Unbreakable
Page 33
p. 168: the Nazis had weaponised sport
a compelling account of this process can be found in High Society in the Third Reich, which also describes how the Grosser Preis der reichshaupstadt ended up with a 100,000 mark prize.
p. 168: ‘a young German must be . . . as hard as Krupp steel’
Quoted at Mémorial de la Shoah (http://sport.memorialdelashoah.org/ en-nazi-germany-olympic-games.htm).
p. 169: the Reich Ministry . . . had decreed that all German riding associations must join one of the party’s two paramilitary wings
See Himmler’s Cavalry: the Equestrian SS, 1930–1945, to which this and the two following paragraphs are heavily indebted.
p. 170: whose bêtes noires included . . . ‘Amazons’
See: The Nazi Conscience, p. 242.
p. 171: Heinrich Wiese
Wiese’s Sa records are partially preserved in the bundesarchiv in Freiburg. See also Der Grossdeutsche Reichstag 1938 (r.v. Decker’s Verlag, G Schenk) p. 554.
p. 172: eleven dissenting equestrians in Dachau
The eleven men had been incarcerated in 1933 for refusing to take the SS oath. See: Fegelein’s Horsemen and Genocidal Warfare, p. 17; and the previously mentioned Himmler’s Cavalry, pp. 17–18. both books have been invaluable sources for me for this and the following chapters; as, very generously, have both authors.
p. 172: shot on Himmler’s orders
See CIA Who’s Who In Nazi Germany, p. 67. anton von Hohberg und buchwald, described by the CIa as ‘the leading horseman in east Prussia’, was shot on 2 July 1934 for making disrespectful remarks about the SS.
p. 172: SA-Sturmführer Helmuth von der Gröben
For anyone interested in von der Gröben, a good starting-point would be 150 Jahre Amateur-Rennsport.
p. 176: she took part in a dressage display
There is a picture of the event in Wiener Salonblatt, 18 november 1934, pp. 11–12.
p. 177: a well-behaved eagle owl
I am grateful to Jana Sléhová, běhal’s daughter, for showing me a picture of the owl, which certainly looks well-behaved. apparently the owl’s role was to act as a decoy, provoking unwanted birds of prey into showing themselves.
p. 177: carved wooden chest . . . etc.
Most of these details come from the memory and the photo-album of Petr Jaroševský. The caricature is mentioned in ‘V sídle amazonky’; the wellstocked gun-rack can be seen in ‘U vitěsky pardubické steeple-chase’, Pestrý týden, 1 January 1938, p. 24.
p. 178: ‘the older they get, the nicer they are’
‘Žena a její svět’.
p. 178: hunting dogs of the pointer variety
Lata’s favourite breed was the Česky fousek – which is like a more athletic, bearded version of the German wire-haired pointer.
p. 180: support for far-right factions
This manifested itself both in support for far-right parties and in increased far-right influence in centre parties, the biggest of which – the national Democrats, the agrarians and the Catholic Populists – were increasingly linked with authoritarian and even fascist policies. See: Noble Nationalists. The Transformation of the Bohemian Aristocracy, pp. 131–2.
p. 180: the biggest advances were made by Henlein’s increasingly strident Sudeten German Party
The SdP’s 15.2 per cent vote share made it the biggest single party.
p. 180: Sudeten German Nazi Party
The German national Socialist Workers’ Party (Deutsche nationalsozialistische arbeiterpartei, or DnSaP) was founded in 1919 and by the time it was banned in 1933 had more than 60,000 members. It was sufficiently close to the nazi party (the national Socialist German Workers’ Party – nationalsozialistische Deutsche arbeiterpartei – or nSDaP), for the jockey Hans Schmidt, who joined the DnSaP in 1925 and the nSDaP in 1931, to have attempted to get his membership of the latter backdated to his joining of the former.
p. 180: Willibald Schlagbaum
existing Czech tellings of Lata’s story, in which Schlagbaum is invariably the villain, are pretty cavalier with the details of his life, apparently relying mainly on Lata’s views, which were not necessarily very well-informed. I am very grateful to Schlagbaum’s family – and particularly to his greatgrand- daughter, Mandy van Häigeling – for supplying a fuller biographical picture of his life (including a detailed German-language obituary published in 1971). It seems reasonable to suppose that, from Schlagbaum’s point of view, Lata was the villain: over-privileged and grand, with the best horses provided to her as a family favour, whereas he had had to fight for everything he had achieved. On the other hand, it is hard to dispute his ideological leanings. as Mandy van Häigeling dryly observed: ‘I’m pretty sure he was no anti-nazi . . .’
