Hitler's Austrian Abode: Where Did He Live?

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria, on 20 April 1889. The town is located on the Inn river, about 40 miles north of Salzburg, and is known for being the birthplace of the Führer. Hitler spent the first two months of his life in the town before moving to Passau, Germany, in 1892.

Hitler's birthplace has been the subject of much controversy, with the town of Braunau am Inn trying to distance itself from its association with him. The house where Hitler was born has been used for various purposes over the years, including as a public library, a bank, a school, and a centre for disabled people. In 2016, the Austrian state expropriated the building, and there are plans to convert it into a police station.

Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria, in 1889

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria, on 20 April 1889. Braunau am Inn is a small Austrian town on the border with Germany, near Salzburg. Hitler was born in an apartment building at Salzburger Vorstadt 15, where he lived for the first two months of his life. The building was home to a craft brewery and several rental flats, one of which was occupied by Hitler's family.

Hitler's father, Alois Hitler, worked as a customs official in Braunau am Inn from 1875. In addition to Hitler, the family included Alois's third wife, Klara, and Hitler's elder half-siblings, Alois Jr. and Angela. In 1892, three years after Hitler's birth, the family moved to Passau in Germany.

Hitler's birthplace has become a site of controversy for the town of Braunau am Inn and the Austrian government. The building was turned into a cult centre by the Nazis in the 1930s and later served as a public library, a bank, a school, and a centre for disabled people. In 2016, the Austrian state expropriated the building, which has remained unused since then. There have been various proposals for the building's future, including turning it into apartments, a museum, or a centre to confront Austria's Nazi past.

In 2020, it was announced that the building would be restored and used as a police station and training centre. The restoration is expected to be completed by 2025.

He lived in Vienna in the first decade of the 1900s

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria, in 1889. He lived in the town until he was two months old, when he left with his family. However, he returned to Austria in 1894, and the family settled in Leonding. In 1895, Hitler's father, Alois, retired to Hafeld, near Lambach, where he farmed and kept bees.

Hitler lived in Vienna in the first decade of the 1900s. He moved to the city in 1907 to live and study fine art. He applied for admission to the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna but was rejected twice. He was financed by orphan's benefits and support from his mother. After his mother's death in 1907, he ran out of money and was forced to live a bohemian life in homeless shelters and dormitories. He earned money as a casual labourer and by painting and selling watercolours of Vienna's sights.

During his time in Vienna, Hitler pursued his passions for architecture and music. He also began to develop German nationalist ideas and expressed loyalty only to Germany, despising the rule of the ethnically diverse Habsburg monarchy. He was exposed to racist rhetoric and began to develop anti-Semitic sentiments. He read local newspapers that promoted prejudice and utilised Christian fears of Eastern European Jews. He also read pamphlets by philosophers and theoreticians such as Houston Stewart Chamberlain, Charles Darwin, Friedrich Nietzsche, Gustave Le Bon, and Arthur Schopenhauer.

Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria, on 20 April 1889. Braunau am Inn is a town in Upper Austria on the border with Germany. Hitler was born in an apartment building at Salzburger Vorstadt 15, where he spent the first two months of his life. He and his family left Braunau and moved to Passau in 1892.

Hitler lived in Vienna in the first decade of the 1900s before moving to Germany in 1913. He joined the German Workers' Party (DAP), the precursor of the Nazi Party, in 1919 and was appointed leader of the Nazi Party in 1921. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and then taking the title of Führer und Reichskanzler in 1934.

Hitler's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 marked the start of the Second World War. He was closely involved in military operations throughout the war and was central to the perpetration of the Holocaust: the genocide of about six million Jews and millions of other victims.

Hitler's policies resulted in the killing of nearly two million non-Jewish Polish civilians, over three million Soviet prisoners of war, communists and other political opponents, homosexuals, the physically and mentally disabled, Jehovah's Witnesses, Adventists, and trade unionists.

Hitler ruled the Nazi Party autocratically, asserting the Führerprinzip (leader principle). He dominated his country's war effort during World War II to a greater extent than any other national leader. He strengthened his control of the armed forces in 1938 and subsequently made all major decisions regarding Germany's military strategy.

