World War II: Fuhrergebiet - German National Redoubt Deception British Government Files

World War II: Fuhrergebiet - German National Redoubt Deception British Government Files

British Foreign Office files containing intelligence reports, which reveal the full extent of the Allies' belief in a Nazi National Redoubt in the Austrian Alps.

National redoubt is a general term for an area to which the remnant forces of a nation can be withdrawn, if the main battle has been lost, or even beforehand if defeat is considered inevitable.

 The Allies believed that Hitler had made plans for an area where, "the elite of Nazi Germany" would make "a last desperate stand". The redoubt would be a refuge for "war criminals, Nazi fanatics and those with nothing to lose". Intelligence reports from the time suggested there would be enough food and munitions stored in underground caves for 60,000 men to hold out for two years and to act as a center to direct the activities of pro-Nazi elements across Europe. 

The file contains the first-hand testimony of Walter Hirsch, a master builder at Hitler's Austrian HQ in Ober Salzburg, who believed that Hitler had been shot by a German general in March 1944 and his body stored in a crypt under Hitler's private room. Himmler is described in the file as the 'soul' of the Nazi movement and reports detail his plans to build a post-hostilities 'resistance' using identities stolen from soldiers who died in battle and civilians killed in air raids. The file also contains the testimony of a 19-year-old Austrian deserter who had worked at the Fuhrer's headquarters. He provides a detailed description of Hitler, "pale and covered in loosely, hanging flesh", his daily routine, "coffee, bread and marmalade for breakfast", and the personalities that surrounded him, such as his barber, who was said to look like "a circus clown".

By the time American forces reached and controlled Bavaria and Western Austria at the end of April 1945, it became clear that the National Redoubt was a myth.

 German Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels oversaw the creation of false information about a redoubt. German Intelligence Services produced faked blueprints and reports on construction supplies, armament production and troop transfers to the Redoubt. Rumors spread about the redoubt, causing many Germans to believe that it actually existed.

 During the last months of the war, the Allies made preparations to attack this fortress that didn't exist.