A lot has already been written about the biography of Adolf Hitler himself. However, the woman who gave birth to the future Fuhrer invariably remains in the shadows. Historians, if they mention Clara Pelzl, are most often casually. Meanwhile, as Alexander Klinge writes in his book "10 Myths about Hitler", acquaintance with the fate of the dictator's mother allows us to understand why he so carefully concealed the history of his family.
Poor peasant woman and servant
Clara Pelzl was born in the Austrian Empire in 1860. In addition to her, the family had 10 more children. However, only Clara's second sisters survived to adulthood. The Pelzl spouses were ordinary peasants, so while still a 15-year-old girl, Clara got a job with her wealthy uncle Alois Hitler.
By that time, Alois had married a wealthy lady of convenience. But she fell ill, and the man needed a housekeeper. Anna died soon after, and Alois registered a new marriage. However, his second wife also passed away. It was then, or maybe a little earlier, that the aging Alois began to stare at his young niece Clara.
Marriage with uncle
In fact, the Catholic Church did not have to approve of their marriage, since Klara Pelzl and Alois Hitler were in a rather close relationship. Alexander Klinge, author of the book "10 Myths about Hitler", calls the relationship between Klara and Alois nothing more than incest. Nevertheless, Hitler Senior petitioned the Episcopal Ordinariat in Linz, begging to be allowed to marry Clara.
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It is interesting that Clara herself was directly involved in this process. According to the writer and historian Erich Schaake, Pelzl told the church representatives that she was not a relative of Alois Hitler, since his real father was unknown. Nevertheless, the first time the lovers were refused. However, Alois did not calm down and forwarded the statement above. In the end, “yes” was said directly from Rome.
Clara and children
In 1885, Clara Pelzl and Alois Hitler got married. It is worth noting that even after the official marriage, Clara continued to call her spouse "uncle". By the time of the wedding, Clara was already carrying her first child under her heart, and in the same 85th gave birth to her son Gustav. Following Gustav, Ida and Otto were born. But they all died at preschool age. Adolf became the fourth child of the Hitler couple.
The overwhelming majority of researchers, including psychoanalyst Erich Fromm, described Klara as an ideal wife, mother and even stepmother: after all, she raised not only her own son and daughter (Adolf and his younger sister Paulo), but also Alois's children from previous marriages. However, the writer and psychologist Alice Miller spoke out against the idealization of Hitler's mother. Miller argued that Clara was also guilty of her son becoming a monster. According to Alice, Pelzl forgave Alois beatings and all kinds of bullying, and not only in relation to herself, but also in relation to children.
Death of Hitler's mother
Nevertheless, almost no one denies Hitler's sincere love and affection for his mother. As Olga Greig writes in her book "The Fuehrer's Woman", Clara's death was a real tragedy for Adolf. She died at the age of 47 from cancer. As soon as Hitler found out about his mother's diagnosis, he immediately rushed home and was by her side until the last minute.
It is noteworthy that Eduard Bloch, a Jew by nationality, was Clara Hitler's attending physician. Despite the fact that Bloch himself spoke of Adolf with respect and said that he had never seen a person who was so acutely worried about the loss of his mother, perhaps it is in this tragedy that the beginnings of Hitler's anti-Semitism lie. At least the author of the book "Hitler" Marlies Steiner cites this version as one of the most widespread.
Yulia Popova