Harro ile Libertas: Bir Aşk ve Direniş Hikâyesi

by Norman Ohler, Tanıl Bora (Translator)

“Elimden geleni yaptım, son ana kadar ve kendi fikrim uğruna ölüyorum, bir başkasının fikri uğruna, bir düşmanın fikri uğruna değil. Biliyorum ki benim fikrim, bizim fikrimiz kazanacak, küçük öncü olarak bizler düşsek bile. (...) Alman halkı en beterinden esirgensin isterdik. Küçük grubumuz dimdik ve cesurca mücadele etti. Özgürlük için cehdettik ve korkak değildik. Hepinize teşekkür ediyorum! Son ana kadar kuvvetli olalım!”

Nazi iktidarına karşı yürütülmüş bir direniş mücadelesi... Yasadışı bildiri dağıtarak, anti-faşist müttefik güçler için istihbarat toplayarak, hayati tehlikede olanlara yardım ederek rejime direnen, daha sonra “Kızıl Orkestra” diye adlandırılacak bir grup... Son derece esnek, karmakarışık bir ilişki ağı: Muhafazakârlar, milliyetçiler var, liberaller, sosyal demokratlar, komünistler var, belirli bir siyasi fikre bağlı olmayanlar var. Aristokratlar, akademisyenler, sanatçılar, memurlar, subaylar, işçiler var. Yaşlılar var, gençler var. Kadın-erkek, yaklaşık yarı yarıya.

Direniş ağının merkezinde, ikisi de milliyetçi-muhafazakâr aile ve muhitlerden gelen tutkulu bir genç adam ve tutkulu bir genç kadın yer alıyor: Kitaba adlarını veren Harro ile Libertas. Direniş hikâyesi, ikisinin aşk hikâyesiyle iç içe geçiyor.

Harro ile Libertas, bu trajik hikâyeyi, geniş bir dokümantasyona dayanarak, roman gibi anlatıyor.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War II, Germany, Biography, War, Ebooks

376 pages, Paperback

First published September 12, 2019

About the author

Norman Ohler is a German author and screenwriter.

He is the son of Wolfgang Ohler.

Reviews

[Sam Quixote · Rating 2 out of 5]

Norman Ohler follows up his fantastic book Blitzed (my favourite book of 2016) with The Bohemians, another history book about the Third Reich, focusing mainly on two figures, Harro and Libertas Schulze-Boysen, a young couple who were part of the German resistance to Hitler’s Nazi regime during the war. I’d like to say this was every bit as eye-opening and gripping as Blitzed but unfortunately it’s nowhere near as good.

I expected another great story of a subject I don’t really know much about - the Germans who stood up to the Nazis - having only read Hans Fallada’s novel Alone in Berlin and seen the Tom Cruise movie Valkyrie. Well - this is one story that won’t be made into a Hollywood movie anytime soon!

About the most exciting thing Harro and Libertas do is transmit military information to the Soviets (Harro was a Luftwaffe officer so had access to some classified material), which they barely managed to do once and which was ignored by the Russians anyway. Most of the time the transmitter didn’t work and eventually, through incompetence, the Russians would rumble the resistance. It couldn’t have been much more fruitless an exercise!

Their other activities included printing up subversive pamphlets and stickers, sending out the pamphlets in the mail and putting up the stickers at an exhibit. Libertas worked in the film industry and had some influence over what projects got green-lit, choosing content that went right up against the rules of what was allowed under Nazi propaganda.

I kept waiting for some revelatory new detail to emerge or for the story to show why it needed to be told but it was never very interesting. It’s not a good sign when you look back on a book and realise it didn’t tell you much more than the blurb on the back did initially! And it’s an overfamiliar story if you’re aware of the history of this period: these were another group of brave souls who did what they could to resist history’s definitive thugs and unfortunately paid the ultimate price.

Ohler’s writing style is similar to Truman Capote’s “nonfiction novel” In Cold Blood so that the history book often reads like a novel. It’s a bit too neat for a nonfiction history book and felt like Ohler was taking too many liberties at times, but I guess it does make for an easier read for more general readers. The title is also something of a misnomer - Libs is allowed to sleep with as many men as she wants but when Harro decides to have an affair with another woman and she finds out, she starts screaming about divorce. Not very “bohemian”!

I just want to make it clear though that I really do admire people like Harro, Libertas and everyone else in their group. Standing up to the Nazis like they did was beyond brave and to stick to their principles in the darkest of times, right in the heart of and at the height of evil, deserves to be honoured. Not many people could do that - I certainly couldn’t. And what’s worse is that the Gestapo pricks who tortured these people got to escape punishment themselves and live out the rest of their natural lives after the war. If there was real justice in the world, it should have been the other way around with the Nazis swinging from a noose instead.

That said, as incredible as their sacrifices were, it doesn’t make for a gripping or enlightening read - and I have to say that because I picked this up expecting to be riveted like I was with Blitzed and I so wasn’t with The Bohemians. Harro and Libs’ activities were uninteresting and minimally effective at best, which is probably why they’re largely unknown, and their story was similar to many others’ during the war - good people standing up to bad and sadly losing. The final part with the Nazis eventually catching up to the resistance was kinda interesting but it wasn’t worth slogging through the whole book for.

As noble as Harro, Libs and their associates’ aims were, an entire book on them is a rather tedious reading experience and, if you want to know the details of these people, a quick scan of Wikipedia is probably sufficient instead. If you’re as much of a fan of Blitzed as me, don’t expect a similar experience with The Bohemians.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

As close to a factual account as could be made, the author tells us whilst admitting that finding the truth was a struggle, of an underground network that existed in Germany (Berlin), between 1933 and 1942.

Whilst at university, a young man with a politically active mind seeks to debate the issues; this leads to the publication of a periodical that catches the attention of Hitler's 'control freaks'.

Arrested, along with a friend, he and his pal are beaten, tortured: his pal dies during this suffering. He then embarks upon a campaign to resist and undermine the Nazi regime: even joining the party to better serve his goal.

I shall stay well away from spoiling this, however, from start to finish it's gripping: with every page I turned, I expected to read the inevitable. What they all did, girls and boys, how they all did it and the risks they ran is astounding.

I wonder of the mind of folk in such situations:

Red Dusk and the Morrow - Paul Henry Dukes said: "Melnikoff had but one sole object left in life - to avenge his parents' blood." It was Melnikoff's parents, so maybe that is more understandable.

Was all this young man went through in part to avenge his friend?

[Eylül Görmüş · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mahvoldum, mahvoldum. Daha yılı yarılamadık ama Harro ile Libertas’ın bu sene okuduğum en iyi kitaplardan biri olacağı şimdiden belli. En son ne zaman bu hale geldiğimi hatırlıyorum: Malaparte’nin Kaputt’u'nu okurken. Evet o da olağanüstü bir İkinci Dünya Savaşı kitabı ancak arada bir fark var: orada beni ağlatan şey şiddetin ve kötülüğün ta kendisiyken, burada bambaşka bir şey, daha yüce, daha görkemli bir şey: Direnmenin, iyiliğin, insan olmanın ve insan kalmanın büyülü gücü. Yazarın son bölüme verdiği ad bence bu kitabın tüm derdini anlatıyor: “restitutio memoriae”, yani “hatıranın itibarını iade.” Nazi Almanyası’nda tarifi zor bir cesaretle bir direniş gösteren Harro Schulze-Boysen ile eşi Libertas’ın ve dostlarının gerçek öyküsünü, olağanüstü detaylı bir araştırmayla topladığı belgelere dayanarak bir roman gibi yazmış Norman Ohler. Ama ne yazmak, nasıl yazmak. Bir kahramanlık öyküsünü -ve trajediyi- hem bunca süssüz hem bunca görkemli, hem böyle serinkanlı hem böyle yürek dağlayıcı biçimde anlatabilmek… (Bu arada Tanıl Bora çevirisi okumayı da, İletişim’in çok sevdiğim Faşizm İncelemeleri serisini de çok özlemişim, hatırladım.) Kitabın son 100 sayfasını dışarıda okudum, daha doğrusu okuyamadım: Sık sık durup nefes almak zorunda kaldım, en sonunda sonunu ağlamadan getiremeyeceğimi anlayınca kendimi eve attım, evde bitirebildim. Ama yinelemek isterim: beni ağlatan şey şiddet yahut işkence değildi, o tür bölümler yok denecek kadar az, beni ağlatan şey bu bir avuç insanın dünyayı değiştirebileceklerine duydukları inançtan devşirdikleri cesaretle yapabildikleri oldu. “Sadece yaşamak ve sevmek isteyen” bu insanları tanıdığım, dünyadan geçtiklerinden haberdar olabildiğim için mutluyum şimdi. Harro Schulze-Boysen’in ölümününden hemen önce yazıp hapishane duvarına gömdüğü ve savaş bittikten sonra bulunan şiirinden şu cümlelerle bitirmek istiyorum: “Öleceksek de biliyoruz ki: tohum yeşerecektir / Kelleler gitse bile, ruh devleti altedecektir.” Bu müthiş insanların ruhlarına o halde.

