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A plan of Hitler’s chancellery. The left side of the building was the chancellery, in the centre was the Mittelbau with the famous marmer gallery and on the right was the Präsidialkanzlei (presidential chancellery). There was a bunker underneath the Mittelbau (1) with exits (5) on the forecourt side. This bunker could be the ‘cellar’ where the groups gathered, but there were more cellars below the chancellery. (map: Keystone)

The ruined Voßstrasse in 1946. From here the Bormann group crossed the street to the Wilhelmplatz.(picture: Bundesarchiv)

Hitler’s chancellery on the Voßstrasse after the battle of Berlin.

(picture: source unknown)

Hitler’s chancellery in better shape: the forecourt that the Bormann group crossed is in the back of the picture. (picture: source unknown)

The ruïns of the old and new Kanzlei after the war. The street in front of it is the Wilhelmstrasse. Across the street is the Wilhelmplatz. (picture: After The Battle, 1988)

The Wilhelmplatz as seen from the Voßstrasse in 1937. The U-Bahn entrance is in the middle of the road.

(picture: Bundesarchiv)

The corner of the Wilhelmstrasse and the remaining part of the Wilhelmplatz
(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

A wrong turn

Inside the tunnel the Naumann/Bormann group wanted to take the same route the group of general Mohnke had taken: straight to the Friedrichstrasse station. However, at U-Bahnstation Stadtmitte they took the wrong turn and went towards U-Bahn station Hausvogteiplatz.

U-Bahn station Stadtmitte

Location: Friedrichstrasse

Today: Still there

U-Bahn Stadtmitte in the 30’s

(picture: copyrights unknown )

The U-Bahn tunnel near station Friedrichstrasse: blown up and flooded at the end of the war

(picture: Bundesarchiv)

 U-Bahn station entrance Stadtmitte today
(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

 U-Bahn station entrance Hausvogteiplatz, near the Gendarmenmarkt  (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Above ground again

Having reached U-Bahn station Hausvogteiplatz, the Naumann/Bormann group left the U-Bahn.   

U-Bahn station Hausvogteiplatz

Location: Hausvogteiplatz

Today: The entrance to the U-Bahn was completely ruined. Today there is still an entrance to the U-Bahn near the square.

 U-Bahn Hausvogteiplatz in 1946

 (pictures: Bundesarchiv)

 The stairs of U-Bahn station Hausvogteiplatz (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

 U-Bahn station Hausvogteiplatz downstairs (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

 U-Bahn station Hausvogteiplatz with the Konzerthaus Berlin on the Gendarmenmarkt in the background

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Gendarmenmarkt in 2014

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2014)

The Taubenstrasse, still ruined in 1950

(picture: Bundesarchiv)

The Taubenstrasse seen from the Gendarmenmarkt (looking eastwards, towards the U-Bahn exit)

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Gendarmenmarkt in 1945

(picture: Bildarchiv Preussischer Kulturbesitz)

The Friedrichstrasse in 2014

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2014)

The Friedrichstrasse in 1945

(picture: Mark Redkin)

The Friedrichstrasse, right before the crossing with the Jägerstrasse

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Bormann and his company might also have taken the street on the right of this crossing (the Französische Strasse) to get to this street (the Friedrichstrasse).

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The west side of the Taubenstrasse. In between the two large buildings on the left runs the Friedrichstrasse.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The fastest way to get to the Friedrichstrasse from the U-Bahn station Hausvogteiplatz was straight across the Gendarmenmarkt through the Taubenstrasse. (picture: unknown)

Crossing Unter den Linden

Bormann and the men that were with him at that time crossed Unter den Linden at the crossing Friedrichstrasse/Unter den Linden. It must have been pretty dangerous to cross the street because the Russians were already in possession of the Reichstach area on the west side of Unter den Linden.

Crossing Friedrichstrasse/Unter den Linden

Location: Berlin-Mitte

Today: The crossing has changed a lot, only the Haus der Schweiz is still there.

The crossing Friedrichstrasse/Unter den Linden facing the Haus der Schweiz. In the back of the street is the S-Bahnstation Friedrichstrasse. The Haus der Schweiz (on the left) still exists.

