Nevile Henderson
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Sir Nevile Meyrick Henderson (10 June 1882 – 30 December 1942) was a British diplomat who served as the ambassador of the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
to
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
from 1937 to 1939.


Early life and education

Henderson was born at Sedgwick Park, near
Horsham Horsham () is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...
,
Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...
, the third child of Robert Henderson and Emma Caroline Hargreaves. His uncle was Reginald Hargreaves, who married
Alice Liddell Alice Pleasance Hargreaves (''née'' Liddell, ; 4 May 1852 – 16 November 1934) was an English woman who, in her childhood, was an acquaintance and photography subject of Lewis Carroll. One of the stories he told her during a boating trip becam ...
, the original of ''
Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...
''. Henderson was very attached to the countryside of Sussex, especially his home of Sedgwick, and wrote in 1940: "Each time that I returned to England the white cliffs of
Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...
meant Sedgwick for me, and when my mother died in 1931 and my home was sold by my elder brother's wife, something went out of my life which nothing can replace". Henderson was extremely close to his mother, Emma, a strong-willed woman who had successfully managed the estate at Sedgwick after her husband's death in 1895 and developed the gardens of Sedgwick so well that they were photographed by '' Country Life'' magazine in 1901. Henderson called his mother "the presiding genius of Sedgwick" who was a "wonderful and masterful woman if ever there was one". He was educated at Eton and joined the Diplomatic Service in 1905. He was, as one historian notes, "something of a snob", although another historian states that his snobbishness mostly derived from the death of his mother. Henderson had a great love of sports, guns and hunting, and those who knew him noted he was always most happy when he was out on the hunt. Henderson was also known for his love of clothing and always wore the most expensive
Savile Row Savile Row (pronounced ) is a street in Mayfair, central London. Known principally for its traditional bespoke tailoring for men, the street has had a varied history that has included accommodating the headquarters of the Royal Geographical ...
suits and a red
carnation ''Dianthus caryophyllus'' ( ), commonly known as carnation or clove pink, is a species of ''Dianthus'' native to the Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean region. Its exact natural range is uncertain due to extensive cultivation over the last 2,00 ...
. He was considered to be one of the best-dressed men in the Foreign Office, being obsessed with the proper fashion even during long-distance rail voyages. Henderson's obsession with his wardrobe, social etiquette, and hunting was part of a carefully cultivated image that he sought for himself as a polished Edwardian gentleman. Henderson never married, but his biographer, Peter Neville, wrote that "women played an important role in his life". Henderson's lifelong bachelorhood did not cause questions about his sexuality; Baron
Ernst von Weizsäcker Ernst Heinrich Freiherr von Weizsäcker (25 May 1882 – 4 August 1951) was a German naval officer, diplomat and politician. He served as State Secretary at the Foreign Office of Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1943, and as its Ambassador to ...
, the State Secretary of the '' Auswärtiges Amt'', wrote in his diary that Henderson was a "ladies' man".


Ambassador to Turkey

In the early 1920s, Henderson was stationed at the embassy in
Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
, where he played an important role in the often difficult relations between Britain and the new Turkish Republic. Henderson had wanted a posting in France, rather than Turkey, where he constantly complained to his superiors about being sent. During his time in Turkey, Henderson played a major role in the negotiations about the
Mosul Mosul ( ; , , ; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghdad. Situated on the banks of Tigris, the city encloses the ruins of the ...
dispute, which had been caused by Turkish President Mustafa Kemal's claim to the Mosul region of
Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
. Henderson was forceful in upholding the British claim to the region, but was prepared to yield to Turkish demands for Constantinople. He argued that Britain had been shown to have a very weak hand by the Chanak Crisis in 1922, which revealed that public opinion in Britain and its dominions was unwilling go to war over the issue.