[Marquise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in a non-fiction novel style, which is going to be rather weird to someone not used to this kind of storytelling, this is the true story of the Red Orchestra group created by and led by Harro and Libertas Schulze-Boysen with the aim of undermining the Nazi regime, as told by a German author that's only been translated recently.

The story itself will be quite engrossing to anyone with an interest in WWII, more so to those invested in learning more about the sadly very few Germans who dared to make a stand to an oppressive and genocidal government and go down fighting for their convictions, and even more so for English-speaking audiences across the pond because there's an American amongst the members of this Resistance, the only one ever executed by the Nazis: Mildred Fish Harnack. And it's a story told matter-of-factly, without sugarcoating of any kind, and especially without romanticising it to the point of making the Schulze-Boysens' story into a cloying romance novel, like other books have done.

But, unfortunately, Ohler's writing style is going to be a stumbling block hard to get over for a lot of readers. I don't think it's the translation as one might be tempted to blame this on but the author choosing to write like that, or perhaps it's his natural writing style. I couldn't judge myself, this is the first and only book of his I've read. But, being fair to Herr Ohler, it isn't bad writing. He is meticulous, very observant, sharp, doesn't waste time in useless information tidbits, doesn't talk down to the readers, doesn't pretend to interpret feelings and thoughts he'd not have a way to know, doesn't hyper-focus on or overdo the love story part, and above all, doesn't know what purple prose is. But... it's precisely because of this style that the writing comes off as dry, emotionally non-engaging, condensed, and just cold.

In the end, though, it's going to be a matter of personal taste. Sometimes, the storytelling wins over the writing, and that was the case for me.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having been totally fascinated by, “Blitzed,” by Norman Ohler, I was thrilled to get his latest title to read and review. In this book, Ohler is again in Nazi Germany, but this time looking at the relationship between Harro Schulze-Boysen and Libertas Haas-Heye, and the group of bohemian resistors to the Third Reich, who became known as The Red Orchestra.

I was drawn into this story from the very beginning, when Norman Ohler meets up with Hans Coppi, who we learn was born after his mother was arrested. Indeed, she gave birth to him, while imprisoned and, as his parents, along with Harro and Libertas, were not only killed – but the Nazi’s wished to obliterate even the memory of them – his knowledge of his past is incomplete.

This book builds up the characters of those who resisted and fought against the Nazi’s. Harro was involved in journalism from his early days and, as early as 1933, was under surveillance when writing for a left wing magazine. Meanwhile, Libertas is from a wealthier background, whose family supported the regime and, indeed, she was even a Party member. However, Harro was changed by his early arrest, which saw him determined to fight against the system and Libertas was changed by her meeting with Harro, which saw them together, to the end.

Although we know, from the outset, that Harro and Libertas were caught, this is their story, which takes us from 1932 to 1942. It is not only a personal story, but a historical one. Much of this story is set in Berlin, where Libertas initially worked in the publicity department of MGM, while Harro had an office at the Air Ministry. This makes you ask what you would do if you were in a similar position and is a poignant story of love in a time when any resistance to the system meant the risk of losing your life. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

[Jill H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

When we think of resistance movements during WWII, France usually comes to mind since they had several organized groups which sprang up when France fell. But seldom do we hear about partisans in Nazi Germany except for single individuals who did what they could to undermine the government and in most cases paid with their lives for their activities. This book is the history of a group of people in Berlin who drifted together without much leadership or specific plans but with a determined ethos to destroy Nazism.

The group was comprised of people of the arts, journalists, writers, and educators who gathered around a husband and wife named Hasso and Libertus.....a young and determined couple who were amateurs in the world of espionage and believed that an alliance of friends and comrades in an amorphous network could effect change and freedom from the Nazis.

They began by posting stickers in public places which warned the public of the danger of Nazism and sending letters to hundred of regular citizens in an attempt to raise awareness of the horrors being perpetrated by the government. Unfortunately but not surprisingly many people reported this information to the authorities and the hunt was on for the source.

I will not spoil the outcome by saying much more about the success/failure of this resistance effort. The book is rather slow and there is a bit too much padding about hiking, boating, swimming, and other recreational activities that are not pertinent to the major thrust of the story. But it is an interesting look at the efforts of the ill-fated movement of these patriotic and brave individuals who wanted to make a difference.

[Maine Colonial · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of Harro Schulze-Boysen and his wife, Libertas, opponents of the Nazis from the early days of the regime. Harro and Libertas were young intellectuals; he a publisher of a politically-oriented magazine, and she a publicist and film critic. They enjoyed art and music, intellectual debate, and socializing with a wide circle of other bohemians.

Harro’s idealism was destroyed when, almost as soon as the Nazis took power, his magazine was shut down and he and a colleague were arrested. They were beaten unmercifully for days, until his friend died. Through the efforts of his family, Harro was able to gain his release.

Determined to thwart the Nazis’ destruction of his country, Harro played a long game. He kept his head down, fell in love with Libertas, the daughter of a well-connected family and a member of the Nazi party, and married her. She was soon persuaded to Harro’s views, but they continued to appear to be no more than normal German workers by day and inveterate partiers by night. Harro was even able to join the Luftwaffe, after Libertas put in a good word for him with Hermann Goering, a friend of her family.

But Harro and Libertas were the hub of a number of circles of resistance; at the start mostly people who held discussion groups, then distributed anti-Nazi postcards and plastered walls with provocative statements. But when, as a result of his Luftwaffe work, Harro learned that Germany planned to break the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and attack the USSR, he knew he had to step up his activities.

Harro knew that the attack would destroy Germany one way or another. If the attack succeeded, nothing would be able to stop Nazism, and its ruination of Harro’s beloved Germany. He made the momentous decision to work with a Russian to warn the Soviets.

Tragically, Stalin could not be persuaded that Hitler would betray him, and Harro was implicated when one of his compatriots was captured and tortured into giving up a cryptographic key that allowed the Nazis to crack communications identifying Harro. Harro and Libertas were arrested in August, 1942, tortured, and executed in December. Many resisters connected to them met the same fate.

The White Rose resistance group is well-known, as are the military plots against Hitler. The work of other German resistance groups is less well-known and understood.

Author Norman Ohler has done a great deal of archival research to piece together a painstakingly detailed history of Harro and Libertas, and several other members of the circles they worked with. Ohler draws a vivid picture of Harro and Libertas as personalities, of the beliefs and experiences that made them resisters, the evolution of their activities over a decade, and the intricacies of their work with other resisters.

As someone interested in WW2 history and espionage, I found this a fascinating and unusually detailed story of underground activities. It’s hard not to be moved by Harro and Libertas, who knew that they were likely to be caught eventually and what the consequences would be, but chose to continue to resist.

I received a digital advance review copy from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, via Netgalley.

[Ferda Nihat Koksoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seçkin aile çocukları olmalarının konforunu bir kenara iterek, insanlık onuru için, Nazi cehenneminde hayatları pahasına küçük bir direniş vahası oluşturan bir avuç insanın trajedi ile sonlanan gerçek öyküsü.

*

"Bütün çabaları, sorumluluk sahibi özerk eylemi ölçü alan bir maneviyata ulaşmak."

"Nazi diktatörlüğü, Alman halkının ruhunu emip bitirmiştir."

"Hayattan daha çok sevdim seni,
Bunun için ödüyorum, en yüksek bedeli,
Artık senden ayrılmam gerekmeyecek."
(İdam edilmeden önce, kendisinden önce idam edilecek olan eşi Harro'ya Libertas'tan)

Not: Kitapta İletişim Yayınları'nda daha önce görmediğim kadar tashih hatası var.

***

"Aşağıda anlatılacak hadiselerin bazıları ne kadar acayip, dramatik veya olmayacak şeyler gibi görünürse görünsün... Bu kurgusal bir metin değil. Tırnak içine alınmış her şeyin dayandığı bir kaynak var. Mekân Berlin'dir, şimdiye dek nice metamorfozlar geçirmiş bir şehir, fakat orada hep benzer ihtiyaçları olanla yaşamış: iyi yemek yemeyi seven, sinemaya veya dansa giden, aileleri olan, çocuklarını büyüten veya sadece birbirlerini sevmek isteyen insanlar."

"O 1932 sonbaharında, özgürlüğün son aylarında, aslında Alman tarihinin zekâdan yana en bereketli dõnemlerinden birinde, muhtemelen entelektüel açıdan dünyanın en canlı şehri olan Berlin'de, manik günler ve geceler yaşanıyor; birbiri ardına edebî çevreler oluşuyor..."
...balık ve kızartma yiyip, çay ve viski içip suda oynaşarak ve şen şatır kızışarak sūrerken bu tartışmalar, dışarıda (Nazi) SA sakin ve sağlam adımlarla yürüyor ve iktidarı almaya hazırlanıyor."

