Who Was Who at
Hitler's Berghof
Hitler's Berghof was the scene of
many visits, both formal and informal, and hundreds of photos were taken there. Heinrich
Hoffmann made many photos to publish in his books and as postcards, and Eva Braun and her
sister Gretl were avid amateur photographers. Walter Frentz, on the staff of the Nazi Press
Organization, made many color photos. All of these photo sets have many shots showing
visitors to the Berghof, along with the regulars of Hitler's inner circle. Unfortunately,
most of these photos were not labeled, or their identifications were lost at the end of
the war, and the identities of many of the people seen around the Berghof have been lost
over time. In addition, several of these people have been misidentified as these photos
have been published in numerous books since 1945, and these misidentifications tend to be
perpetuated as more photo books are published.
This page corrects some of these
misidentifications, based on photos in Eva and Gretl Braun's photo albums in the
U.S. National
Archives, and also the Heinrich Hoffmann photo archive copies in the same collection
(National Archives, Record Groups 242-EB and 242-H, College Park, MD; 242-EB also contains
copies of several photo albums belonging to Eva's friend Herta Schneider). Some other
photos are presented here with identifications of some of the people who are regularly
seen in these photos, but rarely identified in books. Some of my identifications are
admittedly tentative, and I would be happy to receive documented corrections or any
further info.
Click here to read
a guide to Eva Braun's movies in the National Archives.

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Most
of the post-war misidentifications found in these photo groups involve Eva Braun and her
sisters and friends. Eva and her younger sister Gretl (Margarethe) looked very much alike,
and their older sister Ilse resembled both (although Ilse rarely visited the Berghof). Eva
herself tended to change her appearance regularly (her hair, especially), and Eva can look
quite different in photos taken at different times (so can Gretl). In fact, it can
sometimes be very hard to tell Eva and Gretl apart. One misidentification that is quite common in
modern books is the photo on the left above. This studio portrait is invariably labeled as
showing Gretl and Eva, with Eva on the right (note Eva's brooch showing her personal
monogram - see below). This photo is sometimes printed reversed, but I
show it here as it appears in Eva's photo albums (Album 26, No. 7, NA RG 242-EB).
In fact, this is not Gretl at all, but Eva's best
friend Herta Schneider. Eva and Herta had been friends from childhood, and even after
Herta married (her maiden name was Ostermeyer), she and her children spent a great deal of
time with Eva, living with her at the Berghof, because Herta's husband was away in
military service. The photo on the right above shows Eva and Herta at the Königssee lake in
July 1941, with one of Eva's Scottish terriers. Eva herself labeled the album page on which
this photo appears, removing any doubt that this woman is Herta Schneider, not Gretl (NA
RG 242-EB-27-39D; in addition, many photos in the albums that originally
belonged to Frau Schneider confirm her identity in Eva's photos).
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Eva
Braun's personal monogram showed her initials forming a four-leaf clover (Kleeblatt),
and was designed for her by Dr. Karl Brandt (this symbol is sometimes
incorrectly identified as a butterfly). On the right are two examples of the
EB Kleeblatt monogram, from some of her silver pieces. (See
Albert Speer, Inside the Third Reich, p. 574; Christa Schroeder, Er
war mein Chef, p. 216; and Pierre Galante
and Eugène Silianoff, Voices from the Bunker, p. 21) |
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Herta
is often misidentified as Gretl in these photos as well. Herta is seated
beside Eva in both photos. The photo on the left is often grouped with
photos of Eva and Gretl taken at the Kehlsteinhaus (see below), but this
photo was actually taken on the Berghof terrace. The photo on the right
was taken at the side of the Berghof "wintergarten" sunroom. At
the right side of the photo is an actress friend of Eva's named Else von
Möllendorff (see more below). (NA RG 242-EB, Album 14) |

