Berghof Obersalzberg

[Geoff Walden]

Hi James,
That was Alvin who thoughtfully posted the link to that interview.
Have you read Schaub's book in German? Does it have lots of detail? That's one that I have never gotten around to getting.

I have just found the following sale:
https://www.weitze.net/militaria/31/Waf ... 38431.html
A photo album of a member of the 3rd SS Flakabteilung B on the Obersalzberg. There are many photos of the different flak positions. And the postcards of the Berghof rooms are labeled, which kind of room it is.
Unfortunately very expensive.

Thanks, Christian!
WOW!!!!

I think that is the best personal photo album I ever saw! I wish I could afford it ... it's expensive, but I think it's worth that price.
I haven't even gotten halfway through it yet (I'm still trying to find a way to save the whole thing on my hard drive).
So far, most of the photos seem to be taken at the Rossfeld batteries. But there are curious captions that seem to be on the same pages as these Rossfeld Flak photos, that have to do with Kharkov in 1943 ("Kampf um Charkov"). There are also photos of an 8,8cm battery that is lower down, with adjacent barracks, but I haven't figured that one out yet.

[Geoff Walden]

He certainly had a nice postcard collection! Some of those are hard to find today.
The cards that he wrote the "captions" on are just the card titles from the reverse sides.
And it appears that he (they) had a lot of female company!
I like to see the photos of the 2,0cm Flakvierling 38 4-barrel light Flak gun in the Rossfeld batteries. Don't think I ever saw a photo of light Flak on the Rossfeld before - just the 88s. Come to think of it, I don't think I ever saw a Flakvierling in any of the OSB or BGL batteries before.

The "3. SS-Flakabteilung B" unit of the album was the 3rd battery of the the SS Flak defenses of BGL/OSB. This was the 8,8cm battery group on the Rossfeld, commanded in 1944 by SS-Untersturmführer Heumann. The other three batteries were:
1. SS-Flakabteilung B - Berchtesgaden - 8,8cm guns - SS-Obersturmführer Matthies
2. SS-Flakabteilung B - Schönau am Königssee - 8,8cm guns - SS-Obersturmführer Schüller
4. SS-Flakabteilung B - various locations - light Flak (2,0 and 3,7cm guns) - SS-Hauptsturmführer Kurz
SS-Flakabteilung B was commanded by SS-Hauptsturmführer Hallmann, after SS-Sturmbannführer Bernhard Frank left the position in the spring of 1944 to take over command of the entire Waffen-SS contingent on the OSB. In the summer of 1944 most of the SS Flak men were transferred to the Eastern Front, and RAD men manned the batteries from then on, including during the bombing attacks on 25 April 1945.
(Wolfgang Vopersal, "Die SS-Nebelabteilung 'Obersalzberg,'" Der Freiwillige, Vol. 21, Nr. 2 and 3, 1975)
Geoff

[tunix0]

I think that is the best personal photo album I ever saw! I wish I could afford it ... it's expensive, but I think it's worth that price.
I haven't even gotten halfway through it yet (I'm still trying to find a way to save the whole thing on my hard drive).

Yes indeed! A very nice album with many interesting photos.

I sent you a message regarding the backup.

[Br. James]

"Have you read Schaub's book in German? Does it have lots of detail? That's one that I have never gotten around to getting."

Hi Geoff,

Thanks for your quick response, and my answer is No, I haven't even seen a hard copy of Schaub's book, other than via online booksellers -- it would take me as long to read it in German as it took Schaub to write it, and from the title -- "1925-1945" -- twenty years! But Julius Schaub's is certainly a voice that could add great depth to our knowledge of the daily details of this whole period, perhaps even more than if Wilhelm Brückner wrote his own autobiography -- and I don't know that he ever did. Schaub lived on-site and traveled with Hitler throughout this whole period, and his name commonly appears in the writings of most of the other authors who lived through portions of this historic era. So an English translation of Schaub's account of this crucial time period -- even if it is peppered with his own political views -- would be quite a welcome addition to most any library on the history of the NSDAP. IMHO, of course!

Blessings, my friend,

Br. James

[Alvin Y.]