"Lakin Naziler, sanıldığından daha sıkı ve daha hilebazlar - her şeyden önce de daha gaddar. Nitekim NSDAP Hitler'in şansölye olmasından gayrı yalnızca iki bakanlık alıyor, ancak bunların görev alanları belirleyici önem taşıyor. İçişleri Bakanı Frick ve Prusya İçişleri Bakanlığı'ndan sorumlu Reich valisi sıfatıyla tüm Prusya polisinin âmiri olan Göring, kahverengi gömleklilerin, düzenin güvenlik organlarını kontrol altına almasını sağlıyor. Hükümet her türlü muhalefete karşı etkin mūdahale imkânına kavuşuyor ve Nazilerin antisemitizmi de derhal eyleme geçiriliyor. "Iktidarın ele geçirilmesinin" -ki aslında bu bir iktidarın teslim edilmesidir- hemen birkaç hafta arkasından Yahudi dükkânlarını, ticarethanelerini, hekim muayenehanelerini, avukatlık bürolarını boykot eylemleri başlıyor. Irkçı ideoloji, “memurluğun yeniden tanzimi" adlı yasaya giriveriyor; “ari olmayan" memurları emekliye sevk eden bir yasa bu. Almanya'nın alt tabakasının vaziyeti hâlâ berbat olabilir, fakat birdenbire daha da aşağıya düşmüş çok sayıda insan var şimdi ortada, çünkü onların yurttaşlık hakları tanınmıyor. Muhtemel toplumsal altūst oluşlardan koruyor; antisemitizm harika bir mekanizma, nasyonal sosyalizm mükemmelleştiriyor onu. Buna, farklı düşünen herkesin ağır biçimde ezilmesi eşlik ediyor.
...Propaganda ve baskı, gündelik hayata gitgide daha fazla damgasını vuruyor. Hermann Göring polise ateș etme talimatı denen emri veriyor; siyasî olarak farklı düşünen herkese karşı sakınmadan ateşli silah kullanılabilecek.
...Sür'atle ortaya çıkan manzara şu: bir zamanlar dünyanın en güçlüsü olan Alman işçi hareketi, kesin olarak ezilmiş durumda."
(Hitler başbakan olduktan 3 ay sonra)

"10 Mayıs 1933, kitapların yakıldığı gün.
...kamyonlar dizilmiş bile caddelerde, bütün vatandaşların görebileceği 25.000 kitaplık yükleriyle. ...Opera Meydanı'ndaki büyük kamp ateşi de hazır edilmiş durumda.
...Şimdi eğlenceyi kaçırmak istemeyen 70.000 insan, penceresinin önünden geçiyor. Yakma işini Berlin üniversitelerinin öğrencileri örgütledi, üniversite kütüphanelerini "temizlediler", ama kitabevleri de malî kayıplarına aldırmadan gönüllü katılıyorlar. Kültür yıkımı var orada."

"Almanya'nın gittiği yol: Daha fazla yoksullaşma, özel hayatın araçsallaşması, bütün kişiliğin katılaşması.
...(Bu durum karşısında Harro) İnsanları kazanmayı bilen varlığı, dizginlenemez enerjisi ve tartışma tutkusuyla, dünyayı altüst etmek isteyen yaşama sanatçısından, kendi davasının disiplinli askerine dönüştü."

"İşsiz sayısı 1934'de tekrar artıyor, Hitler'in iktidarı alışından sonraki ilk aylarda gerçekleşen iktisadi büyüme durakladı. Nazi Hükümeti, programının "sosyalist" vaatlerini tutamıyor ve iç çelişkileriyle boğuşuyor.
... Değerli ömründen zaman ayırıp uygun ücret alamadan hizmet etmek, işsizliği ortadan kaldırdığını iddia eden, gerçekteyse insanları berbat ücretler verilen işlere mahkûm eden faşist sistemde bir vida olmak ağrına gidiyor Harro'nun.
...Bir işçi sınıfı yok artık, her şey, varsayılan “milli cemaat" etrafında dönüyor. Bu sağ popülist kavram daima dikkatleri bir şeyden uzaklaştırmak ister: Bireyin emek gücünün sömürülmesinden, yönetici katındakilerle makinenin işlemesini sağlayan ve kırıntılarla nefsi köreltilen küçük vidaların gelirleri arasındaki muazzam farklardan."

(1934 Mayıs) "Hakiki nasyonal sosyalist bir ikinci devrim talebi daha yüksek sesle dillendiriliyor. Nazi sisteminde Harro'nun öngörmüş olduğu çatlak, bu. Bir tarafta iktisadî güçlere bağımlılık hisseden muhafazakâr kanat, diğer tarafta kitleler ve gençler arasında bir temeli olan SA şefi Röhm etrafındaki sosyalist yönelimli radikal kanat arasında sürtüşmeler var" (30 Haziran 1934'de Uzun Bıçaklar Gecesi'nde merkez kadrosuyla birlikte Tegernsee''de öldürtülür ve "Nasyonal Sosyalist Parti'nin -NaZi-sosyalist kanadı kesilip atılarak Nasyonal Kapitalist Parti haline" getirilir).

"Hitler'in Çekoslovakya üzerindeki toprak talebi, sıcak savaşa varma tehdidi arz eden uluslararası bir krize doğru tırmanıyor. Ordu yönetiminde bazı generaller şundan emin: Şu noktada bir askerî çatışma, Almanya'nın çöküşü demek olur. Bir darbe planı hazırlıyorlar, uygulanması an meselesi. Lakin Alman ordusunun generallerinin önünü yabancı bir devlet başkanı kesiyor: Neville Chamberlain. Britanya başbakanı, her ne pahasına olursa olsun barışı korumak için defalarca Almanya'ya geliyor, Ren kıyısına gidiyor, Hitler'in Alpler'deki sığınağı olan Berghof'a gidiyor; en nihayet Çekoslovakya'nın kaderinin, temsilcileri davet edilmeksizin mühürlendiği Münih Konferansı'na gidiyor. Hitler meseleden büyük zafer kazanmış olarak çıkıyor. Alman ordusu çatışmadan Südet bölgesine giriyor. Darbeye hazırlanan generaller yılgınlığa düşüyor, girişimlerini durduruyorlar.
...Harro'ya göre, İngilizlerin Sovyetler Birliği'nin parçalanmasında bir çıkarının olduğu ve bu amaçla Alman Reich'ının Doğu'da yapacaklarına karışılmayacağı aşikar." (Bu fikri daha sonra ,1942 Sonbaharı gibi geç dönemde bile Britanya Dış İşleri Bakanı Robert A. Eden ifade eder)

"Tüm Charlottenburg'a (Berlin) o saatlerde 'Reich Kristal Gecesi (9 Kasım 1938) hüküm sürüyor, Yahudi dükkânları tahrip ediliyor, sahipleri cam kırıklarını süpürerek olmuşu olmamış yapmaya çalışıyorlar ümitsizce, titreyen elleriyle malları raflara geri yerleştiriyorlar. Yoldan geçen biri, "Kurfürstendamm'da dükkânların yüzde sekseni Yahudilerin," diye yanlış havadisler veriyor, kışkırtıyor: “O kadar yayılmasaydılar. Kolay para yapılabilecek her yere postu seriyorlar, kimseye nefes alacak fırsat bırakmıyorlar." Bir konfeksiyon mağazasının önünde böğüren bir grup toplanmış. Gençler, ama aynı zamanda daha yaşlı, durmuş oturmuş insanlar da, kırılmış camekânların arkasından ele geçirebildikleri her şeyi kapıveriyorlar: Paltolar, pantolonlar, ceketler, gömlekler. Yahudi dükkân sahibi kapının önüne çıkmış, gözyaşları tıraşsız yüzünden akıyor. Elinde baştan aşağı tükürūklerle ıslanmış bir frak var, gömleğinin yeniyle temizlemeye çalışıyor, kitle onunla alay ediyor. Bir zamanlar mazbut yurttaşlar olan insanlar kaba, ırkçı küfürler ediyorlar böğürerek – bir zamanlar normal olan insanlar, Hitler'le geçen beş buçuk yıldan sonra böyleler."

