A Right to Plunder
Page 5
The outcome of the interview with Carlos Niedermann was a foregone conclusion. Impressed by her business and economic aptitude, her fluency in languages and her Nordic appearance, he offered her an executive position and emphasised that he would expect her to liaise with the increasing number of German customers who were opening accounts in the Bank.
That had been two years ago, and in the interim Madelaine had become indispensable to the manager. The volume of German business being conducted in the Chase Bank since the occupation had grown dramatically in all aspects, militarily, diplomatically, and with the general civilian population. Madelaine was the bank contact with whom they all wished to transact their business. Outwardly, she always displayed an easy charm and an understanding for absolute discretion. Her fluency in German, in which she displayed a relieving sense of humour during occasions of high negotiation, endeared her to otherwise awkward customers.
She always expressed loyal support for the policies of the German Reich to her colleagues in the Bank and these sentiments were noted by her superiors who regarded her as an inspirational valued worker much in demand by the Germans. She dressed in a German style, with Bavarian fashion influencing her clothes choice and being tall, her braided blond hair stamped her as a Munich maiden, an image she cultivated. Privately, Madelaine was the polar opposite to her Bank persona. As in her Munich days, she loathed the German occupation forces in her beloved France, particularly in the beautiful city of Paris. She viewed the culture of National Socialism with contempt as being devoid of any civilised expression. She detested their anti Semitism, all their ideals were anathema to everything she believed. With the assistance of her father’s contacts, she had found a small apartment in which to live, over a café in a fashionable street not far from Chase Bank.
The summer of 1940, when she had first come to Paris, coincided with the German entry and her anger was palpable as she watched their first military victory parade march down the Avenue des Champs-Elysées on that magnificent summer day of June. Their triumphant procession and blaring band music viewed by smiling officers on horseback made her turn away in despair.
It was at this time that France stood alone. It seemed to her, that internationally, no country was coming to assist. America was indifferent and President Roosevelt was reluctant to commit the United States to a conflict. Russia was an enigma, and Britain was on its knees. Resistance was the only option and resistance by the French themselves.
She brooded for weeks and resented seeing arrogant German soldiers haughtily command café seating and with summarily superior attitudes regard the French population as servile inferiors. She was disgusted by the level of collaboration among some of the Parisians. There appeared to be a tacit acceptance among certain sections of the population, that to be a collaborator would somehow ease personal pain. She was shocked and disappointed at this attitude and she was in despair to find out that a weekly literary publication called Je Suis Partout which was collaborationist, was selling over on hundred thousand copies. The Germans themselves were also publishing newspapers such as Les Nouveaux Temps which set out their expansionist policies and continually issued edicts of further restrictions on civil rights. In addition, Madelaine was aware from her work in Chase Bank, that there were enormous amounts of money being made in the black market and she was also alerted to bank policy being sympathetic to collaborators and their activities.
She decided to act. Occasionally, in the mornings before walking to work in the bank, she had a leisurely cup of coffee. The café was always full and usually a transient crowd of young people exchanged pleasantries and hurried conversations. On her visits, Madelaine noticed three young men who always seemed to be engrossed in deep conversation, oblivious to fellow occupants. They were well dressed and once or twice, in an unguarded moment, she detected that they were criticising the Nazi occupation. They were cautious and spoke in guarded whispers and cast furtive looks around the cafe. Once, when a uniformed German officer entered for an early breakfast, she observed how they immediately stopped talking and read newspapers. She decided the time was opportune to take a chance, assuming they were Resistance. One morning, she silently went over to their table and sat down beside them with her cup of coffee and looking at their surprised faces she said, “Je suis Madelaine, I would like to help’’.
TEN
PARIS: 1942
The Chase Bank in central Paris was in a rustic imposing building, built in the last decade of the 1800s. On the morning of the 6th May 1942 there was a blue sky and the early summer sunshine sought to heighten the elegance of the colonnaded doorway. There was a palpable air of tension throughout the building. The twenty staff in the main ground floor banking hall had been alerted to the impending arrival of the SS Chief by Carlos Niedermann and told to be extra diligent, also to greet him with the traditional outstretched right arm salute. Great care was taken in displaying loyalty to the Reich. Small German flags were strategically positioned on desk tops and a dark marble bust of the Führer was placed on the mezzanine landing, unmissable while ascending the staircase.
In his upstairs office, Carlos Niedermann paced about nervously smoking, he had carefully arranged seating in the middle of this elegant room. Looking around, he approved of the sumptuous wine coloured velvet drapes on the four large windows filtering the illuminating sunlight onto the heavily floral designed floor carpet. Everything was in place and he found himself whispering a prayer for deliverance of one of the most important meetings he was most likely to attend.
