Kehlsteinhaus

Not to be confused with Berghof (residence).
Eagle's Nest
Kehlsteinhaus

The Eagle's Nest at Obersalzberg in Berchtesgaden
Location within Germany
General information
Status Complete
Type Chalet
Location Obersalzberg
Town or city Berchtesgaden
Country Germany
Coordinates 47°36′40″N 13°02′30″E / 47.61111°N 13.04167°E / 47.61111; 13.04167
Elevation 1,834 m (6,017 ft)
Completed 1938
Inaugurated 20 April 1939
Owner Adolf Hitler, German Landmark
Website
http://www.kehlsteinhaus.de/en/

The Kehlsteinhaus (known as the Eagle's Nest in English-speaking countries) is a Third Reich-era edifice erected atop the summit of the Kehlstein, a rocky outcrop that rises above the Obersalzberg near the town of Berchtesgaden. It was presented to Adolf Hitler on his 50th birthday as a retreat and place to entertain friends and visiting dignitaries. Today it is open seasonally as a restaurant, beer garden, and tourist site.

Construction

The Kehlsteinhaus is situated on a ridge atop the Kehlstein, a 1,834 m (6,017 ft) subpeak of the Hoher Göll rising above the town of Berchtesgaden. It was commissioned by Martin Bormann in the summer of 1937 as a 50th birthday gift for Adolf Hitler. Paid for by the Nazi Party, it was completed in 13 months but held until a formal presentation on April 20, 1939. A 4 m (13 ft) wide approach road climbs 800 m (2,600 ft) over 6.5 km (4.0 mi). Costing RM 30 million to build (about 150 million inflation-adjusted euros in 2007), it includes five tunnels but only one hairpin turn.

Map showing the location of the Kehlsteinhaus (labelled "Eagle's Nest") and Führer Headquarters throughout occupied Europe

From a large car park a 124 m (407 ft) entry tunnel leads to an ornate elevator which ascends the final 124 m (407 ft) to the building.[1] Its car is surfaced with polished brass, Venetian mirrors and green leather. Construction of the entire project cost the lives of 12 workers.[2] The building's main reception room is dominated by a fireplace of red Italian marble presented by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, which was damaged by Allied soldiers chipping off pieces to take home as souvenirs. Much of the furniture was designed by Paul László.

Use

Underground passage to the Kehlsteinhaus elevator

Kehlsteinhaus lies several miles directly above the Berghof. In a rare diplomatic engagement Hitler received departing French ambassador André François-Poncet on October 18, 1938. A wedding reception for Eva Braun's sister Gretl was held there following her June 3, 1944 marriage to Hermann Fegelein.

Referred to as the "D-Haus", short for "Diplomatic Reception Haus", the Kehlsteinhaus is often conflated with the Mooslahnerkopf tea house at the Berghof,[3] which Hitler visited daily after lunch.[4] That teahouse no longer exists, as it was demolished by the Bavarian government after the war.[5]

Allied capture

1945 photo of entrance tunnel to elevator going up to the Kehlsteinhaus, visible at top
Fireplace in the Kehlsteinhaus, a present from Mussolini. Note the damage to the three central stones, which were chipped away by Allied souvenir hunters.[6]
Kehlsteinhaus from below
Distant perspective
The road leading to the Kehlsteinhaus elevator

The Kehlsteinhaus was to be the aiming point of an April 25, 1945 Royal Air Force bombing raid conducted by No. 1, No. 5, and No. 8 Group and No. 617 Squadron.[7] The small house proved an elusive target for the force of 359 Avro Lancasters and 16 de Havilland Mosquitoes, with the Berghof area bombed and severely damaged instead.

It is uncertain which Allied military unit was the first to reach the Kehlsteinhaus; several claim the honor. The matter is compounded by popular confusion of it and the town of Berchtesgaden taken on May 4 by forward elements of the 7th Infantry Regiment of the 3rd Infantry Division of XV Corps of the U.S. Seventh Army of the Sixth Army Group.[8][9][lower-alpha 1]

Reputedly members of the 7th went as far as the elevator to the Kehlsteinhaus,[8] with at least one individual claiming he and a partner continued on to the top.[12]

However, the 101st Airborne maintains it was first both to Berchtesgaden and the Kehlsteinhaus. [13] Also, elements of the French 2nd Armored Division, Laurent Touyeras, Georges Buis and Paul Répiton-Préneuf, were present on the night of May 4 to 5, and took several photographs before leaving on May 10 at the request of US command.[14]

Undamaged in the April 25 bombing raid, the Kehlsteinhaus was subsequently used by the Allies as a military command post until 1960, when it was handed back to the State of Bavaria.

