In 1937, he notes with joy the joining of the Link by ‘Baroness Van der Cotton’ along with a number of failed meetings with ‘Karlowa and Carroll’. His entries for this year also show a knowledge that people joining the Link had direct connections with BUF. In December 1937, he mentions Sir Charles Raymond Beazley becoming involved with the Birmingham branch of the Link. One other case he records in the same month is that of Eric Whittleton who, as we have seen, agreed to organise the Acton branch. These were the sort of connections that caused the Security Forces to suspect that Domvile was involved in a Fascist plot to overthrow the British government. Throughout December, Domvile’s entries show him meeting Arthur Chesterton, Gordon-Canning, Peter Eckersley and Walter Hewel among others. These were all very active pro-Nazis and anti-Semites. Frequent meetings with C.E. Carroll and Professor Laurie figure regularly.
In an entry for 7 January 1938, Domvile writes ‘Pothecary of B U wants to organise an area for Link in S W Suburbs’, indicating again that Domvile was very aware that the Fascists were becoming involved in his organisation. On the 27th of the same month he writes of Laurie speaking at a meeting. He adds ‘Lady S very pessimistic about Halifax’s visit to Hitler’ and reveals his anti-Semitic views, ‘I suspect more Jewish wickedness’ believing in a ‘whispering campaign’. Domvile’s egotism regularly surfaces in his diary and February 1938 sees him boasting of success at a Chatham House lecture.
From 6 to 11 February, entries show that Heinrich Hoffman visited Domvile. As already indicated, he was the supplier of German propaganda literature for distribution within the Link. He had been the recipient of letters from BUF fascists as well as Link members in respect of this propaganda material. He is noted as having ‘discussed Nazi policy for hours’ with Domvile who describes him as ‘very nice’, adding, ‘They are so damned intense, these Germans.’ In a second entry Carroll and Laurie are present. Hoffman is described as ‘speaking in a shrill voice’ that ‘the Pope castrated his Vatican choir yet objected to sterilisation in Germany’. These kind of encounters suggest Domvile was well acquainted with German intentions and policies.
His diary for 22 February expresses his pleasure at Anthony Eden’s resignation. This is likely because Domvile was a great supporter of Neville Chamberlain and his appeasement of Hitler and Mussolini. Eden came into conflict with Chamberlain and his policies and resigned. Eden’s comments reported by Alden Whitman of the New York Times made this disagreement clear:
‘It was not over protocol, Chamberlain’s communicating with Mussolini without telling me. I never cared a goddamn, a tuppence about protocol. The reason for my resignation was that we had an agreement with Mussolini about the Mediterranean and Spain, which he was violating by sending troops to Spain, and Chamberlain wanted to have another agreement. I thought Mussolini should honour the first one before we negotiated for the second. I was trying to fight a delaying action for Britain, and I could not go along with Chamberlain’s policy.’
Across Europe there was a background of a growing concern about Hitler in Germany. He had established concentration camps at Dachau, Sachsenhausen and Buchenwald. He had declared his policy on Lebensraum and expansionist plans. He had made clear his alliance with Mussolini. In England, people like Domvile were advocating a policy of non-intervention and appeasement with Hitler. His rejoicing at Eden’s departure and the removal of an opponent of accommodating Hitler, demonstrates his pro-German/Nazi views.
The 4 March 1938 entry confirms that Domvile was well aware of the growing presence of fascists within the Link. He records speaking at a bookshop on it, where twenty people were present, ‘mostly Fascists’ and he ‘got seven new members’. It was also around this time that Domvile makes notes on the intention to bring the Link into the offices of Carroll’s Anglo-German Review. On 17 March 1938, he confirms writing to Ribbentrop. We also find him meeting up with Gordon-Canning and Mosley. He writes of attending a rally where Mosley was speaking and describes him as ‘a demagogue’. He records Lady Domvile ‘worked up’ with the Nazi salute, but he states, ‘I found this beyond me in England’. It is possible that this may suggest he would take part in this when not in England as was suggested during his hearings before the committee. He further calls Mosley ‘a great leader’ and he ‘likes his policies’ and ‘he [Mosley] will succeed’. Fascists were regular visitors to his home and he refers to ‘the local Fascist chief and her daughter’ coming to lunch with his wife. The May 1938 entries confirm his relationship with Himmler being very cordial. He receives ‘a long letter’ from him about a Tibetan expedition. The expedition was led by Ernst Schäfer, a German zoologist and SS officer. It was described as a scientific venture but was a vehicle used by Himmler for propaganda purposes. Because there were five SS officers involved, it was suspected to have secret military objectives. There is also evidence of his being a great defender of Germany and Germans. One note describes a ‘long argument’ with ‘two diners who hate Germans’.
