1940-05-02 — Page 24

PAGE -HONGKONG TELEGRAPH

MCH

Thursday, MAY 2, 1940,

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GOERING intervened with the Fuchrer ...

Henderson liked Goering. "A man" to whom one could always speak absolutely frankly." Before wor, Goering promised to send a special wreath If Sir Nevile got bombed In London,

GOERING

ACCUSES RIBBENTROP

YESTERDAY, Sir Nevile Henderson, British Ambassador in Berlin until the outbreak of war, revealed how Hitler cheated Chamberlain at their meeting at Godesberg.

TO-DAY, continuing his revelations concerning the Czech-German crisis of September, 1938, he tells of Sir Horace Wilson's mission; of a procession which changed the Fuehrer's mind; of a quarrel between Goering and Ribbentrop; and of Italy's eleventh-hour intervention.

Monday, September 26. the Prime Minister sent Sir Horace Wilson to Berlin with a personal letter to Hit- ler.

In this, after stating that the German proposals, as they stood, had been rejected by the Czech Government. he again urged the Chancellor. since the difference was one of form and not of principle, to agree to negotiate rather than to resort to force.

He suggested a direct meet- ing between Germans and.

British Czechs with a

re:

presentative as intermediary.

Sir H. Wilson, accompanied by Kirkpatrick and myself, saw, the Chanceller at 5 that afternoon. This interview iso was stormy and unsatisfactory.

"Herr" "Hiller could only with dimculty be persuaded to isten to the Prime Minister's letter.

At one point he shouted: "It is nu use talking any more." and he moved to the door as if to leave the room,

Eventually he returned, and the conversation was resumed, but it was impossible to reach any satis factory conclusion.

On the same

speech in the venin

i

he made a

It contained a suvage attack on Benes personally, and in it he finally burnt his boats by declaring that.

the Czech Government themselves had not coffed all the Sudeten larida by October 1, Ger. many would occupy them by that date with himself

as the first

soldier of the Reich.

At the same time he made an appen for British neutrality dis friendly references to Mr. Cham- berlain's efforts for peace.

Chamberlain's

warning

that Sir Horace Wilson spent night in the Embassy, find in the course of it received lustructions to deliver yet another personal message.

Mr. Chamberlain, while

to

edging the references himself in Hitler's speech, guar- anteed, if Germany refrained from force, to see that the Czech under- takings, already given, would be carried out.

Sir H. Wilson, accordingly saw Hitler for the second time at 12.15 on the morning of September 27.

He asked the Chancellor it, in the light of the Prime Minister's statement, ho could take any message back to London.

Hitler replied that the Czecho- Slovak Government had only two Courses: acceptance of the Ger man memorandum; or rejection.

In the course of this conversa- tion Hitler shouted savagely on two or three occasions: "Ich werde die Tschechen Zerachlagen," which Herr Schmidt, the interpreter. takhtully translated as: "I will amesh-al-sh the Czechs!"

He showed by his demeanour that he was longing to chastise the Czechs for their tasolence; bombs, must fall on Prague; the Czech army must be put to rout

מני

Benes must be forced 10 ignominious Might.

Late in the afternoon of Sep- tember 27 1 had been advised by the Foreign Ofice by telephone that Instructions were on their way to me for yet another com- munication to the Chancellor.

}

accordingly made arrange- ments to meet the State Secretary at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs at 11 that night, and handed to him a note for immediate translu- tion and submission to Hitler.

It contained

proposals, agreed

to

by the French Government and transmitted to Prague, pressing Sudeten territories on the basis of the immediate transfer of the the Czech Government to agree to timetable guaranteed by His Majesty's Government.

When it was clear that Hitler's How

determination · to go to war Was quite inflexible, Sir H. Wilson said that he was charged by the Prime Minister to give him a message to the following effect:

I. in pursuit of her Treaty abligations, France became ac- lively engaged in hostilities against Germany, the United Khigtom would feet obliged to support her."

Thatler's answer WAK that he could only take note of this com- meant, he said. munication. 4

elected to attack that if France Germany, England felt obliged to

ttack Germany also,

Sir II Wilson attempted to re- fute this interpretation of his statement, but fer declined to be convinced.

Hitler gets

a lesson

"If France and England strike." he shouted, "let them do so, It is a matter of complete indifference to me. I am prepared for every eventuality, I can only take note of the position. It is Tuesday to- duy, and by next Monday we shall all be at War!"

On this depressing nole the in- terview ended.

Sr Horace few back to London early the some afternoon. Never- theless, his effect, and I was on- cinity informed that night by the State Secretary that Hitler had ad- dressed, through the German Em- акму In London, an immediate and important personal letter to the Prime Minister.

In this he attempted to justly ปร

and attitude,

begged Me. Chamberlain to continue to use his good offices.

Therein he gave the Prine Minister the dellte assurance which he was so cynically to disre- gard six months later, to the effect the Sudeten Germans that, unce were incorporated in the Relch, he would cease to be interested in the do nothing to in- Czechs and would fringe their independence.

A chance episode hud, as it hap

a salutary revul- pens, produced sion in Hiller's

mind. In the afternoon of that Tues- a mechanised division had dayd

through the ruinbled

streets of Berlin and the Wilhelmstrasse past the Chancellor's window and those of the Embassy.

