german firearms

PANZER · 11-14-2007, 08:23 AM

I am a non-fistion writer of WW II, Hitler and the Third Reich. Seeking authentic information for inclusion in a new book. Specifially side arms, Walther, Luger, Radom, etc.. Especially anything about Hitler's own presentation PPK. Thank you for any information provided.

Cyrano · 01-09-2008, 12:36 PM

The thing is, I can't remember if it was in Guns & Ammo (I think it was) or in The American Rifleman. You might try emailing them directly. Someone there will know the article and be able to refer you.

The pistol in question was a Walther PP, I believe. Gold plated with elaborate engraving in gold pm the slide, mother of pearl grip panels with "AH" inlaid in Gothic script letters about where the thumb rest would be on both sides. Absolutely pretty. I'm not certain, but it might be in the West Point museum; it was presented to the American officer who liberated the Walther plant in either Belgium or western Germany. Hitler never saw it, though it was intended for him.

However, Adolf Hitler did routinely carry pistols. He owned two that he carried regularly.

The one he carried all the time in a special holster inside the waistband of his trousers was a Walther PPK in 6.25mm (.25 ACP). After he returned to Berlin in January of 1945, he took to carrying a Walther PP in 7.65mm (.32 ACP) in his coat pocket. It was that 7.65 that Hitler used to kill himself with the "simultaneously bite a cyanide capsule and shoot your pistol into head" technique. (Source: The Bunker, by James P. O'Donnell, Houghton Mifflin, 1978; pages 230 and 231. The book is in my opinion the definitive account of the last four months of Hitler's life and the most detailed account of his death available.)

However, O'Donnell did not say what became of the suicide pistol or the routinely carried .25 ACP pistol after Hitler's death. Linge, Hitler's valet, remembered tidying up a vase of flowers that had been knocked over somehow and putting it back onto the table in front of the couch the couple killed themselves upon. O'Donnell specifically mentions that Hitler's .25 caliber daily carry gun had been set on that table and that the .32 suicide gun was found lying on the carpet by the end of the couch (information he presumably obtained from Linge, the first man into the room after the suicides). The fact the Walther was on the floor indicates that it was the cyanide that 'got' Hitler, not the pistol. In most cases of suicide by pistol, the body is found clutching the gun, whereas cyanide causes the suicide to go limp. Linge said nothing (or rather, O'Donnell made no mention if Linge did tell him) about the final disposition of the two pistols. One presumes they'd have been regarded as priceless Hitler relics by the bunker survivors.

I hope this is of some help to you.

11-14-2007, 08:23 AM	#1
PANZER Registered User Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 1	german firearms I am a non-fistion writer of WW II, Hitler and the Third Reich. Seeking authentic information for inclusion in a new book. Specifially side arms, Walther, Luger, Radom, etc.. Especially anything about Hitler's own presentation PPK. Thank you for any information provided.

01-09-2008, 12:36 PM	#2
Cyrano Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: New York Posts: 2,356	There was an article on a "Hitler Pistol" a few years ago The thing is, I can't remember if it was in Guns & Ammo (I think it was) or in The American Rifleman. You might try emailing them directly. Someone there will know the article and be able to refer you. The pistol in question was a Walther PP, I believe. Gold plated with elaborate engraving in gold pm the slide, mother of pearl grip panels with "AH" inlaid in Gothic script letters about where the thumb rest would be on both sides. Absolutely pretty. I'm not certain, but it might be in the West Point museum; it was presented to the American officer who liberated the Walther plant in either Belgium or western Germany. Hitler never saw it, though it was intended for him. However, Adolf Hitler did routinely carry pistols. He owned two that he carried regularly. The one he carried all the time in a special holster inside the waistband of his trousers was a Walther PPK in 6.25mm (.25 ACP). After he returned to Berlin in January of 1945, he took to carrying a Walther PP in 7.65mm (.32 ACP) in his coat pocket. It was that 7.65 that Hitler used to kill himself with the "simultaneously bite a cyanide capsule and shoot your pistol into head" technique. (Source: The Bunker, by James P. O'Donnell, Houghton Mifflin, 1978; pages 230 and 231. The book is in my opinion the definitive account of the last four months of Hitler's life and the most detailed account of his death available.) However, O'Donnell did not say what became of the suicide pistol or the routinely carried .25 ACP pistol after Hitler's death. Linge, Hitler's valet, remembered tidying up a vase of flowers that had been knocked over somehow and putting it back onto the table in front of the couch the couple killed themselves upon. O'Donnell specifically mentions that Hitler's .25 caliber daily carry gun had been set on that table and that the .32 suicide gun was found lying on the carpet by the end of the couch (information he presumably obtained from Linge, the first man into the room after the suicides). The fact the Walther was on the floor indicates that it was the cyanide that 'got' Hitler, not the pistol. In most cases of suicide by pistol, the body is found clutching the gun, whereas cyanide causes the suicide to go limp. Linge said nothing (or rather, O'Donnell made no mention if Linge did tell him) about the final disposition of the two pistols. One presumes they'd have been regarded as priceless Hitler relics by the bunker survivors. I hope this is of some help to you.