Terry Helton |

What can I say except thank you very much for this web site. I was in seventh grade when I learned about Col Stauffenburg and 20 July plot to assasinate Hitler. However there was very little information. Through my reading I knew that there were people who did resist, fought back(armed and unarmed) but these men and women of 20 July '44 have my utmost respect. I have a question for you. Had the Allies beeen willing to negotiate with a new regime in Berlin do you think that the Russians would have agreed to a cease fire? Let's be honest about this. The Werhmacht's record in the Soviet Ubnion was atrocious. Over 20 million Soviet citizens were killed. These guys were out for blood. As we say here in the 'States Paybacks are a bitch! 9 June 2009 - Ennis, Montana USA Webmaster comments   Terry, My personal opinion is that under no circumstances would the Soviet Union have accepted a cease fire. Although the figure of 20 million was hugely inflated by the Stalin government after the end of the Second World War for propaganda reasons. (At Potsdam, Stalin himself was only talking about 6 to 8 million war casualties; the 20 million includes the people he killed and who died as a direct result of his enforced collectivization in the immediate pre-war period.) The real reason there would have been no peace is that the Soviet Union was engaged in a full-scale ideological war against Capitalism. It had accepted Western aid out of self-defence but felt neither gratitude nor committed to peaceful relations. As soon as the Nazi enemy was defeated, the Soviet Union focused on fighting Capitalism by any means. This has become known as the Cold War and my book on the Berlin Airlift, "The Blockade Breakers," describes the Soviet Union's rapid return to the "status quo ante" - meaning war with Capitalism - in considerable detail if you are interested. The answer to your question, however, is that if the West had accepted a conditional surrender with a post-Hitler government, Stalin would have continued fighting the Germans and forced the West to choose sides. Stalin would not have hestitated to confront the US and Britain for a second. I wonder if we would have been prepared to fight them, or would have lost Western Europe to the Soviet Union? An intriguing question. Thank you for your thought provoking comment! Helena

Brian Mullan |

Hi A 'what if' question. If Churchill was PM in 1936/8, what would he have done re Reoccpation of Rhineland & Munich crisis 28 May 2009 - Dublin Webmaster comments   Good question! And I haven't got an answer. Churchill might have been more bellicose, but the bottom line is the people of England were vehemently pacifist at this time and did not want war. The majority of the population thought that Germany had the right to occupy the Rhineland and that Germans in Czechoslovakia had a right to "self-determination." As a democractically elected leader - subject to a vote of no-confidence at any time - Churchill would not have been able to ignore these popular sentiments. In short, I doubt very much he would have been able to respond significantly differently than Chamberlain - but he might have been able to "talk tougher" in private (through diplomatic channels) and he might have moved faster to build up Britain's defences, particularly monoplane fighter aircraft for the RAF and destroyers for the Royal Navy. Helena

robert |

one of the early aborted attempts on hitler was to be carried out by a young german officer axel von demm bussche. bussche was the first cousin of the danish hero anders lassen, who fought as an officer with the british sbs during ww2, receiving the victorian cross. anyone with info on the relationship of these two families. there mothers were sisters. 26 May 2009 - us

Jill Blair |

I am now only in the middle of reading the information you have so graciously provided here. This period of history is of endless fascination to me - the human aspect - what leads us to what we do.I thank you for the thoughtful and intelligent representation of history. The "why" haunts me. Why did so many abide? "Why" did so many heroic efforts fail? "Why" is history peppered with examples of violence perpetrated in the name of ideology, religion and ethnicity? "Why" are these the truths of our humanity? And of course."when" might we resolve a different path? Back to you when I finish my reading. Thank you. 4 April 2009 - Seattle

Kimberley Caulfeild |

Thank you so much for covering this important & near forgotten era of history before the witnesses and their survivors could not be interviewed. I lived in Germany for six years (1986-1992) and wondered about the Germany Resistance. I wish we had met during my time there. No one was willing to discuss anything about a German Resistance. I felt that there must have been one. You've led me to believe that a postwar separated Germany meant a lack of information and spreading of misinformed history. Then in 1990 or so, I stumbled upon Christabel Bielenberg's memoire The Past is Myself, which was reprinted in 1988. Still no one wanted to speak of the German Resistance. I want to thank you for expanding the study on the German Resistance and I hope to help spread the word about your work. Don't despair too much about the recent movie on Valkyrie. You will definitely find more people interested in this era of history because of the movie, and they will then search the web and find this excellent site and reveal the truth about General Olbricht. And there is no movie that could give the necessary time to the full scope of the conspiracy. It would be nice though if our Hollywood writers would consult historians like you more before they finalize their scripts. Alles Gute! KC 4 January 2009 - Central N. Carolina - USA Webmaster comments   Kimberley, Thank you! I too wish we could have met in Germany because I might have been able to help you connect with survivors and relatives of Resistance figures. I had the great privilege of knowing several very well - Axel Frhr. von dem Bussche, Ludwig Frhr. von Hammerstein, Philipp Frhr.von Boeselager, Claritta von Trott zu Solz, Gräfin Yorck, Friedrich Georgi, Eva Olbricht and many more. They enriched my life in many ways and it is largely out of a sense of obligation to them that I have persisted in writing and publishing both An Obsolete Honor and Codename Valkyrie. I hope you will enjoy reading both books. Sincerely, Helena P. Schrader

