Life Stories · April 6, 2026
It is well known about the great political figure of this century, Adolf Hitler, that he was not particularly fortunate in matters of women and war. His first love affair was, in every respect, objectionable and hateful, and it was also an open negation and humiliation of moral values. Yet, he continued to feel the intensity of its memories until the last moments of his life.
This first affair of his life was with his niece, Geli Raubal, who was also several years younger than him in age. Hitler himself was fully aware of the sexual implications of this age difference, which is why he kept a strict watch over Geli. Due to his oppressive monopoly in love, Geli not only lost her private life and status, but her personality too was suppressed and became distorted.
Geli’s youth was like a blazing flame, whereas Hitler, having passed through the garden of youth, had already stepped onto the threshold of old age. Then one day, Geli’s restless and unsatisfied youth swayed into the arms of a young chauffeur. When Hitler came to know of this, he began to treat her with even greater strictness, because he was determined to keep Geli exclusively for himself.
It is also said about Geli that she was involved in an affair with a handsome young man living in Vienna. But when circumstances created distance between them, her heart was broken. Finding no way to escape the furious situation, she eventually committed suicide. It is said that a few hours before taking her own life, she came out of the house to bid farewell to Hitler as he was leaving from Munich to Hamburg, and at that time she appeared completely satisfied, calm, and cheerful.
On receiving the news of her suicide, Hitler was shaken and could not recover from the shock for several days. Seeing his distress and decline, some of his friends even feared that he might also commit suicide. However, gradually, time began to heal the deep wound in his heart. The intensity of his passionate love for Geli can be judged from the fact that he ordered her room to be preserved as it was, as a memorial, and on her birthday and death anniversary, flowers were placed on her photograph.
Perhaps it was due to Geli’s suicide that later, in his affair with Eva Braun, a pleasant change came in his behavior.
Eva Braun, after completing her education at a commercial school, took a job at the age of nineteen in the photography shop of Heinrich Hoffmann. Since Hoffmann was Hitler’s close and dear friend as well as his personal photographer, Hitler used to visit his shop frequently. It was there that he first saw the beautiful Eva, and a friendship began between the two.
After Geli’s suicide, Hitler’s solitude did not remain deserted. He had relationships with several women, but none of them possessed the untouched youth that Eva had. One reason for Hitler’s interest in Eva was also that she was a simple and innocent girl. He would occasionally bring her a bouquet of flowers and invite her to meals, but he never gave her more importance than that of a beautiful toy meant to amuse the heart, whereas she regarded him almost like a deity.
The greatest reason for her blind devotion and love for Hitler was his status as the most popular national leader. There is no doubt that before the Second World War, he was Germany’s most powerful and popular leader, and his election as Chancellor in the upcoming elections had become certain. At the time he was elected Chancellor, Eva was twenty-one years old. The charm of her youth was at its peak. The once simple girl now appeared as a masterpiece of beauty—round face, blue clear eyes, golden silky hair, and a well-proportioned figure.
Her relationship with Hitler was no longer a hidden matter. Due to her natural simplicity, she assumed that he loved her as well. In this misconception, she even told some of her friends that Hitler wished to marry her, whereas Hitler had never even thought of such a thing. He was among those people who, instead of getting involved in the complications of marriage and wasting time, maintained relations with women merely to satisfy physical desire, and believed in the idea that when milk can be obtained as needed, what is the benefit of taking on the burden of keeping a cow.
Eva, too, very soon realized her foolishness and, in a state of despair, made an unsuccessful attempt to follow in the footsteps of Geli Raubal. The difference between her and Geli, however, was that Geli had taken her life out of distress caused by an unacceptable and constrained love, whereas Eva wished to sacrifice her life out of love for Hitler.
As soon as Hitler received news of her failed suicide attempt, he left all his work, went to her, consoled her, and, to keep her happy, began visiting her at the hospital more frequently than before. After recovering, Eva rented a house near Hitler’s residence and moved there with her widowed mother so that Hitler would not have to make much effort to come to her. After some time, even this distance disappeared, and she came to live in Hitler’s house. Distances turned into closeness.
However, in contrast, Hitler’s love for her can be described in the words of Sigmund Freud: what people generally understand and call love, in reality consists to a large extent of pleasant relations, closeness, and association between the two parties.