Harro, "Polonya'dan sonra Rusya'ya saldıracak," diye devam ediyor. "Şimdi sahiden dünya tarihi yapılıyor, ama bundan böyle onu yalnız başına yapmayacak. Biz hepimiz de birazcık dahil olacağız buna, etrafımızdaki bütün dünya ve... biz! Şimdi her halkın ve her insanın nerede durduğunu kanıtlaması gerek. Dünya tarihinin en büyük savaşı olacak. Ama o (Hitler) sağ çıkmayacak bundan.
...Küçük burjuva Hitler kaçınılmaz bir felakete doğru gidiyor,  ama o kadar kolay olmayacak. Hatta diktatörlük ilk aşamada güçlenecek bile, Polonya'nın hiç şansı yok, çabucak çökecek -Alman savaş makinesi için çocuk oyuncağı. Fransa da Alman ordusu için bir sorun teşkil etmiyor: Savaşma ruhu yok orada. Sonra İngiltere'yi fethetmeye çalışacaklar. Onu başaracakları ise şüpheli. Fakat Avrupa'nın Batılı güçleri Almanya'yı kendi başlarına alt edemezler. Çatışmalara Rusya karışacak. Lakin nihaî zaferi ancak Birleşik Devletler kazanabilir. Batılı güçlerin karşı darbeyi vurmak için hamle etmeleri uzun sürecek, o arada da diktatörlük gitgide çılgınlaşacak, hiç kimse de kurtaramayacak kendini cadı kazanından. (1939)"

"Harro'nun komutanları, Sovyetler Birliği'ne karşı caniyane bir saldırı savaşına girişmekle ülkelerine ihanet ettiler. O ise, iki cepheli bir savaşta mahvolma tehdidi altında bulunan Almanya'yı kurtarmak uğruna hayatını ortaya koyuyor. Namuslu insanları katillere çeviren bu sistemden Almanya'yı kurtarmak uğruna.
Bu durumda "vatana ihanet" (yani Sovyetler Birliği'ne çalıştığı hava komuta merkezinde olan gelişmelerin istihbaratını vermek) bir görev, onun nazarında."

"Doğu Cephesi'nde beklenen başarılar elde edilemedikçe, Nazi rejimi Avrupa'daki Yahudi nüfusa yönelik baskının basıncını artırıyor. 3 Ocak 1942'den itibaren Yahudilerin ülke dışına çıkışına izin verilmiyor, ...17 Ocak'tan itibaren Goebbels'in talimatıyla Yahudilerin büfelerden gazete almaları yasaklanıyor, abone olmaları da yasak. ..."Yahudi sorununun nihaî çözümü" için gerekli düzenlemeler yapılıyor. Gestapo'nun da bağlı olduğu Reich Güvenlik Genel Müdürlüğü şefi Reinhard Heydrich'in idaresi altında, sistematik kitle katliamı, jenosit, devlet görevi haline getiriliyor. Devletin devasa aygıtı içinde bundan haberdar olan ve buna rağmen görevine devam eden her birey katil oluyor böylelikle. Almanya'da yüz binlerce insan bunu yapıyor -buna karşı bir şeyler yapmaya çalışanlar ise birkaç elin parmaklarıyla sayılabilir."

"(Direnişçiler) Yüzelliden fazla sanatçı, yazar, hekim ve akademisyen, işçi ve memur, asker ve subay, öğrenci biraraya gelmiş durumda: Muhafazakârlar, komünistler, sosyal demokratlar, hatta eski Naziler, ama ağırlıkla partisizler, hem Katolikler hem Protestanlar, Yahudi kökenli kadınlar ve erkekler, ateistler, soylular ve yoksullar, lise son sınıf öğrencileri ve dedeler. Şaşırtacak kadar çok sayıda kadın var, neredeyse yarı yarıya. Berlin'deki toplam yedi arkadaşlık ve direniş çevresi, amorf bir örgű oluşturuyorlar, yukarıdandan aşağı belirlenmiş bir örgütlenme ilkesi bulunmayan, kuralları, tüzüğü olmayan, üyeleri, organları veya hiyerarşisi olmayan bir derleme hareket. Otuz yıl sonra, yetmişli yıllarda, Paris'teki postyapısalcılar bu biçim için bir kavram bulacak: Rizom (köksap). Tedricen gelişen bir bilgi toplama örgütü bu, hiyerarşik olmadan genişliyor ve belki de en nihayet Harro'nun daha Weimar döneminde tasavvur ettiği şey: Yoldaş ve arkadaşlardan oluşan bir organik Gegner (Muhalif) cemaati. Bir "azimkâr yaşam sevinci" birliği, romancı Werner Kraus'un deyişiyle."

"Mızmızlanmak veya aptalca fikralar anlatmak yetmez. Her köşe başında sonu gelmeyen kuyruklarda beklemek zorunda kaldığınızda, hep daha yüksek sesle protesto edin! Her şeye rıza göstermeye ve katlanmaya son verin. Sizi korkutmalarına daha fazla izin vermeyin! Umumi korkunun karşısına dikilin! Kendimizi ve ülkemizi ancak Hitler'e karşı mücadele cephesinde yan yana dizilecek cesareti bulursak kurtarabiliriz.
...Öyle anlar vardır ki, akıllı davranmak denen tavır değil, susmak veya temkin değil, girişimde bulunmak, cür'et lâzımdır." (Berlin direnişçilerinin elden dağıttığı bildiri, 1942)

"İzleyen günlerden birinde Gestapo 'Devlet siyaseti bakımından önemli hadiseler' başlıklı bir raporunda, Berlin'in muhtelif semtlerinde "kışkırtıcı komünist yazılar" dağıtılmış olduğunu bildiriyor. Soruşturmalar yine sonuç vermiyor; Prinz Albrecht Straße'deki gizli polis yine karanlıkta yolunu bulamıyor. Harro'yla arkadaşları için muazzam bir başarı oldu bu eylem. Kamusal alanda yazılama yapma cesaretini gösterdiler, mesajlarını Reich başkentinin topografisine aktardılar. Belediye çöp toplama ve temizlik işleri dairesinin işçi bölüklerinin Nazi Cenneti'nin (yapıştırılan puldaki isim) son parçalarını kazımasından sonra bile, havaları yerinde. Ölümün gözünün içine baktılar, dillerinde tadını aldılar – ve hayattalar. Thiel'in evindeki güvensizlikten çıkıp zafere ulaştılar, tiranlığa karşı yapacaklarını en güzel şekilde, yani kucaklaşarak, öpüşerek gerçekleştirdiler. Suskunluğu deldiler, nasyonal sosyalist Berlin'in tekdüze kahverengisini bulandırdılar ve başlarına bir şey gelmedi. Hiçbiri yakalanmadı veya tutuklanmadı, belki de eylemleriyle bu şehirde yaşayan bir-iki insana cesaret de verdiler."

(Başka eylemlerden birinden sonra yakalanan direnişçilerin Gestapo sorgusu)
"Sozümona gayrisiyasi, kişisel buluşmalardan bahseden, kendi mezarını kazmaya başlamış oluyor bile, zira Gestapo'nun paranoid gerçekliğinde hiçbir şey alâkasız olamaz, her şey büyük bir komplonun parçasıdır. Her şey düşmana hizmet eder, en vahim durumda da -bu durumda olduğu gibi- Bolşevizme.
En ufacık bir faaliyet bile, Alman Reich'ını mahvetmeye ve onu Avrupa kültürünü yok etmek isteyen kızıl sürülere yem etmeye dönük büyük bir teşebbūsùn mekanizmasında bir çark olarak yorumlanır.
Gestapo, Harro ve Libertas ile ilişkisi olmuş her bireyin davranış tarzını ahlâken yozlaşmış olarak tasvir etmek için elinden geleni ardına koymuyor."

"Sevgili anne, baba! Hücremden verebileceğim fazla yeni haber yok. Insan kolayca düşüncelerinin ve öncelikle de hatıralarının peşine takılıp gidiyor, bunu yaparken de dışarıdayken önemli görünen birçok şeyin sararıp solduğunu ve gayet doğal kabul edilen başka şeylerin odağa yerleştiğini görmek, emsalsiz bir tecrübe." (Harro'nun ailesine son mektubu, 10.12.1942)

***

Hitler'in istek ve  onayıyla, her türlü işkence ve hile kullanılarak, başta Harro ve Libertas olmak üzere direnişin önde gelen isimleri ölüm cezalarına çarptırılır, mahkeme kayıtları yok edilir, öldürülenlerin küllerinin yeri saklanır.

İşkence edenler ve düzmece mahkemeleri tezgahlayan Nazi Gestapo ajanları savaş sonrası Alman, İngiliz ve Amerikan devletlerince korunur ve bazıları bu üç ülke istihbaratlarında çalıştırılır.

[Şafak Akyazıcı · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Aşkta da tarih yazımında da hep nafile yere mükemmel kişiliği ararız. Hiçbir günahı olmayan kursal şahsiyeti; bir meydan okumayla karşı karşıya gelen, arınmadan ve dönüşümden geçen, sonra tam zamanında herkesin esenliği için Kötü’ye karşı şerefli bir mücadeleye giren, cemaat uğruna hayatını tehlikeye atan ideal kahramanı. Lakin insanın gerçekliği genellikle daha kırık döküktür.”
Syf. 356
💙

[Efrahim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Weimar'ın o bohem ve renkli dünyasından gelen bir avuç sanatçının ve entelektüelin, Nazi gaddarlığına karşı gösterdiği cüretkar mücadelenin muazzam öykülemesi. Birçoğu, rejime kolaylıkla uyum gösterip bu süreci atlatabilecekken direnmeyi seçmiş insanlar. Ne yaptıklarının tamamiyle bilincindeler ve kararlılıklarından asla ödün vermiyorlar.
Ek olarak, belki biraz spekülatif olacak ancak kitabın kapağının kırmızı siyah olmasında çevirmeni Tanıl Bora'nın bizzat payı olabileceğine dair bir sezgiye sahibim. Zira kendisi sıkı bir Gençlerbirlikli olarak, kitabın yarattığı duyguyla birlikte "Döğüşenler de Var Bu Havada" isimli Gençlerbirliği belgeselinin isminden de esinlenip, kapağa böyle bir dokunuş yapmış olabilir. Olmaz ya olur da bir gün bu satırları okursa, bu sezgime dair ne diyeceğini merakla bekliyorum. Hocaya selamlar.

