Following his release Hitler returned to Berchtesgaden, spending time there with friends and benefactors. Hitler’s time was now occupied addressing small groups (although at that time he was banned from such activity under the terms of his prison release) and dictating the second part of Mein Kampf. Already spending a considerable amount of his time on the Obersalzberg, Adolf Hitler, having agreed a figure with the owner, began renting Haus Wachenfeld on 15 October 1928. The house, typically Bavarian in style, offered fabulous views towards the Untersberg across the valley and beyond into neighbouring Austria, the birthplace of the new tenant. The Obersalzberg is located a short distance above the town of Berchtesgaden. It is an area of outstanding natural beauty; here, Hitler could relax, collect his thoughts and develop strategy for the continuing political struggle. Later, during the war, in reference to these early years spent on the Obersalzberg Hitler remarked; ‘those were the best days of my life’, praise indeed for someone whose domestic life prior to settling in the area had been more than a little turbulent. The following years saw the Nazis develop and introduce unprecedented, propaganda-fuelled political campaigning methods. Steadily increased use of the cleverest, and for its time incredibly subtle propaganda, would result in the Nazi Party making inroads into mainstream politics. This, backed-up where necessary with the muscle-power of the SA, saw off challenges from the Party’s greatest rivals, the Communists.

Hitler wasted little time; in late 1928 during the first period of the rental agreement, he approached Frau Margarete Winter-Wachenfeld to enquire if she might consider selling the property. With the sale of Haus Wachenfeld agreed, legal proceedings on the purchase began on 17 September 1932. Hitler would describe this region as his Wahlheimat, ‘the homeland of his choice’. Adolf Hitler was appointed German Chancellor on 30 January 1933. The legalities in connection with the purchase of Haus Wachenfeld were completed on 26 June 1933. Hitler, since being appointed Chancellor, had become a very wealthy man. He received enormous sums in royalties from the sales of Mein Kampf. Moreover, the book was now compulsory reading under new legislation. As time passed, and as head of state, Hitler later received royalty payments due to the fact that his head appeared on postage stamps. Using personal funds from the sales of Mein Kampf, Adolf Hitler bought Haus Wachenfeld for the sum of 40,000 Gold Marks. This single, yet seemingly unremarkable act would ultimately lead to great changes in the area. The foundations of the later-to-be-constructed Berghof (mountain farm) and the already existing idea of the Hitler cult would come together on the Obersalzberg.

Haus Wachenfeld now underwent several stages of renovation and reconstruction, most of which were planned and paid for by Hitler himself. The Nazi Party then moved to persuade the Bavarian authorities to donate pieces of land in the immediate area towards the development of the newly planned complex. This, together with the compulsory purchase of farmland adjoining that of the Führer’s property would eventually form an enclosed area of some ten square kilometres at its conclusion. Initially, and on Hitler’s instructions, these purchases were carried out correctly and generously. However, as time passed and with the involvement of Martin Bormann, reluctant landowners faced a stark choice; accept payment, failing that, forced eviction or imprisonment. Bormann employed the very unpopular Gotthard Färber as enforcer during this period of acquisition of land on the Obersalzberg. By 1937 Bormann had succeeded in buying out or evicting all the residents. The entire Obersalzberg now underwent dramatic change; the once peaceful farming area became a large, well ordered and well guarded estate. Of this area, Hitler owned only Haus Wachenfeld and the grounds in which it stood.

Throughout the early years and during the many periods he spent on the Obersalzberg, Hitler enjoyed an almost carefree lifestyle. Here, in peace and comfort, he could escape the daily grind of political administration and public duties, which, for the most part, he disliked. The Führer delighted in long walks in the region. In these surroundings, Adolf Hitler projected an image of someone who loved nature and the great outdoors, a man of the people who enjoyed a simple and informal lifestyle. When in the company of ladies he was always extremely polite, the perfect host who amused everyone with his sharp sense of humour. Between 1923 and 1936, Hitler spent periods of anything between two and six months every year at his beloved mountain retreat.

The Obersalzberg quickly became a place of pilgrimage; literally thousands of people arrived on an almost daily basis. These adoring multitudes from every corner of the Reich wanted to see the place where their Führer lived, and perhaps, as was sometimes the case, be greeted by Hitler personally close to Haus Wachenfeld. After 1934 the masses were no longer permitted unrestricted access to the Obersalzberg, although the number of visitors to Berchtesgaden itself continued unabated. Subsequently the entire mountain became a more heavily restricted, high security area. After 1936 only those possessing special permits had access to the Obersalzberg, with no less than three checkpoints having to be passed. Leaving Berchtesgaden, the visitor was required to produce the necessary pass to gain entry to the outer security zone at the SS guardhouse located by the Schießstättsbrücke. Halfway up the mountain road one encountered a second checkpoint permitting access to the middle security zone. The last checkpoint, within sight of the Berghof, controlled access to the central, most secure zone. As time passed, other members of the Nazi hierarchy, including Martin Bormann and Hermann Göring, set about acquiring their own properties on the Obersalzberg close to the Führer. In 1938 Hitler would invite Albert Speer to come and live on the mountain.

