Wife of von Blomberg

Discussions on the role played by and situation of women in the Third Reich not covered in the other sections. Hosted by Vikki.
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Helge
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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#31

Post by Helge » 17 Jul 2012, 19:48

Photos of the dossier of the Gestapo
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E0535_PPM-SP197403600920105.jpg (55.56 KiB) Viewed 12480 times
Sota ei päätä kuka on oikeassa, vain sen että kuka on jäljellä.
War does not decide who is right but only those who are left.

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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#32

Post by Helge » 18 Jun 2014, 17:40

Luise Margarethe Gruhn.
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Erna Gruhn 01.jpg
Sota ei päätä kuka on oikeassa, vain sen että kuka on jäljellä.
War does not decide who is right but only those who are left.


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Helge
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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#33

Post by Helge » 18 Jun 2014, 17:43

Luise Margarethe Gruhn.
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Erna Gruhn 02.jpg
Sota ei päätä kuka on oikeassa, vain sen että kuka on jäljellä.
War does not decide who is right but only those who are left.

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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#34

Post by Helge » 18 Jun 2014, 18:11

I think that the picture described "Photography signaling Gestapo" is completely false. the original of that picture (on the occasion of his arrest by the Allies) is now published. The photograph is of the year 1948.
Sota ei päätä kuka on oikeassa, vain sen että kuka on jäljellä.
War does not decide who is right but only those who are left.

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Annelie
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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#35

Post by Annelie » 18 Jun 2014, 19:15

Thankyou Helge, once more you make an interesting contribution.

I found this but not necessarily believe it.....http://www.desertwar.net/blomberg-fritsch-affair.html
January 24 1938N 6 in the morning, the chief of central identification of the criminal police of Berlin, Hellmuth Müllern 7, received an anonymous letter with pornographic photos: on them a blonde woman wearing the flapper appears , measuring about 1.75 meters, well proportioned, totally naked except for a string of pearls on the back of the photo showing the name of Luise Margarethe Gruhn. Continuing his investigation, Müller discovered that this woman was arrested two or three times for soliciting on the street, and for stealing a client and his pornographic pictures were sold at stations in Berlin until the police terminate the traffic. In concluding its investigation, he found that the name on the photographs is one of the new wife Blomberg24.
Maybe you know something about this?

One could hardly describe being naked with a string of pearls pornographic and we don't know the circumstance?
Perhaps this was a private photo for her husband?

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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#36

Post by Skyderick » 18 Jun 2014, 22:18

My mother was contacted by a Blomberg many years ago. My maternal grandmother was born Blomberg, and so this person sought her out through some genealogy site. He presumed his family was Jewish, but after she did some research for him it turned out that he was in fact related to von Blomberg.
Sorry if this is off post.

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Helge
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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#37

Post by Helge » 19 Jun 2014, 17:48

Skyderick wrote:My mother was contacted by a Blomberg many years ago. My maternal grandmother was born Blomberg, and so this person sought her out through some genealogy site. He presumed his family was Jewish, but after she did some research for him it turned out that he was in fact related to von Blomberg.
Sorry if this is off post.

Thanks Skyderick. Any information is always appreciated by me.
Sota ei päätä kuka on oikeassa, vain sen että kuka on jäljellä.
War does not decide who is right but only those who are left.

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Helge
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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#38

Post by Helge » 19 Jun 2014, 17:52

Annelie wrote:Thankyou Helge, once more you make an interesting contribution.

I found this but not necessarily believe it.....http://www.desertwar.net/blomberg-fritsch-affair.html
January 24 1938N 6 in the morning, the chief of central identification of the criminal police of Berlin, Hellmuth Müllern 7, received an anonymous letter with pornographic photos: on them a blonde woman wearing the flapper appears , measuring about 1.75 meters, well proportioned, totally naked except for a string of pearls on the back of the photo showing the name of Luise Margarethe Gruhn. Continuing his investigation, Müller discovered that this woman was arrested two or three times for soliciting on the street, and for stealing a client and his pornographic pictures were sold at stations in Berlin until the police terminate the traffic. In concluding its investigation, he found that the name on the photographs is one of the new wife Blomberg24.
Maybe you know something about this?

One could hardly describe being naked with a string of pearls pornographic and we don't know the circumstance?
Perhaps this was a private photo for her husband?
It may be true as a false thing. Lack of evidence. Just like the famous picture painted by Inga Ley naked.
Sota ei päätä kuka on oikeassa, vain sen että kuka on jäljellä.
War does not decide who is right but only those who are left.

