Chapter III: Part XXII
Chapter III: The Lion’s Den
Part XXII
October 9, 1936
“We have just received word that forty minutes ago, the brief hostilities in the sovereign Netherlands came to an end. In the historic City Hall in the Hague, representatives of the elected government of the Netherlands signed an armistice recognizing the necessity of a purely defensive occupation by German forces until the end of hostilities with Great Britain. Prime Minister Colijn signed at ten this morning the armistice document, which was signed for Germany by Head War Command Chief of Operations Field Marshal von Küchler on behalf of the Führer. Reichsminister Joseph Goebbels will now deliver a statement.” Albert Block, chief deputy to State Secretary Walther Funk and sometime propaganda spokesman, stepped down from the podium to the brilliant flicker of flashbulbs.
Foreign journalists from a dozen nations filled the main hall of the Ordenspalais at Wilhelmplatz 8/9 in Berlin. The headquarters of the Reich Ministry for Propaganda and Popular Enlightenment, the Ordenspalais hosted these men for the daily press conferences given by Goebbels or his minions. Ernst Trommler rarely had occasion to attend, but had been invited along with over-editor Lorenz Sassen to observe what promised to be an extraordinary Reich Special Press Conference.
The Ordenspalais, headquarters of the Reich Ministry for Propaganda and Popular Englightenment.
They now saw the familiar figure of Reichsminister Goebbels, exchanging a few words with Funk -- his chief press officer -- before taking to the podium. At last, Hitler’s Propaganda Minister stood in the renewed dazzle of flashbulbs, ready to give the government’s official interpretation of the newly-ended war.
“Three hundred and eighty-one hours ago,” Goebbels said, dampening the hubbub of the assembled journalists, “the Queen of the Netherlands rejected Germany’s final demand that she not drag her country into alliance with Great Britain. In refusing that demand, she was declaring her decision to ally herself with Stanley Baldwin’s government, and to make her nation available to his admitted efforts to invade Germany before the end of the year.
This is, naturally, something which Germany had no choice but to prevent in this time of war. Nonetheless, it was the Führer Adolf Hitler’s ardent wish that all care be taken to lessen the inevitable suffering of the Dutch people. All efforts were made in the opening hours of the war to spare civilian targets bombing by our Air Force. Attempts were made to ensure the peaceful occupation of cities and towns of historic and cultural value.
This was done even in the face of the very British invasion which we had foreseen. In addition to what we believe was as much as two full British infantry divisions which we destroyed, we also destroyed a confirmed 41 British combat aircraft over Holland. The whole of the country was occupied with great swiftness and force, with miminum unnecessary casualties inflicted upon those Dutch units which ceased resistance. It is true that some units have illegally fled across the sea to England, but I can say that the majority of the Royal Netherlands Army is now being processed as prisoners and will be freed as soon as this is reasonable to do.
Blame for the unfortunate events of the last two weeks rests solely with one person: the Queen of the Netherlands. The Queen defied the constitution enacted by the will of her people. Her hatred for Germany was so great that she was willing to trample the laws of her country. It must be recorded by history that she refused to even acknowledge the urgent German pleas to avert war. Indeed Germany successfully kept the Netherlands out of the last war and wished bitterly to do so again. Yet when the threat of British occupation became imminent, including acts of war, sabotage and assassination, it became of utmost importance to protect Germany’s neighbor. The murder of the Kaiser -- an old man living in a neutral country -- by British intelligence services was a final transgression. And so when we delivered our final message to the Netherlands government, we were dismayed that the pro-war and pro-British faction that had grown up around the Queen refused to listen to reason.
Yet it soon became apparent that war against Germany was not the will of the Dutch people. When the Queen continued to call for continuance of the war, even over the objections of her government, a new and legitimate government was formed with the intention of making peace. With the Queen and most of her family now in London, it is our view that they are no longer significant to the war, and that the peace concluded today is binding and valid. That is, we no longer see ourselves as at war with the Netherlands.
Again we call to our implacable enemy to reconsider his determination to continue the war against all reason. Germany has demonstrated again and again its determination to resist British imperialism in Europe. As long as Great Britain makes war against the peoples of Europe, we will maintain our resistance, until the Final Victory has been achieved.”
Again the thump and flash from the cameras filled the front of the hall. Trommler saw the foreign journalists jostling to ask the first question.
