Speer, << shpayr, >> Albert (1905-1981), directed the production of weapons in Nazi Germany during World War II (1939-1945). He served as an adviser to Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler from 1933 to 1945.
Speer was born on March 9, 1905, in Mannheim, Germany. He became an architect and joined the Nazi Party in 1931. From 1933 to 1942, Speer designed monuments and decorations for rallies to promote the Nazi government. In 1942, Hitler put Speer in charge of arms production. Speer greatly increased weapons output. He used slave labor in German factories.
By March 1945, it was obvious that Germany would lose the war. Hitler did not want any enemy troops to use Germany’s industries, and so he ordered Speer to have the German Army destroy the industries. However, Speer knew that the German people would need the industries after the war. As a result, he refused to obey Hitler’s order.
In 1945, after Germany surrendered, Speer was put on trial as a war criminal at Nuremberg, Germany. He admitted responsibility for using slave labor and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Speer completed his term in 1966. He wrote Inside the Third Reich (1969), an important book about Nazi leaders. Speer died on Sept. 1, 1981.
