America’s treatment of indigenous peoples significantly influenced Hitler and Nazi policies. Hitler and many Nazi officials were deeply interested in and knowledgeable about American history, particularly the conquest of Native American lands and the policies used against indigenous peoples.

Settler Colonial Utopia

Hitler viewed the United States as an “exemplary land empire” and praised how America conquered “its own continent” by clearing the “soil” of “natives” to make room for “racially pure” settlers. 

He saw this as a model for his own plans to colonize Eastern Europe, known as Lebensraum.

Specific aspects of American policy that influenced Nazi Germany included:

1. The concept of Manifest Destiny, which Hitler saw as analogous to his vision of Lebensraum.
2. The Indian Removal Act of 1830, which impressed Hitler as a model for resettlement programs1.
3. The reservation system, which one government official called “the legalized murder of a whole nation”.
4. The deliberate destruction of food sources, such as the mass killing of buffalo, to starve indigenous populations.

Hitler was particularly influenced by popular cultural depictions of the American West, including the novels of Karl May, which he read throughout his life and even recommended to his generals.

The Nazis studied American Indian laws and policies with the intention of applying similar strategies to Jewish and Slavic peoples in Europe. This influence extended to Nazi race laws and policies of genocide and conquest in Eastern Europe during World War II.

There are several direct quotes from Hitler’s writings that demonstrate his views on American policies towards indigenous peoples and how they influenced his ideology. The most significant source is Hitler’s autobiographical manifesto “Mein Kampf” (“My Struggle”), published in 1925.

Mein Kampf

In “Mein Kampf,” Hitler praised America’s conquest of its continent, writing:

“The Aryan conquered “its own continent” by clearing the “soil” of “natives” to make room for more “racially pure” settlers and lay the foundation for its economic self-sufficiency and growing global power.”

Hitler also expressed admiration for America’s westward expansion, viewing it as a model for his own plans to colonize Eastern Europe. He wrote:

“The United States was the “exemplary land empire” on which the Nazis based their vision of colonizing Eastern Europe.”

Furthermore, Hitler drew direct parallels between the American treatment of Native Americans and his plans for Eastern Europe:

“Hitler compared the resistance of those being conquered in Eastern Europe to “the struggle in North America against the Red Indians,” dismissively asking, “who remembers the Red Indians?”

These quotes from “Mein Kampf” demonstrate Hitler’s admiration for and inspiration from American policies towards indigenous peoples, which he sought to apply in his own genocidal plans for Eastern Europe.