, were critical of Himmler's preoccupation with Atlantian myths and occult rituals.

[[caption-width-right:350:The trope codifier of FourEyesZeroSoul in the flesh.[[note]][[VideoGame/HalfLife1 or rather, in the service-dress uniform[[/note]]]]]]

As a key figure of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, he has appeared in many documentaries and works of fiction with varying degrees of artistic license.

Having never served during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI[[note]]He was old enough to enlist before the war ended, but was deemed physically unfit for service[[/note]], he volunteered to command the Army Group Vistula during the last months of the war as the Soviets were closing in on Berlin. Proving quite the GeneralFailure, he soon buckled under the pressure and abdicated his command. After his denouncement by Hitler for the aforementioned peace offerings and the few remaining Nazi leaders who succeeded Hitler making it clear they wanted nothing to do with him either, he attempted to escape by posing as a Wehrmacht soldier until he was captured by British forces.[[note]]He had prepared an extensive set of fake identity documents for this eventuality, but the British became suspicious of [[SuspiciouslyCleanCriminalRecord a man whose papers were entirely in order during the collapse of the Reich]].[[/note]] He apparently [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled killed himself with a cyanide capsule]] before he could be questioned -- although [[TheCoronerDothProtestTooMuch the exact circumstances are murky]]. If he had lived, he would have undoubtedly stood trial in Nuremberg before his inevitable execution, easily meeting the standard for all 4 of the major charges.[[note]]Crimes against peace, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and conspiracy to commit all three of the former.[[/note]]

On a minor note, he is one also one of the few leading Nazis who is known to have kept a journal throughout the war (along with Goebbels) after parts of it were found in Russian military archives in 1990 and 2013.

Having never served during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI[[note]]He was old enough to enlist before the war ended, but was deemed physically unfit for service[[/note]], he volunteered to command the Army Group Vistula during the last months of the war as the Soviets were closing in on Berlin. Proving quite the GeneralFailure, he soon buckled under the pressure and abdicated his command. After his denouncement by Hitler for the aforementioned peace offerings and the few remaining Nazi leaders who succeeded Hitler making it clear they wanted nothing to do with him either, he attempted to escape by posing as a Wehrmacht soldier until he was captured by British forces.[[note]]He had prepared an extensive set of fake identity documents for this eventuality, but the British became suspicious of [[SuspiciouslyCleanCriminalRecord a man whose papers were entirely in order during the collapse of the Reich]].[[/note]] He apparently [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled killed himself with a cyanide capsule]] before he could be questioned - although [[TheCoronerDothProtestTooMuch the exact circumstances are murky]]. If he had lived, he would have undoubtedly stood trial in Nuremberg before his inevitable execution, easily meeting the standard for all 4 of the major charges.[[note]]Crimes against peace, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and conspiracy to commit all three of the former.[[/note]]

Having never served during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI[[note]]He was old enough to enlist before the war ended, but was deemed physically unfit for service[[/note]], he volunteered to command the Army Group Vistula during the last months of the war as the Soviets were closing in on Berlin. Proving quite the GeneralFailure, he soon buckled under the pressure and abdicated his command. After his denouncement by Hitler for the aforementioned peace offerings and the few remaining Nazi leaders who succeeded Hitler making it clear they wanted nothing to do with him either, he attempted to escape by posing as a Wehrmacht soldier until he was captured by British forces.[[note]]He had prepared an extensive set of fake identity documents for this eventuality, but the British became suspicious of [[SuspiciouslyCleanCriminalRecord a man whose papers were entirely in order during the collapse of the Reich]].[[/note]] He apparently [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled killed himself with a cyanide capsule]] before he could be questioned - although [[TheCoronerDothProtestTooMuch the exact circunstances are murky]]. If he had lived, he would have undoubtedly stood trial in Nuremberg before his inevitable execution, easily meeting the standard for all 4 of the major charges.[[note]]Crimes against peace, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and conspiracy to commit all three of the former.[[/note]]

