Front view of the Berghof. On the first floor you can spot Hitlers study, with its three doors leading to the balcony. Situated to the left of the main building are the staff rooms and the dining room. The hall, on the ground floor of the main building, boasted a window of huge proportions off ering a breathtaking view to the Untersberg.
Barnsley, S. Yorkshire, S70 2AS
The newly revised and corrected edition of Kammerdiener bei Hitler: Im Schatten der
The Valet of Hitler: In the Shadow of Power by Karl Wilhelm Krause & Herbert Dhring:
1 | In 1936 the erstwhile Wachenfeld House was converted to the Berghof; the picture shows the topping-out ceremony, in March, traditionally celebrated by placing a tree on the roof. |
2 | In this view of the Berghof, the two windows above the balcony on the left belong to the flat of the housekeeper Herbert Dhring at the time. |
3 | Adolf Hitler greets Italian head of state Benito Mussolini on 25 September 1937 at the Munich Central railway station. |
4 | Hitler in his Mercedes-Benz, Type 770, seen driving through the site of the Reich Exhibition called Schaffendes Volk (The People Who Create) in Dsseldorf, 2 October 1937. Krause sits behind Hitler. |
5 | Hitler greets SA Obergruppenfhrer Heinrich Knickmann while Krause waits in the background. |
6 | Hitler and Krause in front of the Jgerhof Castle, offices for the Dsseldorf Gau leadership. |
7 | Hitlers housekeeper Herbert Dhring and Anna Krautenbacher were married on 10 December 1936. |
8 | After the wedding ceremony, Hitler joined the guests of Herbert and Anna Dhring in the Berghof s Great Hall. |
9 | Employees at the Berghof celebrate new year 1938 with a liquid party. |
10 | The Berghof staff in 1938 among whom are Dhring and Gretel Mittlstrasse. |
11 | Dhring outside the Berghof. |
12 | Herbert Dhring with his wife and two friends, standing by the landing stage for the Knigssee boat. |
13 | Dhring and his family. |
14 and 15 | Hitler received an Opel Admiral from the Opel Works, which Dhring used as an official car. |
16 | Many people visited Berchtesgaden in order to see Hitler with their own eyes. Here, Dhring stands behind Hitler, watching him. |
17 | Dhring on the Berghof terrace in 1937, with Eva Braun (with camera). |
18 | Hitler very much enjoyed taking a walk along the Professor Linde Path, behind the Berghof, in the foothills of Hochlenzer mountain. |
19 | Arthur Kannenberg (insert) reminds Herbert Dhring, in 1958, of the big times they had between 1932 and 1945. |
20 | In August 1988 Dhring gave an extensive film interview for which he opened up his treasure trove of memories. |
21 | Chambermaid Anna Plaim (ne Mittlstrasser) with her family. |
22 | Plaim in 1941 at the Berghof, shortly after she started her new position. |
23 | Plaim, on her arrival at the Berghof. |
24 | The car in which Plaim was picked up at the Salzburg railway station was the same one in which Dhring caused an accident that had serious repercussions. Also in the picture are Gretel Mittlstrasse, the film projectionist Ellerbeck and chambermaid Plaim. |
25 | Plaim on one of her leave days with her parents in her hometown of Loosdorf, which is in Lower Austria. |
26 | Hitlers blotting paper which Plaim removed from his desk at the Berghof. |
27 | The chambermaids at the Berghof: Elfriede Knig, Resi Stangassinger and Plaim. |
28 and 29 | Even though the Berghof staff had to combat isolation and loneliness, there was, as compensation, sufficient time to play, dance and sing. |
30 | After the official Christmas 1941 celebration with the ladies of the house, a private celebration with staff followed. The photo shows Elfriede Knig and Plaim sitting in the staff room. |
31 | Along with Eva Braun and her dogs, Plaim often travelled to Munich, where Braun owned a house on the Wasserburgstrasse. On one such trip, the party made a stop at the guest house on the Chiemsee. With Braun in this picture are Gretel Mittlstrasser and Plaim. |
32 | Brauns Scotch terrier Negus. |
33 | After Plaim had been dismissed from the Berghof, she received a dog from Braun, which was sent by train from the Berghof to Loosdorf. This was the last contact Plaim had with Braun. |
34 | Anna Dhring with Hitlers dogs Muck and Blondi. |
35 | Magda Goebbels and Anna Dhring feeding a fawn in the Berghofs conservatory. |
36 | The Berghofs conservatory and terrace. In the first room on the right, Eva Braun ate her dinners nearly every evening. |
37 | The Berghof: a world still intact. Anna Dhring having coffee on the Berghof terrace, with the chambermaids Resi Stangassinger and Elfriede Knig. |
38 | This photo of Braun was taken at the Berghof. She presented it to Gretel Mittlstrasser on her birthday, adding a personal dedication. |
39 | Braun, once an employee at Hitlers personal photographer Heinrich Hoffmann, was keen on photography. This is one of the pictures thrown away by Braun, which was retrieved by Plaim. |