Adolf Hitler had many secrets. Could one of them be ... the illegitimate son? And if so, what would he tell today about his father's private life, his tastes, fears and dark past? In the book "The Confession of Hitler's Son", Christopher Macht reveals the secret ...
So let me ask you this for the first time. I will not hide that I heard many extreme opinions about the leader of the Third Reich. Some people claimed that Hitler was a workaholic. Others thought he was a smelly lazy. How was it really? I am very curious about such private, unknown "flavors".
It is true that there was a time when Adolf Hitler worked intensely, even twenty hours a day . But, but… at the same time it's true that my father loved to sleep late. He has slept through breakfast more than once…
So as always, the truth lies somewhere in the middle ...
A typical day of the Führer
So I have another question. What do you remember about a typical day of Adolf Hitler?
As I say, my father often slept for quite a long time. As I mentioned, it happened that even until eleven o'clock or until noon. Then, as soon as he woke up, the butler brought him a tray of breakfast and the latest newspapers.
By the way, I was always surprised at his breakfast. He could eat even half a cube of butter at once! And this using one, maximum two slices of bread. My father ate this meal rather slowly, after which it was time to go to dinner ... and this one lasted up to an hour!
Hitler liked to show up with children and teenagers.
It served quite simple dishes, and during the meals my father was accompanied by various party dignitaries, wanting to take care of various matters or simply to investigate his opinion on a topic. By the way, during dinners, my father forbade talking about war and politics. He believed that this time must be devoted to enjoying the meal.
What happened after dinner?
Hitler held various meetings. He was attended by generals, important people from the party, and people of culture. In short, everyone who had business to do. Spaghetti was often served at dinner. Hitler loved them. He could eat it every day, it was so much his favorite food. In the evenings, he happened to watch new propaganda films in a private room. He also attended operas, which he loved.
"The fate of the world depends on my decisions"
Where did the Führer like to spend his time? Did he have his favorite place?
My father loved his Berlin conservatory, which was accessed through the dining room. He spent a lot of time there. I am not surprised. It was beautiful there! Part of the orangery was glazed. There was a lovely garden there.
Besides, I have another memory with this room. In the middle was a wide rug, red, I guess. After him, my father paced back and forth whenever he had a problem. I enjoyed the moments when Goebbels or Göring followed my father like geese. I have told my father many times it was a very funny sight.
The text is an excerpt from the latest book by Christopher Mack, "Confession of Hitler's Son", which has just been published by Bellona.
He was furious then. - The fate of the world depends on my decisions, and you fool are making fun of it! He thundered. Besides, Hitler always had at least one butler with him, who was at his beck and call. In fact, there were two butlers with my father the whole time, one of them having to be standing right next to him.
Hitler liked to show up with children and teenagers. They were brought up in the Nazi spirit by the Hitler Youth organization, i.e. Hitler's Youth. From 1936 it was obligatory to belong to it.
Why did the Germans love Hitler so much?
There is no denying that history has assessed your father extremely negatively. And here we will probably agree, right?
Right.
Then was there anything positive that did you learn from your father?
Yes. For all the evil my father presented, there were moments where I understood why people loved him so much . Namely, when the holidays came, Hitler, with the help of his people, sent gifts to many people. This list included not only his associates, but also party members, their wives, ministers and spouses, and even his personal drivers and soldiers on duty in the places where he lived.
It was a deliberate act ... By gifting these people, Hitler ensured their loyalty.
Definitely. But no one forced him to personally decide who was to get the gift and what (...).
Childhood of a dictator
Have you ever talked to your father about his childhood?
Hmm… I spoke a few times, although they weren't quite sincere conversations. Well, maybe except one (…). The truth is that not even Adolf Hitler's son was able to fully understand him. Father had a problem with accepting that in the life of even such a powerful man as him there are times when you need to remove the mask of a brutal and resolute leader and show the deeply hidden element of humanity.
Many times I had the impression that my father treated me as his voter, someone who was not allowed to tell everything. The only exception was perhaps one interview. Then I actually saw a completely different face of Adolf Hitler.
When was that?
It must have been while the Second World War was in full swing. My father was devastated that the Allies were surrounding the Reich from every flank, and he could do nothing about it. However, he did not want to show weakness, to wring his hands. All this so as not to undermine the morale of the army and the nation (...).
He was devastated that the Allies were surrounding the Reich from every flank, and he could do nothing about it. However, he did not want to show weakness
I thought then that maybe there is a method in this madness. Maybe it is not a coincidence that the Germans love him so much and many of them are fully devoted to him? Maybe this is really proof that this man wants power to pursue a purpose with it, and not just to have power?
At least that day my father was different, more sincere. (...) It was then that I found out what my father's childhood was like. Before that, I had no idea about it. This knowledge in my later years allowed me to better understand how it was possible that a man turned into a monster (…).
Adolf Hitler's childhood was saturated with many painful episodes. I am 100% sure that most of them left a greater or lesser mark on my father, which contributed to his further behavior and life choices. (...) The truth is that Hitler has suffered a lot in his life. And I know that this sentence sounds like something taken out of a not-so-successful film, because its suffering compared to what the victims of the concentration camps had to endure is nothing. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that all this translated into many of his later decisions.
Source:
The text is an excerpt from the latest book by Christopher Mack, "Confession of Hitler's Son", which has just been published by Bellona.