July 20

July 20 Plot — Assassination Attempt on Hitler

Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg planted a bomb in Hitler's conference room, which exploded and killed four people — but Hitler survived with minor injuries after an officer inadvertently moved the briefcase behind a table leg. The subsequent coup attempt in Berlin collapsed within hours.

The July 20 Plot was the most serious attempt to kill Hitler from within Germany; its failure led to the execution of nearly 5,000 conspirators and eliminated the last organized German resistance to the Nazi regime.