Bombing of Obersalzberg facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Bombing of Obersalzberg |
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| Part of World War II | |||||||
 A bomb exploding near the Berghof, Adolf Hitler's residence at Obersalzberg, on 25 April 1945 |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 United Kingdom United States Australia |
 Germany |
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| Strength | |||||||
| 359 heavy bombers 16 light bombers |
Anti-aircraft batteries | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 4 killed 2 bombers |
31 killed Heavy damage to some of the targeted buildings |
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The bombing of Obersalzberg was a major air raid by the British Royal Air Force on April 25, 1945. This happened during the final days of World War II in Europe. The target was Obersalzberg, a special group of homes and underground bunkers in Bavaria, Germany. These buildings were built for Adolf Hitler and other important German leaders.
Many buildings in the complex were destroyed. However, Hitler's main home and the underground bunkers were only slightly damaged. During the attack, two Allied bomber planes were shot down, and four airmen died. On the German side, 31 people were killed.
Historians believe there were several reasons for this attack. One reason was to help the Allied soldiers fighting on the ground. Another was to show how powerful the British heavy bomber planes were. The Allies also hoped the bombing would convince Germans who still strongly supported the war that they had lost. The attack used 359 heavy bombers. They hoped to destroy the bunkers under Obersalzberg. The Allies worried that German leaders might try to keep fighting from a hidden "Alpine Fortress" there.
The bombers attacked in two waves after some trouble finding the targets. About 3,000 people at Obersalzberg hid in the bunkers. The nearby town of Berchtesgaden was not damaged. Hitler was in Berlin when the attack happened. Hermann Göring, the only high-ranking Nazi leader at Obersalzberg, survived the bombing.
The raid on Obersalzberg was celebrated at the time. Most Allied soldiers involved felt good about attacking Hitler's home. News reports covered it widely. But today, it is not often remembered. This is because the idea of an "Alpine Fortress" turned out to be a myth. Most history books written after the war do not mention this operation much.
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Why Obersalzberg Was a Target
Obersalzberg was a special place in Bavaria, Germany. It was a group of chalets and mountain lodges near the town of Berchtesgaden. This complex was built for Adolf Hitler and other important members of the Nazi Party. Hitler often spent more than a third of each year there.
Before World War II began, Hitler met many international leaders at his home there, called the Berghof. For example, Hitler met British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain at the Berghof in 1938. This meeting was part of talks that led to the Munich Agreement. Nazi propaganda made the Berghof famous. It became an important symbol of Hitler's leadership for many Germans.
Hitler continued to visit Obersalzberg often during World War II. It was one of his main command centers. He spent most of early 1944 there. He left for the last time on July 14, 1944. During the war, a complex network of bunkers and tunnels was built under Obersalzberg. This was done because Allied air raids on Germany were increasing. The area was protected by anti-aircraft guns. It also had machines that could create a smoke screen to hide the area. All the buildings were camouflaged in early 1944 to make them hard to see from the air.
The Allies thought about attacking Obersalzberg before April 1945. But they decided not to. In June 1944, Allied spies confirmed that Hitler was directing the German defense against the Normandy landings from the Berghof. The Royal Air Force (RAF) even made a plan called "Hellbound" to attack Obersalzberg. American planes also took photos of the area.
However, the head of the American air force, General "Hap" Arnold, decided against the attack. He thought it was unlikely Hitler would be killed. He also believed that Hitler's poor leadership of the German military actually helped the Allies. Arnold wrote in his diary, "Our secret weapon is Hitler, hence do not bomb his castle. Do not let him get hurt, we want him to continue making mistakes." He also worried that many Allied planes would be shot down because the area was thought to be well-defended.
In February 1945, the American air force again suggested bombing Berchtesgaden. But this was stopped by their commanders. They still believed it was hard to hit the target accurately. They also thought it was better for the Allies if Hitler remained in charge of the German military.