Ambassador to France and Yugoslavia

Henderson served as an envoy to
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
in 1928 to 1929 and as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1929 and 1935. He did not want the latter post, whose British legation was considered to be an unglamorous post, compared to the "grand embassies" in Paris, Berlin, Rome, Moscow, Vienna, Madrid and Washington. He had been lobbying for a major post in the Paris embassy and, expecting to move back to Paris soon, continued to pay the rent for his apartment there for some time after moving to Belgrade. During his time in Belgrade, Henderson became a very close friend of King
Alexander I of Yugoslavia Alexander I Karađorđević (, ; – 9 October 1934), also known as Alexander the Unifier ( / ), was King of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes from 16 August 1921 to 3 October 1929 and King of Yugoslavia from 3 October 1929 until his assassinati ...
, who shared his love of hunting and guns. In January 1929, having been a constitutional monarch, Alexander had staged a
self-coup A self-coup, also called an autocoup () or coup from the top, is a form of coup d'état in which a political leader, having come to power through legal means, stays in power illegally through the actions of themselves or their supporters. The le ...
, abolished democracy and made himself the dictator of Yugoslavia. Following these events, Henderson's dispatches from Belgrade took on a notably pro-Yugoslav tone. His friendship with Alexander notably increased British influence in Yugoslavia, which first brought him attention in the Foreign Office. As would be the case during his time in Berlin, Henderson took exception to any negative remark in the British press about Yugoslavia and wrote to the Foreign Office to ask if anything could be done to silence such criticism. After Alexander's assassination in
Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...
, France, in October 1934, Henderson wrote: "I felt more emotion at King Alexander's funeral than I felt at any other except my mother's". Henderson wrote to a friend in Britain in 1935: "My sixth winter in the Belgrade trenches is the worst of all. The zest has gone out of it with King Alexander gone. It interested me enormously to play Stockmar to his Albert and that made all the difference". Henderson was also in close confidence with Prince Paul, the regent of Yugoslavia on behalf of Alexander's son, Peter II, who was only a boy. In January 1935, the Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign Office, Sir Robert "Van" Vansittart sharply rebuked him for a letter he had written to Paul in which Henderson strongly supported Yugoslavia's complaints against Italy. Vansittart complained particularly about Henderson's claim that the Italian government supported Croat and Macedonian separatist terrorists and that Italy had been involved in Alexander's assassination: "Are we convinced of this and do we wish Prince Paul to think that we are convinced of it".


Ambassador to Argentina

In 1935, Henderson became ambassador to Argentina.


