The Conspiracy Against Hitler in the Twilight War
by Harold C. Deutsch
University of Minnesota Press (20 May 1968)
What’s it about?: A detailed account of the German anti-Nazi plot against the Fuhrer Adolph Hitler, between September 1939 and May 1940. The German resistance movement is covered in great detail, as is the role of the Pope during this era. Military historian Harold C. Deutsch interviewed — or possibly interrogated — over fifty witnesses on their participation or observations.
My opinion: Where to start… I always knew, in a very general sense, that World War II involved a whole lot of plots and subplots against the Nazi dictator. Some from their enemies in the Allied Forces, some from within. But if you were to ask me about any of the details, or just how far these plots and networks went, I’d just shrug because I didn’t really know. So, when I read this book, all I could think was “Holy shit…” Whatever you think happened behind closed doors in those plots, it was always more than you’d expect.
Maybe I shouldn’t be surprised at this, but I was blown away at just how little trust there was between all the so-called allies against Nazi Germany during the War. Pope Pius worked with the German resistance movement, at least sharing some information with the Allies. The German resistance movement shared a common enemy with the British, yet the British did not trust them, despite the former’s best efforts. Neither the British nor the Pope trusted the French, so they were always out of the loop. I don’t know if it was ego or just a haze or wartime insanity, but I feel like all parties involved could have accomplished so much more if they shared just a little bit of trust. But that’s just me.
What really blew my mind, above all else, was the fact that there were countless opportunities where one could have killed Adolf Hitler. And yet… and yet… many couldn’t bring themselves to go through with it. General Franz Hadler, who had clashed with Hitler many times over strategy, had plotted to gun the Fuhrer down. However, he could not bring himself to “shoot down an unarmed man” on ethical grounds. Lieutenant General Hans Oster said, “We have no one who will throw the bomb in order to liberate our generals from their scruples.”
As Ryan Holiday once put it, “Conspiracy theories are legion. Conspiracies are rare. And of the few that do exist, fewer are ever discovered, let alone explained.”
The Conspiracy Against Hitler in the Twilight War is one of the very few, and an absolute must-have for any student of World War II.
Lawrence Deveney 