Nexus - 1206 - New Times Magazine-pages

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The secrets he gave away in those four years, though made no difference to the validity or invalidity of any research dismissed officially as "lunacy" by the British Government and or evidence collected. at the Nuremberg Trials, were taken seriously in some Himmler evaded the hangman's noose by a cyanide capsule, quarters—particularly after Britain had caught more of and Géring also used a cyanide capsule on the eve of his Germany's most powerful Nazis at the end of the war. execution. Could the pills have been supplied by Britain's Unfortunately, with Hess being imprisoned until his suspicious SOE in return for information? Hess, Himmler and Goring "suicide" in 1987 at the age of ninety-seven," all records about were all able to commit "suicide" whilst in custody—two of him are locked firmly away under the UK Official Secrets Act them being firmly in British custody at the time. All three and will be for the foreseeable future. Only circumstantial "suicides" have an aura of mystery surrounding them, evidence can be used to gauge how much or how little Hess especially since the three men would have had some knew about the Antarctic haven. knowledge to share about Antarctica. Heinrich Himmler, Reichsfiihrer of the SS, was captured on Hermann Goring, though captured by US forces, still had a 23 May 1945 by the British. Though he managed to kill him- fair deal of knowledge about the German Antarctic expeditions self with a cyanide capsule and thus evade interrogation, his of 1938-39 and 1939-40, for it was he who commemorated the entourage did not have that luxury. Himmler was denounced first expedition with a medal and bragged to the world about as a traitor by Hitler for trying to make the "German success"."” peace with the US and Britain. But as G6ring was the Nazi Party's number two Himmler had nothing to bargain with and for so long, but he managed to cheat death his heinous past meant certain execution, and justice in the most mysterious of cir- could he still have offered the British infor- cumstances. Born into affluence as a son of mation that they desired in the hope of The SS Ahnenerbe a colonial officer, Géring became one of escape or, at worst, a chance to evade the missions which Germany's World War I air aces and ended hangman? . + up highly decorated. He joined the Nazi Unfortunately for him, with no chance of Himmler authorised Party in 1923 and took part in the Putsch, a reprieve and with Donitz being appre- in pursuit of the where he established himself in Hitler's hended the same day, Himmler became an | w | favour but also received a groin injury. As irrelevance; and with his "disgust" at being ancestral Aryan legacy a result of this injury, Goring became treated as just a lowly soldier, he to such remote places addicted to morphine—an addiction that announced who he was before inducing his 2 would have profound consequences. death. Britain nevertheless more than as Tibet, Egypt and Géring's marriage to a wealthy and likely gained all the nowledge that Iraq, and even as influential woman helped him consoli- Himmler possessed by interrogating date his position amongst the elite. his entourage exhaustively. Whatever close by as the Channel His connections to the upper classes knowledge Himmler had wished to Islands brought in an ted the Nazi Party far more bene- 3 inestimable amount of research. share, was shared—and without the ficially than any parades. In 1932, British having to keep one the vilest Goring was elected Speaker of the men in Europe in their custody. Reichstag but, despite his popularity, Himmler, labelled a "half crank, half he was making enemies because of his schoolmaster"'* by Albert Speer, had self-obsession, ambition and greed. managed to rise from being a lowly He became one of Germany's richest poultry farmer to becoming the most men, virtually all his wealth plundered feared, reviled man in Europe because from victims of the Nazis. In 1936, he of his system of terror, which made reached the pinnacle of his career in mass murder an industry, and because the Nazi Party when he became of his faithful paramilitary SS who ensured "loyalty" and Hitler's heir apparent. Yet his popularity had not yet peaked: "obedience" to the Nazi State. he would have to wait until the early German success in The SS Ahnenerbe missions which Himmler authorised in deploying the Blitzkrieg against Poland for that short-lived pursuit of the "ancestral Aryan legacy" to such remote places honour. But, his addiction was starting to plague his judge- as Tibet, Egypt and Iraq, and even as close by as the Channel ment and standing amongst the elite. Islands, brought in an inestimable amount of research. And The early German victories saw Goring rise in Hitler's esti- though the 1938 Deutsche Antarktische Expedition was firmly mation, but Hitler's fickle temperament was due to change. under Hermann Goring's control, Himmler was indeed more When Goring's Luftwaffe failed to win the Battle of Britain than interested in the findings of the expedition and the possi- despite having superior numbers, Goring fell out of favour. He bility of discovering an entrance to the fabled Hollow Earth— then found solace only in his morphine and his vast, plundered so much so that he surely would have demanded to have been wealth. informed for the sake of furthering the Aryan legacy myth. By 1943, Goring was no longer part of the top Nazi leader- Even so, how much Himmler knew that was not already ship; he was heavily addicted, a virtual recluse and drastically known by British Intelligence at the end of the war is out of favour. Any knowledge about Nazi survival plans that debatable, though invaluable to the Allies and Britain in he would have been privy to would have been disputable, but it particular were the results of the numerous SS Ahnenerbe is highly likely that he would have been able to divulge to US missions. Even though Dr Ernst Schafer, who led the Tibet Intelligence enough about Antarctica, learned from his time Expedition, claimed that "Himmler had some very strange amongst the elite, to have compelled the United States to con- ideas"'* and also that "[t]hey all dabbled in the occult", '* this sider the possibility of a Nazi base on Antarctica and to take of research. 12 = NEXUS The SS Ahnenerbe | missions which Himmler authorised www.nexusmagazine.com OCTOBER — NOVEMBER 2005