Obersalzberg Then and Now

I was in Obersalzberg briefly last winter (2010), and I forgot that I made these then and now compositions. Martin's post reminded me that I had these.

Hotel Zum Turken. This was used as an SS Barracks due to its close proximity to the Berghof. The Berghof was immediately to the rear of the hotel in these photos.



Bunker entrance. I believe that this was the entrance for the Bormann bunker complex. This is across the road and to the east of the Berghof.



Zum Turken Hotel (SS Barracks) and Bormann's house in the background. The hotel is one of the few original buildings left in the area -- Bormann's house was demolished.



Zum Turken Hotel. Hitler greeted the public from this area, at the bottom of his driveway.



This is the house that belonged to Goering's aide. Goering's house was near the spot where these photos were taken from, and a hotel is now built on the site.



This is the only part left of the Platterhof hotel, which was used by visiting officers. Postwar it became the General Walker Hotel and was used by the US military.



One of my more interesting ones: this shows a bomb crater on the hill above the Berghof, and its corresponding location on this wartime aerial photo. The crater is circled on the aerial photo. I am 75% sure this is the right one.



The approximate location of where the famous 3rd ID photo was taken. I believe this is the right location, although I cannot be sure because of the heavy fog that obscured the background.



The Berghof ruins. This was taken after the Obersalzberg compound was bombed in April 1945. My photo is taken from a closer angle: the Berghof ruins would have extended beyond the right side of my photo.



This is one of the hotels at the Konigsee, just a short drive from Obersalzberg. This hotel is nearly the same, with the obvious exception of the swastika. There are photos of Hitler and Eva Braun taken not far from this hotel. The top photo is from the 'Third Reich in Ruins' website.



The famous window. Again, this is approximate, as the fog made it impossible to use any visual aids in the distance to line up the photo.



Another shot of the Berghof after it was bombed. Again, my photo is taken from a much closer angle (it would match up with the photo where the outmost wing of the Berghof is in the top photo).

 

Great pictures, love seeing the before and now ones. Keep up the great work.

 

Thanks. I like doing this, I just need to travel to Europe more often!

 

Good pics, Alan! Yes, and if you would give a holler we could meet up. I´m not so far away from the Obersalzberg.

 

Will do, next time I'm in the area. It probably won't be until next year at the earliest -- but at least I'll have some time to brush up on my German.

 

Good idea, Alan! I´m here.

 

Bravo, Alan!

Fantastic comparisons.

 

Thanks. I actually took most of these photos without intending to use them in compositions. I found historical pictures from the same vantage points months after I took these, and then made these compositions. Next time I`ll bring a bunch of historic photos with me so I can line them up exactly.

I`m glad everyone is enjoying these -- they are a lot of fun to put together

 

Alan, very cool, thanks for sharing! Boy, it looks cold in those pics!!!

 

Thanks Darren. The temperature actually was not too bad. It was only -3 Celsius (if my memory serves me right), but with 98% humidity, you sweat a lot of that can get you pretty cold.

 

Thanks Lou. As I said, next time I visit a WW2 site, I will try to bring some actual historical photos with me - it should lead to excellent results.

 

Great stuff - really good work . No matter how hard the local authorities try to alter or erase things, there is so much contemporary photographic material available that good comparisons can still be made......

 

I always go armed with stacks of period photos when I do my 'then and now' comparisons.

I'm currently gathering some 'then' pictures for a trip to Berlin later this year.

 

I figure even if I just have the photos on my phone, it will be a big improvement. I`m looking forward to seeing your Berlin photos -- good luck finding what you are looking for.

 

Thanks. Even if there is nothing left (which seems to be the goal of many in the Bavarian government), you can always make comparisons using just the landscapes. I have some experimenting to do next time I am in the area!

 

Can advice you the Berliner Unterwelten . The Club at there is great and the tours through the Bunkers are vers interesting. Have fun and send some good pics please!

 

Not so much the Bavarian but more the German gouvernment. They feared that the Obersalzberg could get the same symbolic character for the Nazis like Mekka for the Arabians.

 

If you need an aide de camp to hold your stack of historical photo's I'm available and I work damn cheap!

 

Is "damn cheap" anywhere near "free"? If so, I'll consider it -- but only if you carry my suitcase!