Lucas Delattre - A Spy at the Heart of the Third Reich

to begin in Nuremberg: The trial of the Nazi leaders had been in preparation since late 1942. The establishment of a commission called on to judge the German leaders was announced in November 1943. In August 1945, the statute for the tribunal was adopted in London by the three principal Allies: the United States, England, and the USSR. The Nuremberg tribunal opened its doors in November 1945 and sentences were pronounced on October 1, 1946. Among other Nazi leaders, Joachim von Ribbentrop was executed by hanging on October 16, 1946 in a Nuremberg gymnasium.

“ pride,” Peter Sichel recalled: This testimony mildly contradicts Edward P. Morgan, who quotes the following statement by Fritz Kolbe: “I won a lot of trophies, but I never took one of them. I do things for the sake of doing them. That is enough. I don’t like trophies or medals or uniforms.” “The Spy the Nazis Missed.”

of the Poole commission: Fritz Kolbe was questioned by Harold C. Vedeler. The transcripts of the conversations, declassified since 1963, are on microfilm in the National Archives (M679, roll 2).

had to remain secret: An official document of the Nuremberg tribunal attests that Fritz Kolbe “has worked as an investigator for the War Crimes Commission from July 23, 1945 until this date. Subject has given outstanding service and is to be highly commended for the efficient and tactful manner in which he handled his assignments.” War Crimes Commission, document dated December 15, 1945, Peter Kolbe collection, Sydney.

Allies during the war: Letter of William Donovan to Allen Dulles, June 29, 1946, Allen W. Dulles Papers. At the time, Allen Dulles had left the OSS to return to the practice of law in New York. The OSS itself no longer existed. The office had been renamed SSU (for Strategic Services Unit) before becoming the CIA in September 1947. The OSS had been dismantled in October 1945 by President Truman, who feared the rise to power of an American-style “secret police.”

is no longer safe: Letter from Allen Dulles to William Donovan, July 8, 1946, Allen W. Dulles Papers. The possibility of a kidnapping of Fritz Kolbe can be understood in the context of the time. It was not infrequent in postwar Berlin for people to “disappear” mysteriously. The journalist Dieter Friede was kidnapped in the fall of 1947. Walter Linse, a jurist and defender of human rights, was kidnapped in July 1952 and executed by the Soviets a few months later

the Americans in Berlin?: Peter Sichel believes that this evaluation by Dulles “was probably a little exaggerated.” Interview with Peter Sichel, May 25, 2002, New York.

in the State Department: Letter from Fritz Kolbe to Ernst Kocherthaler, June 1947, personal archives of Fritz Kolbe.

from the United States: Letter from Fritz Kolbe to Allen Dulles, March 1, 1948, Allen W. Dulles Papers.

the American immigration authorities: After the German surrender, Allied soldiers did not have the right to communicate with German civilians. This policy of “non-fraternization” was not rescinded until mid-July 1945.

the course of 1947: Allen Dulles wondered what “George” could possibly be able to do in the United States, but he was prepared to help him in his plans. Correspondence between Fred Stalder and Allen Dulles, Allen W. Dulles Papers. The questions about Fritz were sent to Dulles by his Washington colleagues on November 21, 1947. National Archives.

submitted in New York: Affidavit notarized on January 15, 1948 by John. W. P. Slobadin, Allen W. Dulles Papers.

event of any difficulties: Affidavit notarized on April 26, 1948, same notary, Allen W. Dulles Papers. See also a letter from Richard Helms to Allen Dulles, April 21, 1948: “For your information, George has earned from us since 1945 the sum of $6,199.25. This is in addition to the 20,000 Swiss Francs which you left for him in Switzerland.” Allen W. Dulles Papers.

days of the war: Letter from Ernst Kocherthaler to Allen Dulles, October 8, 1945, National Archives.

just established in Zurich: Curriculum vitae prepared by Fritz Kolbe after the war, personal archives of Fritz Kolbe.

was in full swing: The Berlin blockade lasted from June 1948 to May 1949.

or a research assistant: Letter from Allen Dulles to Fritz Kolbe, April 1949, personal archives of Fritz Kolbe.

“difficulties,” he told him: Letter from Walter Bauer to Fritz Kolbe, May 21, 1949, personal archives of Fritz Kolbe.

Standard Oil or Texaco: Letter from Ernst Kocherthaler to Fritz Kolbe, June 7, 1949, personal archives of Fritz Kolbe.

Fritz’s capital of $25,000: Correspondence between Fritz Kolbe and Allen Dulles, personal archives of Fritz Kolbe; correspondence between Allen Dulles and Ernst Kocherthaler, Allen W. Dulles Papers. The CIA had offered Fritz the sum of $25,000 on his arrival on American soil (in addition to the 20,000 Swiss francs deposited by Allen Dulles in a trust account in Switzerland). Hansjakob Stehle, “Der Mann, der den Krieg verkürzen wollte,” Die Zeit, May 2, 1986.

a few months later: Letter from Allen Dulles to Ernst Kocherthaler, November 28, 1949, Allen W. Dulles Papers.

not a businessman type: Letter from Ernst Kocherthaler to Allen Dulles, January 27, 1953, Allen W. Dulles Papers.

on May 9, 1949: Personal archives of Fritz Kolbe.

based in Frankfurt: Walter Bauer had a leading position in the embryonic economic administration in the land of Hesse, and he participated in the European negotiations on coal and steel. He was an insider who knew everyone. On several occasions, Chancellor Adenauer offered him a ministerial position, which he refused. He was one of the important figures in the employers’ organizations (the BDI), where he represented the interests of the textile industry. Konrad Adenauer Foundation, Sankt Augustin, Walter Bauer file.

the Social Democratic Party: Letter from Fritz Kolbe to Carlo Schmid, June 13, 1949 (and answer from Schmid’s office, August 17, 1949); letter of application to the Marshall Plan administration, July 11, 1949; letter from the head office of the SPD to Fritz Kolbe, October 18, 1949. Personal archives of Fritz Kolbe.

be “absolutely politically clean”: Newspaper article of July 1949. The quotation from Governor Robertson was underlined by Fritz Kolbe; personal archives of Fritz Kolbe.

a member of the party: Letter from Fritz Kolbe to Rudolf Pechel, August 11, 1949. German Federal Archives, Koblenz, Rudolf Pechel file.

But me he kept: Letter from Fritz Kolbe to Walter Bauer, November 15, 1949, personal archives of Fritz Kolbe.

his house in Bavaria: In January 1948, the “Wilhelmstrasse” trial began against twenty-one former high-ranking diplomats, including Karl Ritter. He was sentenced in April 1949 to four years in prison for “war crimes” because of his decision-making responsibilities in the treatment of Allied prisoners of war. He was acquitted on other charges (notably of “crimes against humanity” in connection with the occupation of Hungary after March 1944). Karl Ritter had already served his sentence. He returned to his chalet in Bavaria and lived away from public life. (Fritz heard that Ritter was going back to Brazil in 1950 to marry a rich heiress. Morgan, “The Spy the Nazis Missed”).