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The
photo on the left above shows Herta and Eva on the side steps of the
Berghof. On the right above, Eva plays with Herta's daughter "Uschi" (Ursula), who was one of Adolf
Hitler's most welcomed guests. So many photos were taken of Eva and Hitler with Uschi,
that many people in the post-war years thought this was their child. Two of the most
common of these photos are shown below, when Uschi was a couple years older. (NA
RG 242-EB) |
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These
photos of Eva and Gretl were taken at the Kehlsteinhaus. Also seen is one of Eva's
omnipresent dogs. She had two Scottish terriers, named Negus and Stasi (in her photo albums,
the dogs are labeled Negus and Katuschka - perhaps "Stasi" was a nickname, or
there were, in fact, three dogs (although no more than two are ever seen together).
Although they looked very much alike, it
seems clear that Eva is on the left, and Gretl on the right ... but compare to
the two photos below. (NA RG 242-EB, Album 14, Nos. 17A and 17B) |

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These
photos (and others taken at the same time) are almost always labeled in books as showing
Eva Braun, but the details of the dress and hair show that this is really Gretl, taken on
the same day as the photos above. (NA RG 242-EB, Album 14, Page 17) |
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The
photo on the left is invariably labeled as Gretl and Eva on the Berghof terrace,
but the woman on the right was an actress friend of Eva's named Else von
Möllendorff (see more below). The photo on the right is invariably labeled as
Eva, but this photo appears in her albums on a page with two photos showing Gretl, and the
page is labeled "Gretl - Greta." (NA RG 242-EB, Album 2, Page 43 - the
Finding Aid in the National Archives says Album 2 actually belonged to Gretl) |
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The
woman in the photo on the left (part of a larger photo) is sometimes labeled as Eva, but
this is Gretl on her wedding day. On 3 June 1944, Gretl Braun married Hermann Fegelein, an
SS-Obergruppenführer on the staff of SS chief Heinrich Himmler. The reception took place
in the Berghof (see photo on right above - the group is in front of the fireplace in the
Great Room), and a party followed at the Kehlsteinhaus. Gretl is dancing
with SS-Obersturmbannführer (Lt. Col.) Waldemar Fegelein, her new
brother-in-law (see note below). On the right can be seen -
1st row, left-right - Fegelein, Gretl, Hitler, Eva, Fransiska "Fanny" Braun (Eva
and Gretl's mother); 2nd-3rd rows - Georg Alexander, rest unknown to me (although the woman just behind
Hitler's right shoulder may be Ilse Braun); 4th row - Himmler, unknown, Anni
Brandt (?), Hanni Morell, Dr. Theo Morell (Hitler's personal physician, and a regular of the inner circle,
along with his wife); Otto Dietrich (Press Chief - another Berghof regular); standing in
the rear - Nicolaus von Below (Hitler's Luftwaffe adjutant), unknown. There are
several other photos in this series, showing Fegelein, Gretl, and Eva in the Berghof and
Kehlsteinhaus, celebrating the wedding. (NA RG 242-HL) NOTE
- When I first put this page up, I did not know the identity of the man
with whom Gretl was dancing. My thanks to E. Reid for identifying him as
Fegelein's brother Waldemar - see the Axis History Factbook Gallery, http://www.skalman.nu/third-reich/gallery-wss-persons.htm
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These
photos and the following two were taken in the Berghof on the occasion of Hitler's 55th
birthday, 20 April 1944. The woman in the center is often labeled as Eva, but Eva is third
from the left. The woman in the center appears in many photos taken at the
Berghof, but I have been unable to identify her (on her album page,
Eva gave only the men's names). Left-right - Herta Schneider, Martin Bormann, Eva Braun,
Otto Dietrich, unknown, Dr. Hans von Hasselbach, Gretl Braun, Dr. Karl Brandt (Hitler's
traveling surgeon, a regular in Berghof group photos), Anni Brandt. On the far right in the
second photo is Heinrich Hoffmann, Hitler's official photographer and resident Berghof
"clown." (NA RG 242-EB) |

