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Ilse Braun (1909 - 1979) was one of the two sisters of Eva Braun. She became the sister-in-law of Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler following his marriage to Eva hours before they committed suicide together. Born in Munich Ilse was the oldest daughter of school teacher Friedrich "Fritz" Braun and Franziska "Fanny" Kronberger.

Ilse Braun had worked as an assistant for a Jewish otolaryngologist and surgeon Dr. Martin Levy Marx for 8 years until he emigrated to the USA in 1938. According to Dr. Marx she was also in love with him, and they relationship was not just professional.^[1]

Eva Braun overdosed Phanodorm (sleeping pills)^[2] on 28th May 1935 and tried to commit suicide^[3]. Next day in the early morning Ilse came back home after a dancing competition and found Eva unconscious. She called Dr. Marx and they saved Eva. Dr. Marx diagnosed "excessive fatigue" and did not mention suicide attempt in his report. Ilse removed some pages from Eva's diary (which was opened when Ilse found Eva) to protect her relationship with Hitler.^[4]

She had no involvement in politics and unlike Eva and her youngest sister Gretl she was not a member of Hitler's inner circle at the Berghof in Bavaria. She lived in the distant city of Breslau in Silesia and did not meet Hitler until 1939.^[5] As Soviet forces approached the city in January 1945 Ilse fled by train to Berlin where she was collected by car and driven to the Hotel Adlon where Eva was staying. Over dinner she told Eva about the refugees fleeing from the east and warned her that Hitler was dragging the country into an abyss, but her sister apparently did not appreciate that disaster was imminent.^[6]

Ilse loved to dance and even became one of the European amateur champions in ballroom dancing. She had many dancing partners and always tried to involve Eva in dancing.^[7]

Ilse married Mr. Hofstätter, a lawyer in 1938, they divorced in 1941; later she married and divorced another lawyer; both her husbands were much older than herself. She lived with her second husband in Heidelberg. Ilse Braun died of cancer in Munich in 1979. She is buried in Munich, next to her niece Eva Fegelein (daughter of Gretl Braun).^[8] She had no children.

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