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Wilhelm Franz Canaris
January 1, 1887 – April 9, 1945
Place of birth Aplerbeck, near Dortmund in Westphalia
Place of death Flossenbürg concentration camp
Allegiance German Empire
Weimar Republic
Nazi Germany
Service/branch Kaiserliche Marine
Reichsmarine
Abwehr
Years of service 1905 – 1944
Rank Admiral
Battles/wars World War I
World War II
Awards Iron Cross First and Second Class
Silver German Cross
Cross of Honor
Wehrmacht's Twelve and Twenty-Five Year Long-Service Ribbons. New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1887 ( MDCCCLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 193 - Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans) Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Dortmund (ˈdɔʁtmʊnt is a City in Germany, located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Westphalia (Westfalen) is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Bielefeld, Bochum, Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen, Münster Flossenbürg was a Nazi concentration camp built in May 1938 by the Schutzstaffel (SS Economic-Administrative Main Office at Flossenbürg, in the The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification The term Weimar Republic ( ˈvaɪmarɐ repuˈbliːk is used by historians to signify the democratic and Republican period of Germany from 1919 to 1933 Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The Kaiserliche Marine or Imperial Navy was the German Navy created by the formation of the German Empire. The Reichsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Weimar Republic and first two years of Nazi Germany. The Abwehr was a German intelligence organization from 1921 to 1944 Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks of the highest Naval officers World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including For other meanings please see Iron Cross (disambiguation The Iron Cross ( was a Military decoration of the Kingdom of Prussia The German Cross (Deutsches Kreuz was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 16 November 1941 as an award ranking higher than the Iron Cross First Class The Cross of Honour, also known as the Honour Cross or popularly the Hindenburg Cross, was a commemorative medal inaugurated on July 13, 1934

Wilhelm Franz Canaris (January 1, 1887 – April 9, 1945) was a German admiral and head of the Abwehr, the German military intelligence service, from 1935 to 1944. New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1887 ( MDCCCLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 193 - Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans) Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks of the highest Naval officers The Abwehr was a German intelligence organization from 1921 to 1944 Military intelligence (abbreviated MI int Commonwealth, or intel

Contents

Early life and World War I

Canaris was born in Aplerbeck, near Dortmund, in Westphalia, the son of wealthy industrialist Carl Canaris and his wife Auguste (née Popp). Dortmund (ˈdɔʁtmʊnt is a City in Germany, located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Westphalia (Westfalen) is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Bielefeld, Bochum, Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen, Münster Until 1938 Canaris believed that his family was related to the Greek admiral, freedom fighter and politician Constantine Kanaris, which influenced his decision to join the Navy. Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία Constantine Kanaris ( or Canaris, Greek: Κωνσταντίνος Κανάρης) (1793 or 1795September 14 1877 was a Greek admiral freedom While on a visit to Corfu he was given a portrait of the Greek hero, which he always kept in his office. Corfu (Κέρκυρα Kérkyra, ˈkʲe̞ɾkʲiɾa Κέρκυρα or Κόρκυρα Corcyra Corfù is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea In 1938, however, research showed that his family was of North Italian descent, originally called Canarisi, and had lived in Germany since the 17th century. [1] His grandfather had converted from Catholicism to Lutheranism.

In 1905, aged seventeen, Canaris joined the German Imperial Navy and by the outbreak of World War I had become an officer serving on board the SMS Dresden as intelligence officer. The Kaiserliche Marine or Imperial Navy was the German Navy created by the formation of the German Empire. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Service history At the outbreak of the war in 1914 the Dresden was preparing for the return journey to Germany This cruiser was the only ship that managed to evade the British Fleet for a prolonged period during the Battle of the Falkland Islands in December 1914, largely due to his excellent deception tactics. The Battle of the Falkland Islands was a British naval victory over the Imperial German Navy on 8 December 1914 during the First World War Whilst anchored in Cumberland Bay, the Dresden was trapped and forced to scuttle by the British. Most of the crew became prisoners in Chile in March 1915, but Canaris escaped in August 1915, using his perfect, fluent Spanish; with the aid of some German merchants he returned to Germany. Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the