Domvile was a member of the AGF and it appears regularly in his diaries. As we have already noted, the AGF was allied to Deutsch-Englische Gesellschaft in Germany, This German group was under the control of Ribbentrop the German foreign minister and ran parallel to his ministry. He often met with Philip Conwell-Evans, one of their leading figures.
This organisation was perceived to be Nazi leaning and continued to exist long after many similar organisations closed when Hitler came to power. Lord Mount Temple, another of AGF’s leaders, made a public statement declaring that they had no sympathies for Nazism but he resigned in November 1938 as chairman of the AGF because of the treatment of the German Jews by the National Socialists.
A June 1938 diary entry confirms Domvile’s opposition to Winston Churchill, when he describes a speech he had given criticising him, made to Link members. He seems to enjoy the occasion, writing, ‘it went down well’. He also notes the meeting was ‘packed by LNU [League of Nations Union]’. The LNU was a large organisation wanting peace in Europe and had Austen Chamberlain, brother of Neville Chamberlain on its council.
Domvile seems to have a ready route to get things to Germany through the German Embassy in London. He sends books of his own to Germany this way. He also notes in the Diary ‘A Mr Hodges wants a book to be given to Hitler’. Domvile gives it to the German ambassador to pass on. In June 1938, he is also with the ambassador at a party. Domvile surprisingly notes ‘there were lots of Germans there’. Is that not what you would expect at a meeting organised by the Germans?
It is at this party on 15 June he meets Ribbentrop. After the party Domvile writes to Himmler. He does not say what the correspondence was about. Two days later, Domvile is visited by Baron von Rheinbaben, an apologist for Hitler. He was a former member of the Reichstag and a diplomat. He toured Europe assuring people that Hitler had no evil intentions. In one speech in 1941, after the start of the war, he said:
‘Germany knows that Europe’s strength and character lie in its plurality. There is no question of eliminating it, rather, it will be a case of orientating it towards a modality of common economic and social defence: to make Europe European.’
Rheinbaben gave Domvile ‘a long talk’, no doubt reassuring him that Hitler had ‘no evil intentions’.
Insight into Domvile’s anti-Semitism surfaces in an entry on 10 July 1938. He writes about Leslie Hore-Belisha and objects to ‘paying for police protection for this Jewish Don-Juan’. Hore-Belisha was appointed by Neville Chamberlain to the post of Secretary of State for War. Throughout his career, Hore-Belisha was dogged by anti-Semitism, despite having served with distinction in the Great War, rising to rank of Major. Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Pownall wrote about him and his falling out with General Gort, the Commander-in-Chief of the British Expeditionary Force:
‘The ultimate fact is that they could never get on – you couldn’t expect two such utterly different people to do so – a great gentleman and an obscure, shallow-brained, charlatan, political Jew-boy.’
Gort had b
een particularly stung by criticisms made by Hore-Belisha when he visited the front during the war. Eventually, with pressure from men like Domvile, Hore-Belisha was reluctantly removed from office by Chamberlain.
In a further entry in July, Domvile was giving ‘the low-down about Hore-Belisha’ to ‘a Fascist from headquarters’. This also reveals Domvile as a member of the BUF, referring to its headquarters as his own very frequently throughout his papers. Later that month, he dines at home with Mosley and Gordon-Canning and ‘Pudd sat next her Führer [Mosley] – was blissfully happy’.
MI5 suspected Domvile was in a conspiracy with Mosley’s fascists. An intriguing entry for 2 August 1938 points to this. Domvile has dinner with Mosley and shows him ‘the correspondence between Himmler and Chamberlain’. This correspondence can only have come to Domvile from the German side and his contact with Himmler. This kind of knowledge could indeed be dangerous in Fascist hands opposing any government intending to go to war with Germany. A month later, Domvile receives a letter from Himmler but he does not reveal its contents. Later that month, Chamberlain and Hitler signed the agreement in Munich much to the delight of Domvile, ‘I am so happy with Chamberlain and Hitler.’ The diaries continue to give insight to those helping the Link. One such helper, Hopple, ‘only became pro-German when Hitler came along’.
