Birger Dahlerus
Encyclopedia
Johan Birger Essen Dahlerus (February 6, 1891–March 8, 1957) was a Swedish
businessman, amateur diplomat
, and friend of Hermann Göring
who tried through diplomatic channels to prevent the Second World War
. His futile diplomatic efforts during the days proceeding the German invasion of Poland
in 1939 are sometimes called the Dahlerus Mission.
in 1891. He had an excellent network of contacts of authoritative Englishmen
and various leaders of the Third Reich
,----e.g. his early acquaintance with Hermann Göring.
It had been known to the senior military personnel of the Third Reich, at least since the Military Conference of August 6, 1939 at Obersalzberg
, that aggressive war between Greater Germany and the Western powers was imminent. On August 7, 1939 Dahlerus arranged a meeting at his own house, near the Danish border in Schleswig-Holstein
, between Göring and seven British businessmen.
The businessmen attempted to persuade Göring that the British Government would stand by its treaty obligations
to Poland
, which obliged it to support the Polish Government in any conflict in which it became embroiled. Dahlerus believed that they had succeeded. At the Nuremberg trials
, the British prosecutor, Sir David Maxwell-Fyfe, was able to persuade the Swede that he had been badly misled by the German leaders. Clearly, the discussion had no effect on the policy and actions of the Third Reich.
On August 25, 1939, the British and Polish Governments converted the unilateral declaration of support offered by the British Government into a mutual assistance pact. On the same day Benito Mussolini
wrote to Hitler to indicate that he would not be able at this time to declare war on the Western Powers. Dahlerus, at this time, was acting as an intermediary between Göring and the British Foreign Secretary, Lord Halifax
. Göring had summoned Dahlerus from Stockholm on the previous day, put him on an aircraft, and dispatched him to inform the British Government that Germany wanted an understanding with Great Britain. Halifax informed him that diplomatic channels were open and that his input was unnecessary.
Following a telephone conversation between himself and Göring, Dahlerus had a further conversation with Halifax on August 26. He persuaded the British Foreign Secretary to write a letter, couched in non-specific terms, indicating the desire of the British Government for peace and requesting a few days leeway in which to achieve it.
On August 27 Dahlerus flew to London, and met Neville Chamberlain
, Lord Halifax, Sir Horace Wilson and Sir Alexander Cadogan. He presented an offer, which included a proposal that Britain would agree to Germany taking Danzig
and the Polish corridor
. It was felt that this was an unacceptable proposal, and that the Poles would fight rather than agree to it. It was agreed that Dahlerus would return to Berlin
and report back with Hitler
's reply. Dahlerus had become so significant, according to his own testimony, that he felt able to advise the British Government that they should keep Ambassador Neville Henderson in London until the next day so that he could better react to Hitler's response.
On August 29, at a meeting with the German Foreign Minister, Joachim von Ribbentrop
, Neville Henderson had been presented with a document containing sixteen points which Germany demanded that Poland agree to. Henderson said that they were spoken too fast for him to understand, and that he was denied a written copy. On the following day, Dahlerus was given a copy of the sixteen points by Göring, and took them to Henderson. Henderson in turn dispatched him to Józef Lipski
, the Polish ambassador, who had never heard of Dahlerus. As one of the sixteen points was that a Polish negotiator with full plenipotentiary
powers should appear in Berlin before September 1, the Polish Government deemed the proposals unreasonable.
On August 31 Lipski was received by Ribbentrop. On being asked if he had come as a fully empowered delegate, and on stating that he had not, he was dismissed. An intercepted copy of the telegram to Lipski, defining his powers, was given by Göring to Dahlerus to take to Henderson.
Dahlerus' final diplomatic effort before the onset of war occurred on the afternoon of the last day of peace. He proposed that Göring should again meet with Henderson, which he did at 5pm. Sir George Forbes
, the counsellor at the embassy, was also present. His statement, presented at Nuremberg, describes the atmosphere as negative, and suggests Göring's confidence in the ability of Germany to crush Poland quickly.
The Third Reich commenced land operations against Poland on September 1, 1939 at 04:45. At 08:00 Dahlerus met Göring, who informed him that the Poles had attacked Germany (sic) at Dirschau. Dahlerus, in his Nuremberg testimony, says that "I informed somebody that according to the information I had received the Poles had attacked, and they naturally wondered what was happening to me when I gave that information". Dahlerus also stated that "the Poles are sabotaging everything" and that he had "evidence they never meant to attempt to negotiate".
Dahlerus telephoned London again at 12:30, and this time was put through to Cadogan. Cadogan, while being a committed anti-appeaser
, was only the Under-Secretary of State, and Dahlerus insisted that his comments be submitted to the Cabinet
. They duly were, and the answer given to the Swede was that negotiation was only possible on the basis of the immediate withdrawal of German forces from Polish territory.