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Skyderick
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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#39

Post by Skyderick » 23 Jun 2014, 17:41

Helge,
I wish I could go into detail, but my mother is old and no longer remembers. If she suddenly recalls anything I'll post it.
From the book The Wall of Silence Was Breached: The Power of a Paper by Meir Kahan (published 1993 by the Jabotinsky Institute In Israel) page 22: "... chief of the German army general Werner von Blomberg, was ousted. In his stead Hitler appointed one of "his own". The official excuse given to this move by Hitler - the elderly general's love for a young hairdresser. Their marriage was, allegedly, an insult to the dignity of a military man from the aristocracy - unacceptable. Hitler was responsible for the blue blood of the Prussian Junkers..."
I've only seen mention of her as Eva Gruhn. Not Margarethe.

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Helge
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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#40

Post by Helge » 23 Jun 2014, 18:39

Skyderick: often the names are changed. There are numerous cases. If you look at the documents of the wife of Himmler even then was put the name Marga and not the original.

Download the fourth document. Is of interest to this topic.

Helge

http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/print/d-41667451.html

http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/print/d-13510640.html

http://www.zeit.de/1988/11/der-skandal- ... ne/seite-4

https://www.google.de/url?sa=t&rct=j&q= ... 1363,d.bGE
Sota ei päätä kuka on oikeassa, vain sen että kuka on jäljellä.
War does not decide who is right but only those who are left.

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Skyderick
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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#41

Post by Skyderick » 24 Jun 2014, 02:07

Helge wrote:Skyderick: often the names are changed. There are numerous cases. If you look at the documents of the wife of Himmler even then was put the name Marga and not the original.
True, I have just found an article in Hebrew from 1963:

"Von Blomberg, the highest ranking officer in Germany, was dismissed with an excellent excuse. At the age of 59 the field marshal marries a woman – a chubby girl aged 23, who works as his secretary and whose name is Erna Gruhn. He is a widower – his wife, whom he married in 1904, died in 1932. Herr Minister fell in love with a secretary. But to marry her – only a truly lovelorn man would dare, for such a marriage could raise the entire aristocratic commissioned rank against him. Von Blomberg consulted Göring – he was also married a second time (his first wife died of tuberculosis), and not only that, but to a divorced actress. Colonel general Göring, formerly a famous pilot in the air force of Imperial Germany, encourages him to fulfill the desire, promising to get him the Führer’s consent. And he does, the fat crook – he and Hitler even serve as witnesses at the civil wedding ceremony, which takes place on the 12th January 1938. The couple leaves for a honeymoon at Capri.
And then the big bomb explodes: it turns out, that Mrs. field marshal, the daughter of a humble postal clerk and a certified masseur, has a file at the police as a… hooker. The mother’s massage parlor was no less than a concealed brothel.
A terrible scandal. It’s still possible to cover up – if only the 55 year old general Wilhelm Keitel, head of a department at the War Ministry, whose career Blomberg fostered – his daughter was married to Keitel’s son – would cooperate. But the faint-willed, ambitious man refuses. The matter reaches the Führer. Recruiting the military leadership that is still seething over the marriage is easy.
“It’s unacceptable that the highest ranking officer in the country should marry a whore”, deems the chief of the General Staff, general Beck. Von Blomberg is rushed to the Führer and ordered to resign. Did Hitler truly promise him that when war would break out, he’d be reinstated and given the army’s rein? Perhaps. On the 25th of January the career of field marshal Werner von Blomberg ends. Later, when the name of the new Supreme Commander is published, it turns out to be Keitel."

(http://jpress.org.il/Olive/APA/NLI_heb/ ... 3&rtl=true)

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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#42

Post by Nautilus » 12 Sep 2016, 00:03

There seems to be a general consensus among media from all parts of the spectrum to portray von Blomberg as a hapless, easily deceived man, played like a fiddle by two unscrupulous bandits (which were Hitler and Göring, obviously - and judging by what they did afterwards, people quickly believe this version).

However, the details of von Blomberg's own actions are not quite those of a fool. Leaving politics aside and the fact he more or less asked for Ernst Röhm's death. But just his actions concerning his second marriage.

General (future Field Marshal) Keitel confessed: "“The Field Marshal’s wife was indeed a convicted prostitute. She had been under surveillance by the Morals Squad for years before she got her typing job at the War Ministry. Not only that, but her mother was also a notorious prostitute and madam, and had operated a bordello disguised as a massage parlor in a Berlin suburb. Erna had learned her ancient profession, so to speak, at her mother’s knee.

