44 lines
2.7 KiB
Plaintext
44 lines
2.7 KiB
Plaintext
Hilda Monte - the name by which she was known in socialist and "intelligence"
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circles (real name unknown) was born in Berlin around 1914. Jewish parentage
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but apparently nonpracticing. She became a revolutionary socialist as a girl
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in the 1920s. Originally in the youth section of the KAPD (opposition communist
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party) and an admirer of Rosa Luxembourg, she later became a member of the
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anti parliamentary council-communist movement (may have known van der Lubbe -
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of Reichstag fire fame). After 1933 she linked up with small groups of activist
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s prepared to use terrorist tactics against the Nazis....Anti parliamentary
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council communists, Spartakists and anarcho-syndicalists were involved in this
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action. They were not allied but here was a certain amount of criss-crossing.
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Around 1937 Monte was brought to the attention of the authorities but escaped
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arrest by marrying (nominally) John Olday (A.W.Oldag), an anarchist/spartakist
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who had British nationality by virtue of a Canadian father (but had always
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lived in Germany) They were deported - He came to England (wrote "Kingdom
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of Rags") - she does not appear to have come until 1939. He was gay and they
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did not cohabit.
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She was trying to return to Germany to continue the struggle (reportedly
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involved in another plot against Hitler) Olday obtained financial assistance
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from George N. Strauss a millionaire industrialist (Lab. MP for Vauxhall)
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for this plot... she possibly had contact with groups of Council-communists
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in Paris and Amsterdam and Anarchists in Birmingham(UK)
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When the war started she was viewed with suspicion by British Intelligence
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(recently entered the country, citizenship by marriage to a husband with
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whom she didn't live and was reportedly a jewess wanting to go back to
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Germany) who despite later propoganda had a very ambivalent attitude towards
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anti-nazi activists. Around this time Strauss withdrew his support (under
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pressure?)
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In the UK Monte appears to have mixed with (mostly German) Socialist Vangaurd
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group (Luxembourgists) though they had support from Fenner Brockway of the
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ILP (later Lab. MP and Lord). She worked on a plan of her own (with a Birmingha
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m based group) and asked British Anarchists through Olday to find another
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backer. This was actor Leslie Howard (very anti-nazi) Howard not only got her
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released but also persuaded British intelligence to let her return to Germany
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on a "mission". They had little to lose. Unfortunatley they appear to have insi
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sted (no proof here) that she undertake espoinage as well as resistance.
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She was captured in 1942/3 - her fate is unknown but can be guessed
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I'm told that Israel (Yad Veshem?) has an archive on her, possibly also in the
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US archives of records taken from the Gestapo/German Police
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