Tag: Kurt von Schuschnigg

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Operation Bernhard

One of the most effective resistance activities during World War II was forging identification documents (click here to read the  blog, If I Sleep, Thirty People Die). However, Allied intelligence operations, resistance fighters in occupied countries, and foreign agents were not the only ones engaged in forgery activities. The Germans set-up forgery operations inside a concentration camp to counterfeit British currency. Using camp labor, the idea was to mass produce bank notes and drop them into England where economic collapse would occur. None of the fake money reached its destination and needless-to-say, the Germans were disappointed the desired effects never materialized.

This is the story of how Jewish inmates expertly forged enough money to force the British government to issue newly designed currency after the war.

I will be the guest speaker for Bonjour Paris on 6 December 2023 for a Zoom presentation to their members and others. The topic will be “Walking History: In the Footsteps of Marie Antoinette” and I will take you on a walk along the exact route in Paris that the queen’s tumbrel took to the guillotine. I invite you to join us for the discussion and slide show.

Bonjour Paris (click here to visit the web-site) is a digital website dedicated to bringing its members current news, travel tips, culture, and historical articles on Paris. I have been a member for more than ten years and have found its content to be quite interesting, practical, and entertaining.

 I will have a direct link to sign up for my presentation at a later date. There is no cost to Bonjour Paris members and €10,00 for non-members. The time of the live presentation on 6 December will be 11:30 AM, east coast time.

Did You Know?

Did you know that prior to World War II, Halloween wasn’t about costumes, candy, or parties? No, it was all about vandalism. Apparently, back then, kids (and some adults) seemed to embrace Halloween’s dark side. Some research (not mine) has concluded that the war changed how Halloween was “celebrated” in America. In 1942, children’s parties were organized by community organizations, places of worship, and school groups. While candy was absent (sugar was rationed), the kids dressed up in costumes and Halloween parades were held. (Any of you remember dressing up for school and competing in the best costume parade? ⏤ I never won.) Read More Operation Bernhard

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Diplomatic Lessons and Warning Signs,

Fifteen years after the end of World War II, William L. Shirer published his epic book, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. I purchased the book almost forty years ago through the “Book of the Month Club”⏤remember that organization? (Believe it or not, BOMC still exists.) I just finished reading it and there were many topics from ninety-years ago that pertain to today’s world. Today’s blog captures one of those subjects.

American author and journalist, William L. Shirer. Photo by anonymous (c. 1961). PD-U.S. Government. Wikimedia Commons.
American author and journalist, William L. Shirer. Photo by anonymous (c. 1961). PD-U.S. Government. Wikimedia Commons.

William L. Shirer (1904−1993) was an American journalist and war correspondent. He was an eyewitness to the rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazism during the 1930s. He started as a print journalist and worked for Universal Service until 1937 when he was fired from the William Randolph Hearst news company. Edward R. Murrow, European manager for CBS, immediately hired Shirer to open a bureau on the European continent. (Murrow worked out of the London office and wanted a correspondent located in Europe.) Shirer’s office was in Vienna but most of his reporting was done onsite from Paris, Berlin, and Rome. After Dunkirk, he personally followed behind the movement of German troops to report on the war. As the Nazis continued to pressure him in 1940 to report inaccurate information, Shirer suggested to Murrow that his tenure in Nazi territory was about over. Right about the same time, Shirer learned the Gestapo was developing a case against him for espionage which carried the death penalty. In December 1940, Shirer left Germany and did not return to Europe until 1945 when he covered the Nuremberg trials. Read More Diplomatic Lessons and Warning Signs,