Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production
Speaker 1: of I Heart Radio. Hello, and welcome to the podcast.
Speaker 1: I'm Holly Fry and I'm tra Phoebe Wilson. Hey. Fair
Speaker 1: warning you guys, this is not a particularly fun episode. Uh.
Speaker 1: It is, in fact, I'm fun. Uh. It is the
Speaker 1: story of Mildred fish Harnack, who was a woman from
Speaker 1: Wisconsin who found herself at the center of a resistance
Speaker 1: group working to undermine the Nazis in Germany as Hitler
Speaker 1: came to power and catalyzed World War Two. While it
Speaker 1: is not fun, it's an important story because it offers
Speaker 1: a glimpse into some of the ways that the historical
Speaker 1: record can get blurry, simply because in some cases there
Speaker 1: are people trying to do the right thing and having
Speaker 1: to cover their tracks, and as a consequence, their own
Speaker 1: life stories kind of get blurry enough that they can
Speaker 1: become tools of propaganda as a result. So that is
Speaker 1: the story that we are telling to day. Uh. Like
Speaker 1: I said, it's not a super upbeat one. So if
Speaker 1: you're in a place where a downer is gonna make
Speaker 1: you have a bad day, maybe save this one. It
Speaker 1: will still be here waiting for you. When you get back. So.
Speaker 1: Mildred was born Mildred Elizabeth Fish on September sixteenth, nineteen
Speaker 1: o two. Although her birth certificate lists heer's name is
Speaker 1: simply Maddie Fish. Her parents, William C. And Georgina Fish,
Speaker 1: had three other children. They were Harriet, Marian, and mar Beau,
Speaker 1: and they raised their family in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Mildred went
Speaker 1: by Millie growing up, and because of the family lived
Speaker 1: in a city with a large German population, she learned
Speaker 1: to speak German. Yeah, she could also read and write it.
Speaker 1: And the family moved around quite a bit, and that
Speaker 1: was because William, who was an insurance agent, kind of
Speaker 1: struggled to keep up financially and he often couldn't make rents,
Speaker 1: so they would just pick up and move over time.
Speaker 1: His problems with money led William and Georgina to become
Speaker 1: a strange so he was not really living with the
Speaker 1: family for most of high school. Milly attended West Division
Speaker 1: High School, which has since changed names to Milwaukee High
Speaker 1: School of the Arts. Prior to her senior year, however,
Speaker 1: her father, William died and Georgina and the children moved
Speaker 1: to Chevy Chase, Maryland. Georgina had taken classes to learn
Speaker 1: things like shorthand and taking dictation, so she was able
Speaker 1: to secure a good job in Washington, d c. That
Speaker 1: enabled her to provide for the family on her own.
Speaker 1: Millie completed high school at Western High School in Baltimore, Maryland,
Speaker 1: attending in the nineteen eighteen to nineteen nineteen school year
Speaker 1: as a senior. And even though she only spent that
Speaker 1: one year in school in Maryland, Millie did not seem
Speaker 1: to have any problems with jumping into a variety of
Speaker 1: school activities. She played sports, both baseball and basketball. She
Speaker 1: acted in the senior play, and she also edited the
Speaker 1: school paper, which was right in line with her career
Speaker 1: goal of becoming a writer. Throughout her early years, she
Speaker 1: wrote poetry and she became skilled as a writer of
Speaker 1: both verse and prose. And when she wrapped up her
Speaker 1: whirlwind final year of high school, she attended First George
Speaker 1: Washington University, but she missed Wisconsin and so she transferred
Speaker 1: to the University of Wisconsin Madison to complete her degree,
Speaker 1: which she did in During her undergrad years, Mildred seems
Speaker 1: to have been the kind of person that you'd love
Speaker 1: to meet. She became part of a group known as
Speaker 1: the Friday Night Ers. This was a progressive circle of
Speaker 1: friends and intellectuals who met to socialize to discuss issues
Speaker 1: such as women's equality and labor rights. One of the
Speaker 1: other things Mildred did during college was to memorize the
Speaker 1: first book of the Iliad in Greek. She was able
Speaker 1: to recite the entire thing. This was something that her
Speaker 1: professors occasionally had her do for their classes after she graduated.
