Wife of von Blomberg

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Durand
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Wife of von Blomberg

#1

Post by Durand » 10 May 2003, 19:26

Hallo,

GFM Werner von Blomberg, then Germany's defence minister, married Margarethe Gruhn at the War Ministry on January 12, 1938. Hitler and Göring were the witnesses to the wedding. Von Blomberg first met Gruhn while taking a stroll through the Tiergarten in Berlin in September 1937. Margarethe Gruhn (I have also read that her first name was Erna or Eva) was approximately 30 years younger than von Blomberg. She was also a former prostitute who was formally registered as such with the German police and there were pornographic pictures of her that were in circulation. Due to his wife's past and his refusal to leave her, von Blomberg was forced to resign.

Does anyone have any addtional background on Margarethe (when and where born, other profession, children, etc.)? What happened to Margarethe after her husband's death? Does anyone have any pictures of her (clothed or otherwise :wink: ) that they wish to share here?

Thank You

Durand

xcalibur
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#2

Post by xcalibur » 10 May 2003, 20:02

She was a stenographer at the time she met von Blomberg. In addition to having been a prostitute she also had posed for pornographic photos. After he was sacked they retired to the town of Wiessee in Bavaria.


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Helly Angel
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Well,

#3

Post by Helly Angel » 10 May 2003, 23:24

The real name of the wife was Luise Margarethe Gruhn, not Eva or Erna, this was a mistake of the Gestapo who created a false file for this woman.

The antecedents are fake. After the war she was living in Berlín under the name Margarethe.
Attachments
Blomberg.jpg
With his wife. This is the famous photo in the "Zoo" of Leipzig during the Honeymoon. With this photo a german Police discover the wife like a former prsotitute.
Blomberg.jpg (16.57 KiB) Viewed 35036 times
Luise.jpg
The born certificate of Ms. Blomberg
Luise.jpg (13.58 KiB) Viewed 35033 times

Durand
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#4

Post by Durand » 12 May 2003, 01:58

Hallo Xcalibur and Helly Angel,

Thank you for the replies.

Helly Angel, can you (or anybody else) please recommend any books or other resources on the subject of the Blombergs? May I ask the source(s) the images you posted?

I am intrigued by the lady, the scandal, and the politics surrounding it. I appreciate the picture that H.A. posted, but her face is difficult to see. Are there any other photos out there which give a clearer view of her face?

Regards,

Durand

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Helly Angel
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#5

Post by Helly Angel » 12 May 2003, 04:33

Hello Durand.

Yes you catch it!

The photo is HARD to see the face of the woman. The Gestapo based the "investigation" about the wife of Blomberg and the link with the prostitution with this same photo in bad quality from a newspaper!

Unfortunately I have not book specialy about this. The source is:

Accord this article the investigation was a fraud, a false file.

"El III Reich" by Christian Zentner, Vol 2, pag 34, Ediciones NOGUER, Spain (The enciclopedya is in spanish in 4 volumenes)

best,

Durand
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#6

Post by Durand » 13 May 2003, 03:25

Thank you again, Helly Angel. Now I have a third theory about this scandal to consider: a case of mistaken identity. This gets more and more interesting. I would have liked to read your source material, but it is my misfortune that my ability to read Spanish is limited to restaurant menus.

I am now very curious as to what this lady looked like.

Best Regards,

Durand

Misty Dawn Bright
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Just A Little Bit of Trivia About This Subject

#7

Post by Misty Dawn Bright » 21 Jul 2003, 15:19

I read in one of Reinhard Heydrich's biographies that the von Blombergs demanded to see the photos that had supposedly been uncovered by the criminal police, but they were never able to get their hands on them and therefore, never saw them.

The entire investigation was instigated by Reinhard Heydrich so that he could supply Hitler with an excuse to get rid of his Defense Minister (but of course, you all probably know that).

The book is below:
Reinhard Heydrich: The Chilling Story of the Man Who Masterminded the Nazi Death Camps, by Edouard Calic, trans. by Lowell Blair

Glenn A. Steinberg
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#8

Post by Glenn A. Steinberg » 21 Jul 2003, 20:32

Durand wrote:...Helly Angel, can you (or anybody else) please recommend any books or other resources on the subject of the Blombergs? May I ask the source(s) the images you posted?...
You might try to find

Deutsch, Harold C. Hitler and His Generals: The Hidden Crisis, January-June 1938. Minneapolis: U of Minnesota P, 1974.

There is also a chapter on Blomberg in

Barnett, Correlli, ed. Hitler’s Generals. New York: Grove Weidenfeld, 1989.

Durand
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#9

Post by Durand » 23 Jul 2003, 13:48

Hallo,

Thanks to you all for the reading suggestions. I will try to follow up on them.

Regards,

Durand

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Peter H
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#10

Post by Peter H » 24 Jul 2003, 00:13

Frpm Time-Life 'The Third Reich' series.

The Blombergs in Ceylon May 1938.
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Blombergs.jpg
Blombergs.jpg (83.38 KiB) Viewed 34816 times

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Helly Angel
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#11

Post by Helly Angel » 24 Jul 2003, 00:31

Great Photo Moulded!

Thanks for share!

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Peter H
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#12

Post by Peter H » 24 Jul 2003, 09:06

Here's another photo from Time-Life...the Blombergs in Java 1938.
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Blomberg_2.jpg
Blomberg_2.jpg (106.19 KiB) Viewed 34789 times

Durand
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#13

Post by Durand » 24 Jul 2003, 13:24

Hallo,

Those are outstanding finds, Moulded. Thank you for posting them. I am always amazed at the photos you manage to scrounge up. I would almost be willing to bet you have a line on the incriminating photos of Frau von Blomberg. :wink:

Regards,

Durand

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Peter H
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#14

Post by Peter H » 25 Jul 2003, 02:38

Thanks Durand,glad to be of help. :)

David Irving mentions that the Blomberg family maintained that 'Eva' tricked the Field Marshall into marriage,by declaring herself pregnant at the time.Alas,no baby subsequently appeared.

Irving in The WarPath also discounts the Fraulein as involved in prostitution.She had posed in lewd photos.The story behind this was as follows---raised in poverty,her mother was a war widow,Eva left home at 18 in 1932,and moved into a rented apartment with her 41 year old lover,a Czech Jew named Heinrich Lowinger.Having himself been offered pornographic photos,Lowinger cottoned on to the idea to try this business himself.He hired a Polish photographer,Ernst Mikler,got Eva to oblige ("involving an unidentified man and a wax candle"),and the pictures were taken one Christmas afternoon.He had sold only 8 photos,when pulled in by the police.Eva was released immediately and her 1934 police data card clearly states 'no criminal record'.Her registered occupation was a stenotypist.

Her widowed mother was a registered masseuse,but police checks cleared this of being an unsavory 'massage parlour' type operation.

Irving states that there was "no substantion for the legend that she was a 'police-registered prostitute';this is not to say that Hitler was not given that impression at the time."

Durand
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#15

Post by Durand » 25 Jul 2003, 13:32

Hallo,

Moulded wrote:
("involving an unidentified man and a wax candle")
I hope the candle was not lit. 8O :wink:

Thank you for the additional information.

By chance, do you know whether she ever had any children or when she died?

Regards,

Durand

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