He was then given intelligence work and sent to Spain, where he survived a British assassination attempt. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. AssassiNation is the sixth album by Krisiun, released in 2006 on Century Media. Returning to active service, he ended the war as a celebrated U-boat commander in the Mediterranean, credited with eighteen sinkings. U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word, itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot ( undersea boat) and refers The First Battle of the Atlantic ( 1914 &ndash 1918) was a naval campaign of World War I, largely fought in the seas around the British By that time he was an enemy on the top of the list of the MI6 secret service in England. The Secret Intelligence Service ( SIS) colloquially known as MI6 is the United Kingdom 's external Intelligence agency. He spoke English fluently (as well as four other foreign languages) and as a naval officer of the old school, he respected the British Navy despite the rivalry between the two nations.

In 1919 Canaris married Erika Waag, also the child of an industrialist. They had two daughters, Eva and Brigitte.

Interwar years

Canaris remained in the military after the war, first as a member of the Freikorps and then as part of the Reichsmarine. The designation of Freikorps ( German for "Free Corps " was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of 18th century The Reichsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Weimar Republic and first two years of Nazi Germany. He was promoted rapidly, becoming a Captain in 1931, the Executive Officer of the cruiser Berlin and then the Commanding Officer of the battleship Schlesien. While executive officer literally refers to a person responsible for the performance of duties involved in running an Organization, the exact meaning of the role is variable The commanding officer ( CO) is the officer in command of a Military unit. Design Dimensions and machinery Schlesien was at the waterline and overall During this time, he also became involved in intelligence work again. During this period, he made a series of contacts with high-ranking German officers, politicians and industrialists for the purpose of creating order in German politics. During his Freikorps period, he was on intimate terms with the people who were accused of political assassinations of leaders of the left, and was even accused himself, although later acquitted, of being involved in the assassinations and other crimes (such as his alleged involvement in Rosa Luxembourg's "trial"). The designation of Freikorps ( German for "Free Corps " was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of 18th century Rosa Luxemburg (Róża Luksemburg 5 March 1870 or 1871 15 January 1919 was a Polish-born Jewish German Marxist theorist, socialist During the 1930-33 period, Canaris was following a course quite parallel to the one followed by the future Nazi party leaders although never a party member himself. Indirectly, though, he promoted the forces that later became part of the Nazi power structure.

After Adolf Hitler's rise to power in 1933, Canaris was made head of the Abwehr, Germany's official military intelligence agency, on January 1, 1935. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately Machtergreifung ( is a German word meaning "seizure of power" The Abwehr was a German intelligence organization from 1921 to 1944 New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1935 ( MCMXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Later that year, he was promoted to Rear Admiral. During the period 1935-36, he made contacts in Spain to organize a German spy network there. His excellent Spanish made him the very man for the job. He was the moving force behind the decision that sided Germany with Francisco Franco during the Spanish Civil War, despite Hitler's initial hesitation to get involved in such an adventure. Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco y Bahamonde (born December 4, 1892 in Ferrol, died November 20, 1975 in Madrid The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted Coup d'état committed by parts of the army against the government of In 1937 he was still a supporter of Hitler, considering him to be the only solution against communism and a hope for the national revival of Germany. By 1938, however, he had realised that Hitler's policies and plans would lead Germany to disaster and secretly began to work against the régime. His personal style as a gentleman was incompatible with the thuggish behaviour of most of the Nazi party members. A letter from a Spanish contact of his has been preserved and unambiguously confirms his opposition to the Nazi regime. He tried to hinder Hitler's attempts to absorb Czechoslovakia and advised Franco not to permit German passage through Spain for the purposes of capturing Gibraltar. Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Gibraltar (dʒɨˈbrɒltər is a British overseas territory located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar According to written sources, all of Franco’s arguments on this stance were studied and dictated in detail by Canaris, and that simultaneously, an important sum of money had been deposited by the British on Swiss accounts for Franco and his generals to further convince them to be neutral. [2]