The imminent arrival of Heydrich was viewed by all staff with trepidation and apprehension. This was a man who had introduced measures in Bohemia and Moravia which subjected an entire population exceeding seven million to his will. They had submitted in six months. The manager was familiar with the demands of the German Ambassador, Otto Abetz, appointed in 1940, who transacted all embassy business through the Chase Bank, which was always carried out with mutually satisfactory results. Dealing with the courteously diplomatic Ambassador was one thing but the impending visit of the SS Chief introduced a new aura of tension on a level hitherto unknown.
He looked at his watch. It was 10.30am, half an hour to go, he thought. He would have to report this meeting to head office in Manhattan, New York. He knew that the board of Directors of the Rockefeller-controlled bank viewed the accounts, activities and businesses of the National Socialists as being very important and they encouraged close alliance with the occupying military and acceded to their demands. The bank even had a ‘German Industry’s Adolf Hitler Fund’. This account was set up by Gustav Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach, the legendary steel magnate who was the recipient of a gold Nazi badge. The account was to ensure that contributions from business would support the ideals of National Socialism and advance its objectives. His son, Alfred continued in this tradition and with the use of conscripted and slave labour provided the weaponry and munitions for the war effort. Many millions of Reichsmark were filtered through this account with colossal sums being spent on projects with the Führer’s approval. Even the newly invented postage stamps bearing Hitler’s image, extracted royalties which found their way into Chase bank. In this way, the Reich treasury was filled at all times and no auditor or any other accounting body dared to question the distribution of these monies or their source.
In the small office adjoining the manager’s, Madelaine was also apprehensive, but for different reasons. She wore a smart dark green business suit over a high-necked white silk blouse with black high-heeled shoes which brought her to five foot ten inches in height. Her thick blonde hair was styled in the braided German fashion of the day which highlighted her elegant face. The only jewellery she wore was a Nazi party badge on her lapel. She found it in one of the filing presses in the bank and thought to herself that it would come in useful someday. The anxiety she felt at meeting Heydrich was that she would have to appear courteous and accommodating to the murderous tyrant. She had followed his career in the SS ever since she had been a st
udent in Munich and witnessed on newsreels the unstoppable march of the jackbooted brutes in their blood lust for expansion in Europe. She detested and despised the ideals which he personified. Everything about this man was alien to her values. As she looked into the small vanity mirror which she carried in her handbag, her blue eyes had an extra degree of coldness in them this fine May morning.
Shortly after 11 am, Carlos Niedermann heard muffled greetings downstairs in the banking hall. He went over to one of the long office windows overlooking the street and peering down he could see the open-topped German staff car with the customary Swastika flag on the right wing. His visitor had arrived. Returning to his leather-bound chair, he nervously shifted and listened as ascending footsteps and voices in German were becoming clearer. After what seemed an age, the heavy mahogany-panelled door was opened by a junior clerk and there in front of him in the sunlit hall stood the tall, imposing figure of Hitler and Himmler’s protege in his grey green ceremonial uniform, displaying full military awards, the Obergruppen Führer, SS General Reinhardt Heydrich.
ELEVEN
PARIS: 1942
Heydrich entered the executive office, accompanied by a tall well-dressed fair-haired lady holding the hand of a young girl, her daughter Anna. Niedermann expressed no outward surprise at the arrival of the two females. He had expected one but not two. Maria wore a fashionable spring dress featuring a delicate blue floral design with padded shoulders that complimented her slim silhouette. As she extended a white-gloved hand on being introduced, a faint aroma of perfume followed her movement. Standing in the centre of the carpeted, high-ceilinged, elegant room, they exchanged pleasantries with Niedermann who was being particularly effusive. “It is a great honour to welcome you to the Chase Bank here in Paris Mein General, and your Sister, please rest assured that all of our facilities are at your discretion and disposal”.
He then motioned everyone to a large highly-polished circular walnut table in the centre and invited them to sit on the surrounding brown leather-bound chairs. He ordered coffee to be served. As Heydrich settled into the comfortable leather chair, his agile mind was taking in the general surroundings and he was paying particular attention to the demeanour of the manager. Always on the alert for human frailty and forever seeking advantage over unsuspecting prey, he casually enquired, “How long have you worked for Chase Bank in Paris, Herr Niedermann?’’. ‘’Since the autumn of 1938,” came the reply, and then went on to say, “Ambassador Otto Abetz is a highly valued customer of the bank and as you probably know, the Embassy account and associated activities will always be the focus of our best endeavours to serve the greater Reich”.