Ambassador to Germany

On 28 May 1937, Foreign Secretary
Anthony Eden Robert Anthony Eden, 1st Earl of Avon (12 June 1897 – 14 January 1977) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1955 until his resignation in 1957. Achi ...
appointed Henderson to be ambassador in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
.
Harold Macmillan Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton (10 February 1894 – 29 December 1986), was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1957 to 1963. Nickn ...
wrote of Eden's choice in his 1966 memoirs: Eden wanted an ambassador in Berlin who could get along well with dictators, and Vansittart gave him a list of three diplomats who had shown a strong partiality towards autocratic leaders: Henderson, Sir Percy Loraine and Sir
Miles Lampson Miles Wedderburn Lampson, 1st Baron Killearn, (24 August 1880 – 18 September 1964) was a British diplomat. Background and education Miles Lampson was the son of Norman Lampson, and grandson of Sir Curtis Lampson, 1st Baronet. His mothe ...
. In his 1956 memoirs, ''The Mist Procession'', Vansittart wrote about the appointment of Henderson: "Nevile Henderson... made such a hit with the dictator ing Alexanderby his skill at shooting that he was ultimately picked for Berlin. All know the consequences". Henderson's promotion from being the ambassador in Buenos Aires to being the ambassador in Berlin, which was regarded as one of the "grand embassies" in the Foreign Office, was a major boost to his ego. Henderson wrote at the time that he believed he had been "specially selected by Providence for the definite mission of, I trusted, helping to preserve the peace of the world". As he crossed the
Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...
on a ship to take him back to Britain, Henderson read ''
Mein Kampf (; ) is a 1925 Autobiography, autobiographical manifesto by Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler. The book outlines many of Political views of Adolf Hitler, Hitler's political beliefs, his political ideology and future plans for Nazi Germany, Ge ...
'' in the original German version to acquaint himself with the thinking of
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...
. Henderson wrote in his 1940 ''The Failure of a Mission'' that he was determined "to see the good side of the Nazi regime as well as the bad, and to explain as objectively as I could its aspirations and viewpoint to His Majesty's Government". Upon arriving in London, Henderson met the Chancellor of the Exchequer,
Neville Chamberlain Arthur Neville Chamberlain (; 18 March 18699 November 1940) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from ...
, who was due to replace
Stanley Baldwin Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley (3 August 186714 December 1947), was a British statesman and Conservative politician who was prominent in the political leadership of the United Kingdom between the world wars. He was prime ministe ...
as prime minister the next month, for a briefing about the Berlin mission. Some controversy has ensued over just what precisely Chamberlain told Henderson. In ''Failure of a Mission'', Henderson wrote that Chamberlain "outlined to me his views on the general policy towards Germany and I think I may honestly say to the last and bitter end I followed the general line which he set me, all the more easily and faithfully since it corresponded so closely with my own private conception of the service I could best render in Germany to my own country". Henderson was to say that Chamberlain had authorised him to commit "calculated indiscretions" in the pursuit of peace, but the German-born American historian Abraham Ascher wrote that no evidence has emerged to support that claim. T. Philip Conwell-Evans, a British historian who taught German history at Königsberg University, later said Henderson had told him that Chamberlain had made him his personal envoy to Germany who was to bypass Vansittart by taking orders directly from Chamberlain's office. Regardless of what Chamberlain said to Henderson in April 1937, Henderson always seemed to have regarded himself as directly answerable to
10 Downing Street 10 Downing Street in London is the official residence and office of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister of the United Kingdom. Colloquially known as Number 10, the building is located in Downing Street, off Whitehall in th ...
and showed a marked tendency to ignore Vansittart. A believer in
appeasement Appeasement, in an International relations, international context, is a diplomacy, diplomatic negotiation policy of making political, material, or territorial concessions to an aggressive power (international relations), power with intention t ...
, Henderson thought Hitler could be controlled and pushed toward peace and cooperation with the Western powers. Like almost all of the British elite in the interwar era, Henderson believed that the
Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...
was far too harsh on Germany and that if only the terms of Versailles were revised in Germany's favour, another world war could be prevented. Neville wrote that the charge that Henderson was pro-Nazi was incorrect since Henderson had advocated the revision of Versailles in Germany's favour long before Hitler had come to power. By contrast, Ascher credited Henderson's beliefs on avoiding war to his desire to uphold
white supremacy White supremacy is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White supremacy has roots in the now-discredited doctrine ...
and to avoid another "fratricidal" war between white peoples while Asian, black and brown peoples started to demand equality. Ascher cited Henderson's dispatch to Eden on 26 January 1938 that warned that another Anglo-German war "would be ... absolutely disastrous – I cannot imagine and would be unwilling to survive the defeat of the British Empire. At the same time, I would view with dismay another defeat of Germany, which would merely serve the purposes of inferior races". Shortly after arriving in Berlin, Henderson started to clash with Vansittart, who complained that Henderson was exceeding his brief and becoming too close to the Nazi leaders, especially
Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician, aviator, military leader, and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which gov ...
, who became Henderson's main diplomatic source as well as a personal acquaintance. Henderson first met Göring on 24 May 1937 and admitted to having a "real personal liking" for him. The same tendency towards hero worship that Henderson had displayed towards King Alexander in Belgrade reasserted itself in Berlin towards Göring, as Henderson had a fascination with militaristic authority figures. Göring shared Henderson's love of hunting and guns, and both frequently went away for hunting trips to discuss the future of Anglo-German relations. Eden sharply criticised Henderson for not challenging Göring's statement that the German people should not look upon Britain as "an enemy in their path" and that closer Anglo-German ties were needed, as the statement implied that current British foreign policy was anti-German. In one of his "calculated indiscretions", Henderson broke with the unwritten rule in the Foreign Office that ambassadors should never criticise their predecessors by telling Göring that Sir Eric Phipps had been too insensitive towards German concerns. In June 1937, Canadian Prime Minister