The British and French
Governments issued ultimata to the German Government on September 3, 1939. Dahlerus telephoned the British Foreign Office ten minutes before the British ultimatum expired, with a proposal that Göring should fly immediately to London for negotiations. Perhaps not surprisingly, the approach was rejected, and Dahlerus disappeared from the world stage until the Nuremberg trials, apart from a brief and ineffective liaison between Hitler and Forbes on September 26, which achieved nothing. Birger Dahlerus died in Stockholm in 1957.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
businessman, amateur diplomat
Diplomacy
Diplomacy is the art and practice of conducting negotiations between representatives of groups or states...
, and friend of Hermann Göring
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
who tried through diplomatic channels to prevent the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. His futile diplomatic efforts during the days proceeding the German invasion of Poland
Invasion of Poland (1939)
The Invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign or 1939 Defensive War in Poland and the Poland Campaign in Germany, was an invasion of Poland by Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small Slovak contingent that marked the start of World War II in Europe...
in 1939 are sometimes called the Dahlerus Mission.
Biography
Birger Dahlerus was born in StockholmStockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
in 1891. He had an excellent network of contacts of authoritative Englishmen
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and various leaders of the Third Reich
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
,----e.g. his early acquaintance with Hermann Göring.
It had been known to the senior military personnel of the Third Reich, at least since the Military Conference of August 6, 1939 at Obersalzberg
Obersalzberg
Obersalzberg is a mountainside retreat situated above the market town of Berchtesgaden in Bavaria, Germany, located about southeast of Munich, close to the border with Austria...
, that aggressive war between Greater Germany and the Western powers was imminent. On August 7, 1939 Dahlerus arranged a meeting at his own house, near the Danish border in Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...
, between Göring and seven British businessmen.
- A. Holden
- Charles Spencer
- Stanley Rawson John Brown & CompanyJohn Brown & CompanyJohn Brown and Company of Clydebank was a pre-eminent Scottish marine engineering and shipbuilding firm, responsible for building many notable and world-famous ships, such as the , the , the , the , the , and the...
- Brain Mountain
- Sir Robert Renwick Robert Renwick, 1st Baron RenwickRobert Renwick, 1st Baron RenwickRobert Burnham Renwick, 1st Baron Renwick, KBE , known as Sir Robert Renwick, 2nd Baronet, from 1932 to 1964, was a British industrialist and public servant....
- Charles Maclaren Charles McLaren, 3rd Baron AberconwayCharles McLaren, 3rd Baron AberconwayCharles Melville McLaren, 3rd Baron Aberconway, JP was a British industrialist and horticulturalist. He was the son of Henry McLaren, 2nd Baron Aberconway and Christabel Macnaghten.-Education:...
- T. Mensforth
The businessmen attempted to persuade Göring that the British Government would stand by its treaty obligations
Foreign relations of the United Kingdom
The diplomatic foreign relations of the United Kingdom are implemented by the United Kingdom's Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The UK was the world's foremost power during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Throughout history it has wielded significant influence upon other nations via the British...
to Poland
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
, which obliged it to support the Polish Government in any conflict in which it became embroiled. Dahlerus believed that they had succeeded. At the Nuremberg trials
Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg Trials were a series of military tribunals, held by the victorious Allied forces of World War II, most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, and economic leadership of the defeated Nazi Germany....
, the British prosecutor, Sir David Maxwell-Fyfe, was able to persuade the Swede that he had been badly misled by the German leaders. Clearly, the discussion had no effect on the policy and actions of the Third Reich.
On August 25, 1939, the British and Polish Governments converted the unilateral declaration of support offered by the British Government into a mutual assistance pact. On the same day Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
wrote to Hitler to indicate that he would not be able at this time to declare war on the Western Powers. Dahlerus, at this time, was acting as an intermediary between Göring and the British Foreign Secretary, Lord Halifax
E. F. L. Wood, 1st Earl of Halifax
Edward Frederick Lindley Wood, 1st Earl of Halifax, , known as The Lord Irwin from 1925 until 1934 and as The Viscount Halifax from 1934 until 1944, was one of the most senior British Conservative politicians of the 1930s, during which he held several senior ministerial posts, most notably as...
. Göring had summoned Dahlerus from Stockholm on the previous day, put him on an aircraft, and dispatched him to inform the British Government that Germany wanted an understanding with Great Britain. Halifax informed him that diplomatic channels were open and that his input was unnecessary.
Following a telephone conversation between himself and Göring, Dahlerus had a further conversation with Halifax on August 26. He persuaded the British Foreign Secretary to write a letter, couched in non-specific terms, indicating the desire of the British Government for peace and requesting a few days leeway in which to achieve it.
