Rudolf Nadolny
Rudolf Nadolny | |
|---|---|
 Rudolf Nadolny in 1917 | |
| Born | 12 July 1873 |
| Died | 18 May 1953 (aged 79) Düsseldorf-Benrath, Germany |
| Occupation | Diplomat |
| Children | Burkard Nadolny |
Rudolf Nadolny (12 July 1873 – 18 May 1953) was a German diplomat. He was the German Ambassador to Turkey (1924–1933) and the Soviet Union (1933–1934) and head of the German delegation at the World Disarmament Conference (1932–1933). Nadolny left the diplomatic service in opposition to Hitler's policy towards the Soviet Union.
Biography
Nadolny was born in Groß Stürlack, East Prussia (modern Sterławki Wielkie, Poland) to Heinrich (1847–1944) and Agnes Nadolny née Trinker (1847–1910). His father's family had been landowners in East Prussia since the 14th century. His mother's ancestors were Protestant exiles from Salzburg.[1][2]
Nadolny passed his Abitur at the gymnasium (school) of Rastenburg in 1892 and studied law at the University of Königsberg. Nadolny joined the German diplomatic service in 1902 and was deployed in St. Petersburg in 1903 -1907 where he witnessed the Russian Revolution of 1905 and the Russo-Japanese War. Nadolny was then sent to Persia, Bosnia and Albania.[1][3]
In World War I Nadolny led the section "politics" of the German General Staff. In July 1916 he became the German chargé d'affaires in Persia but returned to Germany in November 1917 to serve as the acting head of the Eastern department of the German Foreign Office. As such Nadolny took part in the negotiations which led to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.[1]
At the end of World War I, he was the Foreign Office's representative at the Office of the German President. From January 1920 he led the German legation in Stockholm and became German ambassador to Turkey in May 1924.[1]
From February 1932 to October 1933, Nadolny was the head of the German delegation at the World Disarmament Conference in Geneva. In November 1928, after the death of Ulrich von Brockdorff-Rantzau, the German ambassador in Moscow, Nadolny applied for this post but his efforts were vetoed by Gustav Stresemann. However, Nadolny became the German ambassador to the Soviet Union in autumn 1933. His attempts to enhance German–Soviet relations on the basis of the Treaty of Rapallo (1922) were largely unsuccessful as this contradicted Hitler's policy. Nadolny argued against the German–Polish Non-Aggression Pact of 1934 because of its influence on German–Soviet relations.[4] In a conference with Hitler, Nadolny pointed out that in his view close ties with Russia were of essential interest, while Hitler rejected any compromise with Bolshevism. The meeting, which was described as a "stormy one", ended with Hitler declaring the conversation finished while Nadolny answered that "the conversation had just begun".[5] On another occasion he addressed Hitler as "Herr Reichskanzler", as opposed to the common "Mein Führer", and refused to use the Nazi salute.[6] Nadolny resigned on 16 June 1934 and worked as an administrator of an estate. In World War II he served as a Captain and later Major at the Wehrmacht's High Command and in Admiral Canaris' staff.[1]
In 1945 Nadolny, without a compromising Nazi party affiliation, became President of the German Red Cross and was active in the "Society for the German reunification" and the "German Unity Association". With the growing tensions between the Western Allies and the Soviets, Nadolny was sometimes seen as a Soviet agent and generally mistrusted.[1][6]
During the Blockade of Berlin in 1948/49 Nadolny moved to West Germany. He died in 1953 in Düsseldorf.[1][6]
Family
Nadolny married Änny Matthiessen (1882–1977) in 1905. Burkard Nadolny (1905–68) was their son and Sten Nadolny their grandson.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Biography" (in German). Neue Deutsche Biographie.
- ^ "Biography" (in German). Bundesarchiv.
- ^ Adams, Jefferson (2009). Historical Dictionary of German Intelligence. Rowman&Littlefield. p. 315. ISBN 978-0-8108-5543-4.
- ^ Young, William (1994). German Diplomatic relations 1871–1945; The Wilhelmstrasse and the Formulation of Foreign Policy. pp. 199, 200. ISBN 978-0-595-40706-4.
- ^ Craig, Gordon A.; Gilbert, Felix (1994). The diplomats, 1919–1939. Princeton University Press. p. 417. ISBN 0691036608.
- ^ a b c "Die Lieb' zum Vaterland". Der Spiegel (in German). April 1951.