I need to know where Hess's father was BORN. I know that Rudolf was
born to a German resident in Alexandria,, and that he studied in the
Bavarian Palatinate, before joining the Bavarian army in WW1, but was
he Bavarian by heritage ? Where did his father originate from ? I will
need place of birth and pre-1866 German state for a full answer.
Thanks

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Request for Question Clarification by markj-ga on 08 Sep 2003 16:09 PDT

wolvies --

I have found only one online source with information that is
sufficiently detailed to give you something close to what you are
looking for.  That source is a 1998 reference book intended for a
teenage audience that is cited in a research database offered by my
local public library.  In its biographical entry on Hess it indicates
that his grandfather "came from Bavaria," started the family business
in Egypt and passed it on to his son (Hess's father), who had become
wealthy by the time Hess was born.

The cited source also includes a "further reading" list that includes
a biography of Hess that is readily available from used-book sellers,
but which is not in my local library system.  That book may cite
primary sources for the information you want.

I have found nothing contradictory in the much more general passing
references to Hess's father found in other sources, but on the other
hand I have not been able to corroborate the Bavarian connection
either.

If this information with its single reputable source would be
sufficient for your purposes, I would be happy to post it as an
answer.  Otherwise, I hope that another researcher can nail this down
more securely for you.

markj-ga

Dear wolvies-ga;

Thank you for allowing me an opportunity to answer your interesting
question.

There does indeed appear to be a Bavarian lineage with regard to
Rudolph Hess and these, as you will see, (particularly in the last
instance) come from the most reliable of sources:

“Rudolph Hess was born in Egypt in 1896, the son of a rich exporter
and wholesaler from Bavaria who moved to Alexandria. When Rudolf was
fourteen he was sent back to Germany to attend school.”
THE SWASTIKA AND THE NAZIS
“PART 4: THE HESS CONNECTION”
http://www.intelinet.org/swastika/swasti04.htm

I also found this post in which a researcher is helping locate the
family history of someone’s grandmother, Anna Bohrer (nee; Hess), who
was Rudolph Hess’ aunt (the sister of his father, Friedrich “Fritz”
Hess). In the post, the researcher quotes an excerpt from the book
“DER FUEHRER”, by Konrad Heiden (published in 1944 by Houghton-Mifflin
Company, Boston, MA) which appears to provide some of the information
you are after:

“Rudolph Hess, born 26 April 1896 in Alexandria, Egypt as a son to
Friedrich Hess, a wholesaler and exporter. Though in Egypt, Friedrich
Hess was a German citizen from Wunsiedel in northern Bavaria.”
ROOTSWEB
http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/GEN-DE/1997-02/0855257476

Finally as per your request for information pertaining to Hess’ father
and the pre-1866 German region he hailed from comes this, from none
other than the most reliable source obtainable, Wolf Rüdiger Hess
himself, the son of Rudolph Hess, in his widely publicized article
entitled “THE LIFE AND DEATH OF MY FATHER, RUDOLF HESS”, the research
is confirmed:

“My father was born in Alexandria, Egypt, on April 26, 1894, the first
son of Fritz Hess, a respected and well-to-do merchant. The Hess
family personified the prosperity, standing and self-assurance of the
German Reich of that period. They also personified all those things
that aroused envy, fear and a combative spirit on the part of Britain
and other great powers.

Fritz Hess owned an imposing house with a beautiful garden on the
Mediterranean coast. His family, which came from Wunsiedel in the
Fichtelgebirge region of Germany, owned another house in
Reicholdsgrün, in Bavaria, where they regularly spent their summer
holidays. The source of this wealth was a trading firm, Hess & Co.,
that Fritz Hess had inherited from his father, and which he managed
with considerable success.”

“THE LIFE AND DEATH OF MY FATHER, RUDOLF HESS”
http://www.ihr.org/jhr/v13/v13n1p24_Hess.html

The Hess family did reside in Reicholdsgrün, in Bavaria and obviously
had close ties there in terms of heritage, but the family, and this
presumably includes “Fritz” Hess, Rudolph Hess’ father, originated
from Wunsiedel in the Fichtelgebirge region of Germany according to
Hess’ son Wolf Rüdiger Hess.

Below you will find that I have carefully defined my search strategy
for you in the event that you need to search for more information. By
following the same type of searches that I did you may be able to
enhance the research I have provided even further. I hope you find
that that my research exceeds your expectations. If you have any
questions about my research please post a clarification request prior
to rating the answer. Otherwise, I welcome your rating and your final
comments and I look forward to working with you again in the near
future. Thank you for bringing your question to us.

Best regards;
Tutuzdad-ga


INFORMATION SOURCES

THE SWASTIKA AND THE NAZIS
“PART 4: THE HESS CONNECTION”
http://www.intelinet.org/swastika/swasti04.htm

ROOTSWEB
http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/GEN-DE/1997-02/0855257476

“THE LIFE AND DEATH OF MY FATHER, RUDOLF HESS”
http://www.ihr.org/jhr/v13/v13n1p24_Hess.html

AMAZON.COM
“FUHRER”, by Conrad Heiden
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0785815511/qid=1063072392/sr=8-3/ref=sr_8_3/102-8237573-7908142?v=glance&s=books&n=507846


SEARCH STRATEGY


SEARCH ENGINE USED:

Google ://www.google.com


SEARCH TERMS USED:

Each used with search terms RUDOLPH HESS and RUDOLPH HEß

FATHER

EGYPT

BORN

WUNSIEDEL BAVARIA

REICHOLDSGRÜN

FICHTELGEBIRGE

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Clarification of Answer by tutuzdad-ga on 09 Sep 2003 07:05 PDT

Thank you for your generosity. Your assumption is correct. To put in
into perspective, here is a list of localities within "Fichtelgebirge,
Bavaria, Germany" area:

Locality Regional Search - Fichtelgebirge, Bavaria, Germany
http://www.mindat.org/lsearch.php?tloc=Fichtelgebirge,%20Bavaria,%20Germany

Regards;
tutuzdad-ga

Thank you ! I think that answers my question perfectly. I am assuming
that FICHTELGEBIRGE is also in Bavaria. Cheers :)