The Bizarre Story Of The Nazi Leader, Rudolf Hess

(Rudolf Hess on trial at the International Military Tribunal, Nuremberg, c. 1946, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

In 1920, Rudolf Hess (1894-1987) joined the Nazi Party of Germany and quickly became one of Adolf Hitler’s confidants. He participated in the failed Beer Hall Putsch in 1923, and in the resulting imprisonment of Nazi Party members thereafter, he helped record and edit Hitler’s infamous manifesto, Mein Kampf. When Hitler began to ascend to real power, Rudolf Hess immediately became a high-ranking Nazi officer. Yet, though Hess was in Hitler’s inner circle, his position was frustratingly static—other leaders such as Hermann Göring and Martin Bormann kept Hess from attaining any more influence.

By 1941, Rudolf Hess was desperate to gain Adolf Hitler’s attention. On May 10, 1941, Hess secretly took off from Berlin, Germany, in a Messerschmitt airplane, crossed the English Channel and parachuted into Scotland while his plane plummeted to the earth. After the rough landing, the locals found Hess and offered him tea. The next day, Rudolf Hess obtained an audience with the Duke of Hamilton, during which the Nazi renegade declared that he had come to Britain to negotiate a peace between the British and the German Empires—obviously, with terms favoring the Nazi regime. Instead of negotiating, the British arrested Hess, and, because the Nazi was there without orders from Hitler, any possible diplomatic immunities were declared void. Rudolf Hess spent the rest of WWII imprisoned in Britain.

The reasons as to why Hess flew to Britain remain enormously debated. The man’s own statements show that he obviously felt, at least at first, that he was fated to broker a peace between Germany and Britain, allowing the Reich to have its way in mainland Europe. One unproven theory claims that Britain may have sowed this idea in Hess’ mind in a scheme, the so-called Operation Mistletoe, convincing the man to fly to Britain to negotiate peace. Yet, no matter the cause, Rudolf Hess was arrested in Scotland, leaving the Allied Powers amused and Hitler furious.

(Rudolf Hess reading the book Jugend by Ernst Claes in Landsberg Prison, c. 1945, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

After Hess was arrested, a string of consistent, odd behaviors became apparent. He thought he was being poisoned with substances causing symptoms ranging from irritation to amnesia. He also was convinced that his prison clothing was at one time laced with a rash-inducing substance. Hess was so paranoid that he would sometimes refuse to eat, for fear of poison. Around 1946, when he was sentenced to life imprisonment during the Nuremberg Trials, he was still convinced that his food was poisoned—he even gave a sealed package of suspect prison rations to a prominent psychologist named Dr. Douglas Kelley. The packets of food, to this day, remain in Maryland along with other Nuremberg memorabilia that was collected by Dr. Kelley, who sadly committed suicide by cyanide in front of his family in 1958.

With the conclusion of the Nuremberg Trials, Rudolf Hess was imprisoned at Spandau in Berlin, where he would remain for the rest of his life. In August 1987, the ninety-three year old Nazi was mysteriously found hanged to death by an electrical cord or cable—the death was deemed a suicide. Rudolf Hess had, indeed, attempted (unsuccessfully) to take his life on multiple occasions during his long imprisonment. Yet, many observers remain convinced that Hess was murdered or assassinated, pointing out Hess’ elderly infirmities, as well as governments or politicians who may have wanted Hess silenced or given further punishment.

Written by C. Keith Hansley.

Sources:

• http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/will-we-ever-know-why-nazi-leader-rudolf-hess-flew-scotland-middle-world-war-ii-180959040/  
• http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/defence/9149066/Report-into-Rudolf-Hess-death-fails-to-answer-unexplained-questions-about-Nazi-prisoners-suicide.html 
• http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/adolf-hitlers-nazi-deputy-rudolf-hess-murdered-by-british-agents-to-stop-him-spilling-wartime-8802603.html  
• http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/rudolf-hess-tale-poison-paranoia-and-tragedy-180952783/
• https://www.britannica.com/biography/Rudolf-Hess  

The Harrowing D-Day Survival Story Of Harold “Hal” Baumgarten

(Troops in an LCVP landing craft approaching "Omaha" Beach on "D-Day", 6 June 1944, from the Army Signal Corps Collection, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