Adolf Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor on 30 January 1933 would see Haus Wachenfeld, the Obersalzberg, and the town of Berchtesgaden instantly elevated to become areas of high status in the Nazi realm. The Obersalzberg would quickly evolve to become Hitler’s second seat of government; when not in Berlin it was on the Obersalzberg that the Führer made his decisions. It is therefore hardly surprising that major development followed. From 1936, and under Martin Bormann’s supervision, many grand projects were undertaken, including an improved road leading from the town of Berchtesgaden up to the estate. Additionally, many new buildings were constructed on the mountain to enhance the lifestyles of those who spent time in and around the Berghof, providing food, recreation and security, (including a large SS barracks). Hitler’s much loved Haus Wachenfeld also underwent major redevelopment during the period 1935-36. The new Berghof that was painstakingly constructed around Haus Wachenfeld was indeed something worthy of the Führer, large and tastefully furnished, yet not ostentatious. It was here that Adolf Hitler entertained ‘invited guests’, these included; royalty, foreign heads of state, and diplomatic envoys. On the other hand, if ‘summoned’, rather than ‘invited’ to the Berghof, an individual might be forgiven if harbouring any doubts as to the level of hospitality they could expect upon arrival.

This period of massive construction on the Obersalzberg produced; the large SS complex, kindergarten, chauffeurs’ quarters, garages, economics building, the new Hotel Platterhof, administration buildings and much more. At the same time in the vicinity of Berchtesgaden itself more buildings were already appearing, these included; a Reich Chancellery, a youth hostel, an enormous army barracks, and a new railway station. A small airport constructed at Ainring near Freilassing in 1933, served many who travelled to see the Führer on the Obersalzberg; upon arrival at the airport visitors were then chauffeur driven the remaining relatively short distance, about thirty-five kilometres (twenty-two miles) to Hitler’s country residence.

Throughout the war years Adolf Hitler made repeated visits to his mountain retreat, enjoying the peace and relaxation he had always found there. Not until 1943 when the possibility of Allied air-raids in the area became a real danger was the decision taken to build a system of underground bunkers on the Obersalzberg. These vast excavations through solid rock, although never quite completed, were a remarkable undertaking. The bunkers themselves provided comfortable living quarters and ample store-rooms. They were supplied with water, electric power, communications, heating and ventilation systems, everything necessary to withstand a prolonged attack. An extensive network of tunnels, all with emergency exit points and fortified entrances connected these bunkers, while externally anti-aircraft positions were improved and numbers increased. Additionally, smoke-generating equipment had been installed to ‘cloak’ the valley in the event of an air-raid; hiding all probable targets beneath a dense man-made fog.

On the morning of Wednesday, 25 April 1945, with most of the Nazi leadership in Berlin; some 359 Allied aircraft dropped approximately 1,232 tons of bombs on the Obersalzberg, causing extensive damage to the vast majority of buildings situated there. Just five days later, on 30 April, the Führer committed suicide in his Berlin bunker. Within a week of Hitler’s demise the war in Europe ended on 6 May 1945. After the Second World War some of the less severely damaged buildings on the Obersalzberg were repaired and taken over by the US military. In 1952 the bomb damaged remains of the Berghof were blown up. The Bavarian State only regained control of the mountain area following the departure of the Americans in 1995.

Today, a new Documentation Centre stands near the former site of the now disappeared Hotel Platterhof; this provides an audio-visual history of the area during the Third Reich. Visitors to the centre also have an opportunity to enter part of the aforementioned tunnel/bunker system. Another section of this system can be entered through the delightful Hotel zum Türken, a traditional, family-owned hotel established in the early 1900s. Due to its proximity to Hitler’s Berghof, this property was confiscated by the Nazis in late 1933 and used to accommodate the Reichsicherheitsdienst (RSD; Reich Security Service) who were responsible for Hitler’s personal security. Not until 1949, and under unique circumstances, were the original owners permitted to reclaim the property, following repairs and refurbishment the hotel re-opened for business in late 1950.

When one considers that the Third Reich lasted little more than twelve years, and that for the latter half of that period the regime was engaged in world conflict; the amount of construction carried out on the Obersalzberg and surrounding area alone between 1936 and 1945 almost defies belief. The execution of these grandiose building programmes in themselves, clearly indicates the importance of the region to the Nazis, yet more so their Führer, Adolf Hitler, as his home, his spiritual retreat, and his southern headquarters. Despite the enormity of the projects undertaken in the area during the Third Reich, and the equally devastating efforts of the Allies to destroy those projects, the Obersalzberg and Berchtesgaden retain their almost magical charm; both remain as popular and beautiful today as they ever were.

James Wilson
January 2013