Did Hitler once said, “To conquer a nation first replace science with Christianity”
A spurious quote attributed to Adolf Hitler about replacing science with Christianity has been making the rounds on social media, since roughly 2015. We found examples on both Facebook and Twitter.
Did Hitler Say, ‘To Conquer a Nation First Replace Science with Christianity’?
The precise statement is, “To conquer a nation first replace science with Christianity.”
We have rated this quote Misattributed, because there is no evidence the Nazi dictator ever said such a thing, or anything resembling it. Although Nazi Germany boasted some topnotch scientists, some of whose talents were recruited by the military for the war effort, Hitler reportedly showed little personal interest in, and even less working knowledge of, the sciences. And, given that Hitler’s regime persecuted Christians who refused to toe the Nazi line.
In any case, we found no published instances of the statement about replacing science with Christianity predating 2015, when it first surfaced on the internet, another indication that it is apocryphal. We determined it was not an exact quote, though it can be described as a rough paraphrase of a lengthier statement he did make.
The present example, “To conquer a nation, first replace science with Christianity,” is nowhere to be found in published literature and appears to be a fabricated variant of the “disarm its citizens” quote.
