Re: Kaiser Wilhelm II (correction)

[Gary Kern <gkern@alumni.Princeton.EDU>]

Rebing wrote:
> 
> Gary, "Hermine" is a female name, but it could well be a cover name for a man. This is all
> I can contribute to your problem except asking friends of mine in Switzerland and Italy
> whose field is modern European history (but who have shunned the Internet so far and so it
> will take some time to get  results). And maybe a footnote: when the Kaiser died in
> Doorn in June 1941 Hitler ordered a state funeral with all military honours.   Günter
************************
Thanks to you and Andreas for trying.  Olaf got the solution and the
laurels, as you have seen.

So the story is this (not for publication):

In 1937 Walter Krivitsky's agent went to Doorn with a plan to use the
German soldiers visiting the Kaiser in great numbers to overthrow Hitler
and restore the monarchy.  Princess Hermine, Wilhelm's second wife,
liked the plan, so the Kaiser gave his assent.  Krivitsky told his
superior, who told Yezhov, head of NKVD.  But when Yezhov presented the
plan to Stalin, the latter pointed to a map and said that London was
closer than Moscow to Doorn, and if the English didn't try then they
must have had reasons.  But as Krivitsky wrote later, after his
defection, Stalin already was trying to woo Hitler, hoping for a pact,
which he finally obtained in 1939.  So he wasn't so interested in
overthrowing Hitler.

The connection with Jünger?  Well, Krivitsky's plan might not have
restored the Kaiser, but it might have ended Hitler's life, in which
case the German generals would not have been obliged to make their
attempt in July 1944.  It's a stretch, but legitimate (I hope).

Please do not print this story anywhere.  I am including it in the book
I am writing on Walter G. Krivitsky entitled THE IMPOSSIBLE SUICIDE. 
Thanks.

GK