(picture: Bilderbuch Berlin, 1930)

The same crossing today

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Reaching the Spree

At the end of the Friedrichstrasse, just past the S-Bahnstation, is the Weidendammer Brücke across the Spree. Next to the bridge must have been an iron walking bridge at that time. Most of the groups that were formed at the Reichskanzlei, had started to fall apart, except for the Mohnke group that had left the chancellery first. This group had already crossed the bridge. On the northside of the bridge, about 3 blocks away, was a Panzersperre (tankbarrier). Based on the burning vehicles that were there the men thought the Russian line to be about a hundred meters away from the bridge. There were dead bodies everywhere. When Bormann and his men arrived at the bridge there was no fighting on the bridge itself, but the Russians were shooting covering fire. Within a few minutes after Bormann arrived, the Russians must have found out that there were Germans trying to break through their lines They probably didn’t know that there were people from the Reichskanzlei among them. Sounds of a fight were coming from north of the Schiffbauerdamm, that might have had something to do with the Mohnke group that was in that area. In the meantime the bridge was bombarded by artillery and machine guns.The Bormann group pulled back behind the bridge. Half an hour later German tanks came to break through the tankbarrier in the street. The road to the north was open, but only for two or three blocks.

Weidendammer Brücke

Location: Bridge over the Spree in the Friedrichstrasse

Today: Most buildings in the area are post-war buildings, even the Friedrichstrasse station and the (renovated) Weidendammer Brücke.

These pictures show the Weidendammer Brücke and the Komischen Oper on the south side of the Spree long before the war. (pictures: copyright unknown)

 The Künstlertheater (or the Komischen Oper) used to be on the south side of the Weidendammer Brücke. It was there when Bormann tried to escape in 1945. This picture shows the bridge across the Spree and the theatre in 1939.

(picture: Bundesarchiv, 1939)

The ruins of the theatre were still there in april 1950. (picture: Bundesarchiv, 1950)

A map of Berlin during the last days of the German Reich. The area within the black line is still German. The Reichkanzlei is marked as number 1. It seems like there is only one way out: to the north. In the narrow passage (Bhf. Friedrichstrasse) is the Weidendammer Brücke. When Bormann tried to get through this passage the Russians had already closed it. (map: Besymenski, 1965)

 The Weidendammer Brücke today

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Weidendammer Brücke in 2013. The Hotel Riverside is built where hotel Atlas used to be. (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2013)

The north side of the Spree as seen from the Weidendammer Brücke. On the left is the office building Spreekarree, on the right is the Hotel Riverside.

(pictures: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Schiffbauerdamm after the war

(picture: copyrights unknown)

The Schiffbauerdamm today

(picture: copyrights unknown)

On the corner of the Schiffbauerdamm/

Friedrichstrasse are modern buildings now. This picture shows the Spreekarree building on this corner (the buidling on the right). (picture: copyrights unknown)

Stuck behind the bridge

At 1.30 hours the Bormann group was not longer together and the route to the north through the Friedrichstrasse was blocked by the Russians. Bormann, Baur, Naumann en Stumpfegger were in a basement at that time, a block away from the Weidendammer Brücke. At about 1.45 hours Baur said he wanted to go east through the Ziegelstrasse. Bormann ordered him to stay.

Cellar in the Weidendammer Brücke area

Location: A block away from the Weidedammer Brücke, exact location unkown

Today: Most original buildings in the area are gone.

                                                                                 Ludwig Stumpfegger

The Friedrichstrasse looking north from the Weidendammer Bridge toward the Ziegelstrasse. This area has changed completely.

(picture: Chuck Anesi, 1995)

Climbing over Hotel Atlas

At 2.00 hours Bormann, Naumann, Stumpfegger en Baur climbed over the ruines of the Atlas hotel to get to the Ziegelstrasse. There they got into a basement full of woonded people. If they reached the Ziegelstrasse is not entirely clear.

Hotel Atlas - direction Ziegelstrasse

Location: Hotel Atlas was on the corner Friedrichstrasse-Schiffbauerdamm (eastside). The Ziegelstrasse is still there. Where the basement was, is unknown.

Today: Hotel Atlas doesn’t exist anymore, some buildings on the Ziegelstrasse seem to have survived the war.

Martin Bormann probably never reached the Ziegelstrasse.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Riverside Hotel is located where Hotel Atlas once was.

(picture: unknown)

Hotel Atlas (on the right), hotel New York (on the left) and the Weidendammer Brücke (picture: postcard 1911)

According to the author Besymenski this picture shows the part of the  Friedrichstrasse that’s north of the Weidendammer Brücke.

(picture: Besymenski, 1965)

The northern part of the Friedrichstrasse today. The picture is taken from the corner Friedrichstrasse/Ziegelstrasse.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Ziegelstrasse

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Shot by an anti-tank missile?

