💾 Archived View for gemini.spam.works › mirrors › textfiles › politics › SPUNK › sp000712.txt captured on 2022-04-29 at 02:36:25.
⬅️ Previous capture (2022-03-01)
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Hilda Monte - the name by which she was known in socialist and "intelligence" circles (real name unknown) was born in Berlin around 1914. Jewish parentage but apparently nonpracticing. She became a revolutionary socialist as a girl in the 1920s. Originally in the youth section of the KAPD (opposition communist party) and an admirer of Rosa Luxembourg, she later became a member of the anti parliamentary council-communist movement (may have known van der Lubbe - of Reichstag fire fame). After 1933 she linked up with small groups of activist s prepared to use terrorist tactics against the Nazis....Anti parliamentary council communists, Spartakists and anarcho-syndicalists were involved in this action. They were not allied but here was a certain amount of criss-crossing. Around 1937 Monte was brought to the attention of the authorities but escaped arrest by marrying (nominally) John Olday (A.W.Oldag), an anarchist/spartakist who had British nationality by virtue of a Canadian father (but had always lived in Germany) They were deported - He came to England (wrote "Kingdom of Rags") - she does not appear to have come until 1939. He was gay and they did not cohabit. She was trying to return to Germany to continue the struggle (reportedly involved in another plot against Hitler) Olday obtained financial assistance from George N. Strauss a millionaire industrialist (Lab. MP for Vauxhall) for this plot... she possibly had contact with groups of Council-communists in Paris and Amsterdam and Anarchists in Birmingham(UK) When the war started she was viewed with suspicion by British Intelligence (recently entered the country, citizenship by marriage to a husband with whom she didn't live and was reportedly a jewess wanting to go back to Germany) who despite later propoganda had a very ambivalent attitude towards anti-nazi activists. Around this time Strauss withdrew his support (under pressure?) In the UK Monte appears to have mixed with (mostly German) Socialist Vangaurd group (Luxembourgists) though they had support from Fenner Brockway of the ILP (later Lab. MP and Lord). She worked on a plan of her own (with a Birmingha m based group) and asked British Anarchists through Olday to find another backer. This was actor Leslie Howard (very anti-nazi) Howard not only got her released but also persuaded British intelligence to let her return to Germany on a "mission". They had little to lose. Unfortunatley they appear to have insi sted (no proof here) that she undertake espoinage as well as resistance. She was captured in 1942/3 - her fate is unknown but can be guessed I'm told that Israel (Yad Veshem?) has an archive on her, possibly also in the US archives of records taken from the Gestapo/German Police