Of Hitler's top team, Hess remains the only one who can seem almost likeable in his weird eccentricity and lack of venom - the faithful dog trotting at his master's heels. His career was pretty eccentric too, starting at the top and working slowly down. And he would provide the war with its most unexpected moment of drama with his solo flight to Scotland that many would have deemed impossible, and which leaves questions still unanswered to this day.
He told his captors that he wanted to see his friend the Duke of Hamilton, who would introduce him to Churchill. Hamilton took care to distance himself from this scenario, claiming never to have met Hess, even though their paths were believed to have crossed at the Berlin Olympics.
My guess is that they did meet there, and probably got pretty chummy at some of the receptions, making small-talk about the impressive new Luftwaffe, the sensible 'bulwark against communism', the reluctance of families everywhere to sacrifice their sons in another war. And Hess would have taken home an exaggerated idea of British willingness to co-operate with the Third Reich - as far-fetched as his belief in horoscopes or the soothsaying of Nostradamus. For there is something quite unworldly about Hess, stranded on his lonely peak of madness.
This video, sixth of ten in the series 'Hitler's Circle of Evil', demonstrates the weakness of the concept - trying to blend a chronological sequence with a thematic one. Only about half of it is actually about Hess; the rest is trying to chronicle that stage of the war when his flight took place (just before the invasion of Russia, and possibly connected to it). And some of the casting is almost comically bad, especially James Lowe, looking more like your friendly greengrocer than the eternally haunted deputy-führer with the wild, staring eyes.
He told his captors that he wanted to see his friend the Duke of Hamilton, who would introduce him to Churchill. Hamilton took care to distance himself from this scenario, claiming never to have met Hess, even though their paths were believed to have crossed at the Berlin Olympics.
My guess is that they did meet there, and probably got pretty chummy at some of the receptions, making small-talk about the impressive new Luftwaffe, the sensible 'bulwark against communism', the reluctance of families everywhere to sacrifice their sons in another war. And Hess would have taken home an exaggerated idea of British willingness to co-operate with the Third Reich - as far-fetched as his belief in horoscopes or the soothsaying of Nostradamus. For there is something quite unworldly about Hess, stranded on his lonely peak of madness.
This video, sixth of ten in the series 'Hitler's Circle of Evil', demonstrates the weakness of the concept - trying to blend a chronological sequence with a thematic one. Only about half of it is actually about Hess; the rest is trying to chronicle that stage of the war when his flight took place (just before the invasion of Russia, and possibly connected to it). And some of the casting is almost comically bad, especially James Lowe, looking more like your friendly greengrocer than the eternally haunted deputy-führer with the wild, staring eyes.