William Lyon Mackenzie King William Lyon Mackenzie King (December 17, 1874 – July 22, 1950) was a Canadian statesman and politician who was the tenth prime minister of Canada for three non-consecutive terms from 1921 to 1926, 1926 to 1930, and 1935 to 1948. A Liberal ...
visited Berlin to meet Hitler. Mackenzie King told Henderson that Hitler had said that "they all liked him and felt he had a good understanding of German problems", a remark that appealed much to Henderson's vanity. Hitler called Henderson "the man with the carnation", in reference to the red carnation Henderson that always wore; and actually despised him: he found Henderson to be too superior in his manners for his liking. In contrast to his close friendship with Göring, Henderson's relationship with Foreign Minister
Joachim von Ribbentrop Ulrich Friedrich-Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop (; 30 April 1893 – 16 October 1946) was a German Nazi politician and diplomat who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs (Germany), Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1945. ...
was extremely antagonistic. Henderson detested Ribbentrop and wrote to King
George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...
that Ribbentrop was "eaten up with conceit". Henderson argued that the Nazi regime was divided into factions, which he called the "moderates" and the "extremists". Henderson regarded Göring as the leader of the "moderates", which also included the ''
Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...
'' officer corps, the ''
Reichsbank The ''Reichsbank'' (; ) was the central bank of the German Empire from 1876 until the end of Nazi Germany in 1945. Background The monetary institutions in Germany had been unsuited for its economic development for several decades before unifica ...
'' officials, the professional diplomats of the
Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * United ...
and the officials of the Reich Ministry of Economy, and the "extremists" were Ribbentrop, Josef Goebbels and
Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and military leader who was the 4th of the (Protection Squadron; SS), a leading member of the Nazi Party, and one of the most powerful p ...
. Henderson argued that Britain should work to revise the international system established by the Treaty of Versailles in favour of Germany, which would strengthen the "moderates" in Germany and weaken the "extremists", as the best way of preventing another world war. Henderson regarded all aims of the "moderates", such as the return of the
Free City of Danzig The Free City of Danzig (; ) was a city-state under the protection and oversight of the League of Nations between 1920 and 1939, consisting of the Baltic Sea port of Danzig (now Gdańsk, Poland) and nearly 200 other small localities in the surrou ...
, the Polish Corridor,
Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( ; ; ; ; Silesian German: ; ) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, located today mostly in Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic. The area is predominantly known for its heav ...
, the lost colonies in Africa, the ''
Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, ), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into Nazi Germany on 12 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a "German Question, Greater Germany") arose after t ...
'' with Austria and the
Sudetenland The Sudetenland ( , ; Czech and ) is a German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the border districts of Bohe ...
joining Germany as being reasonable and just. This was Henderson's greatest mistake during his Ambassadorship: he fundamentally misunderstood that Hitler himself was the most extreme, and therefore would not be susceptible to moderate advice. When Henderson accepted Göring's invitation to attend the 1937 Nazi Party rally in Nuremberg without consulting the Foreign Office, Vansittart was furious and wrote that it was "extraordinary" that Henderson should "not only take an important decision like this off his own bat without giving us a chance at consultation ... but also announce it to a foreign colleague as a decision". Vansittart wrote to Henderson that he should not attend the Nuremberg Rally since "you would be suspected of giving countenance or indeed eulogy (as alleged by one Member of Parliament) to the Nazi system", and the Foreign Office would be accused of having "fascist leanings". Henderson wrote back that "one has to be empirical to a certain degree and since Nazism could not be wished away, what was the point of being discourteous to Hitler and unnecessarily irritating to him?" Henderson's attendance at the rally was widely interpreted by the Nazis as granting his official approval of their ideology. At the same time, Henderson described the "
Strength Through Joy NS Gemeinschaft ; KdF) was a German NSDAP-operated leisure organization in Nazi Germany. Richard Grunberger, ''The 12-Year Reich'', p. 197, It was part of the German Labour Front (), the national labour organization at that time. Set up in Nove ...
" movement and the labour camps for young people as showing the "beneficial" aspects of Hitler's rule and ensured that the young Germans developed properly-patriotic attitudes towards the fatherland. Henderson called the rally (10-11 September 1937) a most impressive event attended by some 140,000 Germans, who were full of enthusiasm for the regime. Henderson wrote that his hosts in Nuremberg went out of their way to be friendly towards him by giving him a luxurious apartment to stay in and inviting him to sumptuous meals with the best German food and wine being served. From Nuremberg, Henderson reported to London: However, Henderson saw no reason for alarm and wrote that "we are perhaps entering the quieter phrase of Nazism, of which the first indication has been the greater tranquility of the 1937 meeting t Nuremberg" Henderson spoke with Hitler at Nuremberg and described him as seeking "reasonableness" in foreign affairs with a special interest in reaching an "Anglo-German understanding". Because Hitler's speech at Nuremberg had demanded that Britain and France return the former German colonies in Africa, Henderson came away with the impression that for Hitler, the restoration of the German colonial empire in Africa was his principal foreign policy interest. The British historian Andrew Crozier wrote that the thesis of "colonial blackmail" developed by the German historian Klaus Hildebrand, namely that for Hitler the demands for lost colonies in Africa were meant to "blackmail" Britain into giving Germany a "free hand in the East", was well supported by the available evidence.