Cliff Sanders |

From my childhood I have been fascinated by WWII and Nazi Germany. Over the years I have spent quite a bit of time reading about the subject. In the new move Valkyrie, I was stunned to find Olbricht depicted as hesitant, weak and subservient to Stauffenberg. Although to a lesser degree, Tresckow was portrayed in a similar fashion. I have enjoyed your site, you have confirmed my understanding of the character of the main participants in the July 20 plot. Thank you, I will search for and read your books. 4 January 2009 - Texas

frances |

I have just viewed the movie Valkyrie and feel it is fairly balanced. Your site and the movie are both excellent education opportunities. 31 December 2008 - toronto canada

Melissa |

Your site is amazing. The movie, Valkyrie, totally got me hooked on this subject and thankfully, my favorite actor plays Olbricht in the movie, so I've developed a love for the real-life Olbricht. I knew the movie would differ from real-life, and there are a few things I'm disappointed with. There's no mention or scenes with Olbricht's son-in-law (who I believe was with him that night) and from his account in the letter he wrote, Olbricht was a bit different than the one in the movie. It seems your account is similar to his son-in-law's. Have you seen the movie? But after the movie, I have more questions than answers, namely about Eva Olbricht. There's literally nothing about her on-line and I'm dying for info. The book that's being released in 2009 (is it January or April?), will we get tons of info on her, their children, etc? I want to know how she felt when all of this went down and what happened to her. I think I'm more interested in his personal life!! :) Thank you for providing some info on Olbricht! It helped answer a few questions!!! 31 December 2008 - Cincy, OH Webmaster comments   Melissa, Eva Olbricht was an amazing woman! She was a vehement opponent of Hitler from before he came to power and supported her husband in all his resistance activities. She was also somewhat feared among Olbricht's subordinates and known as the "Frau Generalin." And she won the respect of the Gestapo during her imprisonment after 20. July 1944. She had a sharp, incisive mind and in today's world she would have had a career of her own - a la Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama. She admitted to me with a laugh one day that she would have liked to be a General Staff Officer herself. Late into her nineties she was still reading several newspapers a day and at our weekly teas she would grill me on U.S. politics and current events generally. So your interest is not misplaced! However, out of respect to the family, I did not go into great detail on Olbricht's family life in "Codename Valkyrie." (Release set for this month in the UK. It should be available for order already on amazon.co.uk) Eva Olbricht is a minor charater in "An Obsolete Honor," however, and if you are interested in the private lives of resistance figures, then you will enjoy reading "An Obsolete Honor." This novel looks at motives and feelings more than a non-fiction book is allowed to do - without sacrificing any authenticity or accuracy - as Cruise did in his film. You can purchase it on amazon.com. Yes, Dr. Friedrich Georgi was with Olbricht on the night of 20 July 1944. I spent every 20 July with Dr. Georgi from 1984 to 2004 because he always invited me and a small circle of friends to spend that evening with him. He said he could not bear to be alone or with people who did not care about Olbricht and the Resistance. If you wish to hear more, please send me an email. Helena P. Schrader

Catherine Schlesinger |

My cousin and I just watched Valkyrie. We found it fascinating but did not see any mention of our ancestor Hans Speidel. Though other sites mention him being one of the insiders to the July 20th plot to assasin Hitler I wonder if you know exactly what his role was? We know he was a general to Rommel. 28 December 2008 - USA Webmaster comments   Catherine, The Cruise film ignores many important figures in the German Resistance. Unfortunately, I cannot help you with details on Hans Speidel, as my dissertation and research focused on Olbricht and the Allgemeine Heeres Amt in Berlin, whereas Speidel was in France. I suggest you look into biographies of Rommel and Stülpnagel, the Military Governor of France and important Resistance figure from 1938 onwards. Stülpnagel is one of the many neglected heroes of the German Resistance, who also deserves much more attention. Sincerely, Helena P. Schrader

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