p. 181: ‘It is always worse when a woman is racing’
Lata, interviewed in ‘V sídle amazonky’.
p. 182: ‘take hold of the frying pan, dustpan and broom, and marry a man’
This was one of Göring’s ‘nine Commandments for the Workers’ Struggle’ (published in May 1934 as Für den Berliner Arbeitskampf: Neun Gebote).
p. 184: Trakehner horses were a living symbol of East Prussian uniqueness
east Prussia’s subsequent disastrous history meant that the remarkable heritage of Trakenhen has been largely forgotten in the west, although pockets of Trakenher enthusiasts can be found in Germany and north america. Patricia Clough’s heartbreaking The Flight Across the Ice offers the best english-language introduction, but focuses mainly on the final tragic chapters of the story. Martin Heling’s Trakehnen gives a good overview in German.
p. 184: these had been celebrated as East Prussian successes
See: ‘kameradschaftsgeist und Gemeinsinn’, by karl august knorr, Das Ostpreussenblatt, 23 June 1973, p. 10; and ‘Die abstammung des Pardubitz- Siegers Herold’, Sankt Georg, Vol. 38, 1937.
p. 185: murky water jump . . . called Jew’s Creek
My thanks to Martin Cáp for pointing this out to me on a map in Führer durch das Hauptgestüt Trakehnen, by J. von Henninges (H. klutke, 1939).
p. 185: Martin Münzesheimer
I know nothing about Münzesheimer beyond the fact that he rode for Stál Jirka.
p. 186: in ‘sinewy form’
Dr karel Trojan, in ‘Sága rodu Normy’.
p. 188: Racegoers greeted the German triumph ‘coldly’
Miloslav nehyba and Jaroslav Hubálek in Od Fantoma po Peruána.
p. 188: ‘SS riders’ triumph in Czechoslovakia’
‘SS-reitersieg in der Tschechei’, Das Schwarze Korps, 31 October 1935, p. 4.
p. 188: Poldi von Fugger disappeared
For a full and balanced account of what is and isn’t known about Fugger’s disappearance, see Pardubický Zámeček a jeho osudy. Full documentation of the ‘Fugger case’ was deposited in the Pardubice State district archive in folder number 37 from 1937.
p. 188: by one account he was still in Czechoslovakia
In Zu Pferd und zu Fuss (p. 123), ra claims to have seen Fugger at a drag hunt. I have no idea how to account for the inconsistency with all the other evidence. Perhaps ra misremembered something; or perhaps Fugger wanted to hide in plain sight for a while before completing his escape.
p. 189: an instructor in aerial photography
See also: Staré domy vyorávějî, by Jiří kotyk (kPP, 2014).
p. 192: Stable lads were occasionally dispatched to the rafters to retrieve stuck balls.
This would have been a perilous pursuit: the rafters were about 20 feet off the ground.
p. 194: ‘So no one was afraid they might get hurt’
‘Můj život s koňmi’, by radslav kinský, Chlumecké listy: časopis chlumeckého regionu, 2001 (3), pp. 18–19.
p. 195: noble families would soon supply getting on for a fifth of senior SS officers
See: High Society in the Third Reich.
p. 195: roughly two-thirds of Czechoslovakia’s former nobility . . . would identify themse
lves as pro-German
I base this crude estimate on a long discussion with Dr Zdeněk Hazdra (author of Šlechta střední Evropy v konfrontaci s totalitními režimy 20. století and Ve znamení tří deklarací Šlechta v letech nacistického ohrožení československého státu) and on the more nuanced figures in eagle Glassheim’s Noble Nationalists: the Transformation of the Bohemian Aristocracy. The proportion varies depending on when you take the snapshot. (Czechoslovaks regularly stated their preferred nationality in censuses.) The moments of choice that mattered came from September 1938 onwards.
p. 196: considered himself bound by his oath
Situace české šlechty po roce 1918 na příkladu rodu Kinských (do roku 1939), by Veronika kinclová (brno, 2007), p. 20.
p. 198: well-advanced plans for an alternative, non-Nazi Games
See: Thinking Barcelona, by edgar Illas (liverpool University Press, 2012).
p. 198: minus its Jewish athletes, who refused to participate
See: Zionists in Interwar Czechoslovakia, by Tatjana lichtenstein (Indiana University Press, 2016), p. 227.
