PZ 5749/39(1) 'Propaganda: Articles forwarded to Persian Gulf, Kabul & Katmandu for dissemination' [‎221v] (442/715)

read it through carefully, and, though it reiterated his demand for
the whole Corridor as well as Danzig, I made no comment till I
reached the phrase at the end of it, in which, after a grudging
acquiescence in direct discussions with the Poles solely by way of
proof of Germany's sincerity in her desire for lasting friendship with
Great Britain, it was stated that “ the German Government counted/^n
upon the arrival in Berlin of a Polish Emissary with full powers on
the following day, Wednesday, the 30th August.” I pointed out to
his Excellency that this phrase sounded very much like an ultimatum
(‘‘hatte den Klang eines Ultimatums ”). This was strenuously and
heatedly denied by Herr Hitler himself, supported by Herr von
Bibbentrop. According to the former this sentence merely emphasised
the urgency of the moment, not only on account of the risk of
incidents when two mobilised armies were standing opposite one
another, but also when Germans were being massacred in Poland. In
this latter connection his Excellency asserted that “ I did not care
how many Germans were being slaughtered in Poland.” This
gratuitous impugnment of the humanity of His Majesty’s Government
and of myself provoked a heated retort on my part and the remainder
of the interview was of a somewhat stormy character.
43. It was closed, however, by a brief and in my opinion quite
honest harangue on Herr Hitler’s part in regard to the genuineness
of his constant endeavour to win Britain’s friendship, of his respect
for the British Empire, and of his liking for Englishmen generallv.
44. I should like to state here, parenthetically but emphatically,
that Herr Hitler’s constant repetition of his desire for good relations
vith Great Britain was undoubtedly a sincere conviction. He will
prove in the future a fascinating study for the historian and the
biographer with psychological leanings' Widely different explana
tions will be propounded, and it would be out of place and time to
comment at any length in this despatch on this aspect of Herr Hitler’s
mentality and character. But he combined, as I fancy many
Germans do, admiration for the British race with envy of their
achievements and hatred of their opposition to Germany’s excessive
aspirations. It is no exaggeration to say that he assiduously courted
Great Britain, both as representing the aristocracy and most success
ful of the Nordic races, and as constituting the only seriouslv
dangerous obstacle to his own far-reaching plan of German domina
tion in Europe. This is evident in Mein Kampf, and, in spite of what
le regarded as the constant rebuffs which he received from the
British side, he persisted in his endeavours up to the last moment
Geniuses are strange creatures, and Herr Hitler, among other
paradoxes, is a mixture of long-headed calculation and violent and
arrogant impulse provoked by resentment. The former drove him
to seek Britain’s friendship and the latter finally into war with her.
Moreover, he believes his resentment to be entirely justified. He
failed to realise why his military-cum-police tyrannv should be
repugnant to British ideals of individual and national freedom and