Ribbentrop used the Nuremberg Rally of 1936 to invite a great number of British pro-Germans and those who were lukewarm. They would include Admiral Domvile. They were lavishly treated and installed in luxury accommodation and driven everywhere by a Storm-trooper chauffeur. Despite all this Ribbentrop knew he had not won the Foreign Office and realised that he would have grave problems in winning over the Government because of the British diplomats. He knew he needed to win over prominent establishment figures to persuade them. As he headed to Britain to take up the role of Ambassador in a pro-German atmosphere, this was his challenge. To assist him he sent ahead a delegation of German ex-servicemen led by Queen Victoria’s grandson the Duke of Sax Coburg and Gotha, an extreme Nazi supporter. This manipulation of an honourable British Legion was typical of his strategies.
In understanding the pro-German forces in Britain, we also have to consider other events surrounding 1936. Hitler had made accord with Austria, in many minds, strengthening his peace credentials. In Spain the rise of Republicanism and Communist influence was concerning the British Government. The revolt of the Nationalists in Spain caused a dilemma in Britain. To support the Republican side would be seen as a support of Communism. To support the Nationalists would be to support a fascist regime. Germany and Italy declared support and sent resources to the Nationalists whilst Russia sent resources to the Republicans. France was concerned at a Nationalist victory as it would mean they faced a trio of fascist forces around them. Britain decided on very strong neutrality on the issue and banned military supplies. It even made it a criminal offence for British citizens to join the conflict. Over 4000 defied that step and went to Spain to fight. People in Britain held different views but in the main there was little shift in anti-French attitudes nor in pro-German support. The British fascists of course were vocal in support of the Nationalists, hoping for a fascist Government to join Italy and Germany in the international pantheon, which they sincerely hoped Britain would one day join. Indeed the publications from the pro-German side of the argument were calling for an alliance between Germany, Italy and Britain against the Bolshevik threat of Russia.
Britain entered a crisis towards the end of 1936 when Edward VIII abdicated. As Prince of Wales he had, as we have seen, appeared to be pro-German and favourable towards Hitler. Ribbentrop had hoped that as pro-German feeling increased, the Prince, now King may work favourably for alliance between Germany and Britain. Indeed, in his memoirs Ribbentrop bemoaned the abdication as a lost opportunity for the Anglo/German cause. Guy Liddell notes in his diary for August 24 1945, that microfilm recovered from the German Foreign offices, after the war, confirm Ribbentrop had also suggested that the Duke was not averse to being restored to the throne, believing that if he were still king, the war would never have happened. The secret files that Liddell said were recovered also show that Charles Bedaux, who advised the Duke, was involved in the matter.
Anti-Semitism in Germany had now been sent to the back of the minds of the British people. Germany’s treatment of the Church in Germany and the arrests of over 700 Protestant pastors and the establishment of a state-controlled Church, did not seem to affect the attitudes of Britain in any substantial way. Reports in Britain of talk within Germany of its intentions to re-take the former German Colonies and a reported speech by Hitler in January 1937 caused no real waves of concern among the British people. It seemed that Germany had succeeded in lulling public opinion into an acceptance that German affairs were a matter for Germany. This is not to say there were no voices of dissent raised, but in general these did not seem to have any great influence and were confined to churchmen. 1937 saw the tension of this pro-German feeling and that of a sense of threat by a more strident and growing Germany. The announcement by the self-exiled Duke of Windsor and his new wife that he would be visiting Germany, caused consternation in the Foreign Office and Secret Service. Although he had stated that the visit was one of social concern, he cannot have been so naïve as not to realise the significance of an ex-king of Britain visiting Germany, during a time of high anxiety in Europe. The images of him meeting Nazi leaders, Hitler, Goering, Hess, Goebbels and Himmler and reviewing Nazi Storm Troops would make chilling viewing. However, the coverage in Britain was not given the greatest prominence and whilst there was some strong reaction in some quarters, in general the matter soon passed. However, as usual the fascist pro-German population welcomed the visit as ‘an endorsement’ of their support for Germany and the Nazi regime. In hindsight, the visit may have been a mixture of the Duke wanting to exercise his freedom of political thought, just as he had done in his marriage. It is also true he was given bad advice from those around him, especially Charles Bedaux, his host in Austria. Bedaux was a Frenchman who made every effort to befriend British Royalty and prominent Nazis. He had taken American citizenship in 1906 and his business enterprises made him a millionaire. He actively worked for the Nazis in France and abroad. The Duke of Windsor was married at his home in Paris and he arranged their honeymoon in Germany, where they met Hitler.
