How do you rate Patrick Agte's books?

[heinz kling]

Any ideas on his next plans, and why posters in the Feldgrau forum dislike him and call him a cheat?

[Timo]

Any ideas on his next plans, and why posters in the Feldgrau forum dislike him and call him a cheat?

Not a cheat. He thief is more appropriate.

Here's what happened: when Werner Wendt finished the manuscript for his unit history of s.SS-Pz.Abt.501, Agte offered to check it for errors and to add info from his files. So wendt send him the original manuscript. One can say that this was not a smart thing to do, but hey, why not trust the Geschaftsführer of your veterans organisation, right? But this was the last time Wendt saw the manuscript and a few months later it was published by Agte as the Wittmann book. About 80 percent of the text in that book came from the stolen manuscript. For this and several other things, Agte is persona non grata with many LAH veterans.

Apart from this, Agte has an appologist agenda. He is openly neo-nazi and his work biased by his attempts to glorify the SS.

[heinz kling]

Why would he steal Wendt's manuscript? And was his work on Peiper an original effort? At least, compared to works by Reynolds and Westermeyer (?), his books packed a lot more primary information, the former only recycled other works and their books are a real rip off.

[Timo]

Michael Reynolds is certainly no rip off. He did a lot of primairy research, including meetings with LAH officers like Rudi Sandig and Manfred Coblenz. However, Patrick Agte, as Geschaftsführer of the HIAG, has access to much more sourches and contacts. It's a shame that much of this info is not gathered in an honest way.

And why steal? Because he wants it. A veteran told me how Agte deals with veterans. An SS officer did not want to give Agte his war diary. Unfortunately as soon as he passed away, Agte drove to his home and convinced his widow that her late husband promised him his diary. He knows when somebody dies because the family or the HIAG in his reagion sends a notice to him (Munin-Verlag=Agte) for publiction in Der Freiwillige. Most LAH veteran had it with him because of this.

One of his primairy functions as Geschaftsführer of the HIAG is to help researchers. His home is stacked with thousands of wartime files and other unique documents. However, no matter how many letters one writes to him, he won't help you unless you're a fellow nazi. I know dozens of researchers, including myself, who wrote to him without getting a single reply. When you complain to veteran members of the HIAG (Agte is no veteran) the excuse Agte gives is allways the same: he's so busy but he'll answer your letters soon. But nothing happens. Nada.

[HPL2008]

I have no personal experiences with this man, but I read his Peiper book, which I bought from a friend, second-hand but good as new. I bought it for the photographs alone, however, and I must admit that these are really terrific. Which is much, much more than you can say for the text.
It's very obvious that politically he is on the very far right, and reading his book has left a rather bad taste in my mouth. Almost all of it is propaganda; to be more precise: Propaganda by distortion of perspective and by ommission rather than by direct lies, which must be rather effective on the naive.
One example: When he mentions Himmler, he states that no really authoritative, scientific biography has been published on him (which is true) states that a thorough analysis of Himmler is way beyond the scope of his book (true also) and then goes on about certain positive character traits of the Reichsführer, which he finds worth mentioning, such as his being a good listener, having many areas of interest, being heavily into a healthy lifestyle etc. etc. All of this is also true, but of course totally insignificant if regarded in such an isolated way. No mention is made whatsoever of his direct and indirect responsibility for the most horrible aspects of the Third Reich. So, he makes Himmler seem a jolly good fellow without even lying about him - just by picking his, rather minor, positive aspects and ignoring everything else.
That's just as if you put only one sentence under Hitler's name in an encyclopedia: "Built the Autobahnen"....

[heinz kling]

I used to buy my Waffen SS books direct from Munin. Now they are available from Verlag Nation Europa, which bought the rights. Do you mean that Agte owns VNE? And how comes he's the chef of HIAG whilst not a veteran, is he the son of one?

Anyway, I believe that being the Geschaftfuhrer of a veteran association means that you are partial to their rights, beliefs and achievements, and reading Agte's books I do not have an impresssion that he's a NS, only a fervent SS believer.