At that time, Hitler was rising to the heights of popularity and fame. In Germany, the words that came from his mouth were being regarded almost as divine revelation. Obviously, under such circumstances, any kind of scandal could have proved to be his political death. Therefore, for the sake of her beloved, Eva imposed this restriction upon herself that she would never appear with Hitler at any public event.
This is why, in Munich and later even in Berlin, no one ever saw her with Hitler. In this matter, she was so cautious that whenever there was a Nazi Party meeting or any official function at the house, she would remain seated in her own room. However, after some time, when her sister Gretl married Fegelein, who was Hitler’s secretary, Eva began to occasionally attend some functions under the cover of her sister’s relation. Otherwise, she generally lived at Hitler’s mountain residence, where in practice Geli’s mother, Frau Raubal, held authority and control.
In the beginning, Eva faced great difficulty because of Frau Raubal. Obviously, two swords cannot fit in one sheath. Frau Raubal considered Eva’s arrival a major challenge for herself, and thus tension arose between the two. Like most men, Hitler had no interest at all in domestic matters or in disputes among women over minor issues. However, at times he was compelled to intervene. He did not want to upset the mother of his late beloved Geli, who was also his sister, and Eva had now become a part of his life as well, so hurting her was also not possible.
Eventually, matters reached the point where Frau Raubal, finding herself weak, accepted defeat and decided to leave the house. In this way, the path was cleared for Eva. After her departure, Eva faced great difficulty due to her lack of experience in managing the household. However, Martin Bormann helped her in every possible way, making her situation easier.
One thing about Eva Braun that is particularly noteworthy is that despite having money, status, and authority, no change came in her. Her life and desires remained limited. She disliked a flashy and extravagant lifestyle. She preferred simple, modest clothing, and her private life was free from noise and commotion. However, she had a keen interest in films and also used to read romantic novels.
The greatest desire and aim of her life was to marry Hitler, whereas Hitler, despite having very good feelings for her, avoided getting involved in the complications of marriage. In his private gatherings, the silvery laughter of countless beautiful women always echoed, but apart from Eva, if he was ever impressed by anyone, it was Unity Mitford, the beautiful daughter of the British noble Lord Redesdale. However, due to the worsening political conditions in Europe, he remained busy day and night with work and could not give much time to Unity. Meanwhile, with the outbreak of war between Britain and Germany, Lord Redesdale had to leave Germany with his family and return to his homeland, England, and thus Eva’s worry ended on its own.
Because of Eva’s constant companionship, sincerity, and loyalty, Hitler also began to love her. Except for marriage, he never refused any of her wishes. Eva, too, respected her beloved’s feelings and desires to such an extent that despite being very fond of smoking, she never even touched a cigarette in Hitler’s presence.
In the final days of the war, when everyone was leaving Hitler and was concerned only with saving their own lives, in that difficult time Eva stood by him. Impressed by Eva’s selfless loyalty, he said that only his dog Blondi had remained loyal to him, and secondly, Eva was the only person in the world who had stayed with him in the last moments of life.
Due to her constant companionship with Hitler, Eva too eventually had to step out of the romantic world of dreams and imagination and enter the harsh valley of reality. Now mutual trust had also developed in their relationship. To lighten his mental burden, Hitler would discuss political situations, events, and military operations with her. She would listen to him with interest and sometimes express her opinion in a few words.
To please Hitler, she also became a member of the Nazi Party, but she never took an active or enthusiastic part in politics. If she had wished, she could have influenced national and international policies. By interfering in state affairs, she could have compelled even high officials to act according to her will and could have taken whatever advantage she desired, but she never tried to gain any undue benefit and kept all such desires limited within herself.
The greatest benefit of this restraint for her was that everyone looked at her with respect and regard. Once, after watching a film, she expressed her opinion about it, upon which Goebbels had to say, “My friend, in my view, the opinion and criticism of that foolish girl hold no importance.”
Although Goebbels’ view was bitter, it was entirely correct and based on reality. If it had been any other woman at the place of Eva, Goebbels might have faced serious consequences, but she simply smiled faintly and remained silent, and in the future also refrained from interfering in this field. She was only moderately educated and could be counted among those of average intellectual ability, but due to favorable circumstances and good exposure, she became familiar with social etiquette and began to perform her duties well in all kinds of gatherings.