[Marta Fernández · Rating 4 out of 5]

No sé si habéis leído algún libro del sello Crítica de Planeta, suelen ser publicaciones tipo ensayo o biografías, este es el segundo que leo y la verdad es que me está gustando mucho la línea editorial. De momento solo he probado con historias del nazismo, mi objetivo es hacerme con «Los Romanov» para cambiar de tercio.

Diría que esta historia tiene tintes novelescos, es una mezcla de biografía, ensayo y novela, así todo junto. Engancha desde el principio, aunque ya en el primer capítulo hay una situación muy dura. Así que si no sois mucho de leer sobre el nazismo, máxime cuando hay escenas crueles...quizás no sea este vuestro libro, aunque he de admitir que no es de los más explícitos y tampoco hay muchas. La más impactante es la del comienzo porque a partir de ahí hay un antes y un después para Harro.

Tras esa escena, volvemos hacia atrás para conocer a Harro y cómo llegó a ese momento. Se nos presenta como un joven curioso, le apasiona la política, tiene la vida encarrilada con su trabajo como editor en una revista y su novia. Tras ese fatídico día en el trabajo, todo se desmorona, la realidad le cae como una losa y acaba rompiendo con su antigua vida. Solo piensa en aportar su granito de arena en la causa y acabar cuanto antes con el régimen.

Al poco, hace una nueva vida junto a Libertas, publicista y relacionada con el partido nazi, al poco tiempo acaban casados (ella con veintidós). Poco a poco van floreciendo juntos, en un ambiente lleno de maquinaciones y castigos. Al principio parecía que Harro había perdido el interés por su lucha, puesto que trabajaba como un alemán civil y se codeaba en círculos importantes de la mano de su mujer, pero poco a poco Libertad y Harro van compartiendo sus ideas y buscando alternativas para hacer frente al régimen. Muchos de sus amigos o conocidos acaban siendo perseguidos por la Gestapo por crímenes que solo entiende la jerga alemana del régimen.

El libro está compuesto por cuatro partes: «Adversarios», «Carrera y matrimonio», «Amor y resistencia» y «Adversarios del sistema».

La primera parte es introductoria: cómo era la vida de Harro antes del suceso en el trabajo y cómo cambió su mentalidad. Las ideas que tenía en el subconsciente de repente erupcionaron con fuerza, sintiendo la necesidad de luchar contra el régimen.

En la segunda, se centra en la relación entre Harro y Libertas, su vida en común y cómo Harro le va mostrando sus ideas. También habla de los problemas maritales, relaciones con la familia, etc.

A partir de la tercera ya entramos más en materia, Harro y Libertas tendrán que estar separados, pero siempre mantienen la llama, el cariño que se tienen es patente, lo podemos ver con los fragmentos de las cartas que se enviaban, El matrimonio se adentró en una de las tramas de espionaje más difíciles, adentrándose en el mundo soviético, intentando enfrentar a Hitler y a Stalin.

El autor intenta recrear una parte de la vida de Harro y Libertas, detallando minuciosamente toda la trama, desde que se adentran en el mundo del espionaje. Aportando cartas, postales, fotografías, telegramas... cada parte tiene más de cien anotaciones con referencias, material real.

Es una historia dura, basada en hechos reales, no está edulcorada y es un choque de realidad que creo que nos viene bien. No me imagino lo que fue vivir en esa época (ni lo quiero imaginar). Pone los pelos de punta.

Lo recomiendo sin lugar a dudas.

[Matt Carmichael · Rating 4 out of 5]

A courageous couple that tried to resist the evil of the Nazis, ...a story that needed to be told if only to make sure their horrific sacrifice was not lost to History as Hitler intended. I kept asking my wife if we would be so bold if Trump or some other genuis-idiot managed steal power via tyranical means: turns out, not an easy question.

[_erlesenes · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Die letzten Argumente / sind Strang und Fallbeil nicht, / und uns’re heut’gen Richter sind / noch nicht das Weltgericht“
Im Dezember 1942 lässt die Gestapo in einem Gebäude am Plötzensee acht verschiebbare Fleischerhaken in einer Schiene unter der Decke anbringen, um an diesen zwei Tage vor Weihnachten das Ehepaar Harro und Libertas Schulze-Boysen, deren Freund Arvid Hanack und weitere Mitglieder der sogenannten „Roten Kapelle“ einer Widerstandsgruppe gegen die Nazis hinzurichten. Der Tod an den Fleischerhaken ist ein besonders grauenvoller und geschieht, da die einzelnen Haken durch schwarze Folien voneinander getrennt sind, auch noch in Isolation von den Freunden und Mitstreiter*innen. „Jeder stirbt für sich allein“, wie schon Hans Fallada schrieb. Mehr als 50 weitere Mitglieder der losen Gruppe werden ihnen an diesem Ort in den Tod folgen und viele weitere inhaftiert und in Konzentrationslager verbracht.
Scholl, Elser, Stauffenberg und Bonhoeffer sind gemeinhin die Namen, die man mit dem innerdeutschen Widerstand gegen das nationalsozialistische Regime verbindet und die bis in die Gegenwart Stoff für Bücher, Filme und auch Kontroversen liefern. Dass die „Rote Kapelle“ und mit ihr die Schulze-Boysens, die im Zentrum von Norman Ohlers großartigem erzählendem Sachbuch stehen, zumeist den wenigsten Menschen ein Begriff ist, liegt an unterschiedlichen Gründen: Einerseits mag die Geschichte von einer Gruppe mit über 100 Mitgliedern, die sich nicht einmal alle kennen geschweige denn eine einheitliche Weltsicht teilen, sicher nicht so catchy sein, wie die des geläuterten Geschwisterpaares, das durch ein tragisches Missgeschick entlarvt wird, aber was sicher noch weitaus mehr dazu beigetragen hat, dass diese Gruppe in der gegenwärtigen Erinnerung eine verschwindend kleine Rolle spielt, ist in Teilen Missverständnis und in Teilen nationalsozialistische Gründlichkeit. So sah das Urteil über Harro und Libertas vor, dass nicht nur deren Leben beendet werden solle, sondern auch jegliche Erinnerung an diese Leben zu tilgen sei. Zudem stuften die Nationalsozialisten die „Rote Kapelle“ als eine kommunistisch motivierte Gruppe ein und diese Erzählung wurde in der Erinnerungskultur der BRD aufgenommen und machte die Gruppe dadurch wenig reizvoll für offizielle Narrative.
Natürlich ist es nicht notwendig zu begründen, warum es jedes Opfer der Nazis verdient hat, dass man sich seiner erinnert, aber es stellt sich die Frage, was sich denn neben all den prominenten Figuren des Widerstands nun lernen lasse aus der Beschäftigung mit der „Roten Kapelle“ und den Schulze-Boysens.
Norman Ohler erweckt in seinem Buch zwei höchst uneindeutige Personen zum Leben. Harro stammt aus einer Familie mit langer Militärtradition, er liebt Deutschland, lebt das Leben eines Boheme, ist Luftwaffenoffizier und sieht die Zukunft des Landes weder als eine nationalsozialistische noch als eine kommunistische. Libertas, Nachfahrin eines engen (und in Verruf geratenen) Freundes des ehemaligen Kaisers, privilegierte Nutznießerin des Regimes und unpolitisch-naive Romantikerin verliebt sich in ihn und gemeinsam werden sie zum verbindenden Element verschiedenere kritischer Freundeskreise, die Juden zur Flucht verhelfen, Flugblattaktionen gegen die Nazis durchführen, Beweismaterial für die Gräueltaten der Nazis im Osten sammeln und Funksprüche mit militärischen Informationen an die Sowjetunion senden.
Ohler versteht es, sich tief hineinzuversetzen in die Gefühle und Gedanken dieses Freundeskreises, der nach heutigen, woken Maßstäben wohl eher wie ein Fremder wirkt, denn auch wenn die Gestapo dies glaubte, einte die „Rote Kapelle“ keine politische Agenda oder gesellschaftliche Schicht, sondern eine humanistische Grundeinstellung, die Liebe zur Freiheit, zur Kultur und zum Leben.
„Harro & Libertas“ setzt den Schulze-Boysens und ihren Mitstreiter*innen und Freunden ein Denkmal, dass mich hat mitfiebern lassen, mir in seiner großen Tragik die Tränen in die Augen getrieben hat (etwa wenn von dem Abschied zwischen Harro und seinem Vater erzählt wird oder Ohler Libertas‘ Charakter abschließend bewertet) und mich in großer Bewunderung zurückgelassen hat für diese Menschen, die alles opferten für eine gute Sache und in vollem Bewusstsein dieser Gefahr.