“I will be taking your questions personally today. First the
Notizie di Roma.”
A familiar-looking Italian newspaper reporter stepped forward. “Herr Reichsminister, what are the German government’s intentions about the Princess Juliana, whom we have heard was captured trying to flee Amsterdam?”
“We have no intention of keeping her hostage. Following her mother’s break with the Netherlands government, we do not consider her anything other than a young woman who is a civilian. If she wishes to leave the Netherlands and join the rest of her family, we will arrange this through a neutral country. Next,
La Vigilia.”
The most junior member of the international press corps in Berlin stepped forward on behalf of a new far-right newspaper in Spain. “Reichsminister, what can you tell the world about German policy with regard to Spain?
Is there not also danger of Britain violating Spanish neutrality?”
“Germany remains sympathic to the struggle of the
Nacionales, but intelligence about British intentions with regard to Spain, Portugal and Gibraltar is secret. At this time there is no further news that I can give that has not already been announced.”
Goebbels proceeded to call on representatives of the Austrian, Czech, Swedish, Danish and Norwegian press. They received confident, even boastful answers about the destruction of the Grebbe Line, the status of the Belgian population, the security of major dikes in Holland, the activities of the
Admiral Graf Spee and the results of a recent British air raid on Paris.
“In conclusion,” the Propaganda Minister said, answering an Associated Press reporter with a snowy white beard, “our aims are simple. We are continuing bombing raids against Britain, and providing all possible assistance to our Italian allies to defeat Britain in North Africa. Following recent French mass surrenders, most of Algeria is in Italian hands, with the holdout forces massing for a last stand in Tunisia. In Egypt, the English are backed nearly to the gates of Cairo by the recent Italian offensive. We intend to press on and take the Suez Canal within the month and afterwards drive on into Palestine. With its most vital sea artery cut, Great Britain will be forced to sue for peace. That will be all for today.”
“Herr Reichsminister,” called one of the reporters for the American NBC. “Herr Reichsminister, I believe was assigned a question.”
Trommler and Sassen both craned their necks but couldn’t make out anything but the man’s fedora. His German was quite acceptable.
“Herr Reichsminister!”
Goebbels stood poised at the podium, indecision playing across his angular face. He dipped for a moment, as though making to ignore the American and step down, but hesitated and pulled himself forward again. “Yes?”
“You stated that the peace accord with the Netherlands was based on total military victory, and that Germany now has everything that it hoped to achieve from the war. You described the campaign as “planmässig” -- according to plan -- yet by your own timetable, it lasted nearly twice as long as predicted by the General Staff. If these setbacks are so insignificant, why is it that the no provision has been made for occupation of the Dutch East Indies, which was one of the stated goals at the outset of the invasion?”
Trommler saw Propaganda Minister’s face sour slightly. “The timetable referred to was merely a guideline for planning purposes. The advance had to be slowed repeatedly for the sake of ensuring the welfare of the civilian population. This adjustment of our timetable had no effect whatsoever on our decision not to demand to occupy the colonies. The principal concern there is petroleum, and we can get it more cheaply than by shipping it over vast expanses of hostile ocean. Thank you.”
Rattled, Goebbels stepped down, and Block assumed the podium and declared the press conference at an end. Trommler could see that the German attendees were stirring to see which audacious American had asked the question. Sassen slipped into the crowd, telling Trommler that he was going to find out.
To Trommler, though, the result was clear -- and would resound in the international press. The Third Reich now controlled the unbroken shoreline from Bayonne at the foot of the Pyrenees all the way to the Danish border. Despite a rapid British answer to desperate Dutch pleas for assistance -- one which most in Germany did not believe would come at all -- the Netherlands had been overrun with comparatively minor losses. The Anglo-French alliance, with French resolve evaporating in the Mediterranean, had been dealt yet another stinging blow. What little of the Royal Netherlands Army that could be evacuated to Britain pledged to continue the struggle on the side of the Allies, but the aid would now be far more moral than material. The Dutch navy, for its part, was now divided between the Channel Ports and the Indies. Even if it protected the latter against German influence, it would clearly play no significant role in European waters. Germany, as Goebbels had assured the Danish journalist, was now free to devote itself to preventing a British invasion in 1937.
“Trommler,” said Sassen, returning with a hardened jaw. “That was the man Wilhelm Weiss warned us about -- I didn’t know that he was in Berlin. That was Robert Trout.”