[David C. Clarke]

I think that HPL2008 makes an extremely valid point about Agte and the Himmler section in the Peiper book was a disgrace. Best Regards, David

[heinz kling]

And that Himmler only came in the picture because Peiper was once his adjutant, so I think it's unfair to judge him on that.

[David C. Clarke]

No Sir, I don't agree with that. Himmler, after all was the Head of the entire SS. My opinion is that Agte deliberately downplayed Himmler's influence over Peiper while at the same time white-washing Himmler into some sort of benign creature, a mere bureaucrat who happened to inexplicably take an interest in Peiper's career.
None of the philosphy that Himmmler was most notorious for and which, in fact, played a key role in the establishment of the Waffen SS is evident in Agte's Peiper book. While I wouldn't expect any author dealing with Peiper to dwell on the elusive character of Himmler, I would have expected greater insight into that ideology when the author takes it upon himself to draw a picture of Himmler and Peiper's position on his staff.
Just an opinion.
Best Regards, David

[heinz kling]

Himmler was basically implementing Hitler's orders. Deep down he's just a romantic, philosophical yet well educated follower mermerized by Hitler. Not that I am an admirer of him.

[David C. Clarke]

Himmler was basically implementing Hitler's orders.

I think historians have argued over this point since 1945. Best Regards, David

[Timo]

Is this the same Himmler who's daughter Gudrun was a guest of honor at Agtes wedding? Everybody was waving his right hand in her direction. In the late eighties Agte showed up at an LAH veterans meeting in the Ardennes with neo-nazi pins on his jacket and it was Michael Reynolds who told him to f..k off. But Kling, just live you're life in an airbubble. If you're question on how we rate Agtes work is retorical, why ask that question anyway?

[heinz kling]

Tell me more about him, as I just don't understand why so many people have beef with him.

1. I suppose he's German.
2. Was he a veteran, if yes, which division?
3. How comes he's the geshcaftfuhrer of HIAG if so many veterans disliked him?
4. Did he own Munin Verlag, or did he buy the rights to their books through Verlag Nation Europa?
5. If he was stealing Wendt's manuscript, was he taken to court?
6. Was his work on Peiper an original, or just another theft?
7. Did people dislike him because he cared not to answer their enquiries, or because he's true to his beliefs, which you may not agree with?

[Bill Medland]

I am myself a member of HIAG, since 1995.
I am 46 years old and was able to get involved due to the fact that my wife is the daughter of a former Waffen-SS Grenadier from Das Reich.
There are a few of us from the younger generation in the HIAG or Kameradenwerk Korps Steiner e.v.
I have never met Agte, but I have heard things about him too, and I must agree with Timo.
Regards,Bill.

[Timo]

1. I suppose he's German.

...Yes,

2. Was he a veteran, if yes, which division?

...No, he's in his fourties,

3. How comes he's the geshcaftfuhrer of HIAG if so many veterans disliked him?

...He started to misuse his function after he became the Geschäftsführer

4. Did he own Munin Verlag, or did he buy the rights to their books through Verlag Nation Europa?

...He was Munin-Verlag and he publishes Der Freiwillige,

5. If he was stealing Wendt's manuscript, was he taken to court?

...No as far as I know. But the veterans know he did it because they know Wendt wrote it,

6. Was his work on Peiper an original, or just another theft?

...He wrote it, yes, but he used the same methods to collect sources (theft, lying, etc.),

7. Did people dislike him because he cared not to answer their enquiries, or because he's true to his beliefs, which you may not agree with?

...Researchers dislike him because he steals and lies (and thus makes it harder for others to gain the trust of veterans) and because he does not share his sources, dispite that fact that this is his duty as Geschäftsfhr with the HIAG, and most researchers dislike him for being a nazi. Veterans from LAH (and several other units) dislike him because he steals and lies (the Wendt affair and similar incidents).