Nazis |

The MS WILHELM GUSTLOFF was the worst maritime disaster in the history of the world, with more fatalities then the Titanic and the Lusitania combined.

December 17, 2011 By Michael L. Grace Leave a Comment

Cruise history and liner history: The MS WILHELM GUSTLOFF was the worst maritime disaster in the history of the world, with more fatalities then the Titanic and the Lusitania combined.

August 1, 1936 at Blohm & Voss shipyards in Hamburg. Robert Ley, head of the DAF and KdF drove in the ceremonial first bolt.

The MS WILHELM GUSTLOFF

The MS Wilhelm Gustloff was a German KdF flagship during 1937-1945, constructed by the Blohm & Voss shipyards. It sank after being torpedoed by the Soviet submarine S-13 on 30 January 1945. The ship was named after Wilhelm Gustloff, the assassinated German leader of the Swiss Nazi party. It was requisitioned into the Kriegsmarine (German Navy) on 1 September 1939 and served as a hospital ship in 1939 and 1940. Beginning on 20 November 1940, it was stripped of medical equipment and repainted from its hospital ship colors (white with a green stripe) to standard naval grey. The Wilhelm Gustloff was then assigned as a floating barracks for naval personnel in the port of Gdynia which was located in Nazi occupied Poland (renamed during German occupation to Gotenhafen), near Gda?sk, Poland.

Hitler’s Christmas party: Rare photographs capture leading Nazis celebrating in 1941

December 25, 2010 By Michael L. Grace Leave a Comment

These rare pictures have only just come to light, show Hitler and his generals at a party for SS officer cadets in Munich.

But the Nazi Christmas was far from traditional.

High command: Adolf Hitler and other Nazi officials celebrate Christmas at the Lowenbraukeller restaurant in Munich on December 18, 1941

Hitler believed religion had no place in his 1,000-year Reich, so he replaced the Christian figure of Saint Nicholas with the Norse god Odin and urged Germans to celebrate the season as a holiday of the ‘winter solstice’, rather than Christmas.

Out of sight at the top of the tree behind Hitler was a swastika instead of an angel, and many of the baubles carried runic symbols and iron cross motifs. The remarkable pictures were captured by Hugo Jaeger, one of the Fuhrer’s personal photographers.

The Lowenbraukeller restaurant today – where Hitler made many of his rabble rousing Munich speeches

(Left: Sons of the swastika: Cadets at the feast)

He buried the images in glass jars on the outskirts of Munich towards the end of the war, fearing that they would be taken away from him.

Later he sold them to Life Magazine in America which published many of them this week.

Other photographs show brownshirt thugs drinking beer.

In 1944-1945, the Nazis tried to reinvent Christmas once again as a day to commemorate the dead, in particular fallen soldiers – by that time Germany had lost almost four million men in the war.

Spoils of war: Officers and cadets begin their dinner

But while many Germans baked biscuits and cakes in the shape of swastikas and adorned their trees with the symbols of the Nazi regime, most still called the festival Christmas.

Filed Under: STEAMSHIP LINES Tagged With: Cruise History, germany, hitler, Liner History, Lowenbraukeller, Nazis, nazis crhistmas, SOCIAL HISTORY

MARLENE DIETRICH AT BERLIN’S ADLON HOTEL

October 23, 2009 By Michael L. Grace Leave a Comment

Adlon Hotel History: Marlene Dietrich, Berlin, 1929. At the annual Presseball in the famous Hotel Adlon, Dietrich wore tails and pants, which was unheard of at that time. She had to stand very still because the exposure was always between half a second and a second. If someone moved I had to take the picture over again.

CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE ADLON HOTEL’S WEBSITE

History of the Hotel Adlon Kempinski

On October 24, 1907 the Vossische Zeitung in Berlin reported: “Yesterday, His Majesty the German Emperor, Her Majesty the German Empress, the Princesses and the Princes visited the impressive building of the Hotel Adlon and paid their tribute to that site.” From this day on the history of the Hotel Adlon began taking its course – the history of a hotel which was built with the support of Emperor Wilhelm II, and which within three years would become the most beautiful and most luxurious hotel in the world.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: SOCIAL HISTORY Tagged With: adlon hotel, adlon palais, Berlin, china club, gdr, Hotel Adlon, lorenz Adlon, louis adlon, Marlene Dietrich, Nazis, roaring twenties

GRETA GARBO “SLEEPS” AT BERLIN’S HOTEL ADLON

July 22, 2009 By Michael L. Grace Leave a Comment

GRETA GARBO “SLEEPS” AT BERLIN’S HOTEL ADLON – Travel Social History: Greta Garbo and many celebrities stayed at the HOTEL ADLON Kempinski. The finest hotel in BERLIN. One of the great hotels of the world. Berlin was a port of call by train in 1929 — after sailing from New York to Germany aboard the SS BREMEN.

Garbo and Mauritz Stiller aboard ship on way to Germany where they stayed at the Adlon.

The restored Hotel Adlon Kempinski in Berlin.

Greta Garbo and many celebrities stayed at the beautifully restored HOTEL ADLON Kempinski. Still the finest hotel in BERLIN. The Adlon is one of the great hotels of the world. Located in the very heart of Berlin, right by the Brandenburg Gate and in the immediate vicinity of the Reichstag, which houses the German Parliament, one of the world’s most illustrious luxury hotels in all its majestic splendor cordially welcomes its guests: not only is the Hotel Adlon a legend in its own time, it was – just like the famous Pariser Platz on which it is built – a witness of Germany’s eventful and turbulent history of the 20th century.

History of the Hotel Adlon Kempinski

The founder of the hotel was Lorenz Adlon, the son of a shoemaker from the city of Mainz. His professional career, however, did not begin with the hotel trade. In 1872 he finished his first apprenticeship as a carpenter.

His master was the well-known manufacturer Bembé, who later made the interior of the Hotel Adlon. During his apprenticeship as a carpenter, Lorenz Adlon had already begun to work in the catering business. He had his first experience catering for a large crowd in 1876, during festivities such as the Marksman Festival. By 1888 his reputation had grown to the point where he was put in charge of the catering for the World Fair of 1888 in Amsterdam. For the first time the name “Adlon” gained international recognition. [Read more...]

Filed Under: HAMBURG AMERICA LINE, STEAMSHIP LINES Tagged With: 1920s, 1936 olympics, adlon palis, gerda lundeqvist, greta garbo, HAMBURG AMERICA LINE, Hotel Adlon, hotel adlon kempinski berlin, lorenz Adlon, louis adlon, mauritz steller, Nazis, SS Bremen, world war 2

SS AMERICA – United States Lines famed liner sailed in 1940 on maiden voyage.

April 3, 2009 By Michael L. Grace Leave a Comment

SS AMERICA – Sailing from New York on her maiden voyage.

The SS America was an ocean liner built in 1940 for the United States Lines. She carried many names in the 54 years between her construction and her 1994 wrecking, as she served as the SS America (carrying this name three different times during her career), the USS West Point, the SS Australis, the SS Italis, the SS Noga, the SS Alferdoss, and the SS American Star

The SS AMERICA leaving New York.

She served most notably in passenger service as the SS America, and as the Greek-flagged SS Australis for Chandris. In 1941, she carried two Nazi spies from the Duquesne Spy Ring in her crew: Erwin Wilhelm Siegler and Franz Joseph Stigler. Both men were charged by the FBI with espionage and sentenced to 10 years and 16 years imprisonment, respectively.

Filed Under: UNITED STATES LINE, VIDEOS Tagged With: america, maiden voyage, Nazis, united states lines

The MS WILHELM GUSTLOFF was the worst maritime disaster in the history of the world, with more fatalities then the Titanic and the Lusitania combined.

GRETA GARBO “SLEEPS” AT BERLIN’S HOTEL ADLON

SS AMERICA – United States Lines famed liner sailed in 1940 on maiden voyage.

Search

Recent Posts

Archives