p. 199: Germans all seemed suspiciously well prepared
Their remarkable confidence at the obstacle is evident even in leni riefenstahl’s notorious propaganda film of the Games, Olympia.
p. 200: conservatives who disapproved of any kind of female participation in ‘male’ events
For example, avery brundage: see Time magazine, 10 and 24 august 1936.
p. 200: Zdeněk Koubek
The Czech sportswriter Pavel kovář, author of a much quoted article on Lata, published a fascinating book about koubek, Přiběh Ďeské rekordwoman, in 2017. Its subtitle describes koubek’s gender-change as ‘the greatest sporting scandal of the First Republic’.
p. 200: gave an interview to Time magazine
‘Medicine: Change of Sex’, Time, 24 august 1936.
p. 202: Hermann Fegelein
Fegelein’s bizarre story is well-told both in Himmler’s Cavalry and in Fegelein’s Horsemen. I have relied slightly more on the former for the early part of Fegelein’s career and more on the latter for the later stages. but the books complement one another. I recommend both.
p. 203: ‘pretty as a picture’
‘rennreiter in Ostpreussen’, by Walter Stöckel, Ostpreussische Erinnerungen und Gegenwartsgedanken von einem Amateur-Hippologen oder ‘Zusammenengeschrappte Pferdeäppel’ .
p. 203: Herold . . . pined disastrously
In 1931, the German Olympic Committee for equestrian Sports persuaded lengnik, with difficulty, to sell Herold, hoping to take advantage of the six-year-old’s remarkable jumping abilities for the Olympics. Herold was moved to the military stables in Hanover, but quickly became a sullen underachiever. returned to lengnik a couple of years later, he once again thrived – and became the most successful Trakehner steeplechaser of all time. See: ‘Die abstammung des Pardubitz-Siegers Herold’, Sankt Georg, Vol. 38, 1937.
p. 203: a participant in Himmler’s . . . Lebensborn programme . . . possessor of a Julleuchter
Lengnik’s SS records give no clue as to when the participation (or possession) began. Most of his records, in the bundesarchiv in Freiburg, are too damaged by fire to be legible.
p. 204: Lemke . . . was in the process of being thrown out for being too ‘unpleasant’
This is a slight oversimplification. lemke’s membership was revoked for several reasons, including non-payment of financial dues. but ‘unpleasant’ police reports on his character were among the factors cited; as was his expulsion from a reich Sports School for ‘improper behaviour’ . The revocation of his membership was finally confirmed in May 1937. The Sa, on the other hand, seems to have been happy to continue to have him as an officer.
p. 204: howls of public disapproval
See: ‘Der Doktor und Seine Rösser’, by Gerhard Merzdoff, Das Ostpreussenblatt, 15 September 1990, p. 8.
p. 205: greeted ‘by louder cheers than the winner’
Miloslav nehyba and Jaroslav Hubálek in Od Fantoma po Peruána.
p. 205: ‘Damn these Germans!’
Quoted in a profile of lengnik by O. Christ in Sankt Georg, 1936. The words were spoken in Czech but reported in German as ‘Die Deutschen sind doch verfluchte kerle’ – literally, ‘These Germans are damn fellows’. I assume the heckler meant something along the lines of ‘Damn these Germans, they’re good’.
p. 205: promptly won the next race
lengnik rode Solo, another of his own horses.
p. 205: adapting a traditional song to praise the great Oskar Lengnik
Profile of lengnik by O. Christ in Sankt Georg, 1936.
p. 209: ‘the thing is: I’m not all that attached to life’
This exchange was relayed to me, very confidently, by Zagler’s son, Jan.
p. 211: Traffic came to a virtual standstill
The events following Masaryk’s death were reported extensively in The Times. I have quoted details from: ‘Crowds pouring into Prague’, 18 September 1937, p. 9; ‘last homage to Dr Masaryk’, 21 September 1937, p. 14; and ‘Prague farewell to Dr Masaryk’, 22 September 1937, p. 12.
p. 211: more than four miles of silent, crowd-lined streets
See: ‘Po stopách posledni cesty TGM’, TV Vona, 27 april 2009 (https:// tvvona.wordpress.com/2009/04/27/783491-po-stopach-posledni-cestytgm/). It is also worth looking at the Pathé news footage, if you can find it.
p. 211: an open train . . . took the coffin back to Lány
For this part of the account I am grateful for the memories of the former Olympic javelin champion Dana Zátopková, whose father was part of the guard of honour; and of the former Olympic wrestler karel engel, whose grandfather drove the train.