Sudeten issue

On 16 March 1938, Henderson wrote to the Foreign Secretary,
Lord Halifax Edward Frederick Lindley Wood, 1st Earl of Halifax (16 April 1881 – 23 December 1959), known as the Lord Irwin from 1925 until 1934 and the Viscount Halifax from 1934 until 1944, was a British Conservative politician of the 1930s. He h ...
, to set out his view: "British interests and the standard of morality can only be combined if we insist upon the fullest possible equality for the Sudeten minority of
Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...
". Unlike Basil Newton, the British minister in Prague, Henderson initially advocated plans to turn Czechoslovakia into a federation and wrote to Halifax "how to secure, if we can, the integrity of Czechoslovakia". At a meeting with Vojtech Mastny, the Czechoslovak minister in Berlin, on 30 March 1938, Henderson admitted that Czechoslovakia had the best record for the treatment of its minorities in Eastern Europe but criticised Czechoslovakia for being a unitary state, which he argued caused too many problems in a state made up of Czechs, Slovaks, Magyars, Germans, Poles and Ukrainians. Henderson told Mastny that he felt that becoming a "Federal State" was Czechoslovakia's best hope and wanted Czechoslovakia to reorientate its foreign policy upon "Prague–Berlin–Paris axis", instead of the existing "Prague–Paris–Moscow axis". In the spring of 1938, Henderson formed an alliance with Newton to work together to persuade decisionmakers in London to side with Germany against Czechoslovakia. When Henderson sent Newton a private letter praising him for his pro-German dispatches on 19 May 1938, the latter replied with a letter saying that he hoped Henderson would "be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and when that is done, I hope I may receive honourable mention. You have much the hardest job". During the May Crisis of 20–21 May 1938, Henderson was badly shaken by the partial Czechoslovak mobilisation, which, for Henderson, proved that President
Edvard Beneš Edvard Beneš (; 28 May 1884 – 3 September 1948) was a Czech politician and statesman who served as the president of Czechoslovakia from 1935 to 1938, and again from 1939 to 1948. During the first six years of his second stint, he led the Czec ...
was dangerous and reckless. At the same time, Henderson formed alliances with Baron
Ernst von Weizsäcker Ernst Heinrich Freiherr von Weizsäcker (25 May 1882 – 4 August 1951) was a German naval officer, diplomat and politician. He served as State Secretary at the Foreign Office of Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1943, and as its Ambassador to ...
, the State Secretary of the ''Auswärtiges Amt'';
André François-Poncet André François-Poncet (13 June 1887 – 8 January 1978) was a French politician and diplomat whose post as ambassador to Germany allowed him to witness first-hand the rise to power of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party, and the Nazi regime's prep ...
, the French ambassador in Berlin; and Baron Bernardo Attolico, the Italian ambassador in Berlin, to work together to "manage" Germany's return to great power status peacefully. Acting independently of their own national governments, Weizsäcker, Attolico, Henderson and François-Poncet formed a common front: on the one hand, to sabotage the plans of Hitler and Ribbentrop to attack Czechoslovakia; and, on the other, to ensure that the Sudetenland, the ostensible object of the German-Czechoslovak dispute, was handed over to Germany. Attolico, Weizsäcker, Henderson and François-Poncet would meet in secret to discuss in French to share information and to devise strategies to stop a war in 1938. Weizsäcker and Henderson both wanted a peaceful "chemical dissolution of Czechoslovakia", instead of the "mechanical dissolution" of war, which was favoured by Hitler and Ribbentrop. During Henderson's time in Berlin, he was closer to Weizsäcker than to any other German official except Göring. Despite his earlier pro-Yugoslav views, Henderson started to display strong anti-Slavic views during his time in Berlin. He wrote writing to Lord Halifax on 22 August 1938, "The Teuton and the Slav are irreconcilable-just as are the Briton and the Slav. Mackenzie King told me last year after the Imperial Conference that the Slavs in Canada never assimilated with the people and never became good citizens". As the crisis over the Sudetenland region intensified in September 1938, Henderson became convinced that Britain should not fight a major war with Germany, which jeopardised the
British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...
, over the Sudetenland, especially since he believed that it had been "unjust" in the first place for the Treaty of Versailles to have assigned the Sudetenland to Czechoslovakia. In September 1938, Henderson, along with Halifax and Sir Horace Wilson, the Chief Industrial Adviser to the government, were the only ones aware of Chamberlain's
Plan Z Plan Z was the re-equipment and expansion of the ''Kriegsmarine'' (German navy) ordered by Adolf Hitler in early 1939. The fleet was meant to challenge the naval power of the United Kingdom, and was to be completed by 1948. Development of the plan ...
to have the Prime Minister fly to Germany to meet Hitler personally and to find out just exactly it was that he wanted with the Sudetenland. After Hitler gave his
keynote speech A keynote in public speaking is a talk that establishes a main underlying theme. In corporate or commercial settings, greater importance is attached to the delivery of a keynote speech or keynote address. The keynote establishes the framework fo ...
at the 1938 Nuremberg Party Rally on 12 September 1938 demanding Beneš to allow the Sudetenland to join Germany or Czechoslovakia to be invaded, Henderson who had attended the rally, reported to London that Hitler "driven by the megalomania inspired by the military force which he has built up ... he may have crossed the borderline into insanity". In the same dispatch, Henderson wrote he could not speak with "certitude" over what Germany might do as "everything depends on the psychology of one abnormal individual". Henderson spoke with Hitler after he gave his speech at the rally and reported that Hitler "even while addressing the Hitler Youth" was so nervous that he could not relax, which led to Henderson to conclude, "His abnormality seemed to me even greater than ever". Despite Henderson's belief that Hitler might have actually gone mad, he still found much to admire about him and wrote that he had "sublime faith in his own mission and that of Germany in the world" and "he is a constructive genius, a builder and no mere demagogue". Henderson did not believe that Hitler wanted all of Czechoslovakia and wrote to Halifax that all that Hitler wanted was to secure "fair and honorable treatment for the Austro- and Sudeten Germans", even at the price of war, but Hitler "hates war as much as anyone". Henderson was ambassador at the time of the 1938
Munich Agreement The Munich Agreement was reached in Munich on 30 September 1938, by Nazi Germany, the United Kingdom, the French Third Republic, French Republic, and the Kingdom of Italy. The agreement provided for the Occupation of Czechoslovakia (1938–194 ...
and counselled Chamberlain to agree to it. Shortly thereafter, he returned to London for medical treatment, returning to Berlin in ill health in February 1939 (he would die of
cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
less than four years later). Sir Oliver Harvey, Halifax's Principal Private Secretary, wrote in September 1938, "Nevile Henderson's very presence here is a danger as he infects the Cabinet with his gibber".