[Marga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gran llibre! Un homenatge a tota la gente que va participar de la resistencia dins de la Alemania nazi, a la propia Alemania. Persones de tot tipus, creences, condicions socials van arrisca la selva vida. Norma Ohler narra de manera clara, amena i molt ven documentada, el rizoma de la resistencia, les seves activitats. Important la figura de Harro Schulze-Boysen, admirable la seva manera de enfocar la feina a fer dins de la resistencia i mes enllá….Malauradament, al final de la segona guerra mundial, la historia de la resistencia va ser manipulada pel seu propi interés dins de la guerra Freda, tant per part del bloc sovietic com l’occidental, ho posa en evidencia en el llibre Norman Ohler. Molt riguros fent referencia a la font d’informació en que es basa cada historia, activitat o anécdota.

[Valerity (Val) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well written book that I just read and enjoyed adding to my WWII reading. Focuses on German resistance couple Harro & Libertas Schulze-Boysen. throughout their experiences. I like books like this that are done from diaries and letters of the people involved. Good reading. My thanks to the publisher for the review copy.

[Phoebe E · Rating 5 out of 5]

**I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**

"Bullet Hangman's rope and guillotine
Won't have the final say.
The world will be our judges,
Not the judges of today."
- Harro Schulze-Boysen

Norman Ohler's book, The Bohemians, follows Harro and Libertas Schulze-Boysen and their network of resisters fighting against the Nazi regime in Germany. At its heart, it is a book about hope and resistance and how while so many Germans kept their heads down during the war and did their jobs quietly, there were many others who saw it as their moral duty to stand up for what was right in the name of the country they loved. This book tells a riveting tale and Norman Ohler does a fantastic job of closely following the various people involved in a way that feels intimate to their thoughts and actions without veering into too much historical speculation. He is a dutiful recorder of this history and I found his writing to be engaging and immensely thought-provoking in the way he laid out this narrative. This book also has a lot to add to the canon of World War 2 books as well, because it tells a true story that almost no one has ever heard before. It was a goal of the Nazis that the efforts of Harro, Libertas and their friends and acquaintances never be heard, that their secrets would die with them and that their memories would be erased from the world. Yet in this book, Ohler pulls them out of the dark corners of history and makes sure the world remembers these young Germans and the sacrifices they made for their country. He highlights their bravery, their humanity and their pain, and the result is a story that I hope all may come to know. I am so glad to have read this book and certainly look forward to recommending it to everyone I know.

[Genevieve Bherer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un peu long, mais tout de même intéressant

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in Germany in 1933 and the following decade, this book examines the lives of a group of people who sought to act against the rise of Nazism. The story centres around Harro and Libertas Schulze-Boysen, both privileged in their own way through their families and personal histories. Although I've referred to it as a story, the author has undertaken his own and used meticulous research undertaken by others in order to piece together and chart the lives of Libertas and Harro from the thirties through to their deaths in December 1942
As an example of the insidiousness of totalitarianism, this book could be viewed as a thesis on how and why such policies should never be allowed to exist. As an expose of secret organisation it makes, at times, very difficult reading. The miss-commnication, the apparent missed opportunities and, to a certain extent in my view, the scant internal organisation of the group would suggest to me that failure was inevitable. However, the fact that Harro and Libertas and their helpers managed to survive and try to subvert for as long as they did is little short of a miracle when you consider the ever increasing grip of Nazism.
Based on witness accounts, diaries and a small amount of archive material, the author has had to make some assumptions. It's the readers choice to agree with those assumptions or not and I found one two a little questionable. But I'm not an historian and I'm sure others who are far more knowledgeable about this period of history may take a different view.
Despite the sadness embodied in this book, I found it a fascinating read. The narrative voice flowed well and the story is one that needed to be made public. A very telling and interesting look at a very troubled period of Europe's history.

[Martin Bensch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riktigt bra och välskriven. Jag gissar att de flesta av oss känner till motståndsgruppen Vita Rosen, med syskonen Scholl som främsta företrädare. Lika många kan nog inte säga att gruppen som Gestapo namngav som Röda Kapellet är ett namn som klingar lika välbekant.

Detta är en fascinerande historia på så många plan. Dels är Harro och Libertas, det äkta par som är förgrundsfigurer i guppen, så uppriktigt intressanta. Han jobbade inom Görings Flygvapenministerium, hon inom den tyska filmen under Goebbels. Utåt sett var de en del av systemet, inåt sett var de fritänkare och de bröt mot så mycket av det Tredje Riket förväntade sig av exempelvis kvinnor. Det är oavbrutet intressant läsning som med kraft visar att nazisterna inte lyckades utplåna minnet - för det ville de verkligen - av Harro och Libertas som människor.

Har man minsta intresse av att läsa om Andra Världskriget så ska man kolla in den här boken.

[Renee DeMoranville · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a hard book to read through but it is one that you need to read. Most of us are taught about the Nazi’s regime but we are not always given such detailed events. But in this book we get historical accounts of events that stay with you and honestly made me sick. I had to take small breaks between reading sessions. I’m glad I got a chance to read this and to know their stories.

[Aljoscha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unglaublich gutes Buch

[Mike Robbins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Norman Ohler is a versatile writer. A German journalist who spent time on the West Bank as a writer-in-residence, he has also been a novelist and once collaborated on a screenplay with Wim Wenders. In more recent years Ohler, now 51, has put his hand to writing history.

In 2015 he published an account of the role of drugs in Nazi Germany. The book, published in English the following year as Blitzed: Drugs in Nazi Germany, suggested that drugs such as coke, methamphetamine and crystal meth played a huge role in the war; workers and soldiers were encouraged to take them, and much of the German high command was basically off its tits. The book was a huge success and established Ohler in the anglophone world. It was vivid – some would say lurid; it mixed a factual style with a much more popular approach, and attracted some criticism. But it also drew admiration from some serious historians – not least Antony Beevor and Sir Ian Kershaw, both authorities on the era.

Now Ohler has turned his attention to the German resistance with a biography of Harro and Libertas Schulze-Boysen, the glamorous couple at the heart of the Rote Kapelle – the Red Orchestra. The book’s English title is The Bohemians – The Lovers Who Led Germany’s Resistance Against the Nazis. It is a big claim. Do the Schulze-Boysens deserve it?

Harro was from a distinguished naval family (his great-uncle, who he knew as a child, was Grand-Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz). But he realised the Nazis might destroy Germany and opposed them not because he wasn’t patriotic, but because he was. He was involved in anti-Nazi plots from about 1935, soon after he joined the Air Ministry. In 1941, at huge risk, he and his associate Arvid Harnack, an economist at the Reich Ministry of Economics, managed to warn the USSR about Operation Barbarossa. Harnack supplied the Nazi plan for occupied Russia; Harro gave attack details and the date, June 22. Their detailed warning was brought to Stalin by Moscow Centre on June 17 1941. Stalin refused to believe it. “Send your ‘source’ back to his whore of a mother,” he scrawled on it.

Harro’s young wife Libertas, an aristocrat from one of Germany’s poshest families, worked in the film industry and managed to get a job as a censor in the documentary film department of the Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda. Here she collected photographs, letters and other evidence of atrocities from the occupied territories, and compiled them into an archive that she intended to hand to the Allies after the war. She and Harro also used it as material for underground flyers. They also built up a large circle of fellow-resisters, many from Berlin’s underground bohemia, and organized contacts and assistance for French and other forced labourers.

It did not end well. In 1942 both were arrested for anti-Nazi activities and, after a perfunctory trial, executed in Berlin’s Plötzensee prison on December 22. They were aged just 33 and 29. Nine others, mostly friends or associates of theirs, also died, including the economist Arvid Harnack, sculptor Kurt Schumacher and his artist wife Elisabeth. Further executions, including Harnack’s American wife Mildred, followed in the new year.

Norman Ohler is a good writer. This is a gripping book and an easy read. Ohler manages to have an unusually light touch while still respecting his subjects. He cares about them, has tried to understand them, and brings them alive; you become invested in the Schulze-Boysens and their story, even though you know what their fate will be. Moreover, although he centres on the Schulze-Boysens, he pays plenty of attention to the many who worked with them; in fact there are almost too many characters. This is not the first book about this circle of resisters; Anne Nelson’s Red Orchestra: The Story of the Berlin Underground and the Circle of Friends Who Resisted Hitler, in particular, is packed with information. Still, Bohemians is likely to introduce the German resistance to a popular readership who have hitherto heard little of it.