Hi,

here is one little 'Footage Treasure' of the years 1958/1959 and 1961 (Privat Recordings). Okay, admittely in a few Sequenzes it isn't the best quality, but very interesting.

Sequenz-Notes:
The Green Arrow Inn Hotel (Garmisch-Partenkirchen).
The General Walker Hotel.
The Kehlsteinhaus.
Bunker Remains which were on the Hill above the Greenhouse (Obersalzberg).
furthermore...
Monuments and Sites at the Dachau Concentration Camp.

The YT- link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBCHwV2 ... &index=103

Further Information and Pictures regarding the Bunker Remains are documented on Geoff's Website:
http://www.thirdreichruins.com/bunkers.htm

Personal notes:
- I was really surprised how tall and wide the Circular Tower and the Cone-Shaped Items were.
- The Parking Lot (min. 5:05 ...) seems like an 'Open-Air-Museum' for me, very cool

Enjoy and Regards,
Alvin

[Geoff Walden]

Thanks for posting that link, Alvin - for me, that's a very entertaining film. Also nostalgic, although their visits were before my time. But one building I recognized from my first visit to the area was the Alpine Inn - the dark wood building at 3:40 and 4:26. It was used by AFRC as a religious retreat house and also as a hotel for visiting military units - I stayed there in 1981.

Looking at the opening in the Vordereck tower, think of all the tunnels that were accessible when these folks were there! When I saw those ruins in 1981 the tower was half buried and sealed off, and all that concrete was very weathered - they saw it in a pretty much pristine state.

[Alvin Y.]

Thanks for posting that link, Alvin - for me, that's a very entertaining film. Also nostalgic, although their visits were before my time. But one building I recognized from my first visit to the area was the Alpine Inn - the dark wood building at 3:40 and 4:26. It was used by AFRC as a religious retreat house and also as a hotel for visiting military units - I stayed there in 1981.

Looking at the opening in the Vordereck tower, think of all the tunnels that were accessible when these folks were there! When I saw those ruins in 1981 the tower was half buried and sealed off, and all that concrete was very weathered - they saw it in a pretty much pristine state.

Hello Geoff,

I'm glad you like it. And exactly this Sequence with that Building which you describe, I couldn’t assign.
> the dark wood building at 3:40 and 4:26 It was used by AFRC as a religious retreat house ... <
Thanks for your feedback and another piece of information that I probably never would have gotten without you. Great, thank you.

If I am thinking about this Contribution a bit, I have to smile.
Whether the Couple who filmed this Movie could imagine, that their Records 60 Years later will illustrate in a Global Network Forum?!
Furthermore, people 'around the World' are able to watch the sequenzes and talk about it?! .. In all respects fascinating. ..

The next days I will be searching for more such films, maybe I can find some. I hope so.

Off-Topic:
As I was a child we played on and in some Bunkers of the Siegfired-Line (Westwall). In the 1970's and 1980's, one after one of them were processed with concrete or secured with steel ... and finally closed.
Nowadays the Bunkers are all disappeared and just some of the Anti-Tank Obstacles (Westwall) are still there.
Here three Pictures:

Regards, Alvin
.

[tunix0]

If I am thinking about this Contribution a bit, I have to smile.
Whether the Couple who filmed this Movie could imagine, that their Records 60 Years later will illustrate in a Global Network Forum?!
Furthermore, people 'around the World' are able to watch the sequenzes and talk about it?! .. In all respects fascinating. ..

Yes that's true. I have often thought about the very old people (over one hundred years old). They were aware of the First World War, the second, the technical development of the car, the plane, the computer and the Internet. That's crazy!

Off-Topic:
As I was a child we played on and in some Bunkers of the Siegfired-Line (Westwall). In the 1970's and 1980's, one after one of them were processed with concrete or secured with steel ... and finally closed.
Nowadays the Bunkers are all disappeared and just some of the Anti-Tank Obstacles (Westwall) are still there.

They are not all gone, many of them are still standing today. However, many were blown up. But even today, it is too cumbersome to completely remove them.
Nevertheless, there are many who do not want to see these bunkers anymore. I think they are great memorials for what happened then.

