"Hitler's Table Talk" Study Hour: Episode 20
July 24, 2014
At the Hochlenzer Gasthaus (restaurant) in Berchtesgaden, Adolf Hitler sits at an outdoor table with Bruno Buchner and his wife, proprietors of the Platterhof Hotel, Obersalzburg. Enlarge
Ray Goodwin and Carolyn Yeager read and comment on the Jan. 13-17, 1942 dinner table monologues by the German Leader, as taken down in shorthand by trusted aide, attorney Heinrich Heim. Included in this episode:
- Hitler talks about Czechs in general and Emil Hacha in particular;
- Men of genius like Austrian composer Anton Bruckner, who was unappreciated for so long, must be encouraged;
- High birthrate at the time in India, in Russia, but also in Germany;
- A woman of genius: Angelica Kauffmann was a very great painter, says Hitler;
- The early days in Obersalzberg wth Dietrich Eckart - he was known only as Herr Wolf until he began giving public speeches - how he bought his house "Wachenfeld";
- Recalls the many friends from those days, which were the best days in his life, and how he enjoyed the ladies and pretty girls;
- Hitler mentions "the second volume of my book" being written in the Deutsche Haus in Berchtesgaden;
- Praises Dietrich Eckart, calls him the "polar star" to the early National Socialists and his death a great loss.
The edition of Hitler's Table Talk being used was translated by Norman Cameron and R.H. Stevens, published by Enigma Books, New York, and can be found as a pdf here.
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My mistake on Hitler's Second Book
The "second volume of my book" that Hitler referred to was Part two of Mein Kampf. I was wrong in thinking he meant his unpublished "second book." I should have checked it out before I spoke. Apologies to the listeners.
St. Germain
Austria was dealt with by the Allies in the same manner as the German Reich, but it was not in Versailles but in St. Germain. Czechoslovakia was until then mostly part of the Austrian half of Austria-Hungary.
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Saint-Germain-en-Laye_(1919)
Another great show by you both. Very entertaining and educating how you present and discuss TT.
Slovakia was held by Hungary
I rechecked St. Germain.
The Slovak part of Czechoslovakia was part of the Hungarian kingdom, not Austrian.
Health care
Ray and I discussed this paragraph on the program:
I think I understand now what this was about. First, Hitler says the Indian birth rate is alarming. Then says the Russians are also reproducing too fast. Then "What are our doctors thinking of" to reduce the traditional mortality of these people. I think he means all doctors who are trained in Western methods.
Then he thinks it's enough to vaccinate the Whites only, not the Indians. And he's kind of disgusted with Whites who refuse vaccination, which he sees as a positive preventive health measure (at that time it was ... in most instances). But he's expressing that he only wants to save the lives of White people by specialized health measures; likewise with encouraging the birth rate, and here he doesn't include the Russians. In other words, he doesn't want a lot of Russians. Then, because of the teaching (church) that everyone has the right and even duty to reproduce, we can't sterilize the non-Germans.
In other words, we can't stop them from reproducing but we shouldn't be taking special measures to help them all survive. Just as we feel today about the Blacks in Africa.
Think what you will of that; it makes sense to me. Of course, he doesn't say he's going to exterminate anybody -- which Churchill DID say about the Germans, and others in his government said it too.
The English Garden
Well done for including the WW2 timeline during the shows, Carolyn. It really does contribute a lot to my listening enjoyment. And don't worry if you think you and Ray are talking too much, you're both always interesting to listen to and there is no rush to finish the book.
On the night of 16th-17th January the English Garden gets a mention when Röhm tells Hitler to take Eckart there in order to escape from the police. I know this is a bit irrelevant but for those who don't know Germany that well the Englischer Garten is a massive public park in downtown München. According to Wiki it actually reaches out to the outskirts of the city. I spent a great evening there at the Biergarten am Chines. Turm during a visit to the Oktoberfest a few years ago. They had a brass band playing up in the tower which really added to the atmosphere whilst we got sloshed. It's a really nice place and well worth a visit if one has some spare time whilst visiting München.
The English Garden is also the place where Unity Mitford attempted suicide by shooting herself in September 1939.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Englischer_Garten