At 02.30 hours the Bormann group left the basement. About what happened next has been a lot of discussion. Hitler’s driver Kemka told the Nürnberg jury after the war that Bormann ended up in a Panzergefecht, a tank battle. Kemka said that he saw Bormann thrown into the air after an explosion of an anti-tank missile. Kemka thought that Bormann died after the explosion. Hans Bauer told a slightly different story in which Bormann was actually inside the tank or on the tank. This led to the believe that Bormann was picked up by a tank that took him out of Berlin, a story that can’t be true. Baur’s other statements were about the powerfull shooting of the tanks and the chaos of the scene. Baur said that when the tank was hit by what he thought to be a Russian missile, there were several people near the tank. By the force of the explosion Baur was thrown to the ground. Baur stated that Bormann was still near the tank when the missile hit the tank.

Artur Axmann also saw the explosion of the tank. He said that tanks accompanied the men towards the Ziegelstrasse. Somewhere on the way the attack must have taken place. Axmann was slightly injured by the attack. When he was looking for cover after he got woonded, he went into a bomb crater where he met Bormann and other men from the Reichskanzlei.  

Tankexplosion

Location: somewhere between the Weidendammer Brücke and the

Ziegelstrasse

Today: The area has changed completely and was renovated recently.

The results of a tank battle on the Moltkebrücke, 1945. The Moltkebrücke is a bridge over the Spree, near the Reichstag building. Although there are quite a lot tanks here, the scene on the Weidendammer Brücke is comparable. (picture: copyright unknown)

An edit of the picture above. It is a mix of the location then and now. (edit: Martin Malinski)

Looking for shelter

After Bormann, Baur, Stumpfegger and Werner Nauman left the bomb crater, they were said to have found shelter in the entrance of a damaged house nearby. They were probably still at the north side of the bridge. The Russians were already in the garden that belonged to the house.

Bomb crater and house entrance

Location: Somewhere between the Weidendammer Brücke and the Ziegelstrasse. Exact location unknown.

Today: The complete area was ruined after the war.

                                                                                       Werner Naumann

Severely damaged houses somewhere in Berlin (picture: copyrights unknown)

Station Friedrichstrasse and the train bridge over the Spree, as seen from the air. The Weidendammer Brücke and the Schiffbauerdamm are in the centre of the picture. (picture: unknown)

Bahnhof Friedrichstrasse today (picture: wikipedia)

Station Friedrichstrasse in 1983

(picture: Springer, 1983)

The Weidendammer Brücke, facing north

(picture: Bundesarchiv)

The S-Bahn track near station Friedrichstrasse in 1990  (picture: Springer, 1990)

S-Bahn track to Lehrter Bahnhof

The Bormann group pulled back to the station Friedrichstrasse. There they took the S-Bahn to the Lehrter Bahnhof. The tracks were (and still are) built on a viaduct, so the tracks ran above ground level. It seems like serious other options to get out of the area ran out. The only way to cross the Spree was taking the train bridge next to the Weidendammer Brücke. The tracks run parallel to the Margarete-Steffin-Strasse and ran through the neighborhood to the Lehrter Bahnhof.

S-Bahn from the Friedrichstrasse to the Lehrter Bahnhof

Location: Above the Margarete-Steffin-Strasse.

Today: The tracks still run there.

The old bridge across the Humboldt Hafen. The Berlin Wall is on the other side of the river.

(picture: Springer, 1961)

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The train bridge over the river Spree. On the left side of the picture is the Friedrichstrasse station. In the back of the picture, left of the centre, is the Reichstag, that was in may 1945 taken by the Russians. (picture: copyrights unkown)

The train bridge across the Spree as seen from the Weidendammer Brücke.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The tracks from the Friedrichstrasse station go over the Spree and dissapear between the houses of the Schiffbauerdamm. (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The viaduct that Bormann took when he tried to get away, runs along the Mar-garete-Steffin-Strasse

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The last part of the route was the bridge over the Humboldt Hafen. The bridge was replaced by a modern one when the Berlin Hauptbahnhof was constructed. On this picture is the beginning of the modern construction and the Margarete-Steffin-Strasse. (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The end of the old viaduct and  bridge was slightly different from the new one. It ran on the outside of the bend, right next to where the new bridge is now. Exactly where the open space is seen: inbetween the new bridge and the buildings on this picture. (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The new bridge over the Humboldt Hafen (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The old bridge over the Humboldt Hafen was on the outside of the bend of the new bridge. The aerial views of the old and new situation show that the old bridge went over the wider part of the water and that the new bridge crosses the narrow part of the Humboldt Hafen.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The tracks from station Friedrichstrasse to the Friedrich-List-Ufer still run pretty much the same, except for the last part near the Berlin Hauptbahnhof (former Lehrter Bahnhof).