On August 27 Dahlerus flew to London, and met Neville Chamberlain
Neville Chamberlain
Arthur Neville Chamberlain FRS was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940. Chamberlain is best known for his appeasement foreign policy, and in particular for his signing of the Munich Agreement in 1938, conceding the...
, Lord Halifax, Sir Horace Wilson and Sir Alexander Cadogan. He presented an offer, which included a proposal that Britain would agree to Germany taking Danzig
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
and the Polish corridor
Polish Corridor
The Polish Corridor , also known as Danzig Corridor, Corridor to the Sea or Gdańsk Corridor, was a territory located in the region of Pomerelia , which provided the Second Republic of Poland with access to the Baltic Sea, thus dividing the bulk of Germany from the province of East...
. It was felt that this was an unacceptable proposal, and that the Poles would fight rather than agree to it. It was agreed that Dahlerus would return to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and report back with Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
's reply. Dahlerus had become so significant, according to his own testimony, that he felt able to advise the British Government that they should keep Ambassador Neville Henderson in London until the next day so that he could better react to Hitler's response.
On August 29, at a meeting with the German Foreign Minister, Joachim von Ribbentrop
Joachim von Ribbentrop
Ulrich Friedrich Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop was Foreign Minister of Germany from 1938 until 1945. He was later hanged for war crimes after the Nuremberg Trials.-Early life:...
, Neville Henderson had been presented with a document containing sixteen points which Germany demanded that Poland agree to. Henderson said that they were spoken too fast for him to understand, and that he was denied a written copy. On the following day, Dahlerus was given a copy of the sixteen points by Göring, and took them to Henderson. Henderson in turn dispatched him to Józef Lipski
Józef Lipski
Józef Lipski . Polish diplomat and Ambassador to Nazi Germany, 1934 to 1939. Lipski played a key role in foreign policy of Second Polish Republic.-Life:Lipski trained as a lawyer, and joined the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1925....
, the Polish ambassador, who had never heard of Dahlerus. As one of the sixteen points was that a Polish negotiator with full plenipotentiary
Plenipotentiary
The word plenipotentiary has two meanings. As a noun, it refers to a person who has "full powers." In particular, the term commonly refers to a diplomat fully authorized to represent his government as a prerogative...
powers should appear in Berlin before September 1, the Polish Government deemed the proposals unreasonable.
On August 31 Lipski was received by Ribbentrop. On being asked if he had come as a fully empowered delegate, and on stating that he had not, he was dismissed. An intercepted copy of the telegram to Lipski, defining his powers, was given by Göring to Dahlerus to take to Henderson.
Dahlerus' final diplomatic effort before the onset of war occurred on the afternoon of the last day of peace. He proposed that Göring should again meet with Henderson, which he did at 5pm. Sir George Forbes
George Forbes
George Forbes may refer to:*George Forbes , merchant and political figure in Prince Edward Island*George Forbes , Scottish electrical engineer, astronomer, and inventor...
, the counsellor at the embassy, was also present. His statement, presented at Nuremberg, describes the atmosphere as negative, and suggests Göring's confidence in the ability of Germany to crush Poland quickly.
The Third Reich commenced land operations against Poland on September 1, 1939 at 04:45. At 08:00 Dahlerus met Göring, who informed him that the Poles had attacked Germany (sic) at Dirschau. Dahlerus, in his Nuremberg testimony, says that "I informed somebody that according to the information I had received the Poles had attacked, and they naturally wondered what was happening to me when I gave that information". Dahlerus also stated that "the Poles are sabotaging everything" and that he had "evidence they never meant to attempt to negotiate".
Dahlerus telephoned London again at 12:30, and this time was put through to Cadogan. Cadogan, while being a committed anti-appeaser
Appeasement
The term appeasement is commonly understood to refer to a diplomatic policy aimed at avoiding war by making concessions to another power. Historian Paul Kennedy defines it as "the policy of settling international quarrels by admitting and satisfying grievances through rational negotiation and...
, was only the Under-Secretary of State, and Dahlerus insisted that his comments be submitted to the Cabinet
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the collective decision-making body of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, composed of the Prime Minister and some 22 Cabinet Ministers, the most senior of the government ministers....
. They duly were, and the answer given to the Swede was that negotiation was only possible on the basis of the immediate withdrawal of German forces from Polish territory.
The British and French
French Third Republic
The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...
Governments issued ultimata to the German Government on September 3, 1939. Dahlerus telephoned the British Foreign Office ten minutes before the British ultimatum expired, with a proposal that Göring should fly immediately to London for negotiations. Perhaps not surprisingly, the approach was rejected, and Dahlerus disappeared from the world stage until the Nuremberg trials, apart from a brief and ineffective liaison between Hitler and Forbes on September 26, which achieved nothing. Birger Dahlerus died in Stockholm in 1957.