Heydrich knew all too well about the activities of Ambassador Abetz, who had been conferred with an honorary SS title – SS StandartFuhrer (Colonel). Even though he ranked as Ambassador, he was inferior to Heydrich in the hierarchy of the Nazi elite, but was nevertheless admired by him for his endeavours to introduce German culture to France. Abetz had established the German Institute in Paris and had promoted many concerts and cultural events. Even though he was the chief diplomat in France, his title of Ambassador was not really official, as the French government had ceased to exist. He was assigned the ‘safeguarding’ of all objects of art, public and privately owned Jewish items in Paris which had been seized with enthusiasm and confiscated into the coffers of the Reich. He had ‘stored’ precious art in the German legation where he resided on ‘rue de Lille’. Being a former art teacher and having a French wife before entering the foreign service under the minister Joachim Von Ribbentrop, he was well placed to advise upon the selection of works of art and other objects to be taken and transferred to Germany. At first, all art works, sculptures and tapestries were taken to a warehouse known as ‘Jeu de Paume’ in the area of the Jardin des Tuileries beside Place de la Concorde. It was here that Reich Marshal Goering selected the plundered masterpieces to be sent by special train to his majestic villa, ‘Karinhall’, outside Berlin. Goering had ambitions to plunder the greatest masterpiece of all, the Mona Lisa or La Joconde as the French called the painting, the 16th, century renaissance work by Leonardo da Vinci, but it had been smuggled out of the Louvre to a secret destination and stored in athmospheric conditions out of reach of the insatiable occupiers.
As Niedermann talked, he was conscious of Heydrich’s impenetrable scrutiny of him, which made him uncomfortable and even more garrulous. He felt for some reason that he had to justify and confirm Chase Bank’s endorsement of Reich policies. “We have been in the financial business since 1877 and our principal, John D Rockefeller Jnr., who is our largest stockholder, has strong links with your ministries. He has alliances with large companies in the Reich such as I.G. Farben, a manufacturer of rubber and supplier of pesticides to the larger camps”. This company was very closely connected to Standard Oil headed by Rockefeller and shared complex price, patents and marketing agreements. IG Farben was a major supplier of Germany’s synthetic lubricating oils and gasoline, explosives and methanol produced by slave labour. Niedermann was not to know at this time, that his euphemistic use of the term ‘pesticide’ was to be later known as the infamous Zyklon B gas which would kill millions in various concentration camps.
Heydrich knew exactly the activities of Chase Bank but he had wanted to test Niedermann’s personal ideology and abilities. Straightening up his chair, he said, “In the SS we have many businesses to support our war efforts. These range from excavation and quarrying to producing building materials. We are involved in forestry, fishing and also textile and leather goods. We have mineral water factories, cement, brick and ceramic companies who in turn have subsidiaries manufacturing a wide range of essentials. So, there will be a requirement for ongoing financial co-operation. Our activities are highly profitable, we have been offered most favourable terms by Dresdner bank for our continuing business operations’’. The latter comment, Neidermann interpreted as a veiled threat that Chase was not the only bank seeking to advance the ambitions of the SS.
‘’Let me stress that the business which I wish to transact this morning is strictly personal and your impeccable credentials for confidentiality will be relied upon, as in the SS, loyalty and honour are held in the highest regard”. He had unflinchingly stared at Niedermann as he spoke these words. He continued, with a slight hint of warning, ‘’The SS also controls the concentration and labour camps which provide our greater Reich with the work output requirements, and we are also responsible for all security matters’’.
“I will not disappoint Mein General”. Neidermann replied as he walked towards the door and beckoned his executive secretary, Madelaine, to enter and attend the meeting. Heydrich sat back in the chair and to show that he was familiar with international trends and business went on to say,
“Standard Oil, controlled by your largest stockholder, Rockefeller, is a major facilitator and supporter of our Third Reich policies. The company has significant investments in Germany in the form of machine tooling and patents, together with supplying fuel for our aircraft and submarines. In fact our Luftwaffe is dependent upon tetraethyl chemical to enable it to fly which is produced from the patent provided by the Americans. Without this formula we would be seriously handicapped, as this additive is a vital substance to our war effort. So, commercial cooperation is crucial to achieve our aims and that is why we have a joint agreement in this regard between IG Farben and Standard oil of New Jersey’’. Hardly stopping to draw breath, he went on, “As an executive of a large American bank you will be aware that the United States never ratified the Versailles Treaty which humiliated our Fatherland with reparation demands. The Treaty was rejected by the United States senate on a vote of 39 to 55. Germany lost its overseas colonies, and Alsace-Lorraine was ceded to France. Onerous limitations were imposed on our army and navy, also our air force was so restricted as to be non-existent. A once proud nation reduced to penury. We, as National Socialists refuted all these terms and we have through our Fuhrer’s strong policies restored German sel
f respect and pride which was also lost in the time of the weak Weimar Republic that resulted in chaotic economic conditions’’.
Fixing Neiderman with a direct gaze, he was at his penetrating best seeking any weakness to be exploited, ‘’You will of course be familiar with the ‘Max Heiliger’ account which we in the SS use to facilitate the property of resettled Jews’’. This was a fictitious named bank account accepting the plunder of valuables, gold and jewellery looted from European Jewry. Neiderman had to call upon his inner reserves to display an outward veneer of calm and did not respond to the query but merely smiled. Inside he was churning and for a moment felt the full force of Heydrich’s evil potential; this man would eliminate anyone who obstructed his path to power.