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The
inner circle examines Hitler's birthday presents in the Berghof dining hall. On the left, Heinrich Hoffmann shows off
a newly acquired painting for Hitler's art collection, as many of the same people in the
photos above look on. The tall officer is Walter Frentz, a staff photographer
(Frentz took
most of the color photos now seen in Hitler photo collections). On the right, AH and EB
look over the presents, with Herta Schneider in the background. (NA RG 242-EB) |

The inner circle celebrates in
the Berghof. This photo is usually labeled as showing Hitler's birthday in 1943 or even '44, but
several details show it to have been taken much earlier than that, probably 1939 or
1940.
Eva's appearance shows this to be an earlier photo; in addition, both Wilhelm Brückner
and Max Wünsche had left the Führer's immediate service by the end of 1940. Front row,
left-right - Wilhelm Brückner (Hitler's chief personal adjutant), Christa Schroeder
(one of
Hitler's secretaries), Eva, Hitler, Gretl, Adolf Wagner (Gauleiter of Munich), Otto
Dietrich (Press Chief); 2nd Row, left-right - Gerda Daranowski (later Frau Christian,
another of Hitler's secretaries), Margarete Speer, Martin Bormann (partially hidden),
Dr. Karl Brandt, Heinrich Hoffmann; Remainder, left-right - Dr. Theo Morell
(Hitler's personal physician),
Hannelore (or Johanna) "Hanni" Morell,
Karl-Jesko von Puttkamer (Hitler's naval adjutant), Gerda Bormann, Max Wünsche (one of Hitler's SS aides),
Heinrich Heim (from Bormann's staff). (NA RG 242-EB, Album
8, No. 3A) NOTE: Warren
Thompson's research indicates that the style of uniform Hitler is wearing is
the one he assumed after the beginning of World War II. Therefore, and
considering that uniforms were rare among Hitler's inner circle at the Berghof
prior to WWII, I would suggest this photo was probably taken during New Years
1939/40. Other possible dates were Christmas 1939 and Hitler's birthday in 1940,
but he was apparently not at the Berghof on either of those occasions. However, Dr. Karl Brandt's rank in this photo is SS-Sturmbannführer (Major), and
he was promoted to SS-Obersturmbannführer in April 1939 ... so the 1940 date
may be incorrect. (Thanks to Max History for the info on Dr.
Brandt's dates of rank.)
Then again ... Christa Schroeder's book "Er war mein Chef" says this
photo was taken on New Year's Eve 1940.

Another of the well-known Berghof group photos,
this one taken on New Years Eve 1938/39. Front row, left-right - Heinrich Hoffmann, Gretl
Braun, Dr. Theo Morell, Helene Bouhler, Phillip Bouhler, Gerda Bormann, Hitler, Eva Braun, Martin Bormann,
Anni Brandt; 2nd row - Christa Schroeder, Freda Kannenberg, Albert
Speer, Margarete Speer, Hanni Morell, Frau Schmundt, Ilse Braun, Heinz Lorenz; 3rd row - Ludwig Bahls (SS Aide),
Gerda Daranowski, Albert Bormann, Jacob Werlin (managing director of
Daimler-Benz), Sofie Stork, Fritz Schönmann, Gen. Rudolf Schmundt (Hitler's Wehrmacht adjutant),
Marianne Schönmann, Dr. Karl Brandt, Arthur ("Willi") Kannenberg. (NA
RG 242-EB-6-7)

Marianne (Marion) Petzl (friend of
Hitler, Eva, and the Hoffmanns) marries Fritz Schönmann, 7 August 1937, with the reception held afterwards
in Munich (the photo above is sometimes identified as having been taken in the
Berghof).
Seated, left-right - Sofie Stork, Marianne and Fritz Schönmann, Gretl Braun. Standing - Heinrich Hoffmann,
Hanni Morell, Erna Hoffmann,
Eva Braun, Frau Diesbach, Dr. Morell, Herta Schneider, unknown, Dr. Helmut
Scheiber, Hitler, unknown, Maria Almas-Dietrich.
(NA RG 242-EB, Album 10, No. 93C)