(picture: Über Berlin, map 2008)

Another picture of the typical Berlin train viaduct (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Under the new bridge over the Humboldt Hafen (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

A dead end

After Bormann and Stumpfegger ran away from the Russians they went eastwards on the Invalidenstrasse. Axmann and his Adjudant Günter Weltzin went westward on the same street. Axmann and Weltzin later made statements about what happened to Bormann and Stumpfegger. It seems like Bormann and Stumpfegger didn’t get far because they ran into Russian soldiers at the Sandkrugbrücke. They returned to the area of the Lehrter Bahnhof. On the ‘Strassenbrücke’ that went over the Hamburg railroad tracks they commited suicide with prussic acid.

Axmann and Weltzin didn’t run from the Russian soldiers. They walked, as calmly as possible, towards the Invalidenstrasse, which they took in the opposite direction of Bormann and Stumpfegger. That means they went westwards. After about ten minutes they ended up in an area where tanks were firing, so they also went back to the area of the Lehrter station. When they arrived at the ‘Strassenbrücke’ over the ‘Fernbahnlinie Lehrter Bahnhof-Hamburg’ they found the bodies of Stumpfegger en Bormann on the bridge, without visible woonds, about 50 metres from the location where their bodies were found in 1972. The bridge ran from about the corner Lehrter Strasse/Invalidenstrasse to the corner Heidestrasse/Invalidenstrasse.

Location of Bormann’s suïcide

Location: Bridge or grounds directly north of the bridge on the corner Heidestrasse/Invalidenstrasse

Today: The area has changed completely. The traffic bridge is not longer there.

The view from the traffic bridge to the north, roughly the area where Bormann and Stumpfegger commited suïcide

(picture: Markus Hellwig)

Another possible location where Artur Axmann was said to have found the bodies was right behind the bridge, on the north side. This picture was taken from the center of the in 1995 deserted Invalidienstrasse bridge. The view is northwards. The sheds on the right are post-war shelters for waiting passengers. Both locations, the one on the bridge and this one, are obviously very close to eachother. (picture: Chuck Anesi, 1995)

It is said that the bodies Bormann and Stumpfegger were found on this traffic bridge that crossed the tracks of the main railway. When this picture was taken, the bridge was no longer in use.

(picture: Chuck Anesi, 1995)

The torn down Lehrter Stadtbahnhof and behind it the new Hauptbahnhof. The traffic bridge that was in front of it has already gone. (picture: copyrights unknown)

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The bridge area of the Lehrter Bahnhof. Arrow number 1 marks the main entrance of the Lehrter train station. Number 2 points at the Invalidenstrasse traffic bridge, the bridge where Bormann and Stumpfegger commited suïcide. The 3rd arrow points at the S-Bahn station. Arrow number 4 points at the S-Bahn bridge over the Friedrich-List-Ufer. Number 4 is the Humboldt Hafen. (picture: copyrights unknown)

The traffic bridge from the other side. The Lehrter S-Bahnhof is in the background, just above the bridge.

(picture: copyrights unknown)

The Lehrter S-Bahnhof with the traffic bridge in the background. The tracks that used to run under this bridge, have already gone on this picture.

(picture: copyrights unknown)

The trainbridge as seen from the south-west side of the Lehrter S-Bahnhof. The traffic bridge is visible in the background, underneath the bridge. The tracks that used to run under the bridge are still there. (picture: copyrights unknown)

The Lehrter S-Bahnhof as seen from the north-west side, right before the station was demolished. The tracks that ran here had already gone.

(picture: copyrights unknown)

The Lehrter S-Bahn station before it was demolished.

(pictures: copyright unknown)

The Lehrter S-Bahn station on the Invalidenstrasse, during its demolition  

(picture: copyright unknown)

Underneath the Lehrter S-Bahn station. In the background is the Invalidenstrasse traffic bridge. (picture: copyright unknown)

View to the north from where the traffic bridge used to be.

(picture: copyrights unknown)

The traffic bridge area. View to the north-west.(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The corner Heidestrasse/Invalidenstrasse, with the building of the Sozialgericht Berlin. Bormann and Stupfegger were also said to have commited suïcide on this corner (left of the Sozialgericht Berlin). That makes sense because here was one end of the bridge. I believe it makes more sense that the bodies were found near the centre of the bridge. Most reports say so.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

This cover of a picture book shows where the old and the new (S-Bahn) station and bridge were built. The old bridge over the Humboldt Hafen is still there, next to the new one. The red arrow points at the location where the Invalidenstrasse traffic bridge used to be. In the situation of today that’s on the north side of the Invalidenstrasse. The picture presents the view to the west.

