Hitler at home: Rare photographs show how the **** leader relaxed while he waged war
Relaxing with a cup of tea and sharing a joke with a crowd of admiring women - these are the rarely seen intimate portraits of Adolf Hitler at the height of his power.
The snapshots of the dictator were taken between 1936 and 1945 as the **** party strengthened its grip on Germany and then waged war against its European neighbours.
Premium Image Content
Upgrade to Premium to view all images in this thread
The German leader eats a meal with Gertrud Deetz - the wife of Gauleiter Albert Forster, at the Berghof, Hitler's estate in Upper Bavaria in the late 1930s. Gertrude did not hear about her husband's death in 1949 until 1954
Premium Image Content
Upgrade to Premium to view all images in this thread
Hitler (hands on hips) admires his new car, which was presented by the manufacturer Ferdinand Porsche. The Fuhrer did not like to drive himself and had a chauffeur
In one series of pictures from 1939, Hitler is shown admiring his 50th birthday present - a specially designed convertible VW, which was given to him by Ferdinand Porsche.
He received the glossy black automobile at his Eagle's Nest home in the Alps. The mountain-based chalet was built as a retreat for Hitler and a place for him to entertain visiting dignitaries.
In another set Hitler is seen laughing at a Christmas party in 1941. By this point over 43,000 British civilians had been ****** in German bombing raids.
The photographs were taken by Hugo Jaeger, who had privileged access to the Fuhrer during those tumultuous years. Jaeger was one of the early adopters of colour photography and created clear, evocative images.
Unlike the **** leader's main photographer Heinrich Hoffmann, Jaeger took pictures both of both private events and huge propaganda spectacles.
Premium Image Content
Upgrade to Premium to view all images in this thread
Hitler is surrounded by an enthralled group of Austrian schoolgirls in 1939. Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn in Austria-Hungary in 1889
Premium Image Content
Upgrade to Premium to view all images in this thread
Premium Image Content
Upgrade to Premium to view all images in this thread
Left: Hitler at a party reception at the Fuhrerbau Right: Adolf Hitler, wearing an Arbeitsfront cap, aboard the KDF Ship Robert Ley on its maiden voyage with Inge Ley (Robert Ley's wife) in 1939. German workers were offered free cruises through the 'Strength through Joy' scheme
Following the Allied victory in 1945 Mr Jaeger packed his transparencies into 12 glass jars and buried them on the outskirts of Munich.
He finally retrieved them in 1955 and restored the 2,000 photos in a bank vault. In 1965 he sold them to LIFE magazine, who have since only published a fraction of the extensive collection.
It is unclear what happened to Mr Jaeger after this time although Life magazine have a black and white photo of him in their archives dated 1970.
Premium Image Content
Upgrade to Premium to view all images in this thread
Premium Image Content
Upgrade to Premium to view all images in this thread
Left: Hitler shakes hands with his official photographer, Heinrich Hoffmann at the Reichs Chancellory in Berlin shortly after midnight on April 20, 1939. Right: Sharing a moment with an unidentified woman
Premium Link
Upgrade
