Latest news with #letters
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
'Tell Hitler that all the French s*** on him': Nazi death row victims' undelivered letters of defiance are revealed after 80 years
Undelivered letters written by Nazi death row victims have been discovered after 80 years. More than 50 messages penned by men and women who were put to death at the notorious Stadelheim prison in Munich were found in the Bavarian state archives. Although most condemned inmates wrote to their families, two French prisoners chose to pen a virulent message of defiance to the Nazi authorities. René Blondel and Victor Douillet appeared to write to the director of Stadelheim, telling him: 'You can send this letter to Hitler and tell him: all the French s*** on you.' The start of the letter is not clearly legible, it either says 'Mr Director', or - in a sign they could have been writing directly to Adolf Hitler - 'Mr Dictator'. Another was written by 19-year-old Jan Stepniak just minutes before he was guillotined. He told his aunt and grandmother: 'I am writing you one last letter, because today, on 2/11/42 at 5 in the afternoon, my life will come to an end. 'As you know, I will meet death an innocent man, because this is just the way we Poles are punished.' More than 50 letters that feature in 844 'execution files' held in the Bavarian state archives have been identified and digitised. Between 1933 and 1945, more than 1,000 executions were carried out at Stadelheim. For most killings, the guillotine was used. Among the most high-profile inmates executed at Stadelheim were Hans and Sophie Scholl, the brother and sister who led the White Rose resistance movement. Many of the condemned came from the likes of Poland, France and Czechoslovakia, all of which suffered terribly under Nazi occupation. Another unearthed letter was written by Johannes Fleischmann, who was handed a death sentence in November 1941 after being accused of crimes including burglary. He wrote to his mother: 'When the judgment is enforced, I will be able to say with a clear conscience: I am the alleged thief, but the court is the murderer.' Another victim, Maria Ehrlich, had just turned 81 when she was put to death in 1944. She was sentenced for 'subversion of the armed forces' in October 1943. She wrote in one of four letters: 'Dear Wenger! I am writing to you my final letter. In three hours I will be dead. 'I am grateful for my life. I believe that my death will benefit my fatherland and my home city. 'I have helped many people, so all that is left is to stand before God. 'Finally: Yesterday, February 9, was my 81st birthday. It has been my turn to go for some time. 'Many kisses, and greetings to everyone – especially the children. Your Marie.' The Bavarian authorities are now working with experts at the Arolsen Archives, which specialises in documenting Nazi crimes, to find the families of the people the condemned addressed their letters to. Floriane Azoulay, the director of Arolsen, said: 'People on death row tended to use their final hours to say goodbye to loved ones. 'Our mandate today is to find the addressees of the letters and the relatives in order to fulfill the last wishes of the unjustly condemned and to right this historical wrong. 'This can be of incredible importance for the families.' Bernhard Grau, director general of the Bavarian State Archives, said: 'The Nazi past will not let us rest! Giving the victims of the regime of injustice a name and a voice is more important than ever. 'We are delighted to have found a partner in the Arolsen Archives who allows adding more information to the source material in our archives and so helps track down any living descendants of the victims.'
Washington Post
04-07-2025
- Climate
- Washington Post
Readers critique The Post: Why is The Post promoting reckless cycling?
Every week, The Post runs a collection of letters of readers' grievances — pointing out grammatical mistakes, missing coverage and inconsistencies. These letters tell us what we did wrong and, occasionally, offer praise. Here, we present this week's Free for All letters. The choice of the photo accompanying the June 26 Metro article 'In D.C., four score and too many degrees' was careless. Of all the photographs available to illustrate the record-breaking heat, why choose a picture of recklessness?
The Guardian
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
A first-class service by Royal Mail again
Following my letter (23 June) complimenting the Royal Mail on delivering a letter from another reader to me with no house number, street or postcode, this week I received another addressed in exactly the same way from Peggy, who writes 'Just checking whether Royal Mail can do it twice. Maybe first time was a fluke.' Evidently not. Perhaps it's my fame as a beyond-'genius' Word Wheel player that's helped locate me?Kevin WardQuorn, Leicestershire 'What would British culture be like if Oasis had never existed?', asks Dorian Lynskey ( 1 July). If nothing else, it's hard to imagine the final scene of the 1996 BBC TV drama Our Friends in the North being anything like as devastating without Don't Look Back in Anger playing out on the PennReading, Berkshire Read my outdoor thermometer: 35.3C. Converted it to fahrenheit: 95.5. Immediately felt nearly three times hotter!Valerie GidlowFaversham, Kent As a newly qualified teacher in 1978, I marked all work in green ink (Letters, 30 June). It seemed kinder than DickinsonLondon Have the recent brief letters on the misuse/irritating use of English come from correspondents' own 'lived experience'?Peter UrwinArkengarthdale, North Yorkshire Don't get me started on 'don't get me started'.Ross BradshawNottingham Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
Bloomberg
01-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Trump Dismisses Extension of July 9 Tariff Deadline, Hits Japan
President Donald Trump said he is not considering delaying his July 9 deadline for higher tariffs to resume, and renewed his threat to cut off talks and impose duty rates on several nations, including Japan. 'No, I'm not thinking about the pause,' Trump said Tuesday when asked by a reporter aboard Air Force One about whether he would extend the negotiating period with trading partners. 'I'll be writing letters to a lot of countries.'
BBC News
25-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Bundle of 1962 letters to Hemel recovered from a canal
A woman who recovered a bundle of letters from a city canal said she hoped to return them to their cache of 32 handwritten letters, tied together with blue ribbon, were postmarked in Nottingham and delivered to an address in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, in Elmore, 52, discovered the letters while magnet fishing with her son close to the Ford Shopping Park in Birmingham last month. She said she "was shaking with excitement" when she took them out of the water before bringing them home to dry. Ms Elmore said the envelopes were all opened, but many were too damaged to letters all have the same addresses and handwriting. They were all addressed to a Janet Millington at Glen View Road in Hemel sender - who signs the letters "Arch" - also gave his address as Rupert Street in the Meadows area of Nottingham, but the road is now part of an industrial Elmore said the personal letters revealed how he was feeling, his fondness for Janet and how much he was missing one he told how he had phoned her and got no answer, but would try again the next day. Ms Elmore posted pictures of the letters on social media and said she has received lots of comments but "no-one has been in contact".She said she was not seeking any money and just wanted them "to go back to their rightful owner". Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
