This photo is believed to have been taken days before the start of World War II. Hitler is at right.
NORTH ADAMS - A bunch of sour-faced men in suits in a grainy black and white photo are standing around another who is gesturing excitedly, his right hand a blur of white. Some stand with their arms crossed, others with their hands in their pockets.
It's an unremarkable snapshot but for Darrell K. English it's the smoking gun, the most incriminating photo of the 20th century.
"I equate this with someone being in Ford's Theater, with a camera, the night Lincoln was shot," said English on Friday.
Why? Because when you look closely at the picture you realize that the man who's gesturing is Adolf Hitler and those surrounding him, his notorious henchmen.
English says the photograph was taken Aug. 22, 1939 - 10 days before the invasion of Poland. Essentially, it's the day World War II began in Europe, the day that Hitler called his commanders to his mountain retreat, the Berghof, to tell them that months of German maneuvering and mobilizing were about to unleashed on Europe.
"We know when it was taken, we know what was said during that meeting," said English. "Now we have an actual photograph of the actual date and the actual happening."
The story goes that this was where Hitler made his infamous remark "Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?" when speaking of the coming destruction of the Polish people. While most historians discount that remark, it is a fact that an all-day meeting was held Aug. 22, 1939, between Hitler and his commanders detailing the invasion.
"Basically, he's saying, 'we're invading Poland in 10 days and my Death's Head units have been given the orders to kill every man, woman and child," said English. This is beginning of the end for the more than 50 million people who would die in the war and the Holocaust, he said.
Hitler had just received word that Josef Stalin was agreeable to a nonagression pact, which would be signed two days later. The pact cleared the way for Germany to invade Poland and divide it and neighboring countries with the Soviet Union. The treaty would stand until June 22, 1941, when Germany invaded the Soviet Union.
English said the men in the room can be matched with records of the meeting. Among them are rarely photographed Gestapo head Heinrich Mueller, SS leader Walter Schellenberg and Chief of Staff Martin Boorman.
The photograph was taken by Heinrich Hoffmann, the Fuehrer's favorite photographer. His personal stamp is on the back along another in German of "not for publication." The mark 44 03/28 is written, possibly a index number, said English.
A penned scrawl across the back says it was found in a house on the German border.
English has had the photo for eight or nine years; he got it from someone in the National Security Agency who, in turn, got it from another intelligence officer.
He also has a "what if" picture, also taken by Hoffmann, of Hitler with his savior, Ulrich Graf. Graf, his bodyguard in the early 1920s, took nearly a dozen slugs meant for Hitler in the Beer Hall Pustch of 1923. He survived the shooting and died in 1960. "What if he'd been too slow?" mulled English. "The world would have been different."
The photo was picked up by a GI sometime after the war. On the back it says, "Hitler's dead. Don't know where Graf is but I'm living in his house. Not bad."
English is a well-known collector of World War II-era materials; his collection has appeared in numerous books, magazines and exhibitions, including the annual Holocaust exhibit at Clarksburg School and in the recent WGBY documentary "From the Factories to the Front Lines: Our Stories of World War II."
The WGBY documentary was made as a local aspect of Ken Burns' seven-hour documentary "The War," premiering on PBS stations on Sunday night.
English is hoping the Burns documentary will do for World War II what his "Civil War" did for that era - spark a renewed interest in an important period of American history. And he's hoping that interest will be a catalyst in helping found a museum for the thousands of posters, pictures, uniforms, badges, letters, weapons, etc., in his possession.
"People ask me all the time what I have in my collection," he said. "I tell them, if I told you, you wouldn't believe me."
English feels he's a custodian of the historical artifacts in his possession, and that they should be placed where others can see them and where they can be used in research. It's to keep alive the experiences of those who lived through that era and to make sure they are not forgotten by the next generation, he said.
Meanwhile, the photograph of Hitler at the war's start will rest in its Plexiglass holder, tucked away until a permanent place can be found for it.
"It's chilling when you realize what you're looking at," said English. "This is as close to pure evil as you're going to get. These guys all sat here and plotted this whole thing out. You don't get much more dramatic than that."
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Very interesting article!
Since the iBerkshires journalist goes on to wrongly state that “most historians discount [Hitler’s] remark [about the Armenian annihilation]†- referring only to a small number of historians who discount the remark in order to discount the Armenian Genocide - it is worth to note that Hitler’s Aug 22 speech is not the only time when he talks of the extermination of the Armenians.