“What made the situation all the more shocking and intolerable was that in addition to selling her body for cash, which was at least a somewhat private transaction, Erna had also posed for pornographic pictures, which made her disgrace a far more public matter. The pictures had been widely sold and circulated, so that hundreds of Berliners now possessed photographs exhibiting the War Minister’s wife in a variety of obscene, shameless poses.

“The record further disclosed that she had been arrested in connection with the pictures and brought to court. She had testified that her lover and partner in the poses (who was said to be a 41-year-old Czech Jew) had run off, leaving her with only 60 marks as her share of the proceeds. The court had sympathetically given her a light sentence.”"


Von Blomberg had secured his future wife (which he met in Tiergarten, almost accidentally) a well paid-job at his Ministry. He had secretly confided to Göring that Erna / Eva was a “child of the people,” to which the latter said that in the Nazi state this would be no obstacle to their wedlock. He convinced the same Göring to bribe his love rival with a huge amount of money (50 000 RM meant about 27 average wages per German economy altogether) and a coveted overseas posting. Both Hitler and Göring saw him bending the rules of good conduct for officers, written by himself, for his own profit.

Keitel again: "neither Hitler nor Göring believed Blomberg’s protestations that he had embarked innocently upon this adventure; they were beside themselves with rage at having been exploited as witnesses at his wedding. Both were convinced…that Blomberg had wanted to compel them in this way to hush up and stamp out any rumors and after-effects that might follow this step….He was absolutely shattered and near to collapse. He repeated to the Führer his disinclination to dissolve his marriage, and their long interview ended in his resignation.

“Afterwards Blomberg confided to me that he laid the blame squarely on Göring; if Göring had not entertained hopes of becoming his successor they would very easily have been able to cover up the whole affair with the mantle of true love. He had known all along that his wife had lived loosely in the past, but that was no reason for casting a woman out forever; in any case, she had for some time now been employed by the Reich Egg [Marketing] Board and earned her keep like that, though her mother was only an ironing-woman."


And what did von Blomberg do, in front of Hitler's rage? Knowing the charges against him and his wife were at least a bit murky and exaggerated, he accepted to be swatted away like a fly. The Rubber Lion got again rubbery as before - to avoid public scorn, he left himself to the Führer's mercy, retired with full pay as a Field Marshal and vague promise to be called again to active duty if a war broke out. Which he knew Hitler will not keep.

To try to bluff your way out and then suddenly melt and leave yourself out sounds more like a manipulator who got his bluff called and walked on due to obstinacy, or due to the fact he did now know how to loose honorably.

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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#43

Post by Helge » 24 Dec 2016, 19:46

Luise Margarethe Gruhn: photography 1930.
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Sota ei päätä kuka on oikeassa, vain sen että kuka on jäljellä.
War does not decide who is right but only those who are left.

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Helge
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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#44

Post by Helge » 01 May 2020, 05:20

Charlotte Hellmich - Danzig, October 04, 1880 - Königsberg, May 11, 1932 - The first wife of Werner von Blomberg - Portrait around 1930 (Photo by Haeckel collection/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

Sons:

1. Henning von Blomberg, b. 3 Feb 1905, Berlin;
2. Ursula Hedwig Margarete von Blomberg, b. 04 Jan 1907, Berlin;
3. Axel Fritz Hugo Bodo von Blomberg, b. 22 Dec 1908, Berlin;
4. Sybille Emma Eugenie Eva Charlotte von Blomberg, b. 05 Sep 1910, Berlin ;
5. Dorothee Erna Hannah Elisabeth von Blomberg, b. 28 Jun 1917, Hannover.
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Sota ei päätä kuka on oikeassa, vain sen että kuka on jäljellä.
War does not decide who is right but only those who are left.

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Helge
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Re: Wife of von Blomberg

#45

Post by Helge » 02 May 2020, 13:11

1. Henning von Blomberg, b. 3 Feb 1905, Berlin - d. November 22, 1942, Tunis;
2. Ursula Hedwig Margarete von Blomberg, b. 04 Jan 1907, Berlin;
3. Axel Fritz Hugo Bodo von Blomberg, b. 22 Dec 1908, Berlin - d. May 19, 1942, Bagdad;
4. Sybille Emma Eugenie Eva Charlotte von Blomberg, b. 05 Sep 1910, Berlin - d. April 12, 1968, Berlin;
5. Dorothee Erna Hannah Elisabeth von Blomberg, b. 28 Jun 1917, Hannover.
Sota ei päätä kuka on oikeassa, vain sen että kuka on jäljellä.
War does not decide who is right but only those who are left.

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