HISTOREICH: The native house of Adolf Hitler in Braunau am Inn

jeudi 26 février 2026

The native house of Adolf Hitler in Braunau am Inn

Adolf Hitler was born on 20 April 1889 at 6.30 p.m. His father, Alois (who died in 1903 at the age of 65), was retired at the time, and his mother, Klara, born Pölzl (who died in 1907 at the age of 47), was a housewife. Adolf Hitler therefore came from a modest family: his grandfather was a farmer in the Waldviertel, a region with poor soil, much like its inhabitants.

It should be noted that the graves of Adolf Hitler's parents and sister were deliberately destroyed after the war.

Adolf Hitler in Mein Kampf :

‘It was in this small town on the Inn, steeped in German martyrdom, Bavarian by blood but politically Austrian, that my parents lived around 1890.’

For German martyrdom, see the note ‘Napoleon in Braunau’.

The young Adolf Hitler, son of Alois and Klara Hitler

Adolf Hitler's birthplace, or gebursthaus in German, dates back to the 17th century. It is located at Salzburger Vorstadt 15.

In 1889, the building was an inn, a Gasthaus, with a tavern on the ground floor. The Hitler family probably rented a room upstairs before moving out a few months later.

Adolf Hitler's birthplace. If you are observant, you will notice that the architecture of the ground floor has been altered.

Nicolaus von Below on March 12, 1938 :

"At around 3 p.m., we reached the Austrian border at Braunau am Inn. The bridge was a bottleneck where military vehicles and pedestrians formed a traffic jam. It was therefore slow going for the Führer to enter Austria and make his way into his hometown. The jubilation of the people was indescribable, and the bells were ringing loudly."

maison natale d'adolf hitler en Autriche

Adolf Hitler's birthplace during the Third Reich looks impressive.

In 1938, the NSDAP purchased the house from the Pommer family, while Hitler was chancellor and Austria was annexed to the Reich. The building then became a museum.

The birthplace of Adolf Hitler in Braunau am Inn

Room where Adolf Hitler was born

After the war, it was sold by the Austrian government and returned to the Pommer family. It was then converted into a library, then a school, and finally a bank.

The house in 2009

I remember that visit well because, after visiting Vienna, I was driving back to France. The landscape was beautiful, with its cultivated fields. I had bought some delicious pastries in the main square, seen the house and bought a postcard in the shop opposite.

The lower part of the façade has been slightly modified since the 1940s to bring it closer to the architecture of the Gasthaus.

Postcard of part of the Salzburger Vorstadt showing Adolf Hitler's birthplace and the gateway to the old town leading to the main square in Braunau am Inn, as well as Napoleon's former headquarters.

The house in 2023

One last visit before the Austrian government radically transforms the building in 2026. It has spent €20 million of taxpayers' money to create a modern police station on a street with undeniable historical character.

I can tell you that there have been changes since my first visit. The fields have been transformed into ugly cornfields stretching as far as the eye can see, and the landscape has become monotonous. Kebab vendors have sprung up in the central square.

Adolf Hitler's birthplace is recognisable from afar, and the street is very pretty with its historic houses.

The birthplace of Adolf Hitler in Braunau am Inn

The house is located at Salzburger Vorstadt 15, Braunau am Inn.

The ground floor of Adolf Hitler's birthplace

The windows of Adolf Hitler's parents' flat.

Farewell beautiful historic house

The house, completely disfigured, was in the newspapers. The young woman wearing a veil is not there by chance, as it is easy to take a photograph of the house without anyone in front of it.

Napoleon in Braunau

Since we are in this small town, let us go to 34 Stadtplatz. It was in this building that Napoleon Bonaparte set up his headquarters from 29 to 31 October 1805. On the façade, you will find a commemorative plaque marking the Emperor's presence in 1805, as well as in 1809.

The town of Braunau is described in the book "War and Peace", as Russian troops were stationed there before retreating.

Napoleon's headquarters is the dark yellow house located at 34 Stadtplatz 34 Braunau am Inn.

34 Stadtplatz 34 Braunau am Inn. A plaque is affixed between two windows on the first floor.

Napoleon Bonaparte was here, in Braunau am Inn

It was also in this town that, in 1806, on Napoleon's orders, General Berthier had Johann Philipp Palm, a publisher from Nuremberg, executed. He is the German martyr referred to by Adolf Hitler. A bronze statue of him has been erected in Braunau's Palm Park.