The only attack on Berchtesgaden before April 1945 happened on February 20, 1945. Eight American fighter planes attacked the area by chance. They hit a train and faced heavy anti-aircraft fire. When the public heard about this, many were disappointed that the Berghof had not been damaged.
By April 1945, the Allies had almost complete control of the skies over Germany. German air defenses were weak. Allied escort fighter planes could fly long distances. Because of this, the RAF's Bomber Command started making daylight raids on Germany more often. On April 16, the British military leaders ordered that the bombing of German cities should stop. Instead, bombers should focus on "direct support to the allied armies" and attacking the remaining German Navy ships. Bomber Command followed this order until April 25.
Planning the Attack
As the war in Europe was ending in 1945, the Allied headquarters (SHAEF) became worried. They received spy reports that suggested important German leaders and special military units might gather at Berchtesgaden. The reports said they might try to continue fighting from a hidden "Alpine Fortress". This turned out to be a mistake in intelligence. The Germans did not really prepare strong defenses in the Alps until the very end of the war.
Hitler sent most of his personal staff to Berchtesgaden in April. But he stayed in Berlin. Most other senior German ministers fled to other parts of Germany. Hermann Göring was the only high-ranking government member at Obersalzberg during the attack. Göring had lost all his positions and was being held under house arrest by Hitler.
The decision to bomb Obersalzberg was made in April 1945. The head of Bomber Command, Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Harris, suggested the attack. The Allied headquarters approved it. Harris said the goal was to support the American Army's XV Corps. This army group was quickly moving towards Munich and would then attack Berchtesgaden.
However, the US Army was against the attack. They worried that the damaged buildings would be easier for the Germans to defend than undamaged ones. Two historians have suggested other reasons for the raid. Oliver Haller wrote that Harris wanted to show his forces could do precise bombing. This was after he was criticized for bombing cities earlier in 1945. Despina Stratigakos suggested that the Allies hoped destroying the Berghof would convince strong Nazi supporters that the war was lost. She also thought the attack aimed to "wipe from memory" the embarrassment of pre-war policies, like the Munich Agreement, which were linked to the Berghof.
The Berghof and the Kehlsteinhaus pavilion were the main targets. The Kehlsteinhaus was a building Hitler sometimes used to host guests. Other buildings in the area to be bombed included homes of other Nazi leaders, barracks for the special military units defending Obersalzberg, and a hospital. If planes could not bomb Obersalzberg, they had secondary targets. These included bridges in the city of Salzburg.
The Attack Begins
The bomber crews woke up early on April 25 for a briefing. They were told that several important German leaders were at Obersalzberg. Some crews were even told that Hitler himself was there. The attack force took off from bases in the United Kingdom that morning.
It included 359 Avro Lancaster heavy bombers. These planes came from 22 different squadrons. They were joined by 16 de Havilland Mosquito light bombers. The Mosquitos' job was to guide the heavy bombers to the target using a special navigation system. The bombers were also protected by 13 British fighter squadrons and 98 American North American P-51 Mustang fighters.
After leaving the UK, the bombers flew near Paris. They then headed straight for Obersalzberg when they reached Lake Constance. Most of their flight was over Allied-controlled land. But the last 250 miles (400 km) were over German-controlled territory. They spent only a short time within range of German anti-aircraft guns. The German air force had almost disappeared, so no German fighters tried to stop them. Some Mustang pilots did spot a German jet plane and shot it down.
The first group of bombers arrived in the Berchtesgaden area at 9:30 am. But they could not attack right away. The Mosquito crews had trouble seeing the targets because of mist and snow. Obersalzberg's defenders could not create a smoke screen because they had run out of chemicals. The Mosquitos' navigation system also did not work well because mountains blocked its radio signals. The bombers flew in circles until the Mosquito crews could mark the target. During this time, some planes flew near Salzburg. They were fired on by the city's strong anti-aircraft defenses. Several bombers also almost crashed into each other.
