Marburg Files

Last updated

The Marburg Files, also known as the Windsor Files or Duke of Windsor Files, are a series of top-secret documents discovered in Germany during May 1945 near the Harz Mountains and compiled at Marburg Castle, Hesse. [1] [2]

Contents

Discovery

As American troops were traveling through the outskirts of Degenershausen Estate, they found large numbers of abandoned or destroyed German military vehicles scattered along the side roads, with some containing various archives from the Nazi government. First Lieutenant David Silberberg initially discovered documents signed by the foreign minister of Nazi Germany, Joachim von Ribbentrop, and returned to Degenershausen to study further the background of his findings. After being advised of the locations of Meisdorf House and Marburg Castle, he escorted intelligence officers to the sites where a number of additional items were discovered. [3] During this time, American troops arrested a German soldier named Karl von Loesch, an assistant to Hitler's personal translator Paul-Otto Schmidt, as he was retreating from Treffurt, near Eisenach. [4] Schmidt had instructed him to destroy all the top-secret papers which he had placed in archives. Von Loesch destroyed the majority, but privately decided to keep some, and interred them in the grounds near the outskirts of Marburg. [3] [5] He was subsequently, by chance, introduced to Lieutenant Colonel R. C. Thomson, chief of the British documents team, and offered to lead Thomson's team to the location of the buried correspondence in exchange for immunity from prosecution. [6]

Around 400 tonnes of material was exhumed by the United States military and transported to Marburg Castle for review. [7] Upon inspection, at least 60 documents appeared to contain correspondence between the Duke of Windsor and the Nazi German high command. [7] American diplomats examined the contents before relaying a mix of original drafts and replicas to the British government. UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill discussed the files with King George VI, who insisted the files be suppressed and never released to the public. [8] The entire collection was sent to the United Kingdom in 1948 and housed at Whaddon Hall, Buckinghamshire. [1] [6]

Contents

The papers and correspondence discovered are alleged to have further detailed a plot by the Nazis, titled Operation Willi and orchestrated in 1940, to persuade the Duke of Windsor to officially join sides with the Nazis and move him to Germany in a bid to bring the UK to peace negotiations. It proposed convincing the Duke of a fictitious plot by King George VI and Prime Minister Winston Churchill to have him assassinated upon his arrival in The Bahamas, and conspiring with him to stage a kidnapping in the hope of blackmailing the monarchy and the UK into surrender. [9] The papers are also alleged to reveal a plan to reinstate the Duke as king and recognise his wife, Wallis Simpson, as queen, in exchange for Nazi forces being given free movement across Europe. [10] [11]

Documents considered the most damning for the British royal family were among his final communications with the Nazis before his departure to the Bahamas, in which it has been alleged the Duke encouraged relentless bombing attacks on the United Kingdom in a bid to force the British government to begin peace negotiations. [12] There is not believed to be any form of evidence that the Duke accepted any terms offered by the Nazis in a bid to co-operate with Operation Willi, with historians stating he was initially more impressed by the encouragement he had from the British government to become Governor of the Bahamas, [13] [14] but some documents are alleged to confirm he sympathised with Nazi ideologies. [7] [11]

Release

British, French and American historians initially agreed to work together from 1946 in hope of releasing only documents that they felt were essential to release. A small batch was released in 1954, before the entire volume was forced into publication in 1957 with further files released in 1996 at the Public Record Office in Kew. [6] [8] The release of the files was reported to have caused the Duke considerable annoyance. [15]

The Marburg Files are the main subject and focus of the episode "Vergangenheit" ("Past") of the Netflix television series The Crown , [16] which depicts Queen Elizabeth II's initial review of the documents. The episode's director Philippa Lowthorpe stated that replicas of genuine files were used during filming. [11] Despite confirming that Queen Elizabeth did condemn the Duke, historian Hugo Vickers has suggested that the episode falsely implies that the Duke was banished from the royal family upon release of the Marburg Files. He remained in contact with his family and public appearances continued. [15]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George VI</span> King of the United Kingdom from 1936 to 1952