Domvile’s further acceptance of fascists into the Link came in 1939. His diary shows that in February of that year he is in ‘discussions with the Anglo-German Brotherhood [AGB]’ to affiliate with the Link. They in effect cease to exist and become part of the Link. This group was composed mainly of clerics who wanted to promote links with German churches, but many of their ranks supported Fascism and were members of Mosley’s BUF. They seem to have believed that the Link was a natural home for them.
Domvile frequently mentions in his diaries meetings with Germans, often making notes. On 14 February 1939, he meets two Germans with Carroll and records ‘one of them knew Darlington well’. He also makes reference to receiving a letter from Hoffman in the next day’s entry. On 27 February, he gives a talk to the Link, commenting in his diary, ‘several Germans were there’. In the first week of March he also receives a visit from a German called Heller and ‘2 Danzig Germans’. Heller seems to stay for a few days. On 7 March ‘a young German from Dusseldorf’ arrives. He brings a plaque to present to Domvile, stating that he ‘was the only one working for friendship [with Germany] in England’. On 6 April 1939, we find two German officers on leave are visitors to Domvile’s home.
There is a remarkable entry on 17 April 1939. Domvile writes, ‘sent a memo to Carroll of advice to Hitler, which will be forwarded to Germany’ with another note ‘Back to the 14 points’. We now know that this was at the time that Hitler was planning the rejection of the Germany-Poland non-aggression pact. The fourteen-point plan was that of President Woodrow Wilson, which formed the basis of the Versailles Treaty, which Domvile did not agree with. Was Domvile directly liaising with Hitler giving him advice on the Treaty and his dealing with the British Government?
Professor Laurie visits Domvile and tells him about the concentration camps reporting that ‘Czech Slovak being let out after inoculation with germs of leprosy’. Domvile adds a note ‘These women will believe anything’. The following day he writes of an ‘Ellen’, ‘she wanted to incite the people of this country against Germans’ and continues, ‘she must be crazy’. Domvile is either living in denial of the reality or deliberately refusing to accept the situation. The newspapers were running reports of the horror of camps. The Essex Newsman in 1939 was typical of such reports:
‘The continent of Europe is now a hell of slaughter and suffering. Czechoslovakia, a crucified nation, eight million of them going through months of horror and mental agony.’
Domvile continues to support Fascism in writing of the BUF’s Action paper, ‘it’s quite splendid’. He also records sending a poem to Mosley. On 2 July 1939, Domvile attends a BUF Seminar. Later on 10 July, he is angry at the cancelling by officials of a meeting for Captain Ramsay (the Right Club). His anger is clearly directed. ‘The power of these bloody Jews is alarming.’ He confirms his support for the distribution of handbills for Ramsay. It is clear from a diary entry on 14 July 1939 that Domvile was in fact ‘thinking of a plan to unite all the parties who think the same on foreign policy’. He also attends a cocktail party with Germans which was ‘full of leaflets’. He makes no comments on the content of the leaflets.
It is over the next few weeks that Domvile records his wife’s activities in which she becomes infatuated with the British People’s Party (BPP), floating between them and the BUF in her affections. He seems amused and pleased with her. He supports her activities by declaring his backing to St. John Philby, the British People’s Party candidate, in the Hythe by-election The British People’s Party was an anti-Semitic and pro-Nazi group. They opposed any war with Germany and any interference on the European continent by Britain. This was entirely in line with Domvile’s own views. They were extremely Fascist in their beliefs and principles. On 16 July 1939, he attends a grand fascist rally by the BUF in Earl’s Court, ‘a la Nuremberg’, in his note. He comments that ‘all were giving Nazi salutes’. He again demonstrates his own adoration of Mosley, ‘OM [Oswald Mosley] spoke for 2 hours. Perfectly splendid.’ The meeting’s layout reminded him of ‘Hitler’s layout’ at Nuremberg. On 20 July his wife joins ‘the inner council of the BPP’.