He also became involved in two abortive plots to assassinate Hitler, first in 1938 and again in 1939. His most audacious attempt was in planning, with Ewald von Kleist-Schmenzin, to capture and eliminate Hitler and the entire Nazi party before the invasion of Austria. Ewald Von Kleist -Schmenzin ( 22 March, 1890 – 9 April, 1945) was a Lawyer, a conservative Politician At this particular moment, von Kleist visited England secretly and discussed the situation with British MI6 and some high ranking politicians. There, the name of Canaris became widely known as the executive hand of von Kleist in the event of an anti-Nazi plot. The high ranking German military leaders believed that if Hitler invaded Austria, or any other country, then England would declare war on Germany. MI6 was of the same opinion. However, the British reaction to the eventual Austrian Anschluss (and Hitler's annexation of the Sudetenland) was more cautious. The ( German: "link-up" also known as the, was the 1938 Annexation of Austria into Greater Germany by the Nazi Sudetenland ( Czech and Polish: Sudety) is the German name used in English in the first half of the 20th century for the western regions of At a meeting with Hitler in Munich, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain chose diplomacy over war. The Munich Agreement (Mnichovská dohoda Mníchovská dohoda Münchner Abkommen Accords de Munich was an agreement regarding the Sudetenland, which were areas along borders Arthur Neville Chamberlain (18 March 1869 &ndash 9 November 1940 was a British Conservative Politician and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Munich was a severe disappointment for Kleist and Canaris. It gave Hitler's international reputation an important boost for two reasons: one, he was able to play the part of a man of reason and compromise; and two, he could boast that his predictions that England would not respond with war had proven to be correct. There are claims that Canaris, who was extremely shocked by this 'dishonest and stupid decision' (his own words), decided to be cautious and wait for a better time to act against Hitler. Nevertheless, it appears likely that MI6 maintained contact with Canaris even after the Munich Agreement. When Winston Churchill came to power, Canaris' hopes were renewed, given the new Prime Minister's strong position against Hitler. Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC, PC (Can ( 30 November 1874

World War II

In the meantime, Reinhard Heydrich, previously a naval cadet who had served under Canaris and was at the time the Sicherheitsdienst (SD) leader, despite being his protegé, friend and neighbour, became his rival. Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich ( 7 March 1904 &ndash 4 June 1942) was an SS - Obergruppenführer, chief The Sicherheitsdienst (SD Security Service was primarily the Intelligence service of the SS and the NSDAP. Presumably, the Canaris posting in Abwehr had the secret approval of the dynamic Heydrich, who preferred him to his predecessor, Commander Pfatz, who was not in line with the Nazi party members. Heydrich wanted a controllable Abwehr and was keeping a close eye on Canaris. Canaris appeared outwardly to side with his friend Heydrich, but only in order to give Abwehr a chance to grow and become a considerable force. In Bassett's account,[3] Canaris was deeply frustrated by a briefing by Hitler before the attack on Poland. During the briefing, he was informed about a series of exterminations that had been ordered and which Canaris was required to take notes on. These notes, the book confirms, were sent to MI6. After the outbreak of war between Germany and Poland in 1939, Canaris visited the front and witnessed examples of the war crimes committed by the SS Einsatzgruppen. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland War crimes are "violations of the laws or customs of war" including but not limited to "murder the ill-treatment or deportation of civilian residents of an occupied The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the Einsatzgruppen ( German: "task forces" "intervention groups" were Paramilitary groups formed by Heinrich Himmler and Among these were the burning of the synagogue in Będzin and how the town's Jewish residents were burned to death. A synagogue (from Greek: grc συναγωγή transliterated synagogē, "assembly" he בית כנסת beit knesset, "house of Będzin ( Bendin בענדין Bendzin is a town in Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ He also received reports from Abwehr agents about many other incidents of mass murder throughout Poland. This article deals with mass killings that are not considered Genocide.

