Adolf Hitler was one of the most photographed people in history.

Yet, a great mystery surrounds the last photograph taken of him alive.

In early March 1945, he made one of his last visits close to the front.

In this case, the order front to the east of Berlin.

Hitler visited General Teodor Buser’s 9inth Army headquarters close to the river.

This army was facing the Soviets who were poised to launch Operation Berlin, the massive attack west to secure the capital of the Third Reich.

At this stage, Hitler had less than two months left to live.

This visit was carefully filmed for the propaganda news reels to be shown two days later to the frightened warweary populace.

I say carefully, for by this stage of the war, Hitler’s physical deterioration was obvious, and he could no longer hide it.

Hence, Hitler had given up making public speeches in 1944, thereafter only speaking on the radio.

Despite careful editing, his uncontrollable shaking of his left arm and hand appear in one scene where Hitler greets members of the army staff.

17 days later, a tired and ill Hitler emerged from his bunker to which he had recently retreated from the battered Reich chancery above due to British and American air raids on Berlin.

He was carefully filmed once again and photographed awarding decorations to Hitler youths who had distinguished themselves elsewhere on the Eastern Front.

On this occasion, his afflictions were carefully shielded from the film’s final cut.

But an outtake seen here clearly shows the uncontrollable shaking of his left arm and hand, which in this case he is holding behind his back to try to obscure.

This ceremony took place in the garden of the Reich Chancery just in front of Hitler’s gigantic office and a short distance from Hitler’s bunker.

One month later, on the occasion of Hitler’s 56th birthday, a similar ceremony was held.

This time in the Reich Chancery’s Court of Honor, an open air area where visitors to the Reich Chancery would delight from their cars.

However, this ceremony was not filmed or photographed.

Why? probably because Hitler had deteriorated even further compared with a month earlier as the war situation unraveled.

So were these images dated the 20th of March 1945 the last images taken of Hitler alive 7 weeks before his death? There are some more contenders for that title.

Two photographs surfaced many decades ago that purport to be taken on the 28th of April 1945, just 2 days before Hitler’s death.

However, though these photographs are widely touted in history books, TV documentaries, and on the internet as being the last photographs of Hitler as he inspected bomb damage of the Reich Chancery alongside SS Uber Julius Sha, his personal agitant, they are actually incorrectly dated.

These photographs were in fact taken on the 20th of March 1945, the same day Hitler conducted the first of the Hitler Youth Medal ceremonies in the Reich Chancellery.

So, is there truly a last photograph of Hitler? One contender was actually taken inside Hitler’s bunker and shows him greeting Ganal Felt Marshall or Field Marshall Ferdinand Sherner who was promoted to that rank on the 4th of April 1945.

However, further research has also discredited this image believed now to have been taken in March 1945 and earlier in the month than those of the first Hitler Youth Medal ceremony outside.

But there is one photograph that probably is the last photograph taken of Hitler.

On the 18th of March 1945, Genna Litnant Teoddor Tolsdorf was informed that he had been awarded the diamonds to his knights cross with oak leaves and swords, an honor only awarded to 27 such officers during the war.

Toldorf had to leave the front and travel to Berlin to receive Hitler’s personal congratulations in his bunker.

One single photograph has survived of this ceremony.

It was probably taken on the 20th of March 1945.

Records show that no official photographers were present in the Fura bunker after this date.

If this photograph was taken after Hitler descended once more into his underground lair after the Hitler youth medal ceremony outside, it may well be the last ever image of Adolf Hitler alive.

Which brings me to the TV show Band of Brothers.

In episode 10, when the 506th are in Austria on occupation duties, they take the surrender of a German general and his remaining troops in a field on the 8th of May 1945.

That general is supposed to be Tolddorf, the man who 50 days earlier had been present when probably the last photo of Hitler alive was snapped.

Tolsdorf was an interesting study.

Unlike in Band of Brothers, he never gave a moving speech to his men during his surrender.

That was completely invented for television.

A Prussian aristocrat, the 36-year-old general had been nicknamed by his own men, Tolsdorf the Mad, for his insane bravery in battle, during which he had sustained 11 wounds in active service, and for the casualness with which he threw away his own men’s lives as well.

He had rocketed up the promotion ladder from being a captain in 1939 to a geneal litnut equivalent in World War II to a major general in the US and British armies by 1945.

Tolsdorf had been awarded the Knights Cross in 1941 during the invasion of the Soviet Union and the Oak Leaves in 1943.

Here we see Tolddorf with other awardees at the Wolf’s Lair in East Prussia being presented with the oak leaves for his Knights Cross by Hitler personally.

He received the swords to his Knights Cross in July 1944 again on the Eastern Front and the Diamonds in March 1945, an appointment by Hitler to command the 82nd Army Corps in Bavaria.

On the 6th of May 1945, the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment was based at Beactus Garden, the special Nazi town in southern Bavaria.

And they had also occupied Hitler’s gated private village above called Orbisburg, which contained Hitler’s private home, the Beerov, and other leader houses, most in ruins.

After the village had been bombed by RAF Lancasters on the 25th of April 1945, a small patrol from the 506 had accidentally found General Tolsdorf’s core headquarters over the border in Austria at Heshbu.

By this date, Tolsdorf’s three Forks Grenadier divisions had been reduced to collectively only 1,200 men, plus bits and pieces from other Vafan SS, Luftvafer, and Folkdom units.

Two of the US personnel were sent back to Bectus Garden to bring to Tolddforf a party from the 506th.

After some shenanigans and adventures, Colonel Sink, the 506 commanding officer, arrived at Tolddorf’s headquarters on the 7th of May, to accept his surrender to be effective the next day, 8th of May, V day.

Tolsdorf was ordered to have all weapons collected and placed in agreed dumps, then form up his men and move his entire command to Melik, a German town just over the frontier from Austria.

Toldorf created quite a sight as his headquarters convoy arrived at Melik consisting of 31 overloaded trucks and field cars full of personal baggage, female companions, military equipment, and all sorts of interesting items.

Far from the formal surrender recorded in the TV series, in reality, Tolddorf made nose speech to his troops.

Members of Easy Company then pilered some of the trucks for souvenirs.

For example, Private Edward Babe Hefron made off with Tolddorf’s Luga pistol, a briefcase of his medals, and the general’s collection of pornographic photographs.

Much alcohol, cigars, weapons, and assorted souvenirs were liberated from Tlsdor’s vehicles by the US paratroopers and occasionally turn up at auction today.

So there we have it.

The strange connection between the last photograph taken of Hitler possibly and one of the most famous scenes in the Band of Brothers TV series.

History is weird.

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