The elevation of Neville Chamberlain to Prime Minister in 1937 was preceded by the dispatch to Berlin of Sir Nevile Henderson as ambassador to Germany. Henderson was seen as sympathetic to Germany and as an appeaser of Hitler. This is reflected in his cable in February 1939, ‘If we handle him [Hitler] right, my belief is that he will become gradually more pacific. But if we treat him as a pariah or mad dog we shall turn him finally and irrevocably into one.’ A speech Henderson gave to the Deutsch-Englische Gesellschaft in Berlin was designed by him to provoke a response in Britain. In it he praised Germany and described ‘German philosophy and ideals’ as the ‘noblest in the world’. He stated that both Germany and Britain misunderstood each other but that there should be ‘goodwill and peaceful cooperation’ between them. Back home, there was outrage by some and congratulations by others in response to the speech. The Foreign Office did not accept the tone of the speech as it trod the difficult path between German, Italian and French relationships. Chamberlain himself was more inclined to Henderson’s line as he had already told him to seek cooperation with Germany. Cabinet papers show Chamberlain argued for this with his Cabinet and in dealing with the Italian problem it was best to ‘cultivate better relations with Germany’. There is no doubt that in defiance of the Versailles Treaty, the German navy was expanded and an air-force developed. There was a growing mood of concern in Britain and because of a reluctant official stance to make friendly alliances with Germany and she grew more distant in the Anglo/German relationship.
In March of 1938, Hitler’s troops entered Austria and brought it into the Anschluss, the Nazi propaganda term for the invasion and forced incorporation of Austria to Nazi Germany, breaking the Versailles Treaty and without any interference from the allies. Opinion in Britain was divided and a dilemma posed for pro-Germans. The more extreme Fascists such as Lord Redesdale declared that the whole world owed Germany a ‘debt of gratitude’ for their action in Austria. Concern about another European war was growing. The rising tensions about Czechoslovakia and its German speaking population filled the British press. The threat of a German invasion was real, as was the clamour for Britain to stay out of it. Chamberlain brought Britain, France and Italy into an agreement to seek a resolution with Hitler which resulted in the Munich Agreement in September 1938. This laid Czechoslovakia, against her will, on the altar as a sacrifice for no war in Europe. Many politicians in Britain opposed the appeasement believing, rightly as it transpired, Hitler could not be trusted. The pro-Germans and Fascists, who remained solidly behind Germany, were certain that appeasement was the correct path. After the war, the truth would emerge that Hitler had been planning war on Czechoslovakia even as he talked with Chamberlain.
Chamberlain returned to England assuring the nation that there would be ‘peace for our time’, convinced that there would be no war and that Hitler would not make any further moves into other territory. He would be disappointed – further expansion into Czechoslovakia ensu
ed. Germany also began to demonstrate that its anti-Jewish policy had not gone away.
Reinhard Heydrich, second-in-command of the SS, expelled about 17,000 Jews of Polish origin, including over 2,000 children, on October 27 1938. This would have most tragic repercussions. Among the Jews expelled were the Grynszpan family from Hanover. The son of this family was Herschel, an orthodox Jew. He had gone to live in Paris and was angered by the treatment of the Jews of Poland, including his own family. On 7 November, he purchased a gun and went to the German Embassy in Paris and shot the Secretary of Legation, Ernst von Rath.
