Availability: Very Rare – only 2 existed at the Brown House entrance
Sculptor: Unknown – do you know? Help Us
Location today: The building was destroyed during the war (see below) The location of the eagles at the front is unknown – do you know? Help Us
History:
The Brown House (Braunes Haus) was the name given to a mansion located between the Karolinenplatz and Königsplatz which was purchased in 1930 for the NSDAP. The building was converted into the headquarters of the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei; NSDAP). Many leading Nazis, including Hitler, maintained offices there throughout the party’s existence.
In April 1930, Elizabeth Stefanie Barlow (widow of William Barlow (1869–1928), an English wholesale merchant) offered the building for purchase to Franz Xaver Schwarz, the NSDAP treasurer. A sales contract was signed on 26 May, with a purchase price of 805,864 marks. Funds for renovation were provided by industrialist Fritz Thyssen. The house was converted from an urban villa to an office building by the architect Paul Troost. He and Adolf Hitler also re-decorated it in a heavy, anti-modern style. It officially opened on 1 January 1931, which is when the party leadership moved into the building.
Also stored in the Brown House was the so-called Blutfahne (“blood flag” or “blood banner”). This was the NSDAP flag that had been carried at the head of the demonstration during the Beer Hall Putsch of November 1923. When Munich police had opened fire on the marchers, it had been spattered with the blood of the wounded and became a sacred relic of the Nazi Party
Historical Photos:
Where is the Brown House today?:
The Brown House was largely destroyed by an Allied bombing raid in October 1943. In December 2005 the government of Bavaria announced that the site would become the home of the Munich Documentation Centre for the History of National Socialism (NS-Dokumentationszentrum). The building is open to the public.
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