Goering by Frischauer Willi

Author:Frischauer, Willi [Frischauer, Willi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Unmaterial Books
Published: 2013-10-13T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter XIII

WAR

London was under a hail of German bombs; I escaped from the falling shrapnel of the barrage into King’s Cross Underground Station, where hundreds of people patiently waited for the all-clear siren. An old Cockney next to me was saying to his friend: “Have you heard? They have brought down Goering!” The reply was instantaneous. “You b— fool. That wasn’t Goering what they brought down; that was a barrage balloon!” The cryptic conversation conveyed a little of the general British attitude toward Goering. To most people his name was synonymous with that of the Luftwaffe, which was no joking matter in those days. At the same time, he was the ideal subject for wisecracks such as the British invariably produce at the tensest moments of their lives. Goering was not really hated in Britain—can the British hate at all? His girth, his big round face, his medals and uniforms were a godsend to the cartoonists. But even the wicked brush of David Low suggested good-humoured banter rather than deep-felt anger with the Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe. His private photographer failed to present him as a really martial figure.

Withal, Goering and his Luftwaffe were Britain’s main concern as soon as war broke out. Yet Goering’s part in the war was greatly overrated. Unlike Winston Churchill, for instance, who emerged from the clash of arms as a world figure, Goering’s stature shrank—yes, even physically—as the war went on. In victory and in defeat he seemed to disappear against the formidable background of world-shaking events. Of all the estimates which I sought from knowledgeable British statesmen, only that of Sir Archibald Sinclair, the wartime Air Minister, and as such Goering’s British counterpart, conforms with the result of my own investigation. “Goering,” Sir Archibald said to me, “seems to have been at the summit of his achievement when war broke out and then to have been eclipsed by the German High Command . . .”

War rudely tore Hermann Goering from the groove in which his life proceeded, as it did to all of us. It came at a time when his health was deteriorating. At the meeting of the Reichstag which was called to launch Hitler on his Polish adventure he made a brave show, saying in a concluding speech that his “faith in victory in this war which has been forced on Germany to end the injustice of Versailles was unshakable!” Hitler named Hermann Goering as his successor in case he himself should meet a soldier’s death in battle—but the announcement was chiefly designed to impress the German people with the hint of the common danger which Hitler was ready to face.

The public appointment as Germany’s Number Two, however, officially confirmed the position which Goering held in practice. It flattered him, but it also soon involved him in bitter intrigues. Heinrich Himmler, Martin Bormann, Joachim Ribbentrop, Joseph Goebbels, had long been watching Hitler’s health, speculating on his stamina, secretly preparing themselves for the role of Germany’s future leader. Goering’s designation was a setback to their hopes.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.