George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of India from 1936 until the British Raj was dissolved in August 1947, and the first head of the Commonwealth following the London Declaration of 1949.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wallis Simpson</span> Wife of former king Edward VIII (1896–1986)

Wallis, Duchess of Windsor was an American socialite and wife of former king Edward VIII. Their intention to marry and her status as a divorcée caused a constitutional crisis that led to Edward's abdication.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary of Teck</span> Queen of the United Kingdom from 1910 to 1936

Mary of Teck was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 6 May 1910 until 20 January 1936 as the wife of King-Emperor George V.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abdication of Edward VIII</span> 1936 constitutional crisis in Britain

In early December 1936, a constitutional crisis in the British Empire arose when King Edward VIII proposed to marry Wallis Simpson, an American socialite who was divorced from her first husband and was in the process of divorcing her second.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">House of Windsor</span> British royal house

The House of Windsor is a British royal house, and currently the reigning house of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms. The royal house's name was inspired by the historic Windsor Castle estate. Since it was founded on 17 July 1917, there have been five British monarchs of the House of Windsor: George V, Edward VIII, George VI, Elizabeth II, and Charles III. The children and male-line descendants of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip also genealogically belong to the House of Oldenburg since Philip was by birth a member of the Glücksburg branch of that house.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duke of Windsor</span> Title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Duke of Windsor was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 8 March 1937 for the former monarch Edward VIII, following his abdication on 11 December 1936. The dukedom takes its name from the town where Windsor Castle, a residence of English monarchs since the time of Henry I, following the Norman Conquest, is situated. Windsor has been the house name of the royal family since 1917.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone</span> Countess of Athlone (1883–1981)

Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone was a member of the British royal family. She was one of the longest-lived British royals. Princess Alice was the chatelaine of Rideau Hall in Ottawa from 1940 until 1946, while her husband Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone, served as Governor General of Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter Schellenberg</span> German intelligence officer in Nazi Germany

Walter Friedrich Schellenberg was a German SS functionary during the Nazi era. He rose through the ranks of the SS, becoming one of the highest ranking men in the Sicherheitsdienst (SD) and eventually assumed the position as head of foreign intelligence for Nazi Germany following the abolition of the Abwehr in 1944.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">House of Glücksburg</span> Danish-German ducal house

The House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, also known by its short name as the House of Glücksburg, is the senior surviving branch of the German House of Oldenburg, one of Europe's oldest royal houses. Oldenburg house members have reigned at various times in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Greece, several northern German states, Russia and the United Kingdom. It takes its name from the family seat in Glücksburg, a small town in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Willi</span> German attempt to kidnap Edward, Duke of Windsor in July 1940

Operation Willi was the German code name for the unsuccessful attempt by the SS to kidnap Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor in July 1940 and induce him to work with German dictator Adolf Hitler for either a peace settlement with Britain, or a restoration to the throne after the German conquest of the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cultural depictions of Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson</span> Fictional and biographical depictions of Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson in culture

Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson have been depicted in popular culture, both biographical and fictional, following his abdication in 1936 and their marriage the following year.

George VI is depicted in art and popular culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cultural depictions of Winston Churchill</span> Winston Churchill as depicted in culture

Named the Greatest Briton of all time in a 2002 poll, and widely regarded as being among the most influential people in British history, Winston Churchill has been regularly portrayed in film, television, radio and other media. The depictions range from minor character to the biographical centerpiece, exceeding 30 films, more than two dozen television shows, several stage productions, and countless books.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward VIII</span> King of the United Kingdom in 1936

Edward VIII, later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January 1936 until his abdication in December of the same year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1937 tour of Germany by the Duke and Duchess of Windsor</span> Political crisis in 1937

Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor, and Wallis, Duchess of Windsor, visited Nazi Germany in October 1937. Edward had abdicated the British throne in December 1936, and his brother George VI had become king. Edward had been given the title Duke of Windsor and married Wallis Simpson in June 1937. He appeared to have been sympathetic to Germany in this period and, that September, announced his intention to travel privately to Germany to tour factories. His interests, officially researching the social and economic conditions of the working classes, were against the backdrop of looming war in Europe. The Duke's supporters saw him as a potential peacemaker between Britain and Germany, but the British government refused to sanction such a role, opposed the tour and suspected that the Nazis would use the Duke's presence for propaganda. Prince Edward was keen for his wife, who had been rejected by the British establishment, to experience a state visit as his consort. He promised the government to keep a low profile, and the tour went ahead between 12 and 23 October 1937.

