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Reihe Deutsche Vergangenheit / Stätten der Geschichte Berlins #82
The Devil's Workshop: A Memoir of the Nazi Counterfeiting Operation
One of the most remarkable episodes of WWII was the Nazi attempt to forge currency and trigger the economic collapse of the Allies. The counterfeit operation was one of the largest the world has ever seen and lead to the postwar reissue of sterling.
At the Sachsenhausen concentration camp near Berlin, 144 Jewish prisoners of 13 different nationalities were forced to work on producing counterfeit pound and dollar notes worth billions. The plan was known as Operation Bernhard.
The forgeries that were produced were virtually only the most senior forgers were able to spot fakes, where even the Bank of England failed to do so.
In this extraordinary memoir, the sole surviving Czech counterfeiter Adolf Burger describes his wartime experiences, including the murder of his wife Gizela in Auschwtiz and his time as a prisoner in four concentration camps. He was working as a counterfeiter until his liberation from the Ebensee camp on 5 May 1945 and was present at Toplitzee lake on July 5th 2000 when thousands of forged notes were brought to the surface.
Supported by hitherto unseen documentation and photographs that Burger took of his fellow prisoners after the war, this is a shocking account which sheds fresh light on the calculated barbarity of the Nazi war machine.
Adolf Burger was a consultant for the film The Counterfeiters, winner of the 2008 Foreign Language Oscar. His memoir has been published in Hungarian, Persian, Japanese and Czech. He continues to travel to speak about his wartime experiences.
At the Sachsenhausen concentration camp near Berlin, 144 Jewish prisoners of 13 different nationalities were forced to work on producing counterfeit pound and dollar notes worth billions. The plan was known as Operation Bernhard.
The forgeries that were produced were virtually only the most senior forgers were able to spot fakes, where even the Bank of England failed to do so.
In this extraordinary memoir, the sole surviving Czech counterfeiter Adolf Burger describes his wartime experiences, including the murder of his wife Gizela in Auschwtiz and his time as a prisoner in four concentration camps. He was working as a counterfeiter until his liberation from the Ebensee camp on 5 May 1945 and was present at Toplitzee lake on July 5th 2000 when thousands of forged notes were brought to the surface.
Supported by hitherto unseen documentation and photographs that Burger took of his fellow prisoners after the war, this is a shocking account which sheds fresh light on the calculated barbarity of the Nazi war machine.
Adolf Burger was a consultant for the film The Counterfeiters, winner of the 2008 Foreign Language Oscar. His memoir has been published in Hungarian, Persian, Japanese and Czech. He continues to travel to speak about his wartime experiences.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1986
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
June 7, 2010
Incredible story told with vivid detail and a treasure trove of primary documents.
April 29, 2017
Die Buchvorlage zum Film "Die Fälscher" bietet viele Einblicke, die der Film natürlich nicht bieten konnte, da dieser viel mehr auf Emotionen setzt und den Geldfälscher Salomon Smolianoff anstatt den Autor dieses Buches in den Vordergrund setzt.
Der Bericht von Adolf Bunger wird durch viele Fotos und einige andere Augenzeugenberichte noch anschaulicher und führt einem wieder die Schrecken des Naziregimes vor die Augen. Ich werde nie verstehen, wie Menschen so grausam sein können und wie einige aus den folgenden Generationen heute wieder so getrieben vor Fremdenhass sein können. Wer denkt, eine Politik wie die der AfD oder nationalistischer Parteien, wäre auch nur ansatzweise richtig, der ist in meinen augen schlichtweg zu dumm und ignorant, um aus der Vergangenheit zu lernen!
Der Bericht von Adolf Bunger wird durch viele Fotos und einige andere Augenzeugenberichte noch anschaulicher und führt einem wieder die Schrecken des Naziregimes vor die Augen. Ich werde nie verstehen, wie Menschen so grausam sein können und wie einige aus den folgenden Generationen heute wieder so getrieben vor Fremdenhass sein können. Wer denkt, eine Politik wie die der AfD oder nationalistischer Parteien, wäre auch nur ansatzweise richtig, der ist in meinen augen schlichtweg zu dumm und ignorant, um aus der Vergangenheit zu lernen!
July 18, 2017
I found this book quite enthralling. The details are absolutely astounding both in their enormity and abhorrence but also in the clarity of recollection: it is only near the end of the book that we uncover how this has been possible for the writer to achieve. It's difficult to understand the pain that these recollections must have caused Adolf; he is clearly a strong as well as a highly skilled man.
I did not understand the meticulous record keeping that the Nazi regime maintained throughout their atrocities.
We must never forget these FACTS, in the hope that similar events may be staved off anywhere in the world in the present and future.
I did not understand the meticulous record keeping that the Nazi regime maintained throughout their atrocities.
We must never forget these FACTS, in the hope that similar events may be staved off anywhere in the world in the present and future.
March 20, 2019
Интересная история.
February 5, 2021
One of the more fascinating episodes of WWII, this book chronicles the Nazi effort to counterfeit currency, primarily the British five-pound-note. A very detailed, well-written account, with photos, written by a prisoner who was one of the main players.
February 2, 2020
Gripping memoir about the author’s horrific experience in Nazi concentration camps.
June 13, 2024
Fascinating story told with lots of emotion but was stylistically choppy. It would have benefited with some skilled editing.
March 22, 2025
von der DDR Propaganda abgesehen ziemlich interessant
November 25, 2012
The Devil’s Workshop: A Memoir of the Nazi Counterfeiting Operation, by Adolf Burger, is a compelling story of how Jewish concentration camp prisoners were forced to become involved in a forgery plot known as “Operation Bernhard“. The memoir is harrowing and intense in its content.
Burger became a part of “Operation Bernhard”, whereby he and other Jews were forced into production. They became forgers, and produced counterfeit British Pound Sterling notes. It was plot masterminded by the Germans. The team of counterfeiters included 142 Jews, from varying countries, who were prisoners at varying concentration camps.
As the story unfolded, it became a nonstop read for me. The events were unimaginable and inconceivable to my mind. The Devil’s Workshop is extremely intense, vivid and rich with minute details, and historical fact. It is an incredible memoir, unlike any I have read. It is invaluable as an educational tool, and historical resource. I highly recommend it to everyone.
Burger became a part of “Operation Bernhard”, whereby he and other Jews were forced into production. They became forgers, and produced counterfeit British Pound Sterling notes. It was plot masterminded by the Germans. The team of counterfeiters included 142 Jews, from varying countries, who were prisoners at varying concentration camps.
As the story unfolded, it became a nonstop read for me. The events were unimaginable and inconceivable to my mind. The Devil’s Workshop is extremely intense, vivid and rich with minute details, and historical fact. It is an incredible memoir, unlike any I have read. It is invaluable as an educational tool, and historical resource. I highly recommend it to everyone.
February 12, 2009
5 stars to the movie, The Counterfeiters (with subtitles) starring Karl Markovics, August Diehl and Devid Striesow was tramatic to me as the cruelties of war escape my reason.
3 stars- to the book... was easier to get through, but also not as "stick it in your heart and gut."
3 stars- to the book... was easier to get through, but also not as "stick it in your heart and gut."
July 22, 2010
Still in the beginning
April 4, 2016
A fascinating piece of history that I don't think many people know about.
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews