The Watzmann Mountain, symbol of the Berchtesgadener Land, towers in the background.  (top-left - period postcard; top-right - Dokumentation Obersalzberg; bottom-left - Bayerische Staatsbibliotech; bottom-right - courtesy Clarke Family Archives)  (MapQuest Map Link)

On the left, a period postcard, with the corresponding view today.

Allied forces use captured Nazi staff cars for transportation to their headquarters at the Stanggass Kanzlei complex, May 1945. Before the arrival of the U.S. Army, the Kanzlei staff had abandoned the complex and retreated to the Hintersee, west of Berchtesgaden.  ("The Epic of the 101st Airborne," 101st Airborne Division Public Relations Office, Auxerre, France, 1945)

Included in the Kanzlei complex were houses for Generalfeldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, and Generaloberst Alfred Jodl, Chief of the Operations Staff. This is the Keitel-Haus, shown (left) as it appeared in the early 1950s under AFRC control, when it was called the Pershing House, and (right) as it appeared in 2001 (before renovation).  (1950s photo courtesy Clarke Family Archives) 

The nearby Jodl-Haus (called Haus Edda) was somewhat smaller (see the 1945 photo below). In 2006 the Jodl-Haus was torn down, and a new house built on its foundation (seen on the right above).

The Jodl-Haus (left) and Keitel-Haus (right) both appear in this photo, taken 15 May 1945. The occasion was a visit by Gen. Omar Bradley, who presented awards to several soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division.  (U.S. Army photo)

The Keitel-Haus has recently been renovated and is now a private residence.  ("The Epic of the 101st Airborne," 101st Airborne Division Public Relations Office, Auxerre, France, 1945)

In common with most of the buildings on the Obersalzberg (and some others in Berchtesgaden), the Kanzlei complex had an underground air-raid shelter tunnel. This exit is in the hillside behind the main building.

A military barracks complex was built nearby in Strub in 1937-38 for the 2nd Battalion of Gebirgsjägerregiment 100, and was cited in a 1940 book on German art as a classic example of harmonious military architecture blending into the surroundings. Although its official name was "Adolf Hitler Kaserne," the post was commonly called the Gebirgsjäger Kaserne (Mountain Troops Barracks). The post was used by the U.S. Army until 1995 but has now been turned back over to the Germany military   (1942-dated postcard in author's collection)  (MapQuest Map Link)

The period insignia over the front door has been modified so that the eagle holds an edelweiss flower (symbol of the Mountain Troops), instead of a swastika.

The Lion Monument memorializes all those of the Mountain Troops who have lost their lives in war, in particular the Mountain Troops of World War II.

A Sports School for the Bund deutscher Mädel (BDM - League of German Girls - girls' Hitler Youth) was built in the Berchtesgaden suburb of Strub in 1938. The complex serves today as a home for the elderly (Altenheim Insula). Click here to see an air-raid bunker nearby.  (MapQuest Map Link)

This building, located on the road to the Scharitzkehlalm, was used as a cooling house to store milk from Martin Bormann's herds that grazed in the Scharitzkehl pasture. Although not co-located, it was part of the Gutshof complex.  (MapQuest Map Link)

The Adolf Hitler Jugendherberge (Youth Hostel) was also built in Strub from 1935-1938. It was designed by architect Georg Zimmermann. The building still serves as a youth activities center today.  (from Werner Rittich, "Architektur und Bauplastik der Gegenwart," Berlin, 1938 (author's collection)
Note: As of July 2011, renovation is changing the appearance of the Jugendherberge complex. The small garage building and wall in front have been removed. The renovation, finished in September, was a radical change to this historic structure. It now looks like this, complete with fake painted-on window shutters, modern windows and entry doorway, and a metal fire escape.

In the period view, Hitler Jugend boys play behind the Jugendherberge.

Another view of the Adolf Hitler Jugendherberge.  (from Frau Prof. Gerdy Troost, "Das Bauen im neuen Reich," Vol. 1, 4th edition, Bayreuth, 1938)

Hitler visited his name-sake Jugendherberge in October 1936, as seen in this photo from the Illustrierter Beobachter newspaper of 29 October 1936.

   This small pressed paper disc portrays the Adolf Hitler Jugendherberge. It was one of a series showing youth hostels across Germany, given as a token to those who contributed to the Winterhilfswerk Nazi welfare relief.  (author's collection)

   Click here to see a WHW disc showing the Baldur von Schirach Jugendherberge at Urfeld am Walchensee.

Hitler in different poses at Hochlenzer. On the left, he sits at an outdoor table with Bruno Buchner and his wife, proprietors of the Platterhof Hotel. On the right, Hitler in a more pensive mood.  (period postcard)

Dietrich Eckart was a German Nationalist writer and early member of the Nazi Party, who considered himself Hitler's mentor. While hiding from the Weimar government Eckart stayed in a cottage called the Göllhäusl, in the Hinterbrand area near the Obersalzberg. This house was later annexed to the Platterhof as a guest lodging. The view above shows (left-right): Hermann Göring, Reichs War Minister Werner von Blomberg, and Hitler visiting the Eckarthaus, ca. 1935.  (from Heinrich Hoffmann, "Hitler in seinen Bergen," Munich, 1938 (author's collection)

On the right, the Dietrich Eckart house today. Used by the U.S. Army AFRC as a youth sports retreat called "Hinterbrand Lodge," the house is scheduled to close in 2013, the final building used by AFRC to be returned to German control. Comparison to the period postcard view below shows some of the changes that were made to the building under U.S. Army control.  (MapQuest Map Link)

The interior of the house has been changed as well, but it still retains some original features. The layout of the original Dietrich Eckart Stube (period postcard view, left above) can still be seen in the house manager's office today (along with original carved wood paneling). Some original wood carvings from the 1930s also remain - on the left below is an original carving on the door into the Dietrich Eckart Stube, and the ceiling beam in the main dining room retains partial carvings that can be read as "Auf wunsch des führers ... Im jahre ... (the rest is chiseled out or too defaced to read today).  (Many thanks to Frank Huber for permission to photograph inside, and for additional info.)

This same group visited the Brüggenlehen farm, just down the road in the Vordereck area. From left to right - Dr. Karl Brandt (partially hidden behind him appears to be Max Amann), Göring, Joachim von Ribbentrop (in rear), Hitler, von Blomberg, Wilhelm Brückner (Hitler's adjutant). ("Adolf Hitler - Bilder aus dem Leben des Führers," Cigaretten-Bilderdienst, 1936; modern photos courtesy Ralf Hornberger)

Dietrich Eckart died in December 1923 in this house in Berchtesgaden, called the Sonnblickhäusl (now a private residence).  (Florentine Hamm, "Obersalzberg, Wanderungen zwischen Gestern und Heute," Munich, 1941)

A hospital named for Eckart (Dietrich-Eckart-Krankenhaus) was built in Stanggass in 1939; it was opened for use as a military hospital in June 1942. During the war convalescent soldiers were treated here; after the war this was a local Kurklinik, but is now unused (as of September 2009). The view at bottom right shows the hospital decorated for the opening ceremony on 13 June 1942.  (period photos and postcards in author's collection)  (MapQuest Map Link)

The former Dietrich-Eckart-Krankenhaus as it appeared in 2009.

The cupola in the angle between the buildings (seen in the right-hand photo) has a unique wind vane - see below.

At the rear of the complex is an enclosed courtyard that leads to a large open area in back, with wall murals painted on the stairwell housings. The marble staircase below is one of the few period items still left inside. This staircase is at the corner of the wings seen below, behind the tall windows.

The murals, which feature traditional Bavarian alpine agricultural and family themes, were painted by Berchtesgaden artist Maria Harrich. They may have been painted (or repainted) after the war. Harrich also painted the wall murals in the main hall of the Berchtesgaden Bahnhof.