On June 6, 1944, a coalition of mainly British, Canadian and American forces launched their ambitious D-Day invasion. Allied infantry sailed to the beaches of Normandy (Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword) on fairly flimsy landing craft with Allied navy and the air support, which was often unreliable. It was a good day for the largest amphibious invasion in military history; Adolf Hitler overslept on that day, and General Erwin Rommel was away from Normandy, visiting his family in Germany. Ultimately, the invasion would prove to be a huge success, and become one of the key turning points of World War Two. Yet, the invasion was costly. An accepted statistic of casualties suffered by the Allied Powers resulting from the D-Day invasion is 10,000 dead, wounded or missing. The U. S. D-Day Memorial Foundation has identified 4,413 total deaths that resulted from the invasion, with 2, 499 of them being from the United States military.

The remarkable survival story of U. S. Private Harold “Hal” Baumgarten (1925-2016) demonstrated just how chaotic and violent the D-Day invasion was and vividly illustrated some of the dangers and obstacles the invasion force faced in Normandy. At just nineteen years old, Baumgarten would receive five major injuries—three on June 6 and two more on June 7. By the time D-Day was over, he and one other comrade would be the only survivors from their original thirty-person landing crew on Omaha Beach.

  (WWII- Europe- France; “Into the Jaws of Death — U.S. Troops wading through water and Nazi gunfire ”,Omaha Beach circa 1944-06-06, modified, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

Hal Baumgarten had paradoxical good and bad luck. On the one hand, he was exposed to (and hit by) numerous painful and deadly forces. Yet, he was fortunate to have survived all of the gruesome wounds he sustained. First, on June 6, German machine gun fire riddled his landing boat crew. Though many of his company were injured or killed by the incoming bullets, Baumgarten was saved by his rifle, which took the brunt of the impact. Baumgarten was alive and uninjured, but his gun was disabled—it actually snapped in two when he attempted to unjam the damaged weapon.

Next, an explosive shell hit near Private Baumgarten, shredding the left side of his face and blasting shrapnel through his jaw and teeth. Despite half of his face and mouth having been blasted thoroughly into a bloody mess, Baumgarten continued to fight. He kept calm and actually went to rescue an injured soldier. It was at this time, however, that he was once again hit by an explosive projectile. This time, it was a mortar shell. The shrapnel from the shell managed to puncture through Baumgarten’s helmet, causing even more damage to the Private’s already mangled head. Hal Baumgarten shrugged off the blast and succeeded in carrying the wounded soldier to safety.

The battered and bruised forces on Omaha Beach continued to press on, despite their wounds. Hal Baumgarten’s third major injury occurred when he stepped on what he called a “castrator mine.” The mine was designed to fire a projectile upward when triggered, usually hitting between the victim’s legs. Fortunately for Baumgarten, the mine’s projectile passed through his foot, and not his groin, resulting in an unsightly infection and the loss of a toe.

Despite his face being blasted apart and his foot ripped open, Hal Baumgarten continued to limp forward against the Germans. He suffered his fourth major injury under more heavy machine gun fire. Bullets ripped into Baumgarten’s face, blasting out even more teeth and jawbone, this time from the right side of his face. Finally, after having the left, right and top sections of his head hit by bullets or shrapnel—as well as stepping on a mine—Hal Baumgarten injected himself with a large dose of morphine and collapsed, resting among the dead and dying.

Soon, medics picked him up in a military ambulance that had managed to make its way to Omaha Beach. He got the attention of the medical crew by firing a few shots from a submachine gun he had scavenged from the nearby dead. The medics stopped and added him to their already-crowded ambulance. The Germans, however, were not done with Hal—a sniper fired shots at the medics and a bullet smashed into Baumgarten’s knee, resulting in his fifth major injury during the D-Day invasion.

Even though Baumgarten’s final wounds were sustained on June 7, he did not receive official hospital treatment until June 11, when he landed back in England. While in Britain, Baumgarten was—unsurprisingly—awarded the Purple Heart for the many injuries he experienced on behalf of the United States. From there, he began a long string of surgeries and plastic surgery to mend and reconstruct his head and leg. He went on to become a teacher and a doctor, and wrote of his WWII experience in his book, D-Day Survivor: An Autobiography. Finally, in 2015, Dr. Baumgarten received the Silver Service Medallion, which is awarded to veterans who served with distinction in WWII.