For three hours. Hitler stood at his window and watched it paar. The Germans love military display, but not a single individual in the streets applauded its possage.

The picture which it repro- sented was almost that of a hos- tile army passing through a con- quered city,

Hitler was deeply impressed.

At that moment, he realised for the first time that the cheers of his sycophants were far from repre- senting the true spirit and feelings of the German people.

These extracts are taken from the book by Sir Neufte Henderson entitled "Failure of a Mission," published by Messrs. Hodder & Stoughton, Ltd.

war

postponed

was

The Arst arcas were to be handed over оп October 1, and the creation of an international boundary commission for the set- tlement of details was also sug- gested,

The

proposals went far to meet Hitler's demands, and in the end they constituted the main basis of the Bnal settlement at Munich.

With faint hope, I retired to bed

M

the Tuesday night realising that, if nothing new intervened, the announced general mobilisa- tion of the German army would take place the following day at 2 pm.

Since the army was already concentrated and mobilised, in _effect_this_ meant the beginning of the march into Czecho-Sjova- kia.

I was aroused at 7 the next morning (Wednesday) by M. Francois-Poncet, the French Am- bassador, who informed me by telephone that his instructions to make a similar communtention to inine had reached him at 4 am, “

Three hours later, at 10 am., he rang me up again to say that he feared the worst, since he had had no answer to his request for an audience and probably would not now receive one.

I told him that I would come

and see him at 10.30.

I then asked to be put into com- munication with Goering by tele- phone, and was able to get into immediate touch with him. Fortu- nately the telephone was working

RIBBENTROP

was accused by

Goering of in-

citing to war.

Henderson found Goebbels' "the most intelli- gent of all the Nazi lendera" and was "charmed both by the natural fluency of his manner of speaking and his extremely agreeable voice,"

Sir Nevile Henderson

At a meeting of Hitler and his advisern there had been some plain speaking, in which Goering had vehemently accused Ribbentrop of Inciting to war.

Among other things, it was re- fated that Goering shouted that he knew what war was and he did not want to go through it again.

If, however, the Fuehrer sald "March," he would go himself in, the first and leading aeroplane. All that he insisted upon was that Ribbentrop should be in the seat next to him.

He did say this, Hke it, but it was Fuchrer's presence.

or something not in the

But I believe that did call Ribbentrop on that occasion a criminal fool,"

Nor, of the various factors which induced Hitler to abandon his Iden-of-a-Czech war, was- Goering's- intervention the least important.

Then came the Poncet interview, in the middle of which, at 11.40 am, Hitler left the room to see the Italian Ambassador, who had arrived with a preliminary urgent appeal from Mussolini for the post- panement of the so-called general mobilisation for twenty-four hours.

The Italian Intervention proved the final and decisive factor for peace. It enabled Hitler to climb down without losing face.

saw

His first remark to me when I him at 12.15, immediately nfter Poncet, was: "At the request of my great friend and ally, Mux- solini, I have postponed mobilising my troops for twenty-four hours."

well everywhere on that critical Mussolini

city.

began to describe the pro- posals, but Gócring cut me short. "You need not," he said, "xay word more, I am going Im- mediately to see the Fuelirer."

. I

to see the then went round French Ambassador, and while we were discussing the new proposals anessage came from the Reichs- chancellery that Hitler would see Francois-Poncet at 11.15.

Simultaneously a secretary brought

me at the French round Embassy tolcuram from London, instructing me to give immediate- Jy Anal personal message from the Prime Minister to Hitler him- self.

tain

to

Its gist was that, after reading Hitler's letter of the previous evening. Mr. Chamberlain was still convinced that Germany could ob-

her

requirements essential without resort to war, and that he was ready to, come to Berlin at once himself in order to discuss the whole question with Hitler and with representatives of France and Italy..

of

Did Hiller, It concluded, wish to tako the responsibility starting a world war for the sake of a few days' delay in seitling the problem?

It is worth recalling the oxnet sequence of events on that critical dny. Goering went to see Hitler between 10.15 and 11.15 and was joined there by Neurath, who had forced his way in uninvited.

Both were in favour of a peace- ful solution by negotiation.

intervenes

Before actually secing Hitler bimself, I had, however, realised that the situation had taken turn for the better. When I en- tered the Chancellery, there was an atmosphere of relief in the faces of the less bellicose of the crowd of Nazi soldiers and aides-de-camp who fled the hall,

. One friend of mine whispered in my eur: "It is going better: only stick to it!"

I was at once ushered into Hit- ler's Cabinet room, where I met Goeting and Neurath on their way out.

I gave Hitler the Prime Minis- ter's mesange, and his reply was

Instalment 10

reached the Reichschancellery that morning.

Peace had been ensured when Hitler agreed at Mussolini's re- quest at 11.40 a.m.--exactly two hours and twenty minutes before zero hour-to postpone his so- called general mobilisation.

[Copyright In all countries Reproduction in whole or in part strictly prohibited.]

To-morrow:

Pogroms

Munich--the -Hitler disobeys his Voice -Heil, Jekyll and Hyde!

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