Czechoslovakia

In October 1938, Henderson was diagnosed with cancer, which caused him to leave for London. From October 1938 to February 1939, the British Embassy in Berlin was run by the ''
chargé d'affaires A (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador. The term is Frenc ...
'', Sir George Ogilvie-Forbes, a member of the Scottish gentry and a protégé of Vansittart. The dispatches from Berlin changed markedly as Ogilvie-Forbes stated his belief that Hitler's aims went beyond revising the Treaty of Versailles towards winning Germany "world power status". Ogilvie-Forbes wrote to London 6 December 1938 that based on the information he received, he believed that Hitler would start a war sometime in 1939 with Hitler divided only about whether it would be in
Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...
or in
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountain ...
. Unlike Henderson, who tended to gloss over the sufferings of German Jews, Ogilvie-Forbes gave far more attention to Nazi anti-Semitism. Ascher, himself a German Jew, noted in Ogilvie-Forbes's dispatches to London that there was a real sense of personal empathy with the sufferings of German Jews, which Henderson never displayed. After Hitler gave his "Prophecy Speech" to the ''Reichstag'' on 30 January 1939, Ogilvie-Forbes predicted that the "extermination" of Jews in Germany "can only be a matter of time". Henderson, by contrast, wrote that "Jews and Communists" were the principal "warmongers"; British Jews caused Germanophobia in Britain; Jews around the world would "move heaven and earth" to cause an Anglo-German war and "Jews, Communists and the intelligentsia" were the chief troublemakers in the world. To counter the negative reaction caused in Britain by the ''
Kristallnacht ( ) or the Night of Broken Glass, also called the November pogrom(s) (, ), was a pogrom against Jews carried out by the Nazi Party's (SA) and (SS) paramilitary forces along with some participation from the Hitler Youth and German civilia ...
'' pogrom, Henderson during his stay in London suggested to Herbert von Dirksen, the German ambassador to the
Court of St James's The Court of St James's serves as the official royal court for the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. The court formally receives all ambassadors accredited to the United Kingdom. Likewise, ambassadors representing the United Kingdom are formally ...
that the persecution of German Jews be "regularized in an orderly and systematic manner" so as to reduce the offence given to British public opinion. When Henderson returned to Berlin on 13 February 1939, his first action was to call a meeting of the senior staff of the British embassy, where he castigated Ogilvie-Forbes for his negative tone in his dispatches during his absence and announced that all dispatches to London would have to conform to his views, and that any diplomat who reported otherwise would be removed from the Foreign Office. On 18 February 1939, Henderson reported to London: "Herr Hitler does not contemplate any adventures at the moment ... all stories and rumours to the contrary are completely without foundation". In February 1939, Henderson cabled the Foreign Office in London: On 6 March 1939, Henderson sent a lengthy dispatch to Lord Halifax that attacked almost everything that Ogilvie-Forbes had written while he was in charge of the British embassy. Besides disallowing Ogilvie-Forbes, Henderson also attacked British newspapers for negative coverage of Nazi Germany, especially the ''Kristallnacht'', and demanded that the Chamberlain government impose censorship to end all negative coverage of the Third Reich. Henderson wrote: "If a free press is allowed to run riot without guidance from higher authority, the damage which it may do is unlimited. Even war may be one of its consequences". Henderson praised Hitler for his "sentimentality" and wrote "the humiliation of the Czechs t the Munich conferencewas a tragedy", but it was Beneš's own fault for failing to give autonomy to the Sudeten Germans while he still had the chance. Henderson called ''Kristallnacht'' a "disgusting exhibition", which was, however, "comprehensible within limits. The German authorities were undoubtedly seriously alarmed lest another Jew, emboldened by the success of Grynszpan should follow his example and murder either Hitler or one of themselves". After ''
Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...
'' troops on 15 to 16 March 1939 occupied the remaining territory of
Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...
in defiance of the Munich Agreement, Chamberlain spoke of a betrayal of confidence and decided to resist German aggression. Henderson handed over a protest note and was intermittently recalled to London. Henderson wrote, "Nazism has crossed the Rubicon of the purity of race" by creating the Protectorate of Bohemia-Moravia and that the seizure of the "
Czech lands The Czech lands or the Bohemian lands (, ) is a historical-geographical term which denotes the three historical regions of Bohemia, Moravia, and Czech Silesia out of which Czechoslovakia, and later the Czech Republic and Slovakia, were formed. ...
" of
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...
and
Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...
"cannot be justified on any grounds". By late March 1939, there was a feeling in the cabinet that Henderson could no longer effectively represent Britain in Berlin, but Henderson was kept on for the want of a suitable "grand embassy" to send him to as a replacement. There was talk of sending Henderson to Washington, but there were objections that Henderson's tendency to commit "calculated indiscretions" would not mix well with the American press, which was inclined to report any indiscretions by public figures, whether they were calculated or not. The
US State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...
made it clear to the Foreign Office that it felt that Henderson would be an embarrassment in Washington. When Henderson asked for leave to visit Canada in the spring of 1939, he was told that he would have to give to the Foreign Office copies of any planned lectures before he gave them since no-one in the Chamberlain government still trusted Henderson to "speak sensibly" about Germany. On 29 April 1939, the French ambassador in Berlin, Robert Coulondre, reported to Paris that when Germany occupied the Czech half of Czecho-Slovakia on 15 March 1939, that Henderson, "always an admirer of the National Socialist regime, careful to protect Mr. Hitler's prestige, was convinced that Great Britain and Germany could divide the world between them" but was very angry when he learned that the ''Reich'' had just violated the Munich Agreement, as it "wounded him in his pride". Coulondre went on to write: "Yesterday, I found him exactly as I knew him in February". Coulondre added that Henderson had told him that the German demand for the Free City of Danzig to be allowed to rejoin Germany was justified in his view and that the introduction of conscription in Britain did not mean that British policies towards Germany were changing. Coulondre concluded that "it appears that events barely touched Sir Nevile Henderson, like water over a mirror.... It would seem that he forgot everything and failed to learn anything". Henderson's relations with Coulondre were unfriendly and cold as the latter distrusted both Henderson and Weizsäcker, and unlike François-Poncet, Coulondre refused to join the "group of four" that had met in 1938 to stop a war. By early May 1939, Henderson reported to London that Hitler still wanted good relations with Britain but only if it ended "the policy of encirclement". Henderson also added that he believed in the "justice" of Hitler's demand for the
Free City of Danzig The Free City of Danzig (; ) was a city-state under the protection and oversight of the League of Nations between 1920 and 1939, consisting of the Baltic Sea port of Danzig (now Gdańsk, Poland) and nearly 200 other small localities in the surrou ...
to return to Germany and wrote that Danzig was "practically a wholly German city" and that Hitler did not want a war with Poland, but one might break out "if his offer to Poland was uncompromisingly rejected".


