Hi, I was wondering if anyone knows of any books that involve Nazi corruption. If not, does anyone know about any examples of Nazi corruption in Government and how widespread it was?
Thanks
Book about Corruption in Nazi Government
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sid guttridge
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Hi mrplow,
There was something on Hitler's personal finances a few years ago, but if I remember rightly the worst that came up was that while Hitler pretended poverty he was in fact extremely wealthy from Mein Kampf royalties! But then, if you treat the state as your own, any other form of corruption is probably superfluous!
However, any biography of Goering will provide ample ammunition for corruption charges, both personally and through the massive Herman Goering Werke.
There are also several books on art thefts across Europe.
One cannot overlook the expropriation of Jewish and other property without compensation.
Then there is the issue of the voting papers in the Austrian and Sudeten plebiscites.
And so on.
I have never seen a book devoted specifically to the subject of Nazi corruption, but one can pick up on it across a whole range of books on other subjects.
The fortunate thing for the Nazis was that non-Party society was generally disciplined, trusting and honest. In the hands of a corrupt regime there is no more powerful tool than a widely naive and compliant populace. It was Germany's great tragedy in WWII.
Cheers,
Sid.
There was something on Hitler's personal finances a few years ago, but if I remember rightly the worst that came up was that while Hitler pretended poverty he was in fact extremely wealthy from Mein Kampf royalties! But then, if you treat the state as your own, any other form of corruption is probably superfluous!
However, any biography of Goering will provide ample ammunition for corruption charges, both personally and through the massive Herman Goering Werke.
There are also several books on art thefts across Europe.
One cannot overlook the expropriation of Jewish and other property without compensation.
Then there is the issue of the voting papers in the Austrian and Sudeten plebiscites.
And so on.
I have never seen a book devoted specifically to the subject of Nazi corruption, but one can pick up on it across a whole range of books on other subjects.
The fortunate thing for the Nazis was that non-Party society was generally disciplined, trusting and honest. In the hands of a corrupt regime there is no more powerful tool than a widely naive and compliant populace. It was Germany's great tragedy in WWII.
Cheers,
Sid.
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Paddy Keating
A further note regarding Mein Kampf royalties: they were tax-free and paid "offshore", so to speak, into a Swiss bank account. Each NSDAP member had to buy one, as did every couple getting married, whether they were party members or not. As scams go, it was pretty good.
Then, on a state level, there was the Volkswagen scam, which was later used as the blueprint for the Trabant scam perpetrated by the Commies in the DDR. Mind you, at least some DDR subscribers actuallyt received Trabants, which is more than can be said for the German workers who doggedly paid their weekly stamps. I think someone sat down once and worked out that the first Volkswagen delivered to a German subscriber to the scheme would have been in the mid-1970s.
The state expropriation or reappropriation of Jewish-owned assets was bound to lead to corruption as party officials and other worthies earmarked nice houses for themselves and so on and so forth. However, the theft of valuable artworks is now being addressed by legions of lawyers around the world, to the point of making it a risky business for museums and private collections to move artwork around in case some New York lawyer pops up with a lawsuit claiming that the painting or sculpture once belonged to Mr and Mrs Goldfarb who lived in Vienna in 1938 and were victims of state theft.
This is all perfectly fine but I find it strange that we never seem to hear about non-Jewish victims of German theft of hugely valuable artworks during WW2 launching lawsuits against, say, the Russian government in relation to the wholesale plundering by Red troops of the countries and territories they "liberated". The reserve collections of Russian museums are full of stolen treasures. I know this is a tad off-topic but it is worth mentioning because it does have some bearing on the question of German Nazi appropriations or misappropriations. After all, one could be forgiven for thinking that Jewish citizens of countries administered by the Hitler Gang were the only people who possessed vastly valuable objects and assets in the late 1930s. However, Gentiles were victims of theft as well.
PK
Then, on a state level, there was the Volkswagen scam, which was later used as the blueprint for the Trabant scam perpetrated by the Commies in the DDR. Mind you, at least some DDR subscribers actuallyt received Trabants, which is more than can be said for the German workers who doggedly paid their weekly stamps. I think someone sat down once and worked out that the first Volkswagen delivered to a German subscriber to the scheme would have been in the mid-1970s.
The state expropriation or reappropriation of Jewish-owned assets was bound to lead to corruption as party officials and other worthies earmarked nice houses for themselves and so on and so forth. However, the theft of valuable artworks is now being addressed by legions of lawyers around the world, to the point of making it a risky business for museums and private collections to move artwork around in case some New York lawyer pops up with a lawsuit claiming that the painting or sculpture once belonged to Mr and Mrs Goldfarb who lived in Vienna in 1938 and were victims of state theft.
This is all perfectly fine but I find it strange that we never seem to hear about non-Jewish victims of German theft of hugely valuable artworks during WW2 launching lawsuits against, say, the Russian government in relation to the wholesale plundering by Red troops of the countries and territories they "liberated". The reserve collections of Russian museums are full of stolen treasures. I know this is a tad off-topic but it is worth mentioning because it does have some bearing on the question of German Nazi appropriations or misappropriations. After all, one could be forgiven for thinking that Jewish citizens of countries administered by the Hitler Gang were the only people who possessed vastly valuable objects and assets in the late 1930s. However, Gentiles were victims of theft as well.
PK
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Paddy Keating
A further note regarding Mein Kampf royalties: they were tax-free and paid "offshore", so to speak, into a Swiss bank account. Each NSDAP member had to buy one, as did every couple getting married, whether they were party members or not. As scams go, it was pretty good.