Written by C. Keith Hansley

Sources:

• http://www.ww2online.org/view/harold-baumgarten/segment-4  
• http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/03/world/europe/d-day-fast-facts/ 
• http://www.nww2m.com/2016/12/farewell-to-dr-harold-hal-baumgarten-d-day-survivor-and-friend-of-the-national-wwii-museum/  
• http://www.ddaymuseum.co.uk/d-day/d-day-and-the-battle-of-normandy-your-questions-answered

The Heart And Brain Of The WWII British Royal Air Force Fighters—Air Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding

(Photograph of Air Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding, circa 1935, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

One of the lesser-known heroes from World War Two is Sir Hugh Dowding. For much of the 1930s Dowding headed the research and development of the RAF. While he directed R&D, he backed the development of radar, and he also was involved in incorporating the Spitfire and Hurricane aircraft into RAF use.

Around 1937, Sir Hugh Dowding was appointed as head of Fighter Command. In this position, he strengthened the structure of the RAF and reworked British fighter strategy and doctrine.

By April 1940, when the Battle of Britain began, Dowding had been involved in developing, structuring and drilling doctrine into the RAF. Due to his mechanical and theoretical contributions to the Royal Air Force, Britain was well equipped to defend against the larger German Luftwaffe.

Written by C. Keith Hansley

Source:

• Warfare in the Western World: Military Operations Since 1871 by Robert A. Doughty and Ira D Gruber et al. Massachusetts: D. C. Heath and Company, 1996.

In WWII, The Allies Adopted Much Of Their Airborne Tactics From The German Capture of Crete

(Airplanes and parachutes above Crete, [German paratroopers from JU 52 cargoplanes]. Greece, Crete, 1941, [Public Domain] via Flickr)

In 1941, Germany set its sights on the strategically important island of Crete. Any country that controlled the airfields of Crete could send airplanes into Greece and the Balkans, and keep an eye on Turkey’s important city of Istanbul—a place that was filled with much international intrigue during the war.

To take Crete, the Germans would need to defeat the British and Greek troops that were defending the island. The task of the German forces would be even more arduous, however, because British intelligence had already warned the defenders of Crete that an attack was imminent. In response, the Allies readied their defense on the island’s coastline, waiting for the Germans to arrive.

Germany’s General Kurt Student led the planning for the attack on Crete. He decided to attack the island using a combined invasion force of Italy’s navy and the German Luftwaffe. The ultimate objective of his plan was to use airborne paratroopers to seize the airfields of Crete at Maleme, Rhethymnon and Herakleion, where more reinforcements could be flown in to secure control of the island.

When the plan was put into action, it did not go smoothly. The Italian Navy took a beating from the Britaish ships, and the German planes carrying paratroopers (and towing gliders) were also heavily damaged. Nevertheless, the Luftwaffe aircraft flew inland and dropped their paratroopers in range of the Allied airfields. While the Allied defenses were still focused on the coast, the German airborne infantry captured the airfield at Maleme. With an airfield secured, the Germans flew in reinforcements and weaponry, allowing them to take other parts of the island. Realizing that Crete was lost, the Allied defenders withdrew.

Even though the Allies lost the strategically important island of Crete, they gained something even more vital—a respect and understanding of the power and utility of airborne warfare.

Source:

• Warfare in the Western World: Military Operations Since 1871 (Volume II), edited by Robert A. Doughty and Ira D. Gruber et al. Massachusetts: D. C. Heath and Company, 1996.

The Nazi SS Ran Brothels Within The Concentration Camps During WWII

 (Photograph of Auschwitz, [Public Domain] via Pixabay)

The overseers of Nazi concentration camps orchestrated more than the systematic mass murder and medical experimentation on innocent civilians and prisoners. They also ran brothels that were forcibly worked by their woman prisoners.

