Adolf Hitler was born in 1889 in Austria and showed an early interest in art that was denied by his rejection from the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts. He developed anti-Semitic beliefs and blamed Jews for Germany's defeat in WWI. In the 1920s he joined the Nazi party and became its leader, promoting German nationalism. In the 1930s he seized power legally through democratic elections and consolidated power through the Reichstag fire. As dictator, he established a totalitarian regime, withdrew Germany from the League of Nations, and began aggressively rearming Germany in violation of the Treaty of Versailles while improving the economy.