Shocked by these incidents, Canaris began working more actively, at increasing risk, to overthrow Hitler's régime, although he cooperated with the SD to create a decoy. This made it possible for him to pose as a trusted man for some time. He was promoted to full Admiral in January 1940. With his subordinate Erwin Lahousen, he formed a circle of like-minded Wehrmacht officers, many of whom would be executed or forced to commit suicide after the failure of the July 20 Plot. Generalmajor Erwin von Lahousen (1897 - 1955 was a high-ranking Abwehr official during World War II, as well as a member of the German Resistance and a Wehrmacht (literally "defense force" was the name of the unified Armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945 Forced suicide is a method of Execution where the victim is given the choice of committing Suicide or facing an alternative they perceive as worse such as suffering It has been speculated that there was contact with British intelligence during this time, despite the war between the two countries. It is thought that during the invasion of Russia, Canaris received a detailed report of all the enemy positions that was known only to the British. The head of MI6, Stewart Menzies, who shared Canaris’s strong anti-communist beliefs, praised Canaris’s courage and bravery at the end of the war. The Secret Intelligence Service ( SIS) colloquially known as MI6 is the United Kingdom 's external Intelligence agency. Major General Sir Stewart Graham Menzies, KCB, KCMG, DSO, MC (pronounced "mingis" with a hard 'g' ( 30 January Reinhard Heydrich and Heinrich Himmler, however, investigated in detail the sources of Canaris's information on Operation Barbarossa, arriving at the conclusion that there had indeed been contact between him and the British. Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich ( 7 March 1904 &ndash 4 June 1942) was an SS - Obergruppenführer, chief Heinrich Luitpold Himmler ( 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945 was a Nazi German politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II After 1942, Canaris visited Spain frequently and was probably in contact with British agents from Gibraltar. In 1944, he also secretly met Allied agents in occupied France trying to find a way to end the war before the total collapse of his country.

During Heydrich's posting in Prague, a serious incident put him and Canaris in open conflict. Prague (ˈprɑːg Praha (ˈpraɦa see also other names) is the Capital and Largest city of the Czech Republic. A British agent - the Czech Paul Thümmel - was arrested by Heydrich, but Canaris intervened to save him, claiming he was a double agent actually working for Abwehr. Heydrich suspected that Thümmel was actually Canaris's MI6 contact. Heydrich requested that Canaris put the Abwehr under SD and SS control. Canaris appeared to retreat and handled the situation diplomatically, but there was no immediate effect on the Abwehr for the time being. In fact, Canaris had established another two links with the MI6 - one via Zurich, and the other via Spain and Gibraltar. It is also possible that Vatican contacts provided a third route to his British counterparts.

Canaris also intervened to save a number of victims of Nazi persecution, including hundreds of Jews. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual/group by another group Many such people were given token training as Abwehr "agents" and then issued papers allowing them to leave Germany. One notable person he is said to have assisted was the then Lubavitcher Rebbe in Warsaw, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneersohn[4]. Rebbe (רבי (pronounced in English which means master teacher or mentor is a Yiddish word derived from the identical Hebrew word Rabbi Warsaw (Warszawa; also known by other names) is the Capital and Largest city of Poland. Rabbi (pronunciation, although in English usually) in Judaism, means a religious ‘teacher’ or more literally ‘my great one’ when addressing any master Yosef Yitzchok (Joseph Isaac Schneersohn (יוסף יצחק שניאורסאהן  9 June, 1880 OS - 28 January 1950 NS The assassination of Reinhard Heydrich in Prague, organized by MI6, was done in part to preserve Canaris in his important position. Operation Anthropoid was the code name for the Assassination of top German leader Reinhard Heydrich.