He was also one of the few Nazis who was heavily into esoteric mysticism, which has fueled many a {{Ghostapo}} story. Rejecting Christianity entirely[[note]]The Nazis were varied in their religious views, some identifying themselves as Christians and some not, but the official NSDAP policy was to strip Christianity of its "Judaic" elements in favor of an alternative, "positive" Christianity[[/note]], Himmler instead sought to resurrect worship of Germanic pagan gods and sponsored archeological digs inside Germany through the ''Ahnenerbe'' organization to prove the "superiority" of the German race. Most of his peers, Hitler included, were critical of Himmler's preoccupation with Atlantian myths and occult rituals.

Having never served during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI[[note]]He was old enough to enlist before the war ended, but was deemed physically unfit for service[[/note]], he volunteered to command the Army Group Vistula during the last months of the war as the Soviets were closing in on Berlin. Proving quite the GeneralFailure, he soon buckled under the pressure and abdicated his command. After his denouncement by Hitler for the aforementioned peace offerings and the few remaining Nazi leaders who succeeded Hitler making it clear they wanted nothing to do with him either, he attempted to escape by posing as a Wehrmacht soldier until he was captured by British forces.[[note]]He had prepared an extensive set of fake identity documents for this eventuality, but the British became suspicious of [[SuspiciouslyCleanCriminalRecord a man whose papers were entirely in order during the collapse of the Reich]].[[/note]] He [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled killed himself with a cyanide capsule]] before he could be questioned, an event witnessed firsthand by famed British cartoonist ComicStrip/CarlGiles and Dutch comedian Rijk de Gooijer. If he had lived, he would have undoubtedly stood trial in Nuremberg before his inevitable execution, easily meeting the standard for all 4 of the major charges.[[note]]Crimes against peace, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and conspiracy to commit all three of the former.[[/note]]

* Himmler is the leader of Burgundy in ''VideoGame/TheNewOrderLastDaysOfEurope'', a hellish country like Oceania in ''Literature/NineteenEightyFour'' but much, much worse.

* Himmler is the leader of Burgundy in ''VideoGame/TheNewOrderLastDaysOfEurope'', a hellish country like Oceania in ''Literature/1984'' but much, much worse.

* Himmler is the leader of Burgundy in ''VideoGame/TheNewOrderLastDaysOfEurope'', a hellish country like ''Literature/1984''s Oceania but much, much worse.

Having never served during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI[[note]]He was old enough to enlist before the war ended, but was deemed physically unfit for service[[/note]], he volunteered to command the Army Group Vistula during the last months of the war as the Soviets were closing in on Berlin. Proving quite the GeneralFailure, he soon buckled under the pressure and abdicated his command. After his denouncement by Hitler for the aforementioned peace offerings and the few remaining Nazi leaders who succeeded Hitler making it clear they wanted nothing to do with him either, he attempted to escape by posing as a Wehrmacht soldier until he was captured by British forces.[[note]]He had prepared an extensive set of fake identity documents for this eventuality, but the British became suspicious of a man whose papers were entirely in order during the collapse of the Reich.[[/note]] He [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled killed himself with a cyanide capsule]] before he could be questioned, an event witnessed firsthand by famed British cartoonist ComicStrip/CarlGiles and Dutch comedian Rijk de Gooijer. If he had lived, he would have undoubtedly stood trial in Nuremberg before his inevitable execution, easily meeting the standard for all 4 of the major charges.[[note]]Crimes against peace, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and conspiracy to commit all three of the former.[[/note]]

* ''Film/DeNurembergANuremberg'' (1989) briefly touches upon the genocide of [[UsefulNotes/{{Romani}} Gypsies]] he ordered.

* ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheLastCrusade'' (1989): Himmler briefly appears at the Nazi book burning rally in Berlin along with Hitler and the rest of the party leadership. Portrayed by Ronald Lacey, who had [[YouLookFamiliar previously portrayed]] Gestapo agent Arnold Toht in ''Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk''.