Once the target was marked, the first group of bombers attacked between 9:51 and 10:11 am. The special No. 617 Squadron RAF was the first to bomb Obersalzberg. Their planes dropped large Tallboy bombs. The second group bombed between 10:42 and 11:00 am. Over 1,400 long tons (1,422 metric tons) of bombs were dropped. The Allies hoped this heavy bombing would destroy the bunkers under Obersalzberg. The bombing was very accurate.
Two Lancaster bombers were shot down by German anti-aircraft guns. One plane from the Royal Australian Air Force's No. 460 Squadron was hit after dropping its bombs. All its crew survived after the pilot made an emergency landing near the German town of Traunstein. They became prisoners of war, but were freed within days. The other plane shot down was from No. 619 Squadron RAF. Four of its crew were killed, and three were taken prisoner. These prisoners were also soon rescued by Allied forces. Several other Lancasters were damaged.
The attack had mixed results. Of the main targets, the Kehlsteinhaus was not damaged. The Berghof was moderately damaged by three bombs. The barracks for the special military units and the homes of Göring and Martin Bormann were destroyed. Most of the 3,000 people at Obersalzberg had hidden in the bunkers. But 31 people were killed, including some children. The bunker network itself was not seriously damaged. The town of Berchtesgaden was not damaged, and no one there was killed or hurt.
American air force units also attacked transport systems near Obersalzberg on April 25. These raids were part of a larger operation. They targeted weapons factories in Czechoslovakia and railways in Austria. The Allies believed these railways were moving German troops. Places near Obersalzberg that were attacked included Freilassing, Hallein, Bad Reichenhall, Salzburg, and Traunstein. Train stations, gasworks, and hospitals in these towns were heavily damaged. More than 300 civilians were killed in these separate attacks.
What Happened Next
Obersalzberg was left empty in the days after the raid. Following Hitler's orders, special military personnel destroyed the Berghof before leaving. The American Army's XV Corps captured the area on May 4. Göring, who survived the air raid, was taken prisoner by the US Army on May 9, 1945.
American and French soldiers searched Obersalzberg after it was captured. This included the ruins of the Berghof. Because Obersalzberg was so closely linked to the Nazi leaders, the amount of searching and taking of items there was greater than in any other German town captured by Allied forces. One historian noted that this led to items linked to Hitler being spread around the world. This partly went against the raid's goal of making the Nazi regime seem less important. A photojournalist who arrived soon after the capture said that "there isn't even a piece left for a museum on the great war criminal."
The attack on Obersalzberg was the last combat mission for most of the Bomber Command squadrons involved. Most of the aircrew felt satisfied about attacking Hitler's personal home. However, some felt sad about the lives lost. Bomber Command's very last raid was on an oil refinery in Norway on the night of April 25/26. From April 26 until the end of the war on May 8, Bomber Command planes were used for other missions. They flew freed prisoners of war back to the UK and dropped food to civilians in the Netherlands.
The raid received a lot of news coverage at the time. But it is not often remembered today. News reports back then said the operation was very important. They said Obersalzberg was both a backup command center and a symbol of the Nazi government. The attack was shown as part of the final efforts to defeat Hitler and Germany. News reports also mentioned Chamberlain's 1938 visit to Obersalzberg. Since the "Alpine Fortress" turned out to be a myth, history books written after the war, including the memoirs of Air Chief Marshal Harris, did not mention the operation much.
After the war, Obersalzberg remained under the US Army's control. A recreation center for soldiers was set up there. The ruins of the Nazi-era buildings attracted people who still supported Nazi ideas. The US Army closed its recreation center and gave Obersalzberg to the Bavarian Government in 1996. The other buildings in the area were torn down in the early 2000s to make way for a resort. The Dokumentationszentrum Obersalzberg museum opened in 1999. This museum tells the history of Obersalzberg during the Nazi era. A sign marking the location of the Berghof was put up in 2008. It explains its role as a place where important decisions about World War II were made.
Images for kids
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The ruins of Hermann Göring's residence at Obersalzberg in 1948
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The entrance to a World War II bunker at Obersalzberg, photographed in 2016
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