Press Photo's of the "wolfschanze"

[voelender]

Good morning to you all.
I have bought some pictures , they are press photo's and all made at the FuhrerHauptquartier Wolfschanze.

Can anybody tell me more about thes pictures ??

Thanks in advance
Marcel

[voelender]

two more

[voelender]

and the backside

[Tom B]

These are very nice ! Rare in the fact that they are almost never seen images !!! Tom

[Br. James]

I agree with Tom -- I really enjoy these sorts of behind-the-scenes pix that open for us something of what life was like in such a place...when all those notable personages were not the focus of attention!

I've always wished that someone would have gone to the trouble of walking through the whole New Reichschancellery in Berlin and taken photos of all the hallways, offices, stairwells and, yes, the bathrooms too! All we see of such historically-significant buildings are the vast and impressive public rooms that made the building so famous; but in fact hundreds of people worked there every day, though the other floors are never seen. What a shame!

Br. James

[martinski777]

FHQu "Wehrwolf" vs "Wolfsschanze"

Hello,

The top picture (outside with tables / chairs) is NOT in FHQu "Wolfsschanze" BUT in FHQu "Wehrwolf" (in Stryzhawka near Winniza). It is taken by Hoffmann (or one of his photographers) in Summer 1942. The photo is taken from the S-side near the open veranda adjacent the Tea-House. On the actual spot (Google Earth 49°18'17.75"N 28°29'57.66"E) I even discovered some of the original flagstones where this table is standing on.

As I am specialized in the history of FHQu "Wehrwolf", I modeled the complete Sperrkreis 1 in 3D from about 1000 pictures (a lot originals from my collection) so I can repeat any photo. I also wrote a "Tour Guide" and made all necessary maps. I joined the map of SK 1 indicating the actual spot of the photographer (the red triangle).

The so-called Press-photo can also been found in the BPK-archive under the number 50043574.


All other pics are indeed in FHQu "Wolfsschanze". The one in the kitchen inside SK 1 shows Hitler's cook Otto Günther aka "Krümel". The kitchen in FHQu "Wehrwolf" was nearly the same except for the walls and building: every building in "Wehrwolf" was built in natural wood. There were NO stone / brick buildings in SK 1.

For my research I spent 15 visits (each min. one week) to FHQu "Wehrwolf" and did all necessary archeological work.

I also made a comparison between all pics in order to see the difference between buildings, walls, ornaments, furniture, roads etc.

After the war, most pics were wrongly labeled as "Wolfsschanze". I acquired all possible books about the theme and found a lot of mistakes which were repeated by other authors / archives.

Kind regards - Martin

[Sergeant 08]

It was called "Werwolf" not Wehrwolf.

[max history]

It was called "Werwolf" not Wehrwolf.

There has been much debate over the correct spelling of both Hitler's field headquarters near Rastenburg in East Prussia and near Vinnitsa in Ukraine.
Their cover names are believed to be derived from the canine wolf, but the name 'Wolf' was also used as a nickname for Adolf in past times in Germany. One version suggests that the Ukraine FHQ was named for the mythical werewolf and therefore the correct spelling would be Werwolf which is the German translation.
The term Wehrwolf derives from Wolf's defence, as used in the term Wehrmacht. However, to suggest that Hitler named his FHQ using a defensive term would, in my opinion, be mistaken. I believe the more aggressive mythical creature would fit Hitler's thinking at a time he was waging an aggressive invasion. Therefore, I believe that the term Werwolf (German) or Werewolf (English) better fits the name for Hitler's FHQ in the Ukraine.
Of course, original documentation naming the FHQ would settle the dispute.
Max.

[Tom B]

I agree with Tom -- I really enjoy these sorts of behind-the-scenes pix that open for us something of what life was like in such a place...when all those notable personages were not the focus of attention!

I've always wished that someone would have gone to the trouble of walking through the whole New Reichschancellery in Berlin and taken photos of all the hallways, offices, stairwells and, yes, the bathrooms too! All we see of such historically-significant buildings are the vast and impressive public rooms that made the building so famous; but in fact hundreds of people worked there every day, though the other floors are never seen. What a shame!

Br. James

I have the same wish ! I have NEVER seen photos of the out of the way places in the New Reichschancelllery in Berlin. I know by blue prints that survived there were a great number of offices and storage rooms in the cellar below the Marble Hall. I guess someday some may surface. Tom

[max history]

I know that the Hoffmann Photo Agency took numerous photographs of the new Reichskanzlei structure, throughout the inside and outside before it was fully occupied. Whether or not the photos survived, I do not know.

[stonemint]

The first photo is the Telex room at the Wolfschanze. The keyboard operators are Postschutz members.