But there are also some odd things about Bohemians. For one thing, Ohler’s use of the present tense throughout the book grates somewhat (though this may have been a translator’s decision). His history-as-novel style may gate with some readers as well. More seriously, he is a little uncritical of the Schulze-Boysens. Their courage is not in doubt – Harro’s, especially; and they did make the supreme sacrifice. But they were amateurs. Not all recent books on the German resistance have been so kind about them. In particular, a recent biography of economist Arvid Harnack’s American wife, Mildred, has been highly critical. The book, All the Frequent Troubles of Our Days: The True Story of the American Woman at the Heart of the German Resistance to Hitler, is by an American writer and academic, Rebecca Donner. Donner is related to Arvid Harnack’s American wife Mildred, who was also very active and who played a crucial role in passing Arvid’s economic intelligence to the United States. She was also executed, some months after her husband. Donner presents the Schulze-Boysens as an absolute menace who put the more careful Harnacks in danger.

One wonders if Donner’s quarrel may be at least in part with Ohler, rather than the Schulze-Boysens. (Ohler’s book was published a year before hers, and she makes a slighting comment on it in her references, suggesting that it included factual errors; but she says little about what they were.) However, she may be at least part-right. For instance she states that Harro had tried to work with Arvid Harnack as early as 1937 but Harnack had sensed that he was too fanatical and potentially careless, and decided to avoid him, changing his mind only after the war had begun. From other sources, this is quite true; according to Nelson’s book, Harnack had been introduced to Harro well before the war (she says in 1935) but he was unsure of his judgment, and thought it safer not to meet him again. They did not work together until 1939.

It’s true that, as a spy, Harro’s tradecraft was awful. He got away with it for years by hiding in plain sight at the heart of the German establishment. However, he let his circle get too big for safety – his, and theirs. This was not simply carelessness; Ohler explains that Harro wanted the resistance circles to expand constantly until opposition to Hitler reached a critical mass. So the Schulze-Boysens encouraged recruits. Ohler states that about 150 people were eventually involved, although it is not clear how he reaches that figure; there were many different interlocking circles, some of which originally had nothing to do with the Schulze-Boysens, and the real number could have been much larger. Harro seems to have had an honest conviction that the circle would widen until it became invincible. But the regime was never going to let that happen. He also had an unwise affair that may have helped lead to his arrest, and that of his friends (Ohler does cover this).

But maybe the Schulze-Boysens’ flaws aren’t what matters today; it’s the fact that they felt they had to do something, and did. They were not alone. Although only a minority of Germans took part in the resistance, a surprising number were involved in some way. Ohler doesn’t discuss this much, but in her own book Anne Nelson quotes the writer Eric Boehm, who fled the country as a teenager (he was Jewish) and returned in 1945 as a US intelligence officer; he went on to document some of the resisters and estimated that, of 3 million Germans imprisoned between 1933-45, about 800,000 were arrested for overtly anti-Nazi activities and that less than half, about 300,000, survived the war. Other sources record that even before the July 1944 plot, nearly 10,000 German soldiers had been shot for refusing to follow orders.

It is hard to verify all this, and it remains very political. It suited the Allies to play down the story of the German resistance after the war, and I believe we have all done so since, not least because the vision of Germans as monolithically evil reinforces our own self-image. “It couldn’t happen here,” we have smugly said. It’s certainly true that Germans of that generation had some terrible questions to answer. But Germans were not a separate species, and nothing they did absolves the rest of us from anything we may have done. If Norman Ohler’s vivid portrait of the Schulze-Boysens reminds us of that common humanity, he has done us all a favour.

[Emma Rivet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ce livre, écrit dans un style narratif mais extrêmement documenté, participe à rendre la mémoire de la vie d'un couple, Harro et Libertas, et de leur vaste constellation de connaissances, qui ont lutté depuis l'intérieur contre le régime nazi, et qui ont perdu.
Leurs jugements de condamnation à mort prévoyait l'effacement de leur mémoire, et leurs corps, ainsi que tous les dossiers qui les concernaient, ont été détruits.
Par un travail fastidieux de recherche, l'auteur tente de retracer leurs parcours et leurs actions, qui n'ont pas changé le cours de l'histoire mais témoignent d'un courage inouï et d'une clairvoyance sur l'Histoire qui était en train de s'écrire. Lire leur vie se ressent comme un hommage.

[Felipe · Rating 4 out of 5]

El libro me ha ido enganchando casi desde el principio.
Para mi era un tema menos conocido , los intentos opositores desde el interior.
De admirar el esfuerzo recopilatorio, a veces excesivo y creo qué peca de confiado y de cierta parcialidad con las fuentes, aunque asumo qué no es facil discernir la realidad de lo qué paso y desde luego tender al heroismo de Los protagonistas qué ya tienen de por si.
Estilo curioso que entremezcla datos con novela. Muy ameno .
Terminas el libro casi sin darte cuenta y con ganas de aprender y profundizar mas.
En definitiva muy recomendable.

[Katrín · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully written historical account of the Resistance Against the Nazis.
You need to remind yourself that these events truly did happen, although it sounds -and we wish it was - fiction.
Norman Ohler's account is the definition of "Tell, don't show".

[Tina · Rating 3 out of 5]

The hard and sad truth of the past days...

A bit too demanding content for a casual reader like me.

[John Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tough, but interesting book about the resistance movement within Germany, highlighting the challenges Germans had to a horrific Nazi government by people who were brave but also flawed. Resisting oppressive, violent government with considerable power was often very difficult with questions on what might work and what made no difference. The unique group of resistance fighters started by posting stickers opposing Nazi’s around Berlin. amateur and brave, they were thrilled even though the government removed them as quickly as they went up. This story is not well written but powerful all the same. Having read many books on the resistance movement in France and elsewhere, this group was especially brave in that they fought against an unbearable government in Nazi’s capital. They were brave until the very end, leaving behind a lesson for all of us to take, especially during these tough days of our own country.

Like many other books that share how Hitler took control and so many Germans – and others – were brought into bizarre actions, the author speaks about racist philosophy moved to the elimination of civil liberties from most Germans. Laws continued to change to allow violence against the people of their country, including a “shooting decree,” allowing state police to use indiscriminatory use of guns against those who were politically disagreeing. When thousands of Germans gathered in freezing weather on February 19, 1933, against Hitler when he was chancellor for just three weeks, members of the SA shoot into the air to frighten those who dare to oppose Hitler. Systematic eavesdropping was developed against their own citizens. Lists of enemies of the state were drawn up. Hitler soon muted the power of the parliament with the Enabling Act. The Treachery Act passes in 1934, allowing the regime to imprison anyone who says derogatory statements against the dictatorship, even in private. Arrests started shortly afterwards. By 1935, the brown-shirts attack anyone on the street they take for being Jewish. Only a short pause is established when Germany continues to restore their imagine when hosting the Olympics.

Throughout these changes, German people took actions to show that the support might not have been widespread. For example, the earlier boycotts of Jewish businesses, banks and medical facilities was lifted when citizens continued their usual behavior and interacted with Jews. It takes the creation of the secret police agency and pure violence against fellow Germans that shift the power. It was interesting to read that Carl Friedrich Goerdeler, the conservative mayor of Leipzig, ordered his city police to stand by Jews to resist the Nazi attacks; most other elected officials didn’t have that courage. It was also thought-provoking, although distressing that many American companies, including MGM, went with Hitler’s direction and fired most of their Jewish employees and censored their films to stay within the German’s new directives. The head of MGM’s German studio, Frits Strengholt, follows the orders of the propaganda ministry and divorces his wife; she ends up in a concentration camp.

The young couple, Harro and Libertas Schulze-Boysen, were anything but perfect but had stellar believes and were driven to try to fight an unjust government. Their most consequential resistance activity was sending meaningful information to the Russians who were then fighting the Nazis; sadly, the Russians did not believe the information and didn’t use it. Later the couple risked their lives to issue documents that attempted to trigger more resistance in the capital of the German run-away government. It didn’t have the results they were hoping but didn’t stop them from their continued fight.

Most powerful in this interesting book was both the oppressive and violent move of the Nazi government and the reaction from these brave resistance fighters. When arresting the couple and their loose network, the Gestapo warns those witnessing the arrests that they could not say share anything they saw with anyone else, or the government’s anger would turn their way. The agents warn the one woman they arrest that she is to tell neighbors that she had a breakdown and was being taken to a good sanatorium; they require her to leave her four-year-old son at home with a neighbor. Those accused have to wait for hours or days in dark cellars, handcuffed and unrepresented. They know that they will be interrogated about all their relationships, be subjected to torture and indiscriminatory violence. Reading about the “orgy of beatings” that last days was particularly difficult; the author speaks about the Krummschliessen (bent buckle) that is a special set of manacles twisting a person’s arms around in a way that is especially excruciating. Nazis use surprise and terror against those who dare to resist at any level in a riveting way. The sign outside the old courtroom says everything: “THE PUBLIC IS BARRED.”

