Hugo Jaeger (18 January 1900 – 1 January 1970) was the former personal photographer of

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

. He travelled with Hitler in the years leading up to and throughout World War II and took around 2,000 colour photographs of the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

dictator A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a small clique. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to rule the republic in tim ...

and various events connected with criminal policy of Nazi Germany during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, link ...

and the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

for example the invasion of Poland, Polish soldiers resting after the lost battle against Germans, destruction of Warsaw and persecution of Jews by the German Nazis in Kutno during the

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...

and infamous

Warsaw Ghetto The Warsaw Ghetto (german: Warschauer Ghetto, officially , "Jewish Residential District in Warsaw"; pl, getto warszawskie) was the largest of the Nazi ghettos during World War II and the Holocaust. It was established in November 1940 by the G ...

where people were just prisoners in the heart of the modern city during the Holocaust. Jaeger was one of the few photographers who were using color photography techniques at the time, especially

Agfacolor An Agfacolor slide dated 1937 from café in Oslo, Norway. An Agfacolor slide dated 1937 from Paris, France. An Agfacolor slide dated 1938 from Hungary. An Agfacolor slide dated 1938 from Zakopane in Poland. An Agfacolor slide dated 1938 fr ...

invented in 1936.

Early life

Hugo Jaeger was born on 18 January 1900.

Career

Jaeger began photographing Hitler in 1936 and was doing so until the Second World War ended in 1945. Jaeger also specialised in taking color photographs of the

Nazi propaganda The propaganda used by the German Nazi Party in the years leading up to and during Adolf Hitler's dictatorship of Germany from 1933 to 1945 was a crucial instrument for acquiring and maintaining power, and for the implementation of Nazi polici ...

spectacles, unlike Hitler's other personal photographer Heinrich Hoffmann. As the war was drawing to a close in 1945, Jaeger hid the photographs in a leather suitcase. He then encountered American soldiers prompting fears of potential arrest and prosecution for carrying around so many images of such a wanted man. When the soldiers opened the case however, their attention was distracted by a bottle of

cognac Cognac ( , also , ) is a variety of brandy named after the commune of Cognac, France. It is produced in the surrounding wine-growing region in the departments of Charente and Charente-Maritime. Cognac production falls under French appella ...

they found there, which they opened and shared with Jaeger. Jaeger buried the photographs inside 12 glass jars outside

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

. The photographer returned to the burial place over several years to ensure they were safe. He dug up all of the photographs ten years later in 1955, and stored them in a bank vault. In 1965, Jaeger sold them to ''

Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...

'' magazine.

Death and legacy

Jaeger died on 1 January 1970. Life.com published the photographs as the 65th anniversary of Normandy Landings, D-Day beckoned in June 2009. The website published the photographs in four separate galleries online. One photo showed Hitler saluting German troops in Adolf Hitler Platz on 1 September 1938. Another showed the Nazi leader attending a Christmas Party in 1941. Further photos show Hitler at the International Auto Exhibition held in Berlin in 1939 and Hitler on a cruise that same year.

References

External links

All the pictures taken by Hugo Jaeger
in Life (magazine), LIFE
Color photos from Poland during German occupation by Hugo Jaeger

Hitler, His Inner Circle and Assorted Hangers-On: Color Photos
in Life (magazine), LIFE
A Brutal Pageantry: The Third Reich’s Myth-Making Machinery, in Color
in Life (magazine), LIFE
Adoring Hitler: Color Photos of a Tyrant Among the Crowds
in Life (magazine), LIFE
Photos from a Nazi Christmas party
in Life (magazine), LIFE
Top 20 color photos of Hugo Jaeger
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jaeger, Hugo 1900 births 1970 deaths 20th-century German photographers Nazi propagandists