Downfall and execution

The evidence that he was playing a double game grew, and at the insistence of Heinrich Himmler, who had suspected him for a long time, Hitler dismissed Canaris from the Abwehr in February 1944, replacing him with Walter Schellenberg and merging most of the Abwehr with the Sicherheitsdienst (SD). Heinrich Luitpold Himmler ( 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945 was a Nazi German politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS. Walter (correctly Walther) Friedrich Schellenberg ( January 16[[ 910]] &ndash March 31[[ 952]] was a German Nazi who The Sicherheitsdienst (SD Security Service was primarily the Intelligence service of the SS and the NSDAP. Some weeks later, Canaris was put under house arrest, preventing him from taking part directly in the July 20 Plot to assassinate Hitler. In Justice and Law, house arrest (also called home confinement, home detention, or electronic monitoring) is a measure by which However, just after the Stalingrad disaster, Canaris had already planned a 'coup' against the entire Nazi regime in which many Nazi officials would be accused for known crimes, while Hitler would be arrested as an insane person based on his exposure to poison gas in World War I, then imprisoned for life. After the July 20 Plot, Canaris's long-time rival, SS leader Heinrich Himmler discovered that one of the officers involved in the plot, a friend of Canaris' who committed suicide, had kept the plot details in a metal box. The investigations also revealed that a number of other assassination plots (possibly another 10 or 15) had been activated but had failed and were covered up at the last minute. Most people who participated in these plots were people Canaris knew well. Himmler kept Canaris alive for some time because he planned to use him secretly as a future contact with the British in order to come to an agreement to end the war with himself as the leader of Germany. Hitler also wanted to keep him alive in order to get the names of additional conspirators. When Himmler's plan failed to materialize, he received the approval of Hitler to send Canaris to an SS drumhead court-martial that sentenced him to death. A drumhead court-martial is a Court-martial held in the field to hear urgent charges of offences committed in action

Together with his deputy General Hans Oster, military jurist General Karl Sack, theologian Rev. Hans Oster ( August 9, 1887 &ndash April 9, 1945) was deputy head of the Abwehr, under Wilhelm Canaris, and a dedicated Karl Sack (born June 9, 1896 in Bosenheim (now Bad Kreuznach) executed April 9, 1945 in Flossenbürg concentration camp Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Ludwig Gehre, Canaris was humiliated before witnesses and then executed on April 9, 1945, a few weeks before the end of the war. Dietrich Bonhoeffer ˈdiːtrɪç ˈboːnhøfɐ ( February 4, 1906 &ndash April 9, 1945) was a German Lutheran Ludwig Gehre (born 1895 October 5 in Düsseldorf; died 1945 April 9 in Flossenbürg concentration camp) was an officer Events 193 - Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans) Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar At the time of his execution, Canaris had been decorated with the Iron Cross First and Second Class, the Silver German Cross, the Cross of Honor and the Wehrmacht's Twelve and Twenty-Five Year Long-Service Ribbons. For other meanings please see Iron Cross (disambiguation The Iron Cross ( was a Military decoration of the Kingdom of Prussia The German Cross (Deutsches Kreuz was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 16 November 1941 as an award ranking higher than the Iron Cross First Class The Cross of Honour, also known as the Honour Cross or popularly the Hindenburg Cross, was a commemorative medal inaugurated on July 13, 1934

Erwin Lahousen and Hans Bernd Gisevius, two of Canaris' main subordinates, survived the war and testified during the Nuremberg Trials about Canaris' courage in opposing Hitler. Hans Bernd Gisevius ( July 14, 1904 &ndash February 23, 1974) was a German Diplomat and intelligence officer during The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after Lahousen recalled a conversation between Canaris and General Wilhelm Keitel in which Canaris warned Keitel that the German military would be held responsible for the atrocities in Poland. Wilhelm Bodewin Johann Gustav Keitel (22 September 1882–16 October 1946 was a German Field marshal ( Generalfeldmarschall) Keitel responded that they had been ordered by Hitler. Keitel, who also survived the war, was found guilty of war crimes at Nuremberg and hanged.

Popular culture

References

  1. ^ Richard Bassett, Hitler's Spy Chief: The Wilhelm Canaris Mystery (Cassell 2005), 65. A family tree prepared in 1938, showing the Canaris family's Italian origin, is in his family papers.
  2. ^ Bassett, 2005.
  3. ^ ibid.
  4. ^ Altein, R, Zaklikofsky, E, Jacobson, I: "Out of the Inferno: The Efforts That Led to the Rescue of Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn of Lubavitch from War Torn Europe in 1939-40", page 160. Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch, 2002 ISBN 0826606830
  5. ^ Canaris IMDb link

External links

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