Prelude to war

During the Danzig Crisis, Henderson consistently took the line that Germany was justified in demanding the return of the Free City of Danzig and that the onus was on the Poles to make concessions to Germany by allowing it to "go home to the ''Reich''". Henderson wrote to Halifax about Danzig and the Polish Corridor: "Can we allow the Polish government to be too uncompromising with them?" Henderson felt that the Versailles Treaty had been unjust towards Germany by creating the Free City of Danzig and giving the Polish Corridor and part of Silesia to Poland, and his preferred solution to the crisis would be Britain to pressure the Poles into concessions. However, Henderson also believed that Britain needed to deter Germany from attacking Poland while Britain pressured Poland into concessions and so favoured the "peace front" with the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
, despite his distrust, as the best form of deterrence. On the eve of the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Henderson came into frequent conflict with Sir Alexander Cadogan,
Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs This is a list of Permanent Under-Secretary of State, Permanent Under-Secretaries in the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (and its predecessors) since 1790. Not to be confused with Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State f ...
. Henderson argued that Britain should rearm secretly, as public rearming would encourage the belief that Britain planned to go to war against Germany. Cadogan and the Foreign Office disagreed with Henderson. The signing of the
Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, officially the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and also known as the Hitler–Stalin Pact and the Nazi–Soviet Pact, was a non-aggression pact between Nazi Ge ...
on 23 August 1939 and the
Anglo-Polish military alliance The military alliance between the United Kingdom and Polish Second Republic, Poland was formalised by the Anglo-Polish Agreement in 1939, with subsequent addendum, addenda of 1940 and 1944, for mutual assistance in case of a military invasion from ...
two days later made war imminent. On the night of 30 August, Henderson had an extremely tense meeting with Ribbentrop. Ribbentrop presented the German "final offer" to
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
at midnight and warned Henderson that if he received no reply by dawn, the "final offer" would be considered to have been rejected. The American historian
Gerhard Weinberg Gerhard Ludwig Weinberg (born 1 January 1928) is a German-born American Diplomatic history, diplomatic and Military History, military historian noted for his studies in the history of Nazi Germany and World War II. Weinberg is the William Rand Ke ...
described the scene: "When Ribbentrop refused to give a copy of the German demands to the British Ambassador at midnight of 30–31 August 1939, the two almost came to blows. Ambassador Henderson, who had long advocated concessions to Germany, recognised that here was a deliberately conceived alibi the German government had prepared for a war it was determined to start. No wonder Henderson was angry; von Ribbentrop on the other hand could see war ahead and went home beaming". While negotiating with Polish Ambassador Józef Lipski and advising accommodation over Germany's territorial ambitions, as he had during the ''
Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, ), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into Nazi Germany on 12 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a "German Question, Greater Germany") arose after t ...
'' with
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
and the occupation of Czechoslovakia, Germany staged the Gleiwitz incident, and the
invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...
began on 1 September. Henderson had to deliver Britain's final ultimatum on the morning of 3 September 1939 to Ribbentrop that if hostilities between Germany and Poland did not cease by 11 a.m. that day, a state of war would exist between Britain and Germany. Germany did not respond and so Chamberlain declared war at 11:15 a.m. Henderson and his staff were briefly interned by the ''
Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...
'' before they returned to Britain on 7 September.


Later life

After he had returned to London, Henderson asked for another ambassadorship, but was denied. He wrote ''Failure of a Mission: Berlin 1937–1939'', which was published in 1940, while staying at South Rauceby Hall, the home of an aunt in
Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...
. He spoke highly of some members of the
Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
regime, including ''
Reichsmarschall (; ) was an honorary military rank, specially created for Hermann Göring during World War II, and the highest rank in the . It was senior to the rank of (, equivalent to field marshal, which was previously the highest rank in the ), but ...
''
Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician, aviator, military leader, and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which gov ...
but not Ribbentrop. He had been on friendly terms with members of the Astors'
Cliveden set The Cliveden set were an upper-class group of politically influential people active in the 1930s in the United Kingdom, prior to the Second World War. They were in the circle of Nancy Astor, Viscountess Astor, the first female Member of Parliament ...
, which also supported appeasement. Henderson wrote in his memoirs how eager Prince Paul of Yugoslavia had been to illustrate his military plans to counter Mussolini's projected assault on
Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...
when the main body of the
Italian Royal Army The Royal Italian Army () (RE) was the land force of the Kingdom of Italy, established with the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. During the 19th century Italy started to unify into one country, and in 1861 Manfredo Fanti signed a decree c ...
had been sent overseas. The historian
A. L. Rowse Alfred Leslie Rowse (4 December 1903 – 3 October 1997) was a British historian and writer, best known for his work on Elizabethan England and books relating to Cornwall. Born in Cornwall and raised in modest circumstances, he was encourag ...
described ''Failure of a Mission'' as "an appalling revelation of fatuity in high place". In his memoir, Henderson stated: This has been compared to Hitler's Armenian reference, an alleged quote in which Hitler states "Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?"


Death

Henderson died on 30 December 1942 of cancer. He was then staying at the Dorchester Hotel, in London. Informed by his doctors that he had around six months left to live, he wrote an anecdote-filled diplomatic memoir, ''Water Under the Bridges'', which was posthumously published in 1945. Its final chapter defends his work in Berlin and the policy of "appeasement," praises Chamberlain for being "an honest and brave man" and argues on behalf of the Munich Agreement on the grounds that Britain was too weak militarily in 1938 to have stood up to Hitler. It also asserts that if Germany had invaded Czechoslovakia, the latter would have fallen within a few months.


References


Primary sources

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Secondary sources

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External links

*
''Failure of a Mission: Berlin 1937 – 1939''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Henderson, Nevile 1882 births 1942 deaths Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Yugoslavia Foreign Office personnel of World War II Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Argentina Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Paraguay Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Germany Deaths from cancer in England People educated at Eton College People from Horsham District