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A monument no more

March 30, 2012

The tombstone denoting the grave of Alois and Klara Hitler, Adolf Hitler's parents, has been removed from a cemetery near Linz in Austria. The burial site had become a popular pilgrimage destination for the far right.

https://p.dw.com/p/14Vao
A photo taken in 2002 shows the headstone on the grave of Hitler's parents, Alois and Klara Hitler, at the cemetery in Leonding, Upper Austria.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa

The cemetery in Leonding in Austria is now missing its most notorious gravestone. Local pastor Kurt Pittertschatscher told local media on Friday that the tombstone marking the burial site of Alois and Klara Hitler - who both died in their son Adolf's teenage years - had been removed. Pittertschatscher also said that the grave could be reassigned.

The pastor read extracts of a statement from distant relatives of the family, who had asked that they remain anonymous.

"Caring for the grave is getting harder and harder. I am mindful that my ancestors' grave is repeatedly being misused for statements of solidarity. With all that in mind I have decided to waive the right to use [of the burial site]," the statement said.

The tombstone had become a popular destination for right-wing extremists sympathetic to the Nazi regime of Adolf Hitler, with a marked increase in such "pilgrimages" in recent years. Local mayor Walter Brunner also said that he was pleased with the decision.

Officials quietly removed the tombstone on Wednesday, first notifying the media late on Thursday. Pittertschatscher said that the remains of Alois and Klara had not been exhumed.

Hitler was born in 1889 in Branau am Inn, some 100 kilometers (60 miles) west of Leondig, but lived with his parents in Leonding for several years, starting when he was eight years old. His father Alois died in 1903, Klara in 1907.

msh/acb (AFP, dapd, dpa)