<i>The Crown</i> season 1 Season of television series

The first season of The Crown follows the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth II. It consists of ten episodes and was released on Netflix on 4 November 2016.

<i>The Crown</i> season 2 Season of television series

The second season of The Crown follows the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth II. It consists of ten episodes and was released by Netflix on 8 December 2017.

<i>The Crown</i> season 3 Season of television series

The third season of The Crown follows the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth II. It consists of ten episodes and was released by Netflix on 17 November 2019.

Sydney Johnson was a Bahamian-born personal attendant who notably served as the valet and footman to Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor, formerly King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom, and his wife, Wallis, Duchess of Windsor, for over thirty years. He later worked for the Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed.

References

  1. 1 2 "German Foreign Ministry and Italian documents 1867-1945 captured by the British". The National Archives of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  2. ↑ "M1948 Records Concerning the Central Collecting Points ("Ardella Hall Collection"): Marburg Central Collecting Point, 1945–1949" (PDF). National Archives and Records Administration of the United States. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
  3. 1 2 Beckers, Yuri (9 January 2018). "The Marburg Files: How was the 9th Infantry Division involved?". 9th Infantry Division in WWII. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  4. ↑ "Arrest of Karl von Loesch (permanent deputy of chief government interpreter, Dr Schmidt)..." The National Archives of the United Kingdom. 1947. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  5. ↑ "German War Documents Project: German Foreign Ministry and other related Archives: Selection of Documents made by the German War Documents Project: Microfilms and files". The National Archives of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 Kent, George (1961). "The German Foreign Ministry's Archives at Whaddon Hall, 1948-58". American Archivist. 24 (1): 43–54. doi: 10.17723/aarc.24.1.w43046451p884252 .
  7. 1 2 3 Caroline Redmond (12 November 2018). "The Marburg Files Revealed Former British King Edward VIII's Nazi Ties – And The U.K. Tried To Cover It Up" . Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  8. 1 2 Holland, Brynn (20 December 2017). "Watching The Crown? Here Are the Real Facts You Need to Know". History.com. A&E Television Networks.
  9. ↑ Niderost, Eric (8 November 2016). "Operation Willi: The Nazi Plot to Kidnap the Duke Of Windsor". Warfare History Network. Sovereign Media. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  10. ↑ "Winston Churchill concealed WW2 files showing Nazi plot to restore Edward VIII to throne". Express. 20 July 2017. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  11. 1 2 3 Fane Saunders, Tristam (14 December 2017). "The Duke, the Nazis, and a very British cover-up: the true story behind The Crown's Marburg Files". The Telegraph.
  12. ↑ Katz, Brigit (21 July 2017). "Newly Released Documents Reveal Churchill's Efforts to Suppress Details of Nazi Plot". Smithsonian Institution . Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  13. ↑ Bloch, pp. 93–94, 98–103, 119
  14. ↑ Harris, Caroline (2 April 2013). "Royalty and the Atlantic World 4: The Duke and Duchess of Windsor's Arrival in the Bahamas in 1940". Royal Historian.
  15. 1 2 Vickers, Hugo (19 December 2017). "How accurate is The Crown? We sort fact from fiction in the royal drama". The Times. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  16. ↑ Power, Ed (9 December 2017). "The Crown, season 2, episode 6 review: a welcome return from Jared Harris as Edward's Nazi past catches up with him". The Telegraph. Retrieved 14 August 2018.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.