Blondi was Adolf Hitler

Adolf Hitler

Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...

's German Shepherd dog, given to him as a gift in 1941 by Martin Bormann

Martin Bormann

Martin Ludwig Bormann was a prominent Nazi official. He became head of the Party Chancellery and private secretary to Adolf Hitler...

. Blondi stayed with Hitler even after his move into the Führerbunker

Führerbunker

The Führerbunker was located beneath Hitler's New Reich Chancellery in Berlin, Germany. It was part of a subterranean bunker complex which was constructed in two major phases, one part in 1936 and the other in 1943...

 located underneath the garden of the Reich Chancellery

Reich Chancellery

The Reich Chancellery was the traditional name of the office of the Chancellor of Germany in the period of the German Reich from 1871 to 1945...

 on January 16, 1945. In March or in early April (likely 4 April) 1945, she had a litter of five puppies with Gerdy Troost

Paul Troost

Paul Ludwig Troost , born in Elberfeld, was a German architect. An extremely tall, spare-looking, reserved Westphalian with a close-shaven head, Troost belonged to a school of architects, Peter Behrens and Walter Gropius who, even before 1914, reacted sharply against the highly ornamental...

's German Shepherd, Harras. Hitler named one of the puppies "Wolf", his favorite nickname and the meaning of his own first name, Adolf (Noble wolf) and he began to train her. One of Blondi's puppies was reserved for Eva Braun

Eva Braun

Eva Anna Paula Hitler was the longtime companion of Adolf Hitler and, for less than 40 hours, his wife. Braun met Hitler in Munich, when she was 17 years old, while working as an assistant and model for his personal photographer and began seeing him often about two years later...

's sister Gretl

Gretl Braun

Margarete “Gretl” Braun was one of the two sisters of Eva Braun. She was a member of the inner social circle of Adolf Hitler at the Berghof and became the sister-in-law of the Nazi dictator following his marriage to Eva hours before they committed suicide together.-Early life:Born in Munich,...

, and Eva sent Gretl a letter containing a photo of Blondi and three of her puppies, Gretl's being indicated with an arrow.

Hitler was reportedly very fond of Blondi, keeping her by his side and allowing her to sleep in his bedroom in the bunker. This affection was not shared by Eva Braun, Hitler's mistress (and later his wife), who preferred her two Scottish Terrier

Scottish Terrier

The Scottish Terrier , popularly called the Scottie, is a breed of dog. Initially one of the highland breeds of Terrier that were grouped under the name of Skye Terrier, it is one of five breeds of terrier that originated in Scotland, the other four being the modern Skye, Cairn, Dandie Dinmont, and...

 dogs named Negus and Stasi (or Katuschka). According to Hitler's secretary (Traudl Junge

Traudl Junge

Traudl Junge was Adolf Hitler's youngest personal private secretary, from December 1942 to April 1945.-Early life:...

), Eva hated Blondi and was known to kick her under the dining table.

In May 1942 Hitler bought another young German Shepherd "from a minor official in the post office in Ingolstadt

Ingolstadt

Ingolstadt is a city in the Free State of Bavaria, in the Federal Republic of Germany. It is located along the banks of the Danube River, in the center of Bavaria. As at 31 March 2011, Ingolstadt had 125.407 residents...

" to keep Blondi company. He called her Bella.

During his military service in World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 Hitler had great affection for a stray white Bull Terrier

Bull Terrier

The Bull Terrier or English Bull Terrier is a breed of dog in the terrier family. They are known for their large, egg-shaped head, small triangular eyes, and "jaunty gait." Their temperament has been described as generally fun-loving, active and clownish...

 named "Fuchsl" and was distraught when he lost him. He had been given a German Shepherd before named "Prinz" in 1921, during his years of poverty, but he had been forced to lodge the dog elsewhere. However, she managed to escape and return to him. Hitler, who adored the loyalty and obedience of the dog, thereafter developed a great liking for the breed. He also owned a German Shepherd called "Muckl".

Before Blondi, Hitler had two German Shepherd dogs, a mother [born 1926] and daughter [born ca. 1930] - both named Blonda. In some photos taken during the 1930s the younger Blonda is incorrectly labeled as Blondi (in most cases photograph descriptions were written later).

Blondi played a role in Nazi propaganda

Propaganda

Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....

, of which portraying Hitler as an animal lover was an important aspect. Dogs like Blondi were coveted as "germanischer Urhund", being close to the wolf, and grew very fashionable during the Third Reich.

Death

During the course of April 29, 1945, Hitler learned of the death of his ally Benito Mussolini

Benito Mussolini

Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....

 who had been executed by Italian partisans. This along with the fact the Soviet Army was closing in on his location, led Hitler to strengthen his resolve not to allow himself or his wife to be captured. That afternoon, Hitler expressed doubts about the cyanide capsules he had received through Heinrich Himmler

Heinrich Himmler

Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...

's SS. To verify the capsules' potency, Hitler ordered Dr. Werner Haase

Werner Haase

Werner Haase was an SS Obersturmbannführer , professor of medicine and one of Adolf Hitler's personal physicians.-Biography:...

 to test them on his dog Blondi, and the dog died as a result. Hitler became completely inconsolable.

According to a report commissioned by Joseph Stalin

Joseph Stalin

Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...

 and based on eye witness accounts, Hitler's dog-handler, Feldwebel

Feldwebel

Feldwebel is a German military rank which has existed since at least the 18th century with usage as a title dating to the Middle Ages. The word Feldwebel is usually translated as sergeant being rated OR-6 in the NATO rank comparison scale, equivalent to the British Army Sergeant and the US Army...

Fritz Tornow

Fritz Tornow

Fritz Tornow was a Feldwebel in the German Army who served as Adolf Hitler's personal dog assistant and veterinarian. He was also one of the last personnel to occupy the Führerbunker when it was captured by Soviet troops.-Biography:...

, took Blondi's pups and shot them in the garden of the bunker complex on April 30, after Hitler and Eva Braun committed suicide. He also killed Eva Braun's two dogs, Frau Gerda Christian

Gerda Christian

Gerda "Dara" Christian née Daranowski was one of Adolf Hitler's private secretaries during World War II.-Biography:...

's dogs and his own dachshund

Dachshund

The dachshund is a short-legged, long-bodied dog breed belonging to the hound family. The standard size dachshund was bred to scent, chase, and flush out badgers and other burrow-dwelling animals, while the miniature dachshund was developed to hunt smaller prey such as rabbits...

. Tornow was later captured by the Allies. Hitler's nurse, Erna Flegel

Erna Flegel

Erna Flegel , born in Kiel in 1911, was a German nurse.From January 1943 until the end of World War II, Flegel served in that capacity for Hitler's entourage and during the Battle of Berlin. She is believed to have been in Hitler's bunker when he committed suicide. She had originally worked...

, said in 2005 that Blondi's death had affected the people in the bunker more than Eva Braun's suicide. After the battle in Berlin

Battle in Berlin

The Battle in Berlin was an end phase of the Battle of Berlin. While the Battle of Berlin encompassed the attack by three Soviet Army Groups to capture not only Berlin but the territory of Germany east of the River Elbe still under German control, the Battle in Berlin details the fighting, and...

 ended, the remains of Hitler, Braun, and two dogs (thought to be Blondi and her offspring Wolf) were discovered in a shell crater by a unit of SMERSH

SMERSH

SMERSH was the counter-intelligence agency in the Red Army formed in late 1942 or even earlier, but officially founded on April 14, 1943. The name SMERSH was coined by Joseph Stalin...

, the Soviet counter-intelligence agency. The dog (thought to be Blondi) was exhumed and photographed by the Soviets.