Nazis in Pre-War London, 1930-1939: The Fate and Role of German Party Members and British Sympathizers

Once war broke out in September 1930 the Nazi Party newspaper, Völkischer Beobachter, sent its first representative to London. Soon afterwards, German residents in London established an Ortsgruppe, or local Nazi group, which provided Party members with a place to congregate and support the new movement. By 1933, more than 100 members belonged to the London group. The Nazis in pre-war London created a dilemma for the Foreign Office and the Home Office, who were divided as to how best to treat residents whose allegiance was to the German Reich. Some felt that all Nazi organizations should be banned, and Party Members should not be allowed to enter the UK. Others, including MI5, argued that it would be easier to keep track of Nazis if they were in-country. Previously unpublished German documents reveal the fate of German diplomats, journalists, and professionals, many of whom were interned in Britain or deported to Nazi Germany once war broke out on 3 September 1939. Nazis in Pre-War London is the first book to study the history of the Nazis in Britain. An Appendix lists the details concerning the nearly 400 German Party members, as well as Nazi journalists, who spent time in Britain prior to the war.

About the Author :
James J. Barnes is Professor of History. Patience P. Barnes is a Research Associate, at Wabash College, Crawfordsville, Indiana.

Review :
"James and Patience Barnes have engaged in some detailed detective work to uncover one of the least known and most intriguing aspects of the history of Nazism. Their study provides a fascinating insight into the previously overlooked but highly significant story of Nazi overseas operations. Neither the history of London nor the history of Nazism will look quite the same again." -- Professor Dan Stone, Royal Holloway, University of London, author of The Historiography of the Holocaust and Responses to Nazism in Britain 1933-1939: Before War and Holocaust. "This study presents a great deal of valuable research on German National Socialists living in Britain, mainly London, during the 1930s, and looks at the question of Anglo-German relations from a number of interesting yet hitherto largely neglected perspectives...on offer is an almost encyclopaedic account of the individuals involved, including, where possible, their personal histories, a chronicle of events, and the scandals, incidents and intrigues that inevitably figure in such a tale of 'enemies within." Julie V. Gottlieb, University of Sheffield, European History Quarterly, 39.2