Von Rath would die from his injuries on 9 November. Goebbels saw an opportunity to incite the German people to ‘rise in bloody vengeance against the Jews’. From 9-10 November 1938, Kristallnacht showed the ugly face of Nazism using the excuse of the Paris death for the continued persecution of Jews. Jewish homes, hospitals, synagogues and schools were attacked and destroyed and over 100 Jews killed. That number excludes those who had ‘disappeared’ and were tortured and murdered in subsequent days. 25,000 Jewish men were taken and sent to Dachau, Buchenwald and Sachsenhausen concentration camps; many of them were tortured and killed by the SS.
The headlines in British newspapers carried the news of this terror against the Jews.
‘GERMANY’S DAY OF WRECKING AND LOOTING
Gangs unhampered by the police
SYNAGOGUES BURNED DOWN IN MANY CITIES’
Manchester Guardian 11 November 1938
‘THE ANTI-JEWISH OUTRAGES IN GERMANY
Whole Jewish Population Taken Away’
Manchester Guardian 12 November 1938
‘Pogrom goes on till night LOOTING MOBS DEFY GOEBBELS Jewish homes fired, women beaten’
Daily Express 11 November 1938
This headline is interesting, as Goebbels did broadcast on German radio calling for the looting to stop, but this was a sham as he had personally given instructions to a gathering of SS units to carry out the pogrom. A Times reporter on 15 November summed up the situation, ‘the condition of the Jews here is one of misery, terror and despair’. It appears that Lord Mount Temple’s eyes were finally opened and he resigned from the AGF. What is perhaps telling is that only 20 out of the 900 AGF members joined his protest. The effect of this coverage was a hardening of opinion against Germany in the wider British population and either a turning of a blind eye or outright justification for the action by the far right in Britain.
Cola.Ernest Carroll was one such pro-Nazi to do so. He was an Australian who had served in the Great War. Although badly injured and left with some disability, he joined the Royal Flying Corp and was shot down and captured. Escaping from captivity, he returned to London. In an article in the Anglo-German Review, (This was the newspaper of the Link founded in 1937 as an organisation designed to promote good relationships with Germany, that Domvile would co-found), Carroll compared the violence in Germany to an attack on the pro-Nazi Unity Mitford in Hyde Park, by a crowd who objected to her wearing a Nazi badge. She was the obsessed with Adolf Hitler writing after she had met him for the first time that ‘she would now be happy to die’. Mitford was only slightly hurt and was sent home on a bus by the police. Carroll wrote, ‘Must one be a German Jew to get sympathy today?’ Domvile, for the Link, issued a statement which deplored ‘the recent embitterment of the Jewish question in Germany ... we realise with grief the violent revulsion of feeling caused in this country’. The statement went on to encourage the continued friendship with Germany where ‘a kindlier spirit’ would prevail. No outright or direct condemnation was given and what is notable is that the Link membership increased following that period.
As 1939 moved on it was clear that British public opinion in the main was concerned about Germany and the possibility of war. The only real public enthusiasts left for Germany were the BUF and the Link. The extreme far right men like Ramsay and Mosley tried to resurrect the conspiracy theories based on the Protocols, but it was now becoming increasingly difficult to drum up support for Germany.
Many in Britain had been angered by Chamberlain’s approach to Hitler, calling his actions appeasement. However, there were some, as we have seen, who wholeheartedly agreed with Chamberlain and wanted to be identified with him. A growing minority of the population embraced the ideas and beliefs of Hitler and turned them into their own versions of political thought. These were the Fascists who would seek to bring to England an undemocratic corporatist government. They hoped that such a government would impose many of the principles of Hitler, particularly his anti-Semitic ideas of a Jew-free and white population.
On 23 August 1939, Germany and Russia signed a non-aggression treaty. Germany was preparing for further aggression in another direction and on 1 September 1939 invaded Poland, breaking its promises to Britain and France. By 3 September, Hitler had ignored all warnings and Britain with France declared war on Germany. The world was at war.
Admiral Sir Barry Edward Domvile, passionate about the rightness of the Munich Agreement, was a disappointed man on the outbreak of war. Since the founding of the Link he had been accused of aligning with the enemies of his country and plotting a fascist revolution in Britain. The admiral continued to sail into a clash with the state and was shipwrecked on rocks of his own making. It is that voyage we now turn to.
