Doctor Goebbels: His Life & Death

give up all political ambitions,’ hewrote after discussing the problem over supper with Hitler and Göring (now theparty’s liaison to the S.A.)43 All three—Hitler, Goebbels, and Stennes—were to beseen amiably sharing a meal the next day.44 On the final electioneering day, the twelfth,the little gauleiter spoke at seven meetings—motoring in his Mercedes Superchargerfrom hall to hall, flanked by motorcycle outriders.‘Keep calm!’ he admonished himself. He had rented the Sport Palace for electionnight itself, September 14, 1930. By mid evening the cavernous hall was rockingwith cheers as the first results came in. Hitler had banked on winning fifty seats, oreighty at most. As midnight approached, the Nazis had already won 103.45 Exultantyoung men jogged around the hall with Goebbels on their shoulders. The final tally202 GOEBBELS. MASTERMIND OF THE THIRD REICHwas 6,406,397 votes, entitling the Nazis to one hundred and seven seats. Suddenlythe Nazis were the strongest party in Germany after the Social Democrats. This wasdemocracy with a vengeance. The communists however had also increased their share,from 10·6 to 13·1 percent. (In Berlin the Nazis, with over 360,000 votes, had won12·8 percent of the vote.) ‘Hot months lie ahead,’ predicted Goebbels. ‘The communistshave gained too.’46He is in grave danger of arrest. A month will pass before the Reichstag convenes andhe is immune again.He needs to empty his fevered brain, and for this purpose female company is ideal.He flutters around with the two Mannigel teenagers Gerda and Ursel, who are ‘soookeen’ on him; he invites both of these virginal Mannigels to the movies, and keepsthings going until their ‘tyrannical’ and ‘evidently hysterical’ mother puts her footdown.47 He needs a larger apartment, and Xenia (‘the best of all’) helps him homehunting.48 He flirts with her, he escorts Carin Göring, he accompanies the delightfulPotempa twins, or phones Charlotte, and he gets to know not only Professor PaulSchultze-Naumburg the Weimar architect but his lovely wife as well, and decides asoften as he needs to that they are all madly in love with him.49Horrified at the Nazis’ election victories, Weiss’s police show him no mercy. Fivedays after the election baton-wielding police fling him down the steps of a policestation as he protests at their treatment of an S.A. man brought in for questioning.50The courts set down five new cases for—surely no coincidence—Monday October

Goebbels13, the very afternoon that the Reichstag is due to swear...ordered to bring him in by force if need be. He takes refuge out at Erika’s forestcottage, armed with a dispensation from his doctor. He hunkers down in the back ofthe Potempa’s car to go to Weimar where Hitler speaks in the National Theatre, withGöring following as a somewhat implausible decoy in the Supercharger. ‘What wizardfellows these fliers are!’, enthuses Goebbels, changing his mind yet again.He drives back from Thuringia that Sunday night in the Schultze-Naumburg’s car,squeezed enjoyably between the professor’s comely wife and her stepdaughter Babette;GOEBBELS. MASTERMIND OF THE THIRD REICH 203he sleeps at the Schultze-Naumburg’s and just as well, for Dr Weiss’s police are meanwhileransacking his lodgings in Württembergische Strasse and lying in wait for him.October the Thirteenth comes. He lies doggo all morning writing up his diary. ‘Inthree hours I am immune again, thank God!’ As Berlin’s Nazis go on an orgy ofdestruction through the West End, smashing the windows of Jewish-owned stores onthe Potsdamer Platz and in Kurfürstendamm—an inspired move by the gauleiter todistract ‘Isidor’—he is driven at breakneck speed over to the Reichstag.‘Portal zwei!’ he shouts. Plain clothes detectives see him hobbling frantically up thelong flight of steps to Door Two, wearing a light raincoat buttoned tightly to his neck,and grab at him just as he lurches through the great doors. The gau official HannoKonopath and a Reichstag flunky get a firm grip on him and bundle him inside.51They have torn off his coat. Beneath it for the first time he is wearing the forbiddenuniform of the Nazi party. He is immune, and he can do and say as he likes.1 Diary, Nov 5, 1929.2 JG’s police file, Apr 5, 1930, 10 (NA film T581, roll 52, BA file: NS.26/1224).3 [Lieutenant of the Reserve Walter Jahn], ‘How it came to the Stennes putsch!’, typescriptin NSDAP archives, IfZ: Fa.88/83. Jahn, the anonymous author, was Stennes’ chief ofstaff. Stennes testified (letter to Prof H Krausnick, Nov 12, 1956, IfZ: ZS.1147) that thedocument was written for internal S.A. use; in fact it was published (with the sub-title‘Adolf Hitler largely to blame’) in consecutive issues of the organ of the Stennes fraction(the NSKD), Wahrheit der Woche from No.7 (Oct 10, 1931) on (BA file NS.26/325).4 Jahn.5 Diary, Jul 28, 1930.6 Stennes MS, Jul 1968 (IfZ: ZS-1147, vol.ii).7 Diary, Jul 21, 23, 29, 1930.8 E.g., Princess zu Wied. Diary, Aug 4, 1930.9 MS history of Berlin politics by an unknown Nazi (NA film T581, roll 5; BA file NS.26/133).10 Diary, Jul 25, 26, Aug 1, 1930.11 When addressing the NSDAP section at Hanover on Sep 5, 1929.12 Diary, Jul 29, 1930; police file.13 Ibid., Aug 4, 1930.14 Ibid., Aug 8, 12, 13, 1930; and Jahn.204 GOEBBELS. MASTERMIND OF THE THIRD REICH15 Ibid., Aug 24, 1930.16 Ibid., Aug 9, 1930; Goltz MS (BA file Kl. Erw. 653/2)17 Diary, Aug 13; Goltz; Angriff No.65, Aug 14, 1930.18 The letter read: ‘From a declaration made to me by Dr Goebbels I infer that he had nointention of personally defaming me personally with the remarks that are the substance ofthe action against him, but was merely acting in his own political interests. I would withdrawmy complaint of Dec 31, 1929 against Dr Goebbels if that were possible at this stage. As it isnot in law possible, I have to content myself with the declaration that I regard the matter asclosed and have no further interest in punishing Dr Goebbels.’19 Court transcript in ZStA Potsdam, files of justice ministry (IfZ film MA.118); diary, Aug14–15; Goltz; Angriff, Aug 17, 1930.20 Court transcript (loc. cit.) and case files in Landesarchiv Berlin, Rep.58, item 25; Angriff,Aug 17, 1930.21 JG was also prosecuted for inciting disrespect for the Reich flag in the NSDAPMitteilungsblatt