This group was gathered at the Berghof
on 20 April 1943, for Hitler's birthday celebration. Front row, left-right -
Heinrich Hoffmann, Eva Braun, Hitler, Marianne Schönmann (?), Martin Bormann;
2nd row - Dr. Karl Brandt, Gerda Bormann, Anni Brandt, Herta Schneider; 3rd row
- Albert and Margarete Speer, unknown, Hanni Morell, Gretl Braun, Gerhard Engel; top row - Walter Frentz, Dr. Theo Morell, Nicolaus von Below. (NA
RG 242)

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Albert
Speer and his wife Margarete were frequent visitors at the Berghof ... they had their own
house a short distance down the road to Berchtesgaden. On the left, the Speers and Gretl
and Eva Braun (with Frau Engel between - wife of Hitler's Heer (Army) adjutant Gerhard Engel) relax on the lounge chairs outside the
old Haus Wachenfeld part of the Berghof. On the right, Margarete Speer with four of her
children, in the same location (the Berghof Adjutancy appears in the background). The
Speer and Bormann children are frequently seen visiting "Uncle Führer" at the
Berghof, in Eva Braun's photo albums and movies. (NA RG 242-EB-11-10B) |

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On the
left, Josef "Sepp" Dietrich, the commander of Hitler's
bodyguard unit the Leibstandarte-SS, visits the Berghof with Margarete
Speer and Anni Brandt. On the right, Anni Brandt sits with Hitler's
secretaries Johanna Wolf (center) and Traudl (Humps) Junge (right).
Since Traudl Junge's first visit to the Berghof was in March 1943, these
are wartime photos. (NA RG 242-EB, Album 13, Nos. 33b, 33a) |