Once more Domvile receives a visit from ‘a nice man from Danzig’ who gives him ‘the news’. On 26 July, Domvile attends a ‘large dinner’ with Ramsay, Mosley and Professor Laurie among other fascists and pro-Germans. He also records a meeting around this time with George Ward Price, also an associate and confident of Oswald Mosley. He was a member of the BUF and a leading journalist, who Hitler had described as ‘the only foreign journalist who reported him without prejudice’. Price also wrote kindly of Hitler, praising his kindness and love of children and dogs. He declared him intellectual and well read. Ward Price was also a very close associate of Domvile and was one of the first to ring him when he got his knighthood. This was noted in Domvile’s diary for 3 June 1934. Regular entries through-out the diaries show contact with Ward Price. After the war and defeat of Hitler, Price would distance himself from his earlier comments.
At the end of July and early August, Domvile went to Germany. Over his visit the diary gives little insight into his activities there. We find he spends a lot of time with Olive Baker who he had regular correspondence with in England and as we have noted would later spend time in prison for pro-German activity. It was rumoured that she in fact was his mistress. Domvile’s comment on her imprisonment was ‘Poor little fool’. They both meet up with Hoffman, he lunches with her and sits and writes letters with her. On one occasion he describes her as ‘kind Miss Baker’. He meets Goebbels and appears to be fond of him and he shares the ‘Royal Box’ with him. He also comments in the entries that ‘Carroll’s money arrangements had nearly landed’. This entry suggests that Domvile knew more about Carroll obtaining finance from Germany than he admitted at the hearings. We also discover his immediate reaction to Samuel Hoare’s announcement in parliament about the Link. He calls him, ‘a lying sod’ and promises to ‘make him pay someday’. Considerable time is spent on the telephone to English newspapers. He also meets up with Walter Hewel, Hitler’s foreign affairs adviser for ‘an interesting chat’. Domvile gives him a letter from a ‘Miss Alport’ to be given to Hitler.
On 7 August 1939, Domvile noted that ‘Old Laurie left out of newspaper report for the £150 he got for his book’.
Back in England on 28 July, Domvile meets up with Newham, the editor of Truth. He also records that Carroll ‘paid 2/6 for the Duke of Westminster’s Link’s fees’ and considers it ‘a good advert’. This is an interesting phrase as it is the same as he had used for the publicity for the pro-German NBBC. When questioned about that, he pleaded not knowing what he meant. However, he believed that the Duke joining the
Link would be good to promote its cause. This suggests that Domvile’s use of the same phrase for NBBC was in the same spirit, that is, promotion of the NBBC’s giving the German point of view. The next day after sleeping on it, the diary notes, Carroll advised Domvile that it would be ‘unfair to publicise the Duke of W joining’.
October of 1939 is an interesting month in the diary. MI5 had concerns about Domvile’s involvement with various pro-German groups. He had tried to distance himself from them; however, the diaries do show he had very regular contact with them. On 7 October he meets Norman Hay of Information and Policy for a long visit and calls him a ‘very able and interesting man’.
On the 17th he makes special mention of a ‘3 hour meeting’ with Pitt-Rivers. He was his co-speaker at BUF gatherings. On the 18th he has a long meeting with Gordon-Canning of British Council for Christian Settlement. Then on the 26th he has a meeting with Professor Laurie, Captain Ramsay, Lord Tavistock, Norman Hay and Oswald Mosley with some others representing various groups. At this meeting, Domvile notes Mosley acknowledges him (Domvile) as ‘the instigator of the meeting’. Four days later, he visits ‘BUF Headquarters to talk to the editorial staff of Action'. Pitt-Rivers also appears to meet Domvile regularly.
On 8 November, the diary has an entry that describes a meeting with Norman Hay outside Oswald Mosley’s house, where Domvile was going for a meeting with Mosley and Ramsay. Hay warns Domvile against Henry Drummond-Wolff. Drummond-Wolff was an anti-Semite and initially pro-Nazi. He donated money to Mosley’s BUF and was active in trying to prevent war with Hitler. The Duke of Westminster was impressed with a plan he had to create a revolution in Germany to distract Hitler from war with Britain. He was thus becoming less inclined towards BUF and it was likely this that brought about Hay’s warning.
Hitler's Munich Man Page 16