[Lord Dawson of Penn; Nazi Germany; Lloyd George Visit] Three Typescripts: Visit to Labour Camp in Emsland Westphalia; Notes Sent to Lady Dawson and (same basic text) Memo. to Lady Dawson [heading in Dawson's hand, with adds/corrections by him]

A. Typed account by Dawson of a 'Visit to Labour Camp in Emsland Westphalia'. [15 September 1936.] 8pp., fol. With a few manuscript emendations. The account shows Dawson and his colleague Thomas Jones completely hoodwinked as to the nature of what was a punishment camp for political prisoners. Dawson begins by describing Emsland as a 'large area, extending up to the Dutch frontier, consisting of a wide expanse of peat, rough grassland, parts of it under water, almost uninhabited'. It covers four million acres: 'studied [sic] about it are altogether thirty-two camps with an average of one hundred and fifty men in each camp - that is, four thousand eight hundred men'. The inmates are a 'fine, healthy looking, cheerful lot [...] strong, bronzed, happy'. He gives a detailed description, coming to a positive conclusion: 'with all the faults it is a momentous achievement - not only good for the State, but doing incalculable good to the youth in mind and body and estate'. The latter part of the document concerns an investigation by Dawson and Jones of the question of 'the bringing back of this new Germany to Christian worship and conformity', with reference to a discussion with 'Friedrich von der Ropp Grunheide bei Berlin'.B. Typed transcription of 'Notes sent to Lady Dawson', regarding events between 1 and 4 September 1936, and giving an account of Lloyd George's 4 September 1936 breakfast meeting with Dawson and Thomas Jones, 'to discuss his line when he sees Hitler this afternoon'. 5pp., fol.. The document begins: 'Tuesday Sept 1st left Bled a.m. - traversed Glockmar circa 8000 feet and spent night at Zell am See - arrived Salzburg Sept 2 - and left later Munich Vier Jahreszeiten Hotel.' Towards the beginning Dawson remarks on the 'kindly nature' of 'Frau Ribbentrop', who has been 'troubled with recurring sinus since childhood' and reports von Ribbentrop's views on religion: 'Existing religions don't hold the people. They are ignored. The Communists were anti God. The Fuhrere [sic] and authorities are not anti-God, but anti churches. […] Now they are forbidden to touch politics.' After a description of the journey on the 'motor road Munich to Salzburg' Dawson describes the breakfast meeting with Lloyd George, who has 'a contract with Sunday Express and a U.S.A. syndicate. He has to do this writing for his living'. Dawson and Jones counsel LG to 'keep the Foreign Policy to a special platform and by preference H[ouse] of C[ommons] and silence meanwhile. He was very restive but we made him think twice - I rather fear he may have given an undertaking to Beaverbrook.' Dawson reports that after their three-hour meeting LG is 'much impressed with H[itler] as a leader'. Dawson describes Baldwin's 'two great aims in this Government' as 're-armament' and 'arrangement with Germany'. The document ends: 'I forget did I tell you we all took tea with Hitler [last word deleted] the Fuhrer - Most interesting. I have managed to escape detection partly because L.G.'s triumphal progress eclipses aught else.' C. Duplicate text of Notes (commencing with the word COPY) in the main but variants/additions and headed in Dawson's hand, Memorandum to Lady Dawson, 5pp., 4to. Dawson has added a substantial MS. Note concerning Hitler (after having tea with him): Hitler appears to have no adequate grasp of Foreign Politics - I shd think he knows little of nothing of foreign politics. I believe his only 'excursion' was a a visit to Mussolini at Venice. When he is reported to have been greatly impressed with Musso[lini].These items are duplicates of typescripts sold in an archive to the Wellcome.