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Although
closely associated with Hitler's inner circle, Reichs Youth Leader
Baldur von Schirach and his wife Henriette were infrequent visitors to
the Berghof. Henriette was the daughter of photographer Heinrich
Hoffmann, so she had known both Hitler and Eva Braun for years. However,
in April 1943 the von Schirachs were forbidden to visit the Berghof
again, after Henriette enraged Hitler by relating that she had witnessed
Jewish women being deported from Amsterdam.
The photo on the left, taken at the side of
Haus Wachenfeld, shows Hitler, Erna Hoffmann, Henriette von Schirach,
Angela Raubal (Hitler's half-sister and housekeeper), and Baldur von
Schirach. The photo on the right, taken on the Berghof terrace, shows
Henriette and Baldur von Schirach, photographer Walter Frentz, and
Heinrich Hoffmann. Left - U.S. National Archives, RG242HB;
right - courtesy Harry von Gebhardt)
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The
couple on the left, seen in several of the photos above, are Dr. Theo
Morell, Hitler's personal physician, and his wife Hannelore (or
Johanna), called "Hanni." On the right, seen with Hitler on the Berghof
steps, are Nazi Party Treasurer Franz Xaver Schwarz and his wife - long
time friends of Hitler and Eva Braun. (U.S.
National Archives, RG242EB) |
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Berghof
women seated on the lounge chairs on the side terrace. Left-right: actress
Else von Möllendorff (sometimes misidentified in modern photo books as
Ilse Braun), Gerda Bormann in the middle (wearing the hobnailed Bavarian country
shoes), and Herta Schneider. The laughing lady in the photo on the right, seen in several photos with Hitler in the
Mooslahnerkopf Teehaus, is sometimes labeled as Herta Schneider, sometimes
as Maria "Mitzi" Reiter, and sometimes even as Eva
Braun, but she was actually Gertrud Deetz, wife of Albert Forster, Gauleiter of Danzig.
(NA RG 242-EB
and 242-2512; thanks to Jason Bulkeley and Harry von Gebhardt for info.)
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Another
member of the Berghof "inner circle," but not usually identified in post-war photo books,
was an artist friend of Hitler's named Sofie Stork (she also appears in
some of the group photos above). She was a friend of Hitler's adjutant
Wilhelm Brückner, and since Hitler was a friend to artists she was
introduced into his circle. Sofie Stork painted the scenes on the
elaborate porcelain Kachelofen heater in the living room of the
Haus Wachenfeld part of the Berghof. In the photo on the left, she is seen
sitting by the Kachelofen. Others not usually identified in photos were the house managers
Wilhelm and Margarete "Gretl" Mitlstrasser. On the right, Frau
Mitlstrasser appears with Hitler at the Great Room window. (NA RG
242-EB-3-14B) |
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Some
members of the general public even became special visitors to Hitler's house. Hitler loved
being photographed with children, and it seems that he genuinely enjoyed their company. One of his favorites among those who visited the Obersalzberg with their
parents, hoping to see or even meet their Führer, was a young girl named
Berni (or Bernile) Nienau, from Munich (various sources give her name as
Bernile, Berneli,
Bernhardine, or Rosa Bernile; her grave marker reads "Berni Nienau"). She visited on
20 April 1933 (some sources say 1932), which was her birthday and also
Hitler's, and Hitler
invited her out of the crowd and up to Haus Wachenfeld for strawberries
and whipped cream. Hoffmann made maximum use of propaganda photos taken of the two together
during this and other visits -
the one seen here on the right below was published as a postcard with the caption "Thanks
for the Birthday Invitation." (These photos were apparently taken
during a subsequent visit(s), not her first visit.)
Unfortunately, some meddling member of Hitler's
staff investigated Berni's background and discovered that her ancestry was not 100
percent Aryan (her maternal grandmother was Jewish), and either Martin Bormann
or Philip Bouhler eventually forbade her to visit again. (This story is
related in Heinrich Hoffmann's books "Hitler Was My Friend" (London,
1955, pages 193-194) and "Jugend um Hitler," (Berlin, 1934, in
the introduction by Reich Youth Leader Baldur von Schirach), also
information from the Dokumentation Obersalzberg; photos from
"Jugend um Hitler;" bottom right and center from 1937-dated colorized
postcards.) |
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These
photos also appear to show Berni, but as a younger child (at
least six different photos were taken on this day, as compared to at
least seven taken of Berni on the occasion(s) shown above - this number
of photos may also indicate this is Berni). If
this identification is correct, these photos were taken at an earlier
date, and may show her first visit to Haus Wachenfeld. Records indicate
that even though Hitler was aware of her ancestry, she was still allowed
to visit until late 1938. ("Illustrierter
Beobachter," Special Edition, "Adolf Hitler - Ein Mann und
sein Volk," 1936; lower left - Heinrich Hoffmann, "Hitler in
seinen Bergen," 1938) |
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These
photos may also show Berni - they certainly appear to show the same
girl as those just above. At least seven photos of this girl, taken on
two different occasions, are known. At least one of these photos exists
in a private collection that came from the Nienau family (along with the
better-known photos at top), inscribed by Hitler (but to
"Gretel," in spite of being mixed with other Hitler-inscribed
photos of Berni, in the family collection). (Note: The Bavarian State Library
guide to their Heinrich Hoffmann photo collection identifies this girl
as Helga Goebbels, but I believe that identification is an error.) (above - from period
postcards; below left - Hoffmann, "Jugend um Hitler;" below
right and bottom - NA RG 242-EB) |
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Two
more photos of the same girl, taken on two different occasions (but the
same occasions as the four photos in the group above). On the left, the
girl (Berni?) visits with a group of BDM girls, as Hitler's adjutant
Wilhelm Brückner looks on. The image on the left was taken at Haus
Wachenfeld, while that on the right was taken at the Berghof. Does this
mean that this girl is not Berni, since the images of an
obviously older Berni, at the beginning of this section, were taken at
Haus Wachenfeld? (period postcards) |

