German soldiers from the Wehrmacht Signal Troops laugh at a bearded Russian man giving a Nazi salute in the temporarily occupied territories of the USSR. Eastern Front of World War II in Soviet Russia.
Location: Soviet Union
The he Hitler salute (Hitlergruß, Hitler salute, also called in German: deutscher Gruß, lit. “German salute” by the Nazi Party), or Sieg Heil, is a gesture that was used as a salute in Nazi Germany. The greeting is performed by extending the right arm from the neck into the air with the arm straightened. Usually the person giving the salute would say, “Heil Hitler!” (Glory to Hitler!), “Heil, mein Führer!” (Hello, my leader!), or “Sieg Heil!” (Viva victory!).
The Hitlergruß was adopted in the 1930s by the NSDAP to show obedience to party leader Adolf Hitler and to glorify the German people (and later the German war effort). The salute was mandatory for civilians but largely optional for military personnel, who retained the traditional military salute until the failed attempt to assassinate Hitler on July 20, 1944.