(picture: Luftbildverlag Berlin)

The Invalidenstrasse on groundlevel in the 90’s. The view of this picture is west, just like the picture above it. The old traffic bridge is still there. The red arrow points at the location where the bridge crossed the main railway to the north.  

(picture: Chuck Anesi, 1995)

The new station is being built. The old S-Bahn station, the Lehrter Stadtbahnhof that was in front of the new one, has already disappeared. In 2002 the old station was torn down. The new station was ready in 2006. 1. The crossing Invalidenstrasse/Heidestrasse 2. The location of the old traffic bridge 3. The location of the old S-Bahn station 4. The area north of the old bridge

(picture: copyrights unknown)

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A map of the old situation. 1. The Invalidenstrasse bridge 2. The Friedrich-List-Ufer 3. The corner Invalidenstrasse/Heidestrasse

(map: copyrights unknown)

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On this side of the street the traffic bridge used to be. The view of the picture is westwards.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The old S-Bahn track ran across the open space here, in front of the new Hauptbahnhof.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The old traffic bridge used to be on the left side of  this street (the Invalidenstrasse).

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The old bridge over the Humboldt Hafen (with the Berlin Wall in the background) (picture: copyrights unknown)

The Lehrter Station in 1932

(picture: Bundesarchiv, 1932)

The ruined Lehrter Bahnhof in 1956

(picture: copyrights unkown)

The new bridge over the Humboldt Hafen still runs over the Friedrich-List-Ufer, but the old bridge was in front of the one on this picture. So the old one was closer to the Invalidenstrasse.  (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Invalidenstrasse exit of the Berlin Hauptbahnhof as seen from the Friedrich-List-Ufer

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Lehrter Bahnhof and the Humboldt Hafen (picture: copyrights unknown)

The Lehrter Bahnhof area. The red arrow marks the location where Bormann, Stumpfegger, Axmann and Weltzin got off the S-Bahn bridge

(picture: Über Berlin, map 1943)

The Friedrich-List-Ufer today. The location of the old bridge was in front of the new one.  

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

U-Bahn entrance Mohrenstrasse
(pictures: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The damaged corner Voßstrasse/Wilhelmstrasse. Below right is the U-Bahn entrance.
(picture: unknown)

The Wilhelmplatz when it was still intact. The U-Bahn entrance is clearly visible.
(picture: unknown)

The red marble of U-Bahn station Mohrenstrasse was taken from Hitler’s Reichskanzlei (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Passing Friedrichstrasse station

After crossing Unter den Linden Bormann and his company went straight ahead through the Friedrichstrasse to the Weidendammer Brücke. They passed the Friedrichstrasse S/U-Bahn station.

Friedrichstrasse north

Location: Between Unter den Linden and the Weidendammer Brücke

Today: The area has been reconstructed almost completely.

The Friedrichstrasse today. In the back of the street is the Friedrichstrasse station.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

S-Bahnhof Friedrichstrasse, between the S-Bahn station and the Weidendammer Brücke, today.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Schiffbauerdamm, the river Spree and the south side of the river, during the building of the north-south track in 1935  

(picture: Springer, 2013)

The north side of the S-Bahnhof Friedrichstrasse (probabaly in 1942)

(picture: Springer, 2013)

The ruined S-Bahnhof Friedrichstrasse in 1945 and the ruins on the south side of the river Spree (picture: Springer, 2013)

An empty space between the Spree and the Weidendammer Brücke. The buildings in the back are behind the river on the Schiffbauerdamm. (picture: Springer, 2013)

S-Bahnhof Friedrichstrasse in 1951 during a march of schoolchildren and students. This part of the city was (obviously) under Russian command.

(picture: Springer, 2013)

The Friedrichstrasse and the station after the war

(picture: copyrights unknown)

The Friedrichstrasse with the station today

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The station Friedrichstrasse before the war

(picture: copyrights unknown)

The south side of the station

(picture: Springer, 1928)

Bahnhof Friedrichstrasse april 1945

(picture: unknown, 1945)

The station Friedrichstrasse today

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The station hall and the tracks in 1935

(picture: Springer, 1935)

An aerial view of the station area

(picture: Springer, 1980)

In 1965 digging for the remains of Bormann and Stumpfegger took place very near the S-Bahn on the ULAP-grounds. No remains were found.

(picture: Von Lang, 1987)

In 1972 two skeletons were found on the same grounds, compare the barracks on the picture with those on the picture above it, just a few metres from where authorities looked for them in 1965. They were identified as the skeletons of Martin Bormann and Ludwig Stumpfegger. On this picture the gravesites are marked.