Speaker 1: It's one of those mind blowing things. To me. I
Speaker 1: can't imagine ever being able to do it. Uh. With
Speaker 1: her bachelor's degree in hand, Mildred continued into graduate studies
Speaker 1: also at the University of Wisconsin Madison, which she completed
Speaker 1: in nine. Her senior thesis was titled a Comparison of
Speaker 1: Chapman's and Pope's translations of the Iliad with the original
Speaker 1: and during that time in graduate school, she had also
Speaker 1: worked on the Wisconsin Literary Magazine as an editor, and
Speaker 1: she also taught English at the university, and it was
Speaker 1: while teaching that she met her future husband. The meat
Speaker 1: cute story for Mildred and Arvid Harnack goes like this. Harnack,
Speaker 1: who was from Germany and was studying in the US
Speaker 1: as a Rockefeller scholar, accidentally ended up in the wrong
Speaker 1: classroom in the wrong building. That classroom was where Mildred
Speaker 1: was teaching, and Arvid was immediately taken with her. When
Speaker 1: the class was over. According to the story, Arvid introduced
Speaker 1: himself and he and Mildred each apologized, he for his
Speaker 1: halting English and she for her rusty German. So they
Speaker 1: decided that they would study together so that they could
Speaker 1: each improve their fluency, and this very quickly blossomed into
Speaker 1: more of a date situation than study time. Arvid immediately
Speaker 1: wrote to his family that he had met someone special
Speaker 1: and he would continue to write to his mother about
Speaker 1: the dates that he and Mildred went on, and then
Speaker 1: on June n six, he wrote quote, I am very
Speaker 1: happy I've got engaged. The whole thing is actually very curious,
Speaker 1: because I can hardly speak English and Mildred knows no German.
Speaker 1: I made up my mind when I saw her for
Speaker 1: the second time. We got engaged yesterday. This engagement was
Speaker 1: pretty short, just two months. Mildred and Arvid were married
Speaker 1: on August seven, nine six. That was two days after
Speaker 1: Mildred completed her exam for her master's degree. Per Arvid's
Speaker 1: letter to his family quote, we celebrated the wedding on
Speaker 1: her brother's farm. A large part of the Fish family
Speaker 1: was gathered there. Mildred's mother is simple and yet very fine.
Speaker 1: We arrived at the farm at five p and Mildred
Speaker 1: and I left again at nine p. We were married
Speaker 1: on the farm by father Johnston, methodist of his couple
Speaker 1: of church. He made it short and painless. In a
Speaker 1: very progressive move for the time, Mildred hyphenated her last
Speaker 1: name to Fish Harnack rather than taking Arvid's last name.
Speaker 1: I love how kind of just direct his letters are.
Speaker 1: He manages to be both very clearly like into her
Speaker 1: and yet not super florid and romantic in his writing style.