Then, on a state level, there was the Volkswagen scam, which was later used as the blueprint for the Trabant scam perpetrated by the Commies in the DDR. Mind you, at least some DDR subscribers actuallyt received Trabants, which is more than can be said for the German workers who doggedly paid their weekly stamps. I think someone sat down once and worked out that the first Volkswagen delivered to a German subscriber to the scheme would have been in the mid-1970s.
The state expropriation or reappropriation of Jewish-owned assets was bound to lead to corruption as party officials and other worthies earmarked nice houses for themselves and so on and so forth. However, the theft of valuable artworks is now being addressed by legions of lawyers around the world, to the point of making it a risky business for museums and private collections to move artwork around in case some New York lawyer pops up with a lawsuit claiming that the painting or sculpture once belonged to Mr and Mrs Goldfarb who lived in Vienna in 1938 and were victims of state theft.
This is all perfectly fine but I find it strange that we never seem to hear about non-Jewish victims of theft of hugely valuable artworks during WW2 launching lawsuits against, say, the Russian government in relation to the wholesale plundering by Red troops of the countries and territories they "liberated". The reserve collections of Russian museums are full of stolen treasures. I know this is a tad off-topic but it is worth mentioning because it does have some bearing on the question of German Nazi appropriations or misappropriations. After all, one could be forgiven for thinking that Jewish citizens of countries administered by the Hitler Gang were the only people who possessed vastly valuable objects and assets in the late 1930s. However, Gentiles were victims of theft as well.
PK
Then, on a state level, there was the Volkswagen scam, which was later used as the blueprint for the Trabant scam perpetrated by the Commies in the DDR. Mind you, at least some DDR subscribers actuallyt received Trabants, which is more than can be said for the German workers who doggedly paid their weekly stamps. I think someone sat down once and worked out that the first Volkswagen delivered to a German subscriber to the scheme would have been in the mid-1970s.
The state expropriation or reappropriation of Jewish-owned assets was bound to lead to corruption as party officials and other worthies earmarked nice houses for themselves and so on and so forth. However, the theft of valuable artworks is now being addressed by legions of lawyers around the world, to the point of making it a risky business for museums and private collections to move artwork around in case some New York lawyer pops up with a lawsuit claiming that the painting or sculpture once belonged to Mr and Mrs Goldfarb who lived in Vienna in 1938 and were victims of state theft.
This is all perfectly fine but I find it strange that we never seem to hear about non-Jewish victims of theft of hugely valuable artworks during WW2 launching lawsuits against, say, the Russian government in relation to the wholesale plundering by Red troops of the countries and territories they "liberated". The reserve collections of Russian museums are full of stolen treasures. I know this is a tad off-topic but it is worth mentioning because it does have some bearing on the question of German Nazi appropriations or misappropriations. After all, one could be forgiven for thinking that Jewish citizens of countries administered by the Hitler Gang were the only people who possessed vastly valuable objects and assets in the late 1930s. However, Gentiles were victims of theft as well.
PK
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Richard Hargreaves
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Call Mr Plow 'cos that's my name, that name again is Mr Plow...
Apologies for the musical aside.
There's an interesting book by a chap called Wetton or Whetton called Hitler's Fortune which looks at all Hitler's financial dealings (e.g. Berghof, Mein Kampf etc).
Apologies for the musical aside.
There's an interesting book by a chap called Wetton or Whetton called Hitler's Fortune which looks at all Hitler's financial dealings (e.g. Berghof, Mein Kampf etc).No-one who speaks German could be an evil man
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sid guttridge
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Hi Paddy,
Indeed. Gentiles were victims of art theft as well. And as far as I am aware, they are entitled to restitution as well.
However, within the Reich, the main victims of art and other theft seem to have been the Jewish population, not the German gentile population, for fairly obvious reasons. This is probably explains why restitution to Jews is more prominent than to gentiles.
Cheers,
Sid.
Indeed. Gentiles were victims of art theft as well. And as far as I am aware, they are entitled to restitution as well.
However, within the Reich, the main victims of art and other theft seem to have been the Jewish population, not the German gentile population, for fairly obvious reasons. This is probably explains why restitution to Jews is more prominent than to gentiles.
Cheers,
Sid.
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phylo_roadking
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There is considerable scope for study in the whole area of proper"graft" as we know it in the era; especially the "crony capitalism" of aircraft and tank procurement during the war. Thinking here of the close relationship between various party leaders and ranking industrialists that were know Nazi sympathisers like Ernst Heinkel and Ferdinand Porsche.
"Well, my days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle." - Malcolm Reynolds
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pzrmeyer2
Interesting how such a miniscule minority in Germany as a whole had so many priceless artworks and Swiss bank accounts. As they were "just like everyone else" I wonder how many of them were pushing wheelbarrows full of Reichsmarks to buy loaves of bread in the 20s.sid guttridge wrote:Hi Paddy,
Indeed. Gentiles were victims of art theft as well. And as far as I am aware, they are entitled to restitution as well.
However, within the Reich, the main victims of art and other theft seem to have been the Jewish population, not the German gentile population, for fairly obvious reasons. This is probably explains why restitution to Jews is more prominent than to gentiles.
Cheers,
Sid.
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sid guttridge
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Sid, you are mistaken again for Paddy clearly meant plundering by the "truly humanistic*" Red Army. As Russian duma has approved a law that all artifacts etc Red Army plundered are now the property of Russia, how serious are you in your claim of equal right of restitution?
*Some Russkies maintain with straight face that the Red Army allways fought to "liberate and free".
*Some Russkies maintain with straight face that the Red Army allways fought to "liberate and free".
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phylo_roadking
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sid guttridge
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sid guttridge
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phylo_roadking
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