p. 211: ‘a single desire: to be worthy of this rare and exceptional figure’
‘Po pohřbu’, by eduard bass, Lidové noviny 23 September 1937, quoted in ‘Mourning becomes a nation’, by John bolton, Bohemia Band 45 (2004).
p. 211: ‘That was not a crowd. That was a nation’
‘Zástupové’ by Ferdinand Peroutka, Přítomnost, 22 September 1937, p. 1.
p. 212: ‘Pravda vítězí’
The Times (‘last homage to Dr Masaryk’) quotes a Slovak version of the words, ‘Pravda víťazí’, but Czechs remember it in Czech. I cannot explain the inconsistency. The motto echoes the famous words of the fifteenthcentury Czech martyr Jan Hus: ‘Seek the truth, hear the truth, love the truth, speak the truth, hold the truth and defend the truth until death’ – and foreshadows the declaration of Czechoslovakia’s last president, Vacláv Havel: ‘Truth and love must prevail over lies and hatred’.
p. 212: killed hundreds of civilians in Guernica
There is no agreed figure. estimates range from 200 victims to 1,654.
p. 213: at the Pardubice Zámeček . . . the Czechoslovak army was training its cavalry
The town of Pardubice bought the Zámeček for that purpose on 22 May – see: Kniha o měste Pardubice, p. 178.
p. 215: In some Czechoslovak minds, it had begun to seem like a law of nature
The Star newspaper spoke for many when it reflected that autumn: ‘every year we admire the abilities of the German steeplechasers, and we consider it a success if a Czech horse gets a place.’
p. 215: German footballers always win penalty shoot-outs
In deference to Czech patriots and pedants, I concede that this law did not work at the european Championships in belgrade in 1976.
p. 217: the mare’s appetite for food gradually declined
See: Lata’s comments in ‘V sídle amazonky’ and also Dr karel Trojan’s observations in ‘Po stopách Normy’.
p. 217: a few weeks before the 1 September entry deadline
See: the ‘norma’ chapter in Slavní koně. Frantisek Šírl in Řitka v minulosti claims that Lata was still contemplating riding Čibuk the day before the race. This seems implausible, given Lata’s commitment to norma.
p. 218: Rumours that Duke and Duc
hess of Windsor would also be in attendance
This and other titbits were reported in the official race-day programme. I am grateful to Miloslav nehyba for showing me his copy.
p. 218: The Women’s Club of Pardubice staged a special event at the Veselka
See: ‘Činnnost klubu Ženské národní Radí v Pardubicích v letech 1936–42’, by Dr Jiří kotyk, KPP, 24 June 2010.
p. 219: some claimed to have seen German riders drinking
a report in Štít magazine suggested that some of them had over-indulged in beer and brandy. The Vychodočeský republikán newspaper repeated the story but later apologised after being accused of making light of Lata’s success.
p. 219: Schmidt and Scharfetter were known to enjoy a post-race party
according to Trakenhen veteran Fritz alshuth, the two men often joined celebrations at the Hotel elch. See: ‘erinnerungen an die kindheit und die Jugendjahre in Trakenhen: ein Zeitzeuge berichtet’, published posthumously in September 2017 at trakehnenverein.de.
p. 219: Guests included the Count and Countess of Paris . . .
Details of the diversions can be found in Zu Pferd und zu Fuss, pp. 136–8; and in Wiener Salonblatt, 31 October 1937, pp. 7–9. Génilde’s involvement (on neva) in Lata’s final preparations is also mentioned in the official Velká Pardubická race-day programme.
p. 221: they confuse the Velká Pardubická with a fight in a cloakroom of a Prague movie theatre
For a detailed contemporary ‘colour’ piece on the great race-day, see: ‘Dame gewinnt “Grosse Pardubitzer”’, Prager Tagblatt, 19 October 1937, p. 8 – which also mentions that norma was ‘trembling’ before the race.
p. 221: a ‘foal coat’
It’s pretty clear from the context that this isn’t a mistranslation. according to Prager Tagblatt (‘Dame gewinnt “Grosse Pardubitzer”’), the garment fascinated the public and caused grief among the horses: ‘ein Fohlenmantel erregt neugier im Publikum und Trauer unter den Pferden . . .’ . If it is any comfort, it is also evident that such garb was not considered normal.
p. 223: ‘Once you’re on horseback . . . you know that the battle is coming’
Lata in an interview in Express Praha, 20 October 1937.