Registration at the Vienna police under the alias Fritz Walter led to a seven-day prison sentence for Reinhold Hanisch in August 1910. Born in 1884 in Mšeno nad Nisou, Hanisch operated as a laborer and painter, eventually becoming a witness to the early Vienna period of Adolf Hitler before his own death in 1937.
Early Life and Residence in Vienna
Hanisch descended from a family of low nobility that had fallen into poverty. Prior to arriving in Vienna in 1909, he served time in Berlin for theft in 1907 and 1908. While living in a Meidling homeless shelter, he met Hitler on 21 December 1909. The two moved to the Meldemannstraße men’s dormitory in 1910, establishing a partnership where Hanisch sold postcards and watercolors produced by Hitler, with the proceeds divided equally. Their relationship soured after Hitler accused Hanisch of embezzling the profits from a painting of the Vienna Parliament.
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Following the rift with Hitler, Hanisch began painting watercolors to secure income, acting as a direct competitor. He supplied works to figures such as the frame dealer Jakob Altenberg. After returning to Vienna from military service in 1918, he married Franziska Bisurek, though they later divorced in 1928. By 1930, he focused on creating watercolors that mimicked Hitler’s early style, including floral arrangements modeled after Olga Wisinger-Florian. He utilized Karl Leidenroth to authenticate these items as original works by Hitler, leading to legal troubles including a three-day jail sentence in 1932.
Public Witness and Final Arrest
After Hitler became Chancellor in 1933, Hanisch gained notoriety as a primary witness to the future leader's life in Vienna. Journalist Konrad Heiden paid him for information, and Hanisch frequently sold interviews to the international press. Despite this, his production of forgeries continued. Following a complaint filed by Franz Feiler at the instruction of Hitler, who had identified the forgeries, Hanisch faced further incarceration. Arrested again on 16 November 1936, he was convicted of fraud in December. He died in a Vienna detention center on 2 February 1937, officially of a heart attack.
Fast facts
- Born: 1884, Mšeno nad Nisou
- Died: 2 February 1937, Vienna
- Citizenship: Austria
- Occupation: Painter
- First meeting with Hitler: 21 December 1909
- Marriage date: 22 July 1918
- Divorce date: 17 April 1928
Questions readers ask
What did Hanisch claim about Hitler's time in Vienna?
He asserted that Hitler avoided manual labor, associated primarily with Jewish residents in the dormitory, and showed no signs of the ideology later expressed in Mein Kampf.
Why was Hanisch arrested in 1936?
He was arrested for producing fraudulent paintings which he marketed as original works by Adolf Hitler.