Berghof Obersalzberg

[Alpenfestung]

One thing that struck me as I was looking over these photos ... although the main targets were the Berghof and SS Kaserne, and both of these were hard hit, the vast majority of the bombs fell east of the primary targets, in the Klaushöhe-Riemerfeld-Buchenhöhe area, and the surrounding woods.

Here's a slightly different aerial picture (RAF (?) photo taken on 04-26) of the Obersalzberg and its bomb craters. BTW, does anybody know what really happened to the Villa Bechstein (marked #7 in the picture)? I always thought it was destroyed in the bombing, but the roof looks undamaged, there are no bomb craters close to it and I've seen it marked as "intact" on a map of the area.

Peter

[Geoff Walden]

That's a great photo, Peter - thanks! It shows the camouflage netting very well.

Here is a still from one of the films shot by the US Army in May 1945, showing Villa Bechstein intact (more or less). I have seen a photo that shows the building after the roof was removed and the outside pretty much stripped, probably in preparation for demolition, presumbly during the 1952 destruction of the Third Reich buildings and ruins. I have not seen any period account of this, but I believe this was when various buildings that were not ruined but survived the bombing intact were reduced to ruins (Teehaus, Bienenhaus, Villa Bechstein).

[Annelie]

If one of the members end up with this purchase maybe there will be new photos?


http://www.ebay.com/itm/370996220039?fe_1_2

[Geoff Walden]

Frau Scharfenberg had one of these in her short-lived museum in the Türken basement. I wonder what became of it? It was a magazine-like publication, sort of like the big Sunday magazine sections that used to come in US newspapers (and German ones too, I think).

[Alpenfestung]

Here is a still from one of the films shot by the US Army in May 1945, showing Villa Bechstein intact (more or less). I have seen a photo that shows the building after the roof was removed and the outside pretty much stripped.....

Thanks Geoff, that explains it.

Here's an unfortuately very short clip of French soldiers at the Obersalzberg and in Berchtesgaden - I wonder if there's more of it somewhere on the net.

http://www.ina.fr/video/AFE86003091

Peter

[WW2 Historian]

Here is an interesting shot [courtesy of BPK]. Hitler and Mussolini[?] have turned their chairs around to, presumably, watch a movie being projected onto the wall where the tapestry would normally hang. I've never seen this before...

fascinating picture!

[CPB]

How big do you think that flag in the middle is?

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1394664892.090880.jpg

[Max]

How big do you think that flag in the middle is?

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1394664892.090880.jpg

I would be more interested to know what the building below/left of the Berghof is.

[CPB]

Pretty sure it's the guard house - one of them at least.

Here is a bigger photo.
Source: HVG

[Geoff Walden]

It looks too close to the Berghof from this angle, but that must be "Freidinglehen," the Rasp farm house. That's the only such building that was across from the front of the Berghof. The Berghof Gatehouse was further down the road (to the right in this view).

[CPB]

Interesting, thanks Geoff.

Does anyone know the height of the picture window? (Bottom pane to top pane).

[Geoff Walden]

Hi Chris,

The picture window measured 3.6 by 9 meters, with 90 separate panes.

Geoff

[CPB]

Thanks Geoff, just the information I needed.

[Ernie Primeau]

Nice video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWTbBgaizG4#t=279

[Biber]

That's a movie set - A Max von Sydow film: Hamsun