Page 99 - Was Hitler a Riddle?
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86 The British Diplomats
self at the time of our meeting, and the sincere desire mutually shared that
every endeavour should be made towards mutual understanding.”
King then negotiated with the German ambassador to Canada about the
exact number of Canadians to be sent to Germany. the prime minister had
thought of four or five, but Hitler insisted on twelve, all of whom would
be the “personal guests” of the Führer, who would pay all expenses. King
acknowledged that various interpretations, not all of them flattering, could
be placed on Hitler’s offer, but he “personally believed it to be sincere in its
intent.” King was so pleased with the project that he sent a copy of his letter
to the Führer to Chamberlain with a request for his opinion. Chamberlain’s
response could not be found and it is reasonable to assume that the out-
break of war on september 1 brought the negotiations to an end. 172
lord lothian (Philip Kerr, 1882–1940) was the most interesting of all
the appeasers who met Hitler and talked with him at length. Born into the
scottish aristocracy, lothian benefited from many social and economic ad-
vantages that enabled him to move easily into a life of public service. soon
after completing his studies at Oxford he went to south africa, where he
worked in the British administration for four and a half years. He proved to
be an able and charming civil servant with a gift for clear writing on politi-
cal issues. a convinced imperialist, he began to publish articles on imperial
politics and became editor of the new journal Round Table, which focused
on that subject, after his return to Great Britain in 1910. Over the next
twenty years, he wrote some eighty-four articles for the journal, in which he
expressed his political philosophy: he regarded the state as the “noblest of
human fabrications” and was convinced that the British empire was a force
for good, although he feared that it was likely to face a crisis in the near fu-
ture. His reputation in political circles soared, and in 1916, Prime Minister
david lloyd George appointed him as his private secretary; by the time he
left government service in 1921, lothian had played a part in virtually all the
major foreign policy decisions reached by the British government, includ-
ing the peace treaty negotiated with Germany in 1919. By now, lothian, in
the words of his biographer, was a “public figure.” He knew everyone who
was prominent in British politics and he was frequently invited to lecture
on political issues. 173 When he expressed himself on issues that touched on
the country’s foreign policy, he was taken seriously by the highest circles
of British society. lord Halifax in particular relied upon him as a close ad-
viser.