You can find some of the Westwall bunkers on my page:
http://www.vergessener-beton.de/kriegss ... unker.html

Unfortunately, the fully preserved Buhlert bunkers were closed. In the year 2009 they were still open and I could photograph them from the inside.

Sometimes it's fascinating that they can only be recognized in the woods in the last few meters, even though they are so big.

Regards
Christian

[Alvin Y.]

If I am thinking about this Contribution a bit, I have to smile.
Whether the Couple who filmed this Movie could imagine, that their Records 60 Years later will illustrate in a Global Network Forum?!
Furthermore, people 'around the World' are able to watch the sequenzes and talk about it?! .. In all respects fascinating. ..

Yes that's true. I have often thought about the very old people (over one hundred years old). They were aware of the First World War, the second, the technical development of the car, the plane, the computer and the Internet. That's crazy!

Off-Topic:
As I was a child we played on and in some Bunkers of the Siegfired-Line (Westwall). In the 1970's and 1980's, one after one of them were processed with concrete or secured with steel ... and finally closed.
Nowadays the Bunkers are all disappeared and just some of the Anti-Tank Obstacles (Westwall) are still there.

They are not all gone, many of them are still standing today. However, many were blown up. But even today, it is too cumbersome to completely remove them.
Nevertheless, there are many who do not want to see these bunkers anymore. I think they are great memorials for what happened then.

You can find some of the Westwall bunkers on my page:
http://www.vergessener-beton.de/kriegss ... unker.html

Unfortunately, the fully preserved Buhlert bunkers were closed. In the year 2009 they were still open and I could photograph them from the inside.

Sometimes it's fascinating that they can only be recognized in the woods in the last few meters, even though they are so big.

Regards
Christian

Hello Christian,

Your Page is great! Thanks a lot for sharing the Link and I will discover it.

Yes, you're right, a lot of them are still standing. I also know that different Westwall-Museums are there.
But in the environment where I grew up, really all of them are gone and/or closed.
I am not familiar regarding the issue Bunker and so on. Honestly I don't know the exactely type of Bunkers of 'my childhood-environment'..
But I remember, my Granpa always spoke from the 'Westwall-Bunkers' (and the Höckerlinie).

At the place where I found the Anti-Tank Obstacles, I saw also such a type of Bunker. The place was directly at the Border of Germany / French. Here three more pictures.. .

Regards, Alvin
.

[Annelie]

Found an old photo I have forgotten about but maybe posted by
someone. An aerial photo of Berghof and Turken

From that view the Turken looks so very very close.
Clear view of driveway and side path? not sure if that is also an driveway?

[Geoff Walden]

Hi Annelie,

That photo was taken from Bormann's house. It's a really good view of how Bormann had a "ringside seat" and total view over the most important parts of the Obersalzberg.

You're right - those are both driveways to the Berghof. The closer one (light colored) was put in during the 1938 extension of that wing of the building. This was a supply driveway to deliver goods to the basement of the dining hall wing (there is a little delivery truck backed up to the door in this view).

[CraigM]

Greetings all. I'm a newbie and first time poster. I've been reading this thread with great interest, especially the lengthy discussion about whether the 770s were able or indeed did turn around on the driveway or in the garage. I think they did originally but I understand that after an accident, Hitler flew into a rage the likes of which can only be imagined by watching Downfall, and banned anyone from doing it again. Kempka had a lot of explaining to do after this:



Disclaimer: do not take this post too seriously.

[Alvin Y.]

Hi,

here a very interesting short footage regarding the bombing raid at the Obersalzberg. The records showing not only the destruction of all buildings, but also the many bomb craters (an impressive perspective).
Furthermore the demolition work at the Berghof and some impressions of Berchtesgaden.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27cHk_7JdgU

Regards, Alvin

[Br. James]

A great video! What was all the digging at the Berghof in aid of??

Cheers,

Br. James

[Alex20]

Further update re the Berghof telephone switchboard following the destruction (from Florian Beierl’s ‘Inside Hitler’s Mountain’)

“ .. The basement of the east wing was undamaged and revealed access to the building’s perfectly intact switchboard. Neatly listed under a sheet of glass were all the important connections, and beside it lay the Obersalzberg telephone directory. The plugs were still in their sockets, just as the telephonist had left them.”

Cheers

Alex