Description:

A fascinating, one-of-a-kind mimeograph, a Reuters 'press association' memo sent to an unnamed chief sub editor 'for use in the event of Field Marshal [Hermann] Goering's death'. The mimeograph, 6pp. sm. 4to., is dated just two months after the start of the war, being ink stamped 'December 20, 1939' on the first page. This message bears a transcript for a Reuters article should Goering be killed during the war, providing a brief synopsis of Goering's military career in World War I, his relations with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party, his struggles with drug addiction, and his ascension to Hitler's successor and one of the most powerful men in the Third Reich. In part: 'Goering was Once a 'Stunt Pilot'. But He Built Germany's Air Force...Goering possessed the great attribute of knowing how to handle men...in July 1918, he was appointed to lead the famous 'Richthofen Squadron'. He took leave of his comrades eight days after the armistice, drinking a final toast and dashing his glass against a wall...with a battle-scarred aeroplane he eked out a precarious living for a year, giving exhibition flights...he met Adolf Hitler at a political meeting...was entrusted with the task of leading the Storm Troops, and was severely wounded in the Munich 'putsch'...he sought releif in morphia, and for a time was in a mental home....[he later] set up the Secret Political Police, and the concentration camps, and he condoned, if he did not inspire, the cruelties which accompanied...he carried out the 'blood-purge'...perhaps the most remarkable feat...was the creation of a powerful air force for Germany...the nation cordially approved Herr Hitler's choice when, on September 1, 1939, the first day of the war against Poland, he appointed Goering as his successor...Although regarded abroad as a fire-eater, he had a shrewd and cautious judgement, and his bellicose speeches were calculated performances of window dressing...' Much more content. Suggesting its scarcity, the individual who wrote this memo also adds that the contents '...will not be repeated...', and our research could find no evidence that this article ever saw publication. Paper clip stain at upper-left, lightly toned towards the edges, else very good condition. An excessively rare mimeograph, making plans for the demise of Hermann Goering during the escalation of World War II.

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August 24, 2021 10:00 AM EDT
Elkton, MD, US

Alexander Historical Auctions LLC

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