Chapter 3
Admiral Sir Barry Edward Domvile
In 1878, at the Royal Navy College Greenwich, Admiral Sir Compton Domvile, GCB, became the proud father of a son and named him Barry Edward. The admiral had the sea in his blood and had served his country with distinction. The young Barry was to follow in his father’s footsteps. On 15 July 1892, at fourteen years of age, he entered the Royal Naval College to join HMS Britannia. From 1894 to 1897 he served as a midshipman, under sail, and on the emerging steam ships of the Royal Navy. In 1898, the young midshipman had proved himself and was promoted to sub-lieutenant. It was by special promotion in the same year he rose to lieutenant. His success in the Navigation and Pilotage for the rank of lieutenant, earned him the Beaufort Testimonial, which was founded in 1880 to commemorate the service of Rear-Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort. K.C.B., who filled the post of Hydrographer of the Navy from 1829 to 1855, consists of a prize of instruments or books of a professional character and of practical use to a Naval Officer. It is bestowed annually on the Midshipman who passes the best examination in Navigation and Pilotage for the rank of Lieutenant in the Royal Navy.
He also took the Ryder Prize for his French examinations. The Ryder Memorial Fund-founded in memory of Admiral of the Fleet, Sir Alfred Phillipps Ryder, K.C.B., and was awarded to the Sub-Lieutenant who takes the first place at the examination in French at the Royal Naval College. The prize consists of a book or books selected by the recipient with the approval of the President, Royal Naval College, Greenwich.
There is no doubt this young man was proving an able member of the Royal Navy, despite what he would later suggest was a Masonic plot against him. In 1906, a further commendation of his efforts came in the form of the prestigious Gold Medal of the Royal United Service Institution. From 1910 to 1911, Domvile commanded destroyers. His career moved forward and with the threat of war, he was appointed the Secretary to the Committee of Imperial Defence.
When war did come, he commanded the ships, Miranda, Tipperary, Lightfoot, Arethusa, Carysfort, Centaur and Curacao, bravely serving his country. For part of that time he served as Flag Captain to Admiral Sir Reginald Tyrwhitt. It was in February 1916 that he married his cousin Alexandrine von de Heydt. Through her mother, Alexandrine was the great granddaughter of Sir Robert Peel. Barry’s mother was also from the Peel line. Alexandrine was the daughter of a German Baron Daniel Von De Heydt, a banker and later a director of a German company. The Von De Heydt bank was liquidated by the British Government in 1917. At the time of the marriage, the SIS noted the union of an active high ranking officer in the Royal Navy and a woman, the daughter of a German, whose country was then at war with England. No action was taken. The marriag
e would produce three children, Barry, Compton and Miranda.
Also in 1917, Barry Domvile became a Companion of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George. After the war, he became the Assistant Director and later Director of the Plans Policy Division of the Admiralty Naval Staff. This led him to represent his country at many conferences which took him to Brussels, Spa, Paris, San Remo, and Washington. In 1922, he became the Chief of Staff to Sir Osmond Brock, with the Mediterranean Fleet. He also joined the venerable ranks of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath. From 1925 to 1926 he commanded the Royal Sovereign. From 1927 to 1930, he progressed to the rank of Rear-Admiral, holding the post of Director of Naval Intelligence. This post brought him into an important position of trust and gave him access to highly sensitive information. It would later become a matter of concern for the Admiralty. From 1930 to 1931, he took command of the Third Cruiser Squadron of the Mediterranean Fleet, rising to Vice-Admiral. He was President of the Royal Naval College from 1932 to 1934, also holding the post of Vice-Admiral Commanding the War College. In 1934, King George V made him a Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire.
Domvile cut a dashing figure as a man of the sea. His career and his moving within the higher circles of society brought him into contact with many of the leading ladies of that set. It was rumoured that the Admiral was not averse to coming under the spell of some of them. Ever the gentleman, the Admiral was always discreet and his good lady wife, given the affectionate nickname, ‘Pudd’ by Domvile, ever tolerant. His retirement from the Royal Navy as Admiral came in 1936.
Hitler's Munich Man Page 4