(picture: copyrights unknown)

The dental status of Martin Bormann

(picture: Von Lang, 1987)

Looking for proof - the search for Bormann’s remains

After the war it seemed that nobody really knew where the remains of Martin Bormann were. That led to all kinds of stories. Some said Bormann didn’t die near the Lehrter Station, but during the tank attack near the Weidendammer Brücke. Others said that Bormann had always been a Russain agent and that he fled to Moscow. There were other people that thought he had escaped to Argentine. Since the bodies of Stumpfegger and Bormann were not found, the speculations about what happened to them lasted for years.

According to the book Der Sekretär of the German author Jochen von Lang, things went like this: Axmann and Weltzin found the dead bodies of Bormann and Stumpfegger on the traffic bridge. Where exactly is not mentioned. Since Weltzin died in Russian imprisonment, Axmann was the only witness. But there were more witnesses that had seen the bodies. After the war had stopped the Russians ordered some German men from the nearby postoffice to bury the bodies that were lying around the area of the Lehrter Station. Among them was Albert Krumnov, who helped carry the bodies to a place where they were buried. In 1965 authorities started searching for the remains of Stumpfegger and Bormann in the area Krumnov pointed out: the former grounds of the Universem Ausstellungspark (or ULAP-Gelände), later the Alpendorf-Gelände, on the Invalidenstrasse 63-68. At that time no body was found. Very interesting though was a letter authorities had already send to Gertrud Stumpfegger in 1945 that said that Stumpfegger, together with another soldier(!), was buried on the Alpendorf-Gelände in Berlin NW40, Invalidenstrasse 63. The location where the bodies were said to be, made sense: it was very near the Lehrter Station and the traffic bridge. Another interesting fact was that Bormanns diary had been found. It fell in Russian hands. The Russian author Lew Besymenski published about it, but not untill 1974.

On 7/8 December 1972, during the preparations of an institute that was going to be built on the ULAP-Gelände, two skeletons were found, just 12-15 metres away from the location where the digging of 1965 had taken place.

For the identification of the teeth of Bormann a teeth diagram of Bormann’s nazi-dentist Hugo Blaschke was used. Dental technician Fritz Echtman and dental assistant Katharina Heuserman recognised the teeth of Bormann, which ment the end of the mythe that said Bormann had escaped Germany.

Burial site of Martin Bormann and Ludwig Stumpfegger

Location: Universum Ausstellungspark (ULAP-Gelände), later called the Alpendorf-Gelände, Invalidenstrasse 63-68 (numbering has changed)

Today: The area has changed completely. I need more pictures of the ULAP-Gelände and the S-Bahn-area along the Emma-Herwegh-Strasse to identify the exact location.

The green building of the Landeslabor Berlin-Brandenburg was obviously not there yet when Bormann and Stumpfegger were buried in this area.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The old track ran in front of the new one (that’s on the pictures), where the road is now. Looking at the grey and white picture of the burial site (above, right) it seems like the bodies weren’t buried in front of the curve, but in front of a straight part of the track, that is past the green building of the Landeslabor. (pictures: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

A building scheme of the ULAP-grounds. The bodies of Bormann and Stumpfegger were buried somewhere in front of the S-Bahn, probably on the location pointed out by the red arrow. But I’m not sure. Please send me an e-mail if you have pictures of the area or corrections of this idea. (map: Von Lang, 1987)

The skull of Martin Bormann

(picture: copyrights unknown)

The skull of Ludwig Stumpfegger

(picture: copyrights unknown)

Used sources for this page are (among others): Lew Besymenski - Auf der Spuren von Martin Bormann; Jochen von Lang - Der Sekretär; Hans Baur - Mit Mächtigen zwischen Himmel und Erde; Artur Axmann - Hitlerjugend; Uwe Bahnsen & James O’Donnell - Die Katakombe; Philipp Springer - Bahnhof der Tränen; Volker Koop - Martin Bormann, Hitlers Vollstrecker; Henrik Eberle & Matthias Uhl (Hg.) - Das Buch Hitler.

At the end of April 1945 there was not much left of the German Reich. In Berlin the Germans still only ruled over the government district, which included Hitler’s Reichskanzlei. The Russians controlled the rest of the city. When Hitler died there where still some important people at the Reichkanzlei, for instance Joseph Goebbels and Martin Bormann. Some other men and women in Hitler’s chancellery were important witnesses of what happened to Hitler. Others played a minor roll. Although Goebbels commited suicide, many of them tried to escape Berlin. Only a few succeeded. Bormann, one of the key figures of the German state at that time, also tried to get away. In May 1945 he joined one of the groups that escaped the Reichkanzlei. What happened to him remained a mystery for decades.  

