| Notes: Scarce. Minor shelf wear, binding tight, I found one instance of highlighting in the book, else pages clean and unmarked. Born in 1912., Reinhard Spitzy spent his early years in Vienna, where his father was Professor of Medicine at the University. He became attracted by nationalism and joined the Austrian Heimwehr in the late 1920s. In 1931 he joined the NSDAP and SA and shortly after-wards was selected to serve in the Viennese SS unit, Standarte 89. He played an important role in the unsuccessful Nazi putsch in Austria of July 1934. In 1936 he was attached to Ribbentrop's London embassy, accompanied Hitler into Austria in March 1938, then became disillusioned over Munich and resigned from the Diplomatic Service. During the war, serving in Admiral Canaris's Abwehr, he played an active part in the resistance movement. Transferred to Spain, he had a secret meeting with Allen Dulles to explore the possibilities of peace negotiations with the West. After a spell in South America after the war, he returned in 1957 to Austria, where he still lives. `A fascinating read and essential for all scholars of the Nazi period.' RICHARD LAMB, The Spectator `In an excellent translation... [these memoirs] Offer a blackly comic eyewitness account ... but the book's greatest value lies in its insights into why Hitler and the Nazis were so attractive.' ANDREW GIMSON, Daily Telegraph `This riveting chronicle describes with convincing candor the author's love affair with the Fuhrer and his disenchantment.' BARRY HUMPHRIES, Sunday Telegraph Books of the Year |