In the final days of the war, the humiliating defeats of the German forces on every front made Hitler irritable. At times, he would become furious over trivial matters and, in anger, say whatever came to his mouth. Even in this testing time, Eva fully stood by him. All of Hitler’s companions and even high-ranking military and civil officials were abandoning him one by one to save their own lives. Even then, Eva’s steadfastness did not falter, and she was the only one who remained with him until his last breath.
In 1944, when Russian forces, after defeating the German armies, were advancing forward, the Allies had already taken control of Africa, and preparations for the D-Day invasion in France were underway. Hitler’s mental condition had become such that he would remain day and night in his office, staring at maps and contemplating war strategies. He would curse the Allies and the Russians and also rebuke his own generals. During this time, Goebbels tried in every possible way to bring him out of his world of illusion and make him aware of reality, but all his efforts went in vain.
The realization of the actual situation came when Russian forces, after occupying Poland, advanced into the borders of Germany. Three months later, British and American forces also crossed the Rhine River and began advancing rapidly toward Berlin. Within a few months, the vast empire collapsed, and his rule was reduced to a narrow strip of land about a hundred miles long.
It was such a difficult time that everyone was gripped by the fear of losing their lives. Leaving behind comfort, peace, and ease, Eva came running to her beloved. Hitler tried to send her back, but for the first and last time in her life, she refused to obey his command and remained with him until her last breath.
And when someone tried to persuade her to go back, she replied, “You understand my relationship with Hitler better than others, yet you want people to taunt me for being unfaithful and mock me, saying that I stayed with him in good times but left him when the difficult time came. I will never do that. I believe that at this moment he needs me. No matter how bad the circumstances become, I will remain with him until my last breath.”
Hearing this reply, the adviser felt somewhat ashamed. It had never crossed his mind that, in the position of a companion, Eva could stake her life in such a way. In the eyes of society and religion, she might have been considered immoral and worthy of condemnation, but in character and loyalty, she proved to be entirely different and worthy of great admiration.
As has already been mentioned above, Hitler’s rule had been reduced to a strip about a hundred miles long. Civil and military offices had been shifted there, and in Berlin only Hitler’s office remained. He too was being advised to leave Berlin. Finally, due to the insistence of his associates and the compulsion of circumstances, he also decided, in April 1945, after completing his birthday ceremony at the age of fifty-six, to leave Berlin.
At his birthday gathering (which would more appropriately be called a political conference), all the top Nazi leaders—Ribbentrop, Goebbels, Bormann, Speer, Göring, and the heads of all departments—were present. They were all under extremely unfavorable conditions, yet were unanimously under the illusion that after shifting to Bavaria, a successful war could still be fought against the Russians and the Allies.
However, the very next day, Hitler rejected all proposals and canceled the decisions, and ordered a general attack against the Russian army, warning his generals that in case of disobedience they would be court-martialed. The Nazi forces had only just begun preparations to act on Hitler’s orders when the Russian armies entered the northern outskirts of Berlin.
On 22 April, Hitler convened an emergency meeting which continued for three hours. In this historic meeting, as usual, he thundered in anger and, in the end, in a highly emotional tone, declared that those who wished to save their lives and could do so were completely free and authorized to leave Berlin.
After the meeting ended, he took his close friend Goebbels with him and went inside, and ordered that all necessary documents and papers be burnt so that they would not fall into the hands of the enemy. Here it is necessary to mention about this historically important bunker that it had been constructed fifty feet below the ground, above which stood the grand building of the Chancellery. Not only in Germany but in the entire world, it was such a secure place that neither artillery shelling could damage it nor was there any danger from air attacks.
In this bunker, Eva had three rooms, while Hitler had only two. In the same way, Hitler’s personal physician was also given two rooms. On the upper level, Goebbels lived with his wife and children.
Hitler, staying fifty feet below ground, remained restless for several months in an atmosphere of bloodshed, terror, and panic, and during the last few days his condition became almost like that of a madman. During this time, he called several emergency meetings, but even after prolonged discussions and deliberations, no result could be achieved, because by then it was too late and the situation was worsening moment by moment.
One day, it occurred to Hitler to appoint Greim as the commander of the air force in place of Göring, and he issued orders to summon him to Berlin. There is no doubt that for Greim this was a great honor and distinction. As soon as he received the order, he set out for Berlin under the protection of several warplanes. The aircraft in which Greim was traveling was piloted by Hanna Reitsch. During the journey to Berlin, several German warplanes were shot down by the Allies. Greim himself was also injured but managed to reach Berlin.
