The Personality of Hitler
What is most interesting in Sir Nevile Henderson's final report on the "termination of his mission" in Germany is his account of the personal forces which led that country into war. In all our relations with her during the last year and a half our diplomacy has had to consider not merely German interests and aims, but the temperament of Herr Hitler and the character of his subordinates. Sir Nevile tells of the gradual elimination of the more inde- pendent men and the steady deterioration in Herr Hitler's entourage as one after another of those who had the courage to speak their minds were dropped. Not that the more servile were without influence. When they saw his mind moving in a given direction they could feed it with fabricated information which confirmed him in his decisions. Except on his official visits to Italy, he had never been out of his own country. His envy of Britain's achievements was mingled with an admiration which Sir Nevile believes to have been genuine, but this did not enable him to under- stand the sincerity of Britain's belief in humanity and freedom. " Longheaded " as he is in calculation, Hitler is none the less at the mercy of his own arrogance, whims and ignorance. This self-confident, astute, violent, pre- judiced and irritable man completely dominates the Na' leaders, and the Nazi leaders dominate Germany. It was to prevent them from dominating Europe that we were compelled to go to war.
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