Description:

ALEXANDER FREIHERR VON DOERNBERG (1901-1983) German jurist, diplomat and SS officer, head of the Protocol Department of the Foreign Office from 1938 to 1945. Fine D.S., 32pp. 12mo., von Doernberg's diplomatic passport, issued August 2, 1943 in Berlin. The first page gives his passport number "1646", expiration date in August of 1944 and an extension until 1946, and lists his title "Chef de Protokolls im Auswaertigen Amt". The second page bears his biographical information, while the third page features his identification photo above his signature in blue indelible pencil on a slip of paper affixed to the page. An endorsement stamp form the Foreign Office appears on page five, and the following pages show diplomatic visa stamps issued for Bulgaria, the Slovak Republic, Hungary, the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, and finally Switzerland. The document is bound in blue cloth boards with a gilt national eagle and titles. It shows various blind-embossed seals and a punch numeral at the bottom of the pages. The binding is split slightly, with expected bumps and wear to the covers, else very good. Sold with a printed invitation, 8" x 5 3/4", from German Labor Front head Dr. Robert Ley, inviting Dornberg to attend a reception for the "Faschistischen Partei-Delegation" ("Fascist Party Delegation") of Italy on January 29, 1943, at the Hotel Adlon in Berlin. This shows file holes to the left edge, else very good. The group is completed by a postal cover used by the General Government in Belgium, addressed to a "Kabinettsrat ('Cabinet Member') Romheld", with von Doernberg's typed return address in Brussels on the verso. This is ragged at the top and side where opened, else very good. Three pieces. In his official capacity, von Doernberg received British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain during the negotiations that would produce the Munich Agreement in the fall of 1938, and would also accompany Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop to Moscow for the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in August on 1939. He was arrested by the Allies at the war's end and served as a witness at the Nuremberg trials, especially the Ministries Trial. He caused controversy when, in 2005, it was realized that his portrait still hung among those of his predecessors and successors as head of the Protocol Department at the Foreign Office building in Berlin. The articles offered here originate from his estate.

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July 30, 2019 10:00 AM EDT
Chesapeake City, MD, US

Alexander Historical Auctions LLC

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