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Berni
Nienau died of spinal polio at the age of 17 in a Munich hospital, and was
buried in the family plot in the Westfriedhof in Munich. |

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Regularly
seen in Berghof photos, but not always identified, is Hitler's SS aide Otto Günsche. On
the left, Hitler shakes hands with SS-Leibstandarte commander Sepp Dietrich on the Berghof
terrace, with SS-Untersturmführer (2nd Lt.) Günsche behind. On the right, Günsche has
been promoted to SS-Hauptsturmführer (Capt.); he ended the war as an
SS-Sturmbannführer
(Major), and was one of the key personnel present during the last days in Hitler's Berlin
bunker. Günsche and his comrades Max Wünsche, Hansgeorg Schultze
("Frettchen"), and Richard Schultze are often called Hitler's "Ordnance
Officers," but this is a mistranslation of their title "Ordonnanzoffizier"
- the term actually means orderly officer or aide-de-camp. All were later promoted to
Adjutant, in which position they still functioned as aides. (autographed photos
courtesy Herr Otto Günsche, author's collection)
(Click here to read a short biography of Otto
Günsche, by someone who knew him.)
RIP
Herr Otto Günsche - died 2 October 2003. |

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Some
more of the many Berghof visitors ... on the left, officers of the 1st SS
Panzer Corps visit the Berghof ca. April 1944. From left-right: SS-Brigadeführer
Theodor "Teddy" Wisch (commander, 1st SS Panzer Division LSSAH),
SS-Obersturmbannführer Max Wünsche (commander, SS-Panzerregiment 12),
SS-Obergruppenführer Josef
"Sepp" Dietrich (Corps commander), SS-Oberführer Fritz Witt
(commander, 12th SS Panzer Division HJ) - all holders of the Ritterkreuz
- Knights Cross of the Iron Cross. (NA RG 242-EB, 16-20A) On
the right, Eva clowns around with a man who looks like Gauleiter Adolf
Wagner, and who appears to be holding something
representing a mock "Hitler" mustache in front of Eva (Robert
Payne's The Life and Death of Adolf Hitler (1973) says this is Dr.
Wilhelm Frick). (NA RG 242-EB, 30-10B) |
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The final photo shown
here could serve as a commentary on Eva Braun's life as Hitler's mistress.
The man looking up to the left is Count
Galeazzo Ciano, Mussolini's son-in-law and Italian Foreign Minister.
Ciano is standing with Hitler's interpreter Paul Schmidt.
Eva admired Ciano's looks and dashing style,
but she was forbidden to meet him. So she sometimes secretly
photographed his visits from the upper windows of the Berghof. In
this photo, apparently taken by Heinrich Hoffmann (many of the photos in
Eva's albums were actually taken by others), Ciano appears to be
glancing up at a window of one of the guest rooms above the Berghof
dining hall.
Eva labeled this album page "Da oben gibt
es Verbotenes zu sehen - mich!" (up there is something forbidden to
see - me).
(NA RG 242-EB, Album 6, No. 30A) |
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My guide
book to Third Reich sites in the Berchtesgaden and Obersalzberg area has
been published by Fonthill Media.
"Hitler's
Berchtesgaden" is available at Amazon and other retailers ( the
Kindle version is also available from Amazon). |
Guided Tours
For personal guided tours in
English of Third Reich sites in Berchtesgaden and on the Obersalzberg (and other
local sites) from a certified and accredited local tour guide, contact:
Tom Lewis
+49-(0)1602-641-800
atobersalzberg@sky.com

BEGAFILM
- Historic Films About Berchtesgaden and the Obersalzberg
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