Today

Today the building is owned by a charitable trust, and serves as a restaurant offering indoor dining and an outdoor beer garden. It is a popular tourist attraction to those who are attracted by the historical significance of the "Eagle's Nest". The road has been closed to private vehicles since 1952 due to the dangerous road, but the house can be reached on foot (in two hours) from Obersalzberg, or by bus from the Documentation Center there. The Kehlsteinhaus itself does not mention much about its past.[15]

Informal tours of the Kehlsteinhaus are available to be booked through the official website. Due to concern about neo-Nazis and post-war Nazi sympathisers no external guides are permitted to conduct tours.

The lower rooms are not part of the restaurant but can be visited with a guide. They offer views of the building's past through plate-glass windows. Graffiti left by Allied troops is still clearly visible in the surrounding woodwork. A large fireplace in the restaurant itself shows severe damage along its lower edges where soldiers have smashed off small shards of marble as souvenirs. Hitler's small study is now a store room for the cafeteria.

A trail leads above the Kehlsteinhaus towards the Mannlgrat ridge reaching from the Kehlstein to the summit of the Hoher Göll. The route, which is served by a Klettersteig, is regarded as the easiest to the top.[16]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ According to Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of U.S forces in Europe, the 3rd Infantry Division was the first to take the town of Berchtesgaden; the "Eagle's Nest" is never mentioned.[10] General Maxwell D. Taylor, former Commanding General of the 101st Airborne Division, then attached to the XXI Corps, agreed.[11]

References

  1. ↑ Norbert Eder. "The Eagle's Nest - Obersalzberg in Berchtesgaden".
  2. ↑ "Adolf Hitler", Current Biography 1941, p384
  3. ↑ "Gutshof & Teehaus".
  4. ↑ "Kehlsteinhaus". Hitler Mountain. Archived from the original on April 17, 2010.
  5. ↑ "Dokumentation Obersalzberg: Blowing up the ruins of the former Berghof".
  6. ↑ "Fireplace in the great hall of das Kehlsteinhaus aka the Eagle's Nest".
  7. ↑ "ROYAL AIR FORCE BOMBER COMMAND 1942-1945 (C 5247)". Imperial War Museums.
  8. 1 2 World War II: Race to Seize Berchtesgaden HistoryNet 12 June 2006
  9. ↑ United States Army in World War II, Special Studies, Chronology 1941-1945 "In U.S. Seventh Army's XV Corps area, 7th Inf of 3d Div, crossing into Austria, advances through Salzburg to Berchtesgaden without opposition".
  10. ↑ Dwight D. Eisenhower, Crusade in Europe 418 (1948) (The exact quote from page 418 reads "On May 4 the 3d division of the same corps captured Berchtesgaden." The corps mentioned was the US XV Corps. The term "Eagle's Nest" is not in the quote nor the paragraph that mentions the capture of Berchtesgaden.
  11. ↑ Maxwell D. Taylor, Swords and Plowshares 106 (1972) "3d Division units got into Berchtesgaden ahead of us on the afternoon of May 4"
  12. ↑ Library of Congress: Veterans History Project: Interview with Herman Finnell: Herman Louis Finnell of the 3rd Division, 7th Regiment, Company I, stated that he and his ammo carrier, Pfc. Fungerburg, were the first to enter the Eagle's Nest, as well as the secret passages below the structure. Finnell stated that the hallway below the structure had rooms on either side filled with destroyed paintings, evening gowns, as well as destroyed medical equipment and a wine cellar.
  13. ↑ Easy Company of the 2nd Battalion 506th Regiment, US 101st Airborne Division: Video: Allies Sign Control Law For Germany,1945/06/14 (1945). Universal Newsreel. 1945. Retrieved February 20, 2012.
  14. ↑ Georges Buis and Jean Lacouture, Les Fanfares perdues : Entretiens avec Jean Lacouture, Seuil press, 1975.
  15. ↑ "Kehlsteinhaus".
  16. ↑ "Mannlgrat".

External links

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