Around 1942, Heinrich Himmler and the SS began to construct brothels in concentration camps to incentivize hard work from the prisoners who acted as informants and aided in the function of the camp. The first ‘special building’ was built in the Mauthausen concentration camp, but over the next years, at least nine more brothels were constructed in places such as Buchenwald, Dachau and Auschwitz. In these camps, prisoners who pleased the SS would receive vouchers that they could use at the brothels for a fifteen-minute session with a prostitute.

Some women supposedly joined the brothels willingly—for the prostitutes were well fed and housed—but if there were no volunteers, the wardens would seize women to fill the brothels by force. Jewish prisoners were forbidden from working in or visiting the brothel, but political prisoners, gypsies and other ‘anti-socials’ were allowed entrance.

Source:

• “Auschwitz: The Nazis and the ‘Final Solution,’” episode “Exploitation.” Documentary mini-series, 2005.  
• http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/concentration-camp-bordellos-the-main-thing-was-to-survive-at-all-a-632558.html 
• http://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-nazis-brothels-idUSTRE57G45X20090817 

Pope Pius XII, Though Previously Thought To Have Been Indifferent to Nazism, Encouraged Multiple Plots to Assassinate Hitler

(Portrait of Pope Venerable Pius XII, c. between 1938 and 1958, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

Pope Pius XII (1876-1958) became pope in in 1939, mere months before Hitler invaded Poland, starting World War II. He had a tense relationship with the fascist dictators of the Axis Powers and the government leaders of the Allies. Throughout the war, Pope Pius received requests from Jewish leaders and ambassadors of Allied countries to denounce the Nazi Party, and the systematic murders of millions of men, women and children. Nevertheless, for most of the war, Pope Pius XII refused to criticize Nazi Germany. When, by chance, he decided to voice any dissatisfaction with Hitler’s policies, he reduced his complaints to vague generalities about war and death, never mentioning the Jews.

Only after 1942 did Pope Pius XII begin to use his powerful diplomatic influence to save Jewish lives. When Germany sent its military to occupy Rome in 1943, thousands of Jews were hidden in Vatican buildings and its affiliate monasteries and convents. The pope, along with the Allied Powers and various other organizations and political leaders, were able to pressure Hungary into ending the deportation of its Jewish population to Germany in 1944. Pope Pius XII also convinced thirteen countries in South America to accept Jewish refugees and he aided thousands of Bulgarian Jews to reach what would soon become Israel. With all of these deeds, however, Pope Pius XII rarely, if ever, condemned Hitler in a verbal public speech or a published editorial.

Even though the pope did not openly refute or question Hitler, Pope Pius XII took a very different stance toward the leader of Nazi Germany from the shadowy realm of espionage and subterfuge. Before Germany invaded France, the pope encouraged a plot to assassinate the Nazi Führer, but before the conspirators could enact their plan, a separate assassin failed to kill Hitler. Security understandably tightened as a result of the attempt, and the conspirators working with the pope lost their nerve. Next, a man named Josef Müller, a member of the German resistance, made contact with Pope Pius XII and they began to conceive of another plot. This time they planned to blow up Adolph Hitler’s airplane. This assassination attempt also failed and the Gestapo arrested Josef Müller in 1943. The last assassination attempt Pope Pius gave his blessing to (but was not a participant of the conspiracy), was the Valkyrie plot spearheaded by Colonel Claus von Stauffenburg. The colonel planted a bomb in the same room as the Führer on July 20, 1944, but as always, Hitler stubbornly refused to die to any hand but his own. The Führer survived and Stauffenberg was executed the very next day.

Pope Pius XII remains a widely controversial person, and the debate on his deeds and misdeed will not end soon. Critics of the pope point out that he never challenged the Holocaust during WWII, and he only began aiding Jews once the war was nearing its end. On the other hand, Pope Pius was aware of, and sometimes involved in, multiple plots to assassinate Adolph Hitler spanning from 1939-1944, and he did, indeed, eventually help multiple thousands of Jews to escape the clutches of the Nazis. There is no simple answer on how to judge Pope Pius XII’s thoughts and actions.

Written by C. Keith Hansley.

Sources:

• “Pope Vs. Hitler,” directed by Christopher Cassel, 2016. 
• http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/pius.html  
• https://www.britannica.com/biography/Pius-XII