A picture of the Voßstrasse in 2015, showing the same location as the picture above it. The street has completely changed.(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Voßstrasse in 2015, from the other side. About here must have been the forecourt of the Reichskanzlei.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Hitler’s Reichskanzlei used to be where the appartment buildings are now.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Scattered ashes

The remains of Bormann were buried on the grounds of the so called Standesamt 1 in Berlin, a registry office. In 1998 a DNA analysis was made of the remains. There was no doubt: these were the remains of Martin Bormann, once one of the most important men of the German Reich. In 1999 the ashes of Bormann were scattered in the Kieler Bucht, outside German waters.

Location burial Bormann’s remains in 1972

Location: Lentzeallee 107

Today: The building on this address could be original

The crossing Friedrichstrasse/Unter den Linden facing the side of the Friedrichstrasse where Bormann and his group came from. (picture: wikipedia, 1900)

The crossing Friedrichstrasse/Unter den Linden in 1947, facing the other side of the Friedrichstrasse: the side of S-Bahn station Friedrichstrasse. The remains of the Haus der Schweiz are on the left.

(picture: upper-eastside-berlin)

The view from the Voßstrasse on the Wilhelmplatz today

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Corner Wilhelmstrasse/Wilhelmplatz today (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2009)

Finding the way through a ruined Berlin

It seems that the different groups that fled the Reichskanzlei mixed up during the journey through the subway system. When Bormann’s group (and possible others that had joined the group) came out of the subway they walked from the Hausvogteiplatz towards the once so beautiful, but by then ruined, Gendarmenmarkt. They walked through the Taubenstrasse to get there. The group, that by then among others, consisted of Baur, Naumann, Bormann en Stumpfegger crossed the Gendarmenmarkt to the Friedrichstrasse to get back to the route they had planned. To get to the Friedrichstrasse they could have taken the Taubenstrasse, Jägerstrasse or the Französische Strasse.

Taubenstrasse - Gendarmenmarkt - Friedrichstrasse

Location: Berlin-Mitte

Today: The Gendarmenmarkt has been renovated completely.

This picture was taken from the east side of the Taubenstrasse, just outside the U-Bahn station, looking across the Gendarmenmarkt into the west side of the Taubenstrasse. Bormann most likely took this route to get to the Friedrichstrasse. Alternative routes to the Friedrichstrasse run through the Jägerstrasse or the Französische Strasse.

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

The Jägerstrasse, another street between the Gendarmenmarkt and the Friedrichstrasse Bormann might have taken

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

On the south side of the river (compare this picture to the two above) are modern buildings now. (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

A map of the Weidendammer Brücke area. Behind the Panzersperre a tank is drawn. Hitler’s driver Erich Kemka said that he saw Bormann getting blown away when this tank got hit by enemy fire. He thought Bormann was dead, but Kemka was wrong.

(map: Besymenski, 1965)

Across the bridge

For knowledge about Bormanns route and whereabouts we must depend on the statements of eyewitnesses. For instance Hitler’s on those of pilot Hans Bauer. He said that, when he crossed the Weidendammer Brücke, he saw Bormann sitting on a small staircase in front of the entrance of a house, on the corner of the Schiffbauerdamm and the Friedrichstrasse. Bauer said that in front of Bormann a dead Russian soldier was laying on the ground. What this meant doesn’t get clear.

Corner Schiffbauerdamm/Friedrichstrasse. Exact side unknown.

Today: The buildings on the Schiffbauerdamm were destroyed in the war.

                                                                                                   Hans Bauer

This picture shows the north side of the Weidendammer Brücke: where Martin Bormann was trying to escape to. The picture shows the location of the Weidendammer Brücke after it was temporarily removed when a U-Bahn-tunnel was built. On the left side of the Friedrichstrasse (the street in the centre) is the Weidenhof Casino; on the right side of the street is Hotel Atlas. (picture: wikipedia, 1907-1915)

The Weidendammer Brücke and the buildings on the north side of it in 1897 and 1898. The buildings on both sides of the Friedrichstrasse were going to change soon. The building on th eright side of the street is still called the Fründ Hotel. It was going to be replaced by or changed into the Hotel Atlas. The building on the left side also changed.    

(picture: academic.ru, 1897 & wikipedia, 1898 )

 A tank between the Weidendammer Brücke and the Ziegelstrasse, after the battle. The tank faces north. In the background the S-Bahn Friedrichstrasse crosses the street. (picture: Chuck Anesi, 1995)

Back to station Friedrichstrasse

Because they couldn’t escape using the route to the north, Baur, Bormann, Naumann and Stumpfegger decided to try to escape following the Spree to the west. First they had to pull back from the Friedrichstrasse/Ziegelstrasse area. While doing that, Baur lost contact with the other men. Bormann and the rest got back to the Friedrichstrasse station, where they wanted to take the track above ground (S-Bahn) to the Lehrter Bahnhof.

