Photographs of Linz, Austria

Rathaus (city hall) on the main street in Linz, Austria

The building shown in the photo above is the Altes Rathaus, the city hall of Linz, Austria. Adolf Hitler referred to Linz as his "home town." He lived at Humboldtstrasse 31 in the heart of Linz when he was 16 years old.

The tourist office in Linz is on the ground floor of the city hall. Nearby places to visit are Hartheim Castle and Leonding, where Hitler's parents are buried.

Statue with Rathaus in the background on the right

Rathaus (city hall) in Linz, Austria

On the tiny balcony in front of the Rathaus in Linz, Hitler proclaimed the Greater German Reich (Großdeutsches Reich) after the Anschluss with Austria on May 12, 1938.

Typical street in Linz, Austria

When Adolf Hitler lived in Linz, as a teenager, it was a small town with only 55,000 people. Hitler called Linz the most German of all the cities in Austria.

In the photo below, note the May pole in the center of the picture.

Old Cathedral in Linz, Austria

Nibelungen Brücke over the Danube river in Linz, Austria

Hitler had grandiose plans to rebuild Linz, but the only thing ever built was this bridge over the Danube. American troops captured the Nibelungen bridge on May 5, 1945.

After the war Austria was divided into four zones of occupation, from May 1945 until October 1955; the four zones were ruled by the Americans, British, French and Russians. The "Iron Curtain" in Austria went through this bridge: on the west side was the American zone and on the east side was the Russian zone. Each side had a checkpoint at its end of the bridge.

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