Why Austria Is Seizing Hitler's Birthplace

When Customs officer Alois Hitler Senior and wife Klara Pölzl took up a rented accommodation at a guest house in Austria's Braunau am Inn town, little did they know that the modest lodge was about to witness the birth of one of the most controversial men in the history of mankind. Adolf Hitler, the fourth of the couple's six children, was born on April 20, 1889. The family lived there till he turned three after which they relocated to Passau in Germany.

Although the humble building has been standing tall since then, it is a silent spectator to a host of unsavoury events culminating in its annexation. The Austrian government recently introduced a law to take over this more-than-a-century-old building, which is owned by a local woman.  The authorities had to resort to seizing the property in April this year after its owner refused to sell it despite the government's repeated attempts. Much like other such properties in the world, authorities feared that this property might turn into a shrine for the supporters of the late Nazi leader.

Under a lease signed between the owner and the authorities in 1972, the place was being used as a centre for differently-abled people. However, the owner terminated the agreement five years ago after the authorities unveiled their renovation plans. Since 2011, the building remained vacant till the authorities in 2014 decided to turn it into a museum — House of Responsibility — that would showcase the deadly impact of Hitler's war crimes.  

"Representatives of the ministry have been trying for several years to buy the property, but these attempts failed... Now, the only option is to transfer ownership to the Austrian Republic through expropriation," media quoted the statement by the Austrian interior ministry.

Its journey from a public library to an art centre; from an educational institute to a place for people with special needs, the structure has seen it all. However, it can't be denied that using it for varied purposes was just a garb to prevent footfalls at this erstwhile home to little Hitler.

A memorial stone (known by the formal name of the Memorial Stone Against War and Fascism) that was placed in front of the building in April, 1989, reads in German: Für Frieden, Freiheit und Demokratie. Nie wieder Faschismus. (For Peace, Freedom, and Democracy. Never Again Fascism. Millions of Dead Remind Us.) The granite stone was reportedly procured from a quarry at the Mauthausen concentration camp in the city of Linz.

Despite its rich aluminum deposits and a thriving industry, the city of Braunau's claim to fame has been its remote association with Hitler, but the government has been largely unsuccessful in reining in the late Nazi leader's popularity.