But behind the scenes ...
Many feared for their beloved Germany. Johann Georg Elser bitterly resented the Nazi Party's stranglehold on his homeland and Hitler’s vicious restrictions on religious freedoms.
Elser planted a time bomb behind the podium where the German leader was to give a speech on Wednesday, November 8, 1939. For reasons unknown, Hitler cut short his address and left. Eight minutes later the bomb exploded, killing eight people and wounding 65.
Elser spent most of World War II in concentration camps, then was executed on April 9, 1945, two weeks before the war ended.
A street in Bremen is named in his honor. Memorials in Berlin and in his hometown, Koenigsbronn, cite his foresight.
PHOTO: Johann Georg Elser