Eight years prior to the 1939 speech, the editor of “Leipziger Neueste Nachrichter†R. Breiting had two secret interviews with Hitler. In one of the two interviews, Hitler said, “We intend to introduce a great resettlement policy; we do not whish to go on each other’s toes in Germany. In 1923 little Greece could resettle a million men. Think of the biblical deportations and the massacres of the middle Ages and remember the extermination of the Armenians.â€
So while there is no available empirical proof - such as a tape - of Hitler’s 1939 speech to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Hitler referred to the annihilation of the Armenians ten days before invading Poland, the 1931 interview with Breiting is an unquestionable fact that Hitler did refer to the impunity of the Armenian genocide.
The fact that a photograph from the 1939 speech exists, nevertheless, gives hope that it might have been taped as well. This reminds me what David Davidian, an Armenian activist, told an online group several months ago. In the 1980s Davidian was approached by a CIA agent who told him there was a tape of the 1939 Hitler speech in Israel which is not released by the Israeli government.
There is no authoritative proof that Hitler made the comment about the Armenian genocide at that particular meeting, nor is there proof he didn't. The phrase appeared in a New York Times article a year after the meeting, reportedly leaked by an attendee. However, many historians, such as William Shirer, have approached the phrasing cautiously. No matter what he said, Hitler's actions were clear.
My family has two volumes 8 and 15 which contain a history and many original photographs of Hitler and his progress from 1922 to 1943. We are looking for someone who might possibly know of other volumes for this set? These came from Germany during the ware. They were obtained in an unknown manner, but have been kept safe throughout the years.
i was wondering how do i get ahold of mr english i too have a orginal 5x7 photo of hitler with markings on the back which i was hopeing he could tell me what they ment. n-jamison@hotmail.com
i have spy pictures of hitlers house and gornings house durning the war i was trying to see if they were worth anything my email is kevinbouchillon@yahoo.com if anyone knows anything about it email me
I have read your article! Most interesting - we have a painting of Hitler's House - not sure who the artist is! Perhpas Hitler - himself!
It is a canvas - do you know who we could have inspect it?
Let us know
Letter: Let's Prioritize Investment in Public Education in Massachusetts
Letter to the Editor
To the Editor:
Across the 1st Berkshire District, our schools face a unique set of challenges. Declining enrollment, rising transportation costs, workforce shortages, increasing special education expenses, and growing student mental health needs are placing significant pressure on local districts and taxpayers alike.
We need to continue to strengthen the connections between our primary schools, higher education institutions, career training programs, and local employers so that more young people can build successful futures right here in the Berkshires. Whether it's early college programming that has been spearheaded and highly successful right here in the 1st Berkshire District with MCLA, new trades training like the HVAC program at McCann, or the high demand certifications and trainings in healthcare now being built and operated at BCC, MCLA, and within our K-12 system. Each of these represents an example of how we do things well right here in our region, and lays the groundwork for how we can continue to advance educational support.
A strong public education system is directly connected to housing, childcare, transportation, workforce development, and economic opportunity. If we want to retain young families, attract new residents, and build a stronger regional economy, we must continue investing in educational excellence at every level.
I support continued and enhanced investment in public education, career and technical education, and early childhood education. I also support policies that recognize the unique challenges facing rural and small-city districts, particularly around transportation funding, the imbalance of special education costs and state funding formulas, and educator recruitment and retention. When local students' needs change, we need to be aggressive in advocating and designing policies that remain agile to the cost-of-service impacts and be willing to change existing practices such as the Chapter 70 funding formula. Together, we need to foster a culture of equitable education investment that lifts up our students and families, not one that measures their value based on standardized tests that have proven to be determined more heavily by median household income, and not the quality of our educators, the commitment of our students or the support of our communities.
Every student deserves a pathway to success, whether that pathway leads to a college classroom, a skilled trade, military service, entrepreneurship, or a career right here in the Berkshires. As your State Representative, I will work collaboratively with educators, families, school leaders, higher education institutions, workforce partners, and state agencies to make sure that the Berkshires have a strong voice in shaping the future of education policy in Massachusetts, and will ensure that our communities get the tailored support we need and deserve.
Sincerely,
Andrew Fitch North Adams, Mass.
Candidate for state representative, 1st Berkshire District
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