While being treated in this atrocious manner, those accused are brave – to the end. The gang of resisters are not permitted to speak to one another as they are collectively brought to the bogus trial. Harro writes a poem in his final hours ending by writing: “The world will be our judges, Not the judges of today.” He is given an opportunity to visit with a priest and write a letter to his parents right before one of the executioner’s assistants come into his cell to check to see if he has any gold teeth.

To assure every aspect of the execution is especially cruel, they set it up, so each man dies alone, unable to look to their fellow brave friends. Libertas’ note to her long-time and troubled partner, Harro, was breathtaking. They know that their son is not even a month old and will survive without a parent alive. She writes: “You are more dear to me than life I pay the highest price I have nothing else to give, you see – And now you have the proof. We never need part again, How beautiful this is, and grand! Let us proudly call it freedom – The spirit will live on.”

The author points out that this is the worse times to resist since the Americans are winning and the Russians successfully fought back and are now leading west. The Gestapos use extreme violence, hoping that those who resisted just break for a moment. The author masterfully points out the difference between “betrayal [against their fellow travelers] and exhaustion.” The Nazis require those who were sentenced to execution to sleep naked and shackled to assure those accused do not escape Hitler’s final retribution against those who dare to resist. Hitler has no mercy, according to the author, because he doesn’t want anyone to survive to tell the true story. Hitler brings back hanging as a way to execute for the first time in 200 years.

Even after the couple and friends are put to death in the most violent manner, the Nazis continue to show their inhumane treatment by refusing to allow their parents to have their remains. They require the family to sign a document pledging to remain silent. Roeder tells them, “The name of your son is to be expunged from human memory for all time. This is an additional punishment.”

The author explains how the poem and letters are saved in amazing ways until after the Nazis fell and then recovered. He also explains that Harro’s parents live until the 1970’s, reminding the reader how close this history is to our own lives – and today. It was not until 2006 was the verdict of the secret trials nullified.

The translation of this book vastly decreased the pleasure of reading this story. Yet, much of this book reads like fiction – the story of his mom using connections to get her son out of prison for speaking up, how the couple expanded their friendships to develop their group of those willing to resist, their work to gain positions that can be used to throw rocks into the Nazi gears, and how pictures, writing, and transmitters had to be hidden for fear of their lives. All this occurs while much of day-to-day life continues to move forward, including the world’s Olympics and later the German soccer championship finals. The author makes a powerful statement: “Hitler has managed to turn countless ordinarily honest and law-abiding people into accomplices in his crimes!” It is a lesson we must remember, especially today.

While many resistance books speak to the impact those who risked their lives realized, perhaps this book was even more powerful since this gang’s bravery did not have much effect. It was touching to read about the actions that had taken place in the neighborhood we stayed when in Berlin, Berlin’s Mitte neighborhood.

[Kathrin (la_chienne) · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Harro & Libertas. Eine Geschichte von Liebe und Widerstand" ist ein erzählendes Sachbuch von Norman Ohler, dem es hier gelingt einen mit Quellen fundierten und gleichzeitig unterhaltsamen Roman zu schreiben.
Mit dem Hinweis "So merkwürdig, dramatisch oder unwahrscheinlich einige der hier folgenden Ereignisse auch klingen: Es handelt sich n i c h t um einen fiktionalen Text." (S. 19) leitet er in die Geschichte rund um das Netzwerk – hauptsächlich aus der Berliner Bohème – um Harro Schulze-Boysen und seine Ehefrau Libertas ein.
"Es ist eine Geschichte junger Leute, die vor allem eines wollten: l e b e n – und sich lieben, selbst wenn die Zeit, in der sie in ihrer Blüte standen, auf Tod gepolt war“ (S. 16)
Eine Besonderheit dieser rund 150 Köpfe zählenden Widerstandsgruppe (von der Gestapo unter dem Namen »Rote Kapelle« geführt) ist ihr mit 40 Prozent hoher Anteil an Frauen. Was Herkunft, Beruf, Religion, Alter und politische Ausrichtung anbelangt, waren die Mitstreiter durchaus sehr verschieden, und kannten einander nicht unbedingt. Aber ihr einendes Ziel war, das Regime zu unterwandern, um den Krieg schnell zu beenden und eine Verständigung mit der Sowjetunion einzuleiten. So verteilten sie z. B. Flugblätter, klebten Zettel an Hauswände, halfen jüdischen Mitbürgern und versorgten die Alliierten mit kriegswichtigen Informationen.
„Eigenarten anerkennen, Verschiedenheiten begrüßen: D a s  bestimmt Harros politische Ziele.“ (S. 64)

Doch ihren Mut Widerstand zu leisten bezahlten viele von ihnen mit dem Leben. Ihnen wurde Landesverrat vorgeworfen. Dafür dass außerdem die Erinnerung an sie ausgelöscht wurde, sorgte Hitler mit der Verfügung, alle Akten dazu vernichten zu lassen, persönlich. "Harro und Libertas" ist ein wichtiges und aktuelles Buch, aus dem man erschreckenderweise einige Parallelen in die Gegenwart ziehen kann.
Außerdem hat es mich dazu angeregt, mich noch mehr über die "Rote Kapelle" und den Widerstand zu informieren. "Jetzt muss er kämpfen, alles andere nützt nichts mehr. Er hat es mit A r g u m e n t e n versucht, mit Worten, das war zu wenig gewesen, eine ungenügende Technik und vollkommen unbefriedigende Vorgehensweise, wenn der Gegner der Nationalsozialismus ist." (S. 26)

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Norman Ohler's book focuses on the lives of the couple Harro and Libertas Schulze-Bowen as a means to tell the larger story of the resistance of the titular Bohemians in war-time Berlin who engineered their activities within and around the Nazi party. Harro and Libertas are young people from well-to-do families (Libertas, more so, with many connections to ruling SS officers of the time) who, while carving out a life together, become deeply entrenched with a vaguely connected group of young artists, writers, musicians, activists, etc.., eventually referred to as The Red Orchestra, who work to undermine the fascist control of the Nazi party over the citizens of Germany. Harro, idealistic from early on, bears the scars of early torture by the party for his contributions to the leftist-liberal magazine Der Gegner when he meets the privileged Libertas. Libertas soon becomes disillusioned with the life she had been leading and joins Harro and his friends in carrying out acts of espionage and anti-Nazi propaganda activities. Eventually the work of the group and its member are discovered through a radio counterintelligence operation.

Ohler was granted access to much information about his subjects through surviving family members and de-classified information. He brings this information to life through snappy=paced writing and revelations of intimate details that bring the reader closer to who the Bohemians were as people as well as resistance fighters. Equally, the fact that the Nazi party worked so hard to erase the lives of members of the Red Orchestra from collective memory adds to the poignancy of Ohler's telling.

There is a lot of information in the book and it can get a little bogged down in parts, but it also downright nail-biting as well. A really beautiful portrait of flawed and extraordinary humans who risked everything to fight against fascism. So much to admire here and highly recommended.

Thank you to the author Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Netgalley for and advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Roos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Er zijn weinig verhalen bekend over Duits verzet in Nazi-Duitsland. Dus toen ik dit boek in handen kreeg was ik gelijk nieuwsgierig en begon nog diezelfde dag al met lezen!

Ohler had mij al te pakken bij de eerste pagina’s met een persoonlijke anekdote uit zijn jeugd, over zijn grootvader die tijdens de oorlog voor het spoorwegennetwerk werkte. Terwijl ik in de zon zat te lezen, kreeg ik kippenvel. Een goed begin dus!

Bizar dat deze mensen dit hebben kunnen doen onder de neus van de nazi’s, maar misschien nog vreemder dat dit verhaal niet meer bekendheid heeft. Een officier, Harro, die troepen informatie wilde doorspelen aan de geallieerden, en daar ook z’n uiterste best voor deed. Z’n vrouw, Libertas, die foto’s en bewijzen verzamelden over de gruwelijkheden die aan het oostfront werden uitgevoerd. Daar zit gewoon een goed verhaal in! Ohler heeft dat verhaal opgeschreven op meesterlijke wijze, en schuwt daarbij niet de afschuwelijke details zoals de manier waarop sommige mensen zijn gemarteld.

Harro en Libertas hadden een uitgebreid sociaal netwerk waarvan een deel betrokken was bij het verzetswerk. Doordat er zoveel mensen bij betrokken waren en worden genoemd moet je goed je aandacht erbij houden om het overzicht te behouden wie wie was. Soms was ik dan ook even kwijt wie wie ook alweer was en wat zijn of haar rol ook alweer was. Een lijst met personages aan het eind van het boek was misschien wel handig geweest hiervoor.

Dit boek zit vol met wtf-momentjes, waarvan je nekharen overeind gaan staan. Dit verhaal is een verhaal wat je gelezen moet hebben, al is het maar omdat er dus wel degelijk meer Duits verzet was dan de Weisse Rose en operatie Walküre. Harro en Libertas en hun vrienden durfden op te staan omdat ze geloofden in een betere wereld! Daar kunnen we vandaag de dag nog veel van leren.

bedankt LS Amsterdam voor een leesexemplaar