Rochus Misch, the last living witness of Adolf Hitler's last days in the Berlin bunker, recalls a strange silence that filled the underground chamber as the final battles to capture the German capital raged overhead. In an interview with Reuters, the 90-year-old said there was less turmoil in the bunker as the Soviet army approached than is depicted in most books and films.
"Life in the bunker was pretty normal," Misch told Reuters in his modest house in south Berlin, where he has lived since 1938. "Hitler was mostly very calm." For five years, Misch worked as the dictator's bodyguard, phone operator and courier.
"It was much less dramatic than shown by many historians, filmmakers and journalists," said the former soldier. "The worst thing was the silence ... Everybody was whispering and nobody knew why. That's why it felt like the bunker of death," Misch said.
Recalling the years spent with one of the world's most notorious dictators, Misch remained strangely neutral. "History is history, it was the way it was and nobody should lie about it," he says. But he refused to make judgements about the past.
Misch is not ashamed to talk about pleasant moments with Hitler just as was depicted in the internationally acclaimed 2004 German film "Downfall", which drew controversy for showing Hitler's rarely explored human side as well as his evil. Asked about the happiest time in his life, he takes out pictures of Hitler and his close associates at the summer residence Berghof in the Bavarian Alps.
"The best time I ever had was Berghof," Misch said pointing to a picture showing Hitler, surrounded by children and the Third Reich's chief architect, Albert Speer.
It was wonderful, like a holiday," he said with a smile. "The boss was very relaxed when he was there." Misch is the last living survivor of the final days of the bunker. Another survivor, Bernd von Freytag Loringhoven, died in February.
A burly man with silver hair, Misch has appeared in a number of documentary films about Hitler and the bunker. "I am the last living piece of history. It feels a bit strange," Misch said.
"No matter who wanted to see Hitler, no matter if it was (propaganda chief Joseph) Goebbels, (Luftwaffe head Hermann) Goering or anyone else, they had to get past me," said Misch. "Regardless of who called, I picked up the phone." The only soldier allowed to carry a weapon in the bunker, Misch joined the SS in 1937 aged 20 and was wounded in 1939 in Poland. He recovered and was reassigned to Hitler's chancellery.
He was captured after the war and spent nine years in Soviet prisons. Back home, he later started a house painting business. Misch rattles off the details of Hitler's move into the bunker with Eva Braun in January 1945 as the Red Army approached. Later, Hitler's close associates Martin Bormann and Goebbels, with his doomed wife and children, joined them.
Misch stayed in the bunker even after Hitler let others leave. He said it was his duty as a soldier. With the war clearly lost, Hitler killed himself on April 30, 1945.
"I was prepared for it and was just waiting for the moment," Misch said. "When the door opened I saw Eva (Braun) lying with her legs bent so that her knees almost reached her chin. I will never forget that." Later, Misch saw Hitler's corpse covered by blankets and with only his shoes protruding. "There was a complete silence," he said. "I went to the commander and said: "'The Fuehrer is dead'. My colleague then said 'Now the boss is to be burnt'."