Albert Speer (March 19, 1905 – September 1, 1981), sometimes called "the first architect of the Third Reich," was Hitler's chief architect in Nazi Germany.
Although he originally wanted to become a mathematician, he studied architecture under Heinrich Tessenow. In 1931, after attending a Nazi Party rally, he joined the Party within weeks.
Chief Architect
His first commission came in 1933 when Joseph Goebbels asked him to renovate the Propaganda Ministry. His most notable early design was the Nuremberg parade grounds for Triumph of the Will, based on ancient Doric architecture but magnified to hold 240,000 people. At the 1934 rally, Speer surrounded the site with 150 anti-aircraft searchlights, creating the famous "cathedral of light."
Speer developed the theory of "ruin value" — that buildings should leave aesthetically pleasing ruins thousands of years later. He designed the German Pavilion for the 1937 World's Fair in Paris and planned the rebuilding of Berlin as "Germania."
Minister of Armaments
In 1942, Speer was appointed Minister of Armaments and War Production, dramatically increasing German war output despite Allied bombing. He was tried at Nuremberg and sentenced to 20 years imprisonment at Spandau. He was released in 1966 and died in 1981.