176 upvotes, 1 direct replies (showing 1)
View submission: Was Hitler a virgin?
Wow, this is a very timely thread. I finished reading *The Third Reich in Power* this morning and was confused by how Richard Evans described Geli Raubal's death:
Earlier on, in 1931, his niece Angela ('Geli') Raubal was killed in an accident, giving rise to unsavoury, but unfounded, rumours about their relationship"
This sentence is his only mention of Raubal, and her death is characterized as an accident rather than a suicide. From a cursory web search it seems like the historical consensus is that she probably committed suicide. Do you know why Evans described it this way and didn't mention the possibility of suicide? I suppose the books are a history of Nazi Germany rather than a history of Hitler so details about Raubal would be outside the scope of the book, but it seems like an odd choice.
Also, I started reading Evan's history based on a past comment you made recommending it, so thank you for that suggestion!
Comment by Georgy_K_Zhukov at 03/11/2024 at 03:37 UTC
196 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I couldn't say for certain as to Evans' decision there, but I would venture that as he wasn't writing a *biography of Hitler*, and whatever else, Raubal's death was not a particularly consequential part of the story of the *Nazi rise to power*, it wasn't something worth dwelling on beyond mention in passing. To borrow from Kershaw, who does spent a good bit more time on it given he *was* writing a biography:
History would have been no different had Geli Raubal survived.