Speaker 1: It's kind of adorable. So for the nine school year,
Speaker 1: Mildred taught English in Baltimore at Goucher College. Arvid's fellowship
Speaker 1: ended and he returned to Germany, initially by himself. Mildred
Speaker 1: joined him in nine and she fit right in with
Speaker 1: his family, who, like Mildred, valued education, and she became
Speaker 1: very close with Arvid's sisters. Mildred wanted to continue her
Speaker 1: studies to get a doctorate degree, and she did so
Speaker 1: in her new home country. The couple moved away from
Speaker 1: the Harnack home to Berlin in nine thirty, and she
Speaker 1: got a job at the university, teaching English language literature
Speaker 1: classes while also working towards her doctorate. That made her
Speaker 1: not only one of the first Americans ever to teach there,
Speaker 1: but it also made her a colleague of Albert Einstein,
Speaker 1: who was also on the faculty. Of course, if you're
Speaker 1: doing the math in terms of timeline, that decision to
Speaker 1: move to Germany at the end of the nineteen twenties
Speaker 1: meant that Mildred and Arvid were there as Hitler's rise
Speaker 1: to power was gaining momentum, and they were, of course
Speaker 1: troubled by it. Soon, their gatherings of friends to discuss
Speaker 1: intellectual matters evolved into a resistance group. Mildred, as a
Speaker 1: woman and a foreigner, lost her job. It also seems
Speaker 1: that part of the problem was that she was not
Speaker 1: aligned with the ruling Nazi party. She was able to
Speaker 1: find work after that, but it was all sort of
Speaker 1: piecemeal teaching, tutoring and translation work. None of it was
Speaker 1: particularly lucrative. But Mildred was an ardent lover of literature,
Speaker 1: so She continued to both translate German works into English
Speaker 1: and to share the works of US writers like Faulkner
Speaker 1: and Thomas Wolfe, who she met a one point with
Speaker 1: her German students. Arvid was an economist. In the fallout
Speaker 1: from the US market crash, he felt that capitalism was
Speaker 1: a troubled economic structure, and he became fascinated with Marxism
Speaker 1: and communism. He formed a study group that traveled to
Speaker 1: Moscow in ninety two. That was a moment that might
Speaker 1: have led to him being approached by Soviet agents about
Speaker 1: sharing information on what was happening in Germany, but this
Speaker 1: also meant that he had to become more and more secretive.
Speaker 1: As both paths of his double life widened. He rose
Speaker 1: through the ranks of the economics ministry, and soon he
Speaker 1: was actively using the knowledge that he gained there to
Speaker 1: help Germany's enemies. Both Mildred and Arvid also joined the
Speaker 1: Nazi Party. This was so Mildred could continue to find
Speaker 1: work and so Arvid could continue to work in the
Speaker 1: economics ministry and just learn as much as he could.
Speaker 1: They also both started working with a resistance group that
Speaker 1: fought the Nazi regime in a number of ways. First,
Speaker 1: they published a secret newsletter in Berlin to try to
Speaker 1: warn people about the dangers of Hitler's regime. If you
Speaker 1: listen to the episode in the archives about the White
Speaker 1: Rose by previous hosts, you know that printing a newsletter
Speaker 1: was inherently dangerous. Obtaining enough paper to print such things
Speaker 1: automatically aroused suspicions, so even this seemingly simple act took
Speaker 1: a great deal of stealth planning and smuggling of needed materials. Second,
Speaker 1: as we mentioned a moment ago, they started sending information
Speaker 1: to Germany's enemies, both the US and Soviet Union. By
Speaker 1: giving information they had to contacts at the embassies for
Speaker 1: those countries in Berlin. Mildred was close friends with Martha Dodd,
Speaker 1: the daughter of the US ambassador stationed in Berlin, and
Speaker 1: Arvin had professional connections to the embassies through his work.
Speaker 1: In a moment, we're going to talk about some of
Speaker 1: the other resistance efforts of Mildred and her husband, but
Speaker 1: first we will pause for a sponsor break. We mentioned
Speaker 1: before the break that both of the har Knacks joined
Speaker 1: the Nazi Party so that they could continue their work,
Speaker 1: but that also meant that they could continue to meet
Speaker 1: with their friends without arousing suspicion, and that meant they
Speaker 1: could keep planning their resistance strategies. Mildred, like her husband,
Speaker 1: used her work as part of their anti Nazi efforts.
Speaker 1: She actually started recruiting students to the cause, and she
Speaker 1: also used her translating work in the publishing industry, which
Speaker 1: required business trips around Europe, to make contacts in other
Speaker 1: countries who were sympathetic to Germans trying to fight their
Speaker 1: dictatorship from within. There is evidence that Mildred helped Jews
Speaker 1: escape from Germany, but exactly what she was doing to
Speaker 1: do this, or how she got anyone out, is a
Speaker 1: little bit unclear. It is highly possible that her personal
Speaker 1: connection to the US embassy probably greased the wheels to
Speaker 1: getting at least some people out with travel visas. And
Speaker 1: throughout all of this they continued to document Nazi violence
Speaker 1: and to write anti Hitler tracts, and they became part
Speaker 1: of the larger affiliation of loosely connected groups that got
Speaker 1: the umbrella nickname Red Orchestra. That name, to be clear,
Speaker 1: was not a name that they used, It was one
Speaker 1: that the Nazis assigned to them. It was wrote a
Speaker 1: cappelle in German, and that translates literally to red chapel
Speaker 1: or red band. The name arose because the Soviet code
Speaker 1: for a radio operator was a musician, and the transmitters
Speaker 1: were called music boxes. The Soviets had supplied radios to
Speaker 1: the resistance groups in Berlin. It's still a little bit
Speaker 1: unclear how much any of those radios actually got used.
