7 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Hitler’s Wife, Eva Braun

Eva Braun was the young mistress, and later the wife of Adolf Hitler. Braun and Hitler committed suicide the day after they married on April 30, 1945—an alternative to falling into the hands of allied troops.
While most people know a great deal about Hitler, few know much about the significant woman in his life. So, here are 7 fascinating things you probably didn’t know about Eva Braun:

1. Eva went to a convent school.

Eva Anna Paula Braun was born inSimbach, Germany on February 6, 1912 to a middle class family. Her father was a master craftsman. She was the middle child of three daughters. Her sisters were Gretl and Ilse Braun.
She was a typical teenager who was mostly interested in diet, clothes, makeup, and boys. She was very athletic and enjoyed gymnastics, sunbathing, skiing, and swimming. She wasn’t very interested in academics and earned average grades.
Baldur von Schirach later described her, “Eva was a worldly type of girl – bobbed chestnut-brown hair, a make-up that was unconventional for the time, fashionable pullover and short, narrow skirts, silk stockings and high-heeled shoes. I took her for a French girl. Usually she was walking a boxer dog. For me she was the most beautiful girl in Munich.”

In 1928, 16-year-old Eva was sent to the Catholic Youth Institute by her parents, which was a convent in the German village of Simbach. However, she left a year later after realizing that it wasn’t a good fit. She told a classmate, “It is not the life for me.”

In an attempt to seek independence from her parents, Eva then answered an ad hanging in the window of a small photography shop owned by Heinrich Hoffman. This was the job that would change her life forever.

2. She was a talented photographer.

Eva was only 17-years-old when she began working as an assistant at Heinrich Hoffman’s photography studio. Hoffman was the personal photographer of Adolf Hitler.

That’s where Braun and Hitler first met. Eva later told her sister,”I’d stayed on after closing time to file some papers and I’d climbed up a ladder to fetch the files kept on the top shelves of the cupboard. At that moment the boss came in accompanied by a man of uncertain age with a funny moustache, a light-colored, English-style overcoat and a big felt hat in his hand. They both sat down on theother side of the room, opposite me. I tried to squint in their direction without appearing to turn round and sensed that this character was looking at my legs… That very day I’d shortened my skirt, and I felt slightly embarrassed because I wasn’t sure I’d got the hem even.”

Hoffman sent Eva out to buy beer and sausages and then invited her to join them. She said, “The elderly gentleman (Hitler) was paying me compliments. We talked about music and a play at the Staatstheater, as I remember, with him devouring me with his eyes all the time. Then, as it was getting late, I rushed off. I refused an offer of a lift in his Mercedes. Just think what Papa’s reaction would have been!”

She later became Hitler’s mistress and lived in a house that he provided for her in Munich.

Either way, Eva was also quite the photographer and earned lots of money selling her photos to Heinrich Hoffman. In fact, her photography skills helped make Hitler appear to be a kind and compassionate human being. Looking at the images she created of him, nobody would have known that he was intent on murdering millions of people through his Nazi party. She snapped lots of pictures of Hitler with the children of family friends and shot home movies depicting him as a family man.

Eva took most of the famous photos of Hitler’s private life, and her photography played an artistic role in Nazi propaganda. She made a handsome income from these moments and she was a wealthy young woman.

3. Eva was deeply in love with Hitler.

Eva and Hitler were attracted to each other immediately, and for her, it was true love. Hitler reportedly “devoured her with he eyes” when they first met. And, believe it or not, Hitler was supposedly a lady killer with his thin mustache and shrieking voice.

He began inviting Eva everywhere—to the movies, to dinner, and to the opera. The 17-year-old fell head-over-heels for the 40-year-old future dictator.

When Eva spoke to a friend about the future dictator’s charm and affections, she said, “Who can withstand that?”

4. She shot herself in the chest.

Hitler was a terrible boyfriend to Eva and cheated on her rampantly. When Eva discovered that Hitler was cheating on her, she was heartbroken.

So, she took one of her father’s pistols and shot herself in the chest, just barely missing her heart. It was Hitler’s personal doctor who took care for her. In fact, it is thought that Eva shot herself to get Hitler’s attention and sympathy. It must have worked because he rushed to her side bringing flowers, gifts, and apologies.

5.She attempted suicide again.

In 1935, Eva attempted suicide again, after going three months without hearing a word from Hitler. Word was spreading that he was cheating on her again.

In her diary she wrote, “God, I’m afraid he won’t answer today. I’ve decided on 35 pills this time and it’s going to really be a ‘dead certain’ business. If only he would have somebody call.”

She then took a bottle of sleeping pills and awaited her death. However, the suicide failed again. Hitler showed up with flowers and begged for forgiveness again. That’s when he offered to buy her a house. He purchased her a three-bedroom villa and they were living together in his Berghof chalet in the Bavarian Alps.

6. Eva fed into Hitler’s delusions.

Hitler was extremely paranoid. He was so crippled by anxiety during his final days that he would scratch his neck and ears until they bled.

He also demanded that his food and drinks be analyzed for traces of poison. Hitler believed that he was completely surrounded by traitors and Eva fed into those delusions. She supported him dying a “heroes death,” rather than to end up in the hands of the enemy.

7. Braun and Hitler spent their honeymoon committing suicide in a bunker.

As World War II raged on and the Allied forced advanced on Germany, there was no question that Hitler would be killed, as well as anyone connected to him. While Eva was in peril, she refused to leave Hitler’s side. She joined him at his Bunker in Berlin.

On April 28, 1945, Hitler had Eva’s brother-n-law, Hermann Fegelein, killed after being caught with a woman who was not Eva’s sister. Hitler thought that the mystery woman must have been a spy. So, he had Fegelein dragged out and shot. Hiter and Eva were married a few hours later on April 29, 1945.

However, their honeymoon consisted of committing suicide the day after their wedding, on April 30, 1945. Braun ingested poison while Hitler poisoned and shot himself. Their bodies were brought out to Reich Chancellery and burned.