On 29 April 1945, Hitler married his longtime partner, Eva Braun, in the Führerbunker in Berlin. The couple committed suicide the next day to avoid capture by the Soviet Red Army. In accordance with Hitler's wishes, their corpses were burned.

He was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until 1945

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungary (present-day Austria) on 20 April 1889. He was an Austrian-born German politician who rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming chancellor in 1933 and then taking the title of Führer und Reichskanzler in 1934.

Hitler was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until his suicide in 1945. He was closely involved in military operations throughout World War II and was central to the perpetration of the Holocaust: the genocide of about six million Jews and millions of other victims.

Hitler's worldview revolved around two concepts: territorial expansion and racial supremacy. These concepts informed his decision to invade Poland, which marked the start of World War II, as well as the Holocaust.

Hitler's rise to power can be traced to 1919, when he joined the German Workers' Party, which later became the Nazi Party. With his oratorical skills and use of propaganda, he soon became the leader of the Nazi Party. Hitler gained popularity nationwide by exploiting the unrest during the Great Depression. In 1932, he placed second in the presidential race.

Hitler's various political manoeuvres resulted in the winner, Paul von Hindenburg, appointing him chancellor in January 1933. The Reichstag fire in February 1933 provided an excuse for a decree overriding all guarantees of freedom. The Enabling Act was passed the following month, giving full powers to Hitler. When Hindenburg died on 2 August 1934, the chancellorship and the presidency were merged, and Hitler secured his position as Führer.

Hitler's dictatorship was characterised by absolute power and a one-party totalitarian and autocratic ideology. He gave contradictory orders to his subordinates and placed them in positions where their duties and responsibilities overlapped, creating an environment of distrust, competition, and infighting. Hitler dominated the country's war effort during World War II, making all major decisions regarding Germany's military strategy.

Hitler's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 marked the start of World War II. In June 1941, he ordered an invasion of the Soviet Union, and in December 1941, he declared war on the United States. By the end of 1941, German forces and the European Axis powers occupied most of Europe and North Africa. These gains were gradually reversed after 1941, and in 1945 the Allied armies defeated the German army.

Hitler's policies resulted in the killing of nearly two million non-Jewish Polish civilians, over three million Soviet prisoners of war, communists, and other political opponents. He was responsible for the deaths of an estimated 19.3 million civilians and prisoners of war. In addition, 28.7 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of military action in the European theatre of World War II.

On 29 April 1945, Hitler married his longtime partner, Eva Braun, in the Führerbunker in Berlin. The couple committed suicide the next day to avoid capture by the Soviet Red Army. In accordance with Hitler's wishes, their corpses were burned.

Hitler's birthplace has been turned into a police station

Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria, on April 20, 1889. The house where he spent the first three years of his life is located at Salzburger Vorstadt 15. In 1952, the Austrian Republic rented the building and it was given heritage protection as part of the historic city centre. Over the years, it has been used as a public library, a bank, a technical high school, and a day centre for people with learning difficulties.

In 2011, the building was emptied and remained vacant for five years. In 2016, the Austrian government announced its intention to expropriate the owner and demolish the building. However, in 2019, the government decided to renovate the house and turn it into a police station, with the goal of making it unattractive to supporters of the Nazi dictator. Construction began in October 2023, and the police are expected to occupy the building in early 2026.

The decision to turn Hitler's birthplace into a police station has been met with some criticism. Historian Florian Kotanko, for example, argued that there is a "total lack of historical contextualization" and that the government's intention to remove the building's "recognition factor" through remodelling is impossible to accomplish. He suggested that an exhibition on people who saved Jews during the Nazi rule should be included in the building.

A memorial stone dedicated to the victims of Nazism was placed in front of the house in 1989, two weeks before the centenary of Hitler's birth. The stone was made from granite sourced from the quarry at the former Mauthausen Concentration Camp, located near Linz, Austria. The inscription on the memorial reads:

> "For Peace, Freedom and Democracy. Never Again Fascism. Millions of Dead Remind Us."

Frequently asked questions