S/U-Bahnhof Friedrichstrasse

Location: Georgenstraße 14/17

Today: The station was renovated several times after the war.

The wrong road to freedom

Only the Bormann group, or what was left of it, tried to leave the centre of Berlin by taking a route to the west: on the tracks across the Spree and the Schiffbauerdamm to the Lehrter Bahnhof. Other groups that had left the Reichskanzlei didn’t. The problem of that route was that it passed the Reichstag (on the other side of the river): one of the most dangerous locations in Berlin at that time, because the building was already in possession of the Russian army. Some say taking this route was an estimation error of Bormann, that might have been caused by the fact that Bormann didn’t know Berlin that well. In this city he chose a route he knew well, which happened to be the most dangerous one. On the other hand it seems like the men didn’t really have a choice. The only way out (the route to the north) was blocked and the route to the east was a no go, since the Russians came from there. Another possible reason brought forward for choosing the dangerous route is that the city by that time was completely damaged and that it was hard to recognize the environment. But since Bormann took the S-Bahn from the well known Friedrichstrasse to the famous Lehrter station, this explenation for taking the fatal route can’t be right. Bormann knew where the track led to and on what track they were on.

It seems that since about 02.30 hours Bormann had grouped up with Naumann, Stumpfegger, Schwägermann, Axmann and Weltzin in a bomb crater (as mentioned earlier).

Hans Baur, who had lost the other men, also chose to take the track to the Lehrter Bahnhof. In his statements made after the war he explained how dangerous the route over the S-Bahn track was. Baur left the area of the Weidendammer Brücke at about 3.45 hours. Shootings from the Reichstag (on the other side of the river) and from the buildings around the track made it hard to get to the Lehrter station. The Russians were everywhere. When Baur arrived at the Lehrter station he got shot by a machine gun. Germans took him inside a burning house. After about four hours German prisoners took Baur to a place on the Invalidenstrasse where woonded men where gathered. Baur survived the war, but he hadn’t seen Bormann since leaving the area of the Weidendammer Brücke.

S-Bahn from the Friedrichstrasse to the Lehrter Bahnhof

Location: Above the Margarete-Steffin-Strasse.

Today: The tracks still run there.

The route Bormann took to the Lehrter Station. Arrow number 1 points at station Friedrichstrasse, number 2 points at the track and arrow number 3 points at the location on Friedrich-List-Ufer next to the Lehrter station where Bormann got of the track.

(picture: Über Berlin, map 1943)

According to Hans Bauer the viaduct was shot at from the houses around it and from the area of the Reichstag, on the other side of the Spree. (picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Climbing of the S-Bahn bridge

Bormann’s group now consisted of Bormann, Stumpfegger, Axmann and Weltzin. When they arrived at the Lehrter Bahnhof they climbed of the tracks at the Friedrich-List Ufer.

Underneath the bridge they ran into a group of Russian soldiers. The Russians didn’t recognize the Germans as important nazi’s from the Reichskanzlei. They probably thought them to be members of the Volkssturm. According to Axmann the Russians didn’t make any problems. But Bormann and Stumpfegger aroused suspicion when they walked away from the group and, when they were far enough away from the Russians, started running.

S-Bahn bridge and Lehrter Station

Location: Friedrich-List-Ufer

Today: The contours of the area are the same, but the Lehrter station

doesn’t excist anymore and the bridge over the Humboldt

Hafen has been replaced by a new one.                                 Artur Axmann

The ruined Lehrter Bahnhof from the inside

(picture: copyrights unkown)

The bridge over the Friedrich-List-Ufer, where Bormann and his men climbed off (left), and a part of the S-Bahn station (right), in the 1970’s or 80’s.  

(picture: Markus Hellwig)

A picture made in 2002. The Lehrter Stadtbahnhof is still in operation. The new station is already there.

(picture: copyrights unknown)

A part of the former ULAP-Gelände. In the background is the new train viaduct. The building behind the tree is the Landeslabor Berlin-Brandenburg (Invalidenstrasse 60).

(picture: the Hitlerpages, 2015)

Although the green Landeslabor is on the former ULAP-grounds, the exact location where the remains were found was near the S-Bahn track, that runs in front of the green building. Here the track bends away from the building. The old track’s bend was in front of the location where new track is now though. Behind the curve the new track the old one join.  

(picture: copyrights unknown)