In 1946, roughly a year after the end of the Second World War, a cache of Adolf Hitler’s personal correspondence was found in Berlin. Included were letters from ordinary German women professing admiration, affection, and even romantic love for their distant leader. Following are a few excerpts from the English translations of some of those letters, which were discovered by William C. Euker. (The source of the translation is unknown at this point).
“From Miele, who sends cakes:
My dear, sugar-sweet Adolf, I must write to you because I am so alone. Yes, yes, my dear, sweet, good Adolf, love is as true as gold, and I can’t do a thing about it. My sweet, I hope things are going as well for you as they are for me.Now i’m going to turn on the wireless and later I’ll listen to the news, then I’ll got for a walk…and htink about you, my darling, and what you’re doing at the front. Thousands of best wishes and kisses from your dear, good Miele…”
“From Margarete, who has moved to new lodgings:
My heart’s own! My dear heart’s own, you really must see all this for yourself… Now, my dear, listen to me; I’m having a front door key and a key to my room made for you, Adolf. In the next letter, you’ll get the first one; and in the letter after that you’ll get the room key…”
Something people should’ve told these women:
1: Hitler was a scumbag
2: “He’s just not that into you.”
In all seriousness, these letters make for an interesting thought experiment about love for political or social figures, and the manner in which national sentiment can be transformed into romantic fervor. How similar is love of a man to love of a nation? Further, how much do these women imagine their letters to be reaching a receptive audience? What is their motivation for writing? Why did Hitler keep the letters?
Are these women the female eqvuivalent of Goldhagen’s ”willing executioners?” Does their affection for Hitler translate into some hatred for others? Can we equate their love of Hitler with an approval of his actions (though how much detail of his actions was known is still in question today…”
So much to think about these days.