Hitler, acknowledging Hanna’s services, gave her a cyanide capsule so that she could end her life to avoid the humiliation of capture by the enemy. However, Hanna valued her life and preferred capture over death.
Under these circumstances, Hitler too had become disappointed. Yet Eva’s steadfastness did not falter, nor did she become afraid; rather, in order to ease Hitler’s distress, she appeared cheerful, happy, and smiling at all times.
On 26 April, fighting began in the streets and alleys of Berlin. Every house turned into a defensive post, and Germans were sacrificing their lives for Mother Berlin. Seeing the bravery and sacrifices of his countrymen, Hitler would become hopeful, but when he reflected on the gravity of the situation, his face would grow pale and he would reach the limits of madness in anger.
In contrast, Eva remained very calm, which showed that she possessed the courage to face even the worst conditions. Two days later, the situation became even worse. All routes of escape had been blocked. German forces were either being destroyed or, in desperation, were surrendering their arms. In these circumstances, Hitler ordered the new air force commander, Greim, to leave Berlin and made arrangements regarding the situation of his possible capture.
After completing all these matters, he turned toward Eva to reward her for her selfless love, sincerity, and loyalty. Eva had staked her life only for this reward and for the fulfillment of one desire. This was both the foremost and the final wish of her life. She had sacrificed her comfort, peace, pride, dignity, and honor—indeed everything—at Hitler’s feet for the fulfillment of this overwhelming desire.
On Hitler’s orders, arrangements were immediately made to bring a municipal councillor who had the license to conduct a marriage. At the wedding of Eva with Hitler, Goebbels and Bormann performed the duties of witnesses. After this formal ceremony of marriage, Goebbels, his wife, Bormann, Hitler’s two personal secretaries, the cook, and the adjutant—all of them went to Eva’s sitting room, where Hitler entertained his guests with drinks.
At that time, they all appeared extremely happy, and seeing them, it did not seem that even one of them was afraid of their dreadful end. They began talking about past days, laughter echoed, and after a while, Hitler took one of his secretaries with him to his bedroom and dictated his will. In it, after shedding detailed light on his political views and objectives, he declared his decision to end his life.
In this will, he greatly praised Eva and wrote in appreciation that due to his political engagements, he had always believed that he was not suited for a happy married life. Now, shortly before ending his life by his own hand, he had married a woman who had been his companion, comfort, and loyal supporter for many years. Without any greed or fear, she had made the significant decision to end her life along with him. Both of them, he wrote, had been deprived of happiness while serving their country and nation, and in his view, the sacrifice of their lives would compensate for those sufferings and deprivations.
After dictating his will, he slept peacefully, while Goebbels at that time was busy dictating his own will. Goebbels’ writing was not merely a will but more accurately a political manifesto.
The next morning, as soon as he woke up, he sealed his and Eva’s wills and sent them to the command headquarters so that they might be preserved, as it was quite possible that they could be lost during the advance of the Allied forces and the bloody war. It is also said that he might have abandoned his intention of committing suicide, but upon receiving the news of the horrific death of Mussolini and his companion Clara, and the humiliation and desecration of their bodies, he made up his mind firmly. (After Mussolini and Clara were shot dead, their bodies were hung upside down in a public square of the capital, where passersby spat on them, struck them with shoes, and committed many other disgraceful acts.)
On the morning of 30 April, he calmly and peacefully had breakfast with his wife Eva as usual. Then he called all the staff, shook hands with each of them, inquired about their well-being, and went into his room. Everyone was frightened and disturbed, whereas he appeared extremely calm, fearless, and content.
At that time, the Russian forces had advanced to within two blocks of the grand Chancellery building, and the sound of exploding shells could be heard even inside the bunker.
By noon, he had lunch at the same table with his cook, her daughters, and her husband. Once again, he met all the staff, bade them farewell, and, holding Eva’s hand, went into the room. Only a few moments had passed when the sound of a gunshot was heard. The staff rushed into the room and found Hitler’s body lying soaked in blood. Eva too lay lifeless on the sofa beside her renowned husband, and Hitler’s dog Blondi was also lying dead.
Eva ended her life by taking a poison capsule. Hitler, after taking the capsule, also placed the barrel of a pistol in his mouth and fired, so that there would be no chance of his survival. According to his will, the bodies of both husband and wife were sprinkled with petrol and burned so that their remains might not fall into the hands of the enemy.