Speaker 1: I there's one documentary that interviewed some researchers that said
Speaker 1: that like the effort had gone awry, like they didn't
Speaker 1: really know how to use them, but uh, this still
Speaker 1: kind of all got amalgamated into their name and in
Speaker 1: their work with the orchestra, they shared information about Germany's
Speaker 1: finances gained largely through Arvid's work. Information about very as
Speaker 1: companies and their contracts made their way to the US
Speaker 1: and Soviet intelligence agencies, so data regarding the allocation of
Speaker 1: assets could help predict Germany's movement. In nine thirty seven,
Speaker 1: Mildred and Arvid took a trip to the US. This
Speaker 1: was a work trip for Arvid. The US was not
Speaker 1: yet at war with Germany, and Mildred arranged a concurrent
Speaker 1: lecture tour with a topic titled the German relation to
Speaker 1: current American literature. This trip was also arranged because Mildred's mother, Georgina,
Speaker 1: was ill at the time. Arvid was willing to share
Speaker 1: information about German activities, but he was running into a problem.
Speaker 1: As a member of the Nazi Party. It was naturally
Speaker 1: assumed that he was a Nazi, and while the US
Speaker 1: wasn't in the war at this time, that didn't exactly
Speaker 1: make anyone in the US government feel especially comfortable trusting him. Additionally,
Speaker 1: both Mildred and her husband believed that they might have
Speaker 1: been followed by German spies, so they couldn't exactly reveal
Speaker 1: that their affiliation with the party was strictly for show.
Speaker 1: Arvid was known for his economic study of communism, so
Speaker 1: there was a whole second layer of distrust at play.
Speaker 1: Also in ninety seven, once they returned to Germany, there
Speaker 1: was a personnel change at the U. S Embassy. William
Speaker 1: Edward Dodd, whose daughter had been close with Mildred, stepped
Speaker 1: down from his position and he was replaced by Hugh R. Wilson.
Speaker 1: Mildred and Arvid became good friends with the embassy's new
Speaker 1: first Secretary, Donald R. Heath, as well as his family,
Speaker 1: and he understood that they were Nazi party in paperwork
Speaker 1: only as a ruse, and as tensions mounted in Berlin,
Speaker 1: Mildred started tutoring he son, Donald Jr. And it was
Speaker 1: through him that she and Arvid were able to pass
Speaker 1: information to the US. It wasn't only Arvid's work that
Speaker 1: provided intelligence. At one point Mildred was tutoring a German
Speaker 1: soldier who, as he came to trust her, became a
Speaker 1: little loose lipped on military matters. With this and the
Speaker 1: military spending information gained through Arvid's post, they were able
Speaker 1: to share critical information regarding Germany's rearmament, which was a
Speaker 1: violation of the Treaty of Versailles. In Berlin. They also
Speaker 1: disseminated information to other members of the resistance. Mildred illegally
Speaker 1: accessed in transcribed foreign radio broadcasts so others in the
Speaker 1: movement could know what was happening outside of Germany and
Speaker 1: how Hitler's regime was being seen beyond their borders. As
Speaker 1: part of their effort to keep a low profile. As
Speaker 1: their involvement with the resistance effort escalated, the Harnacks moved
Speaker 1: to a new home on the outskirts of the City,
Speaker 1: and in their work with the Rhetor Orchestra that Harnacks
Speaker 1: worked closely with Haro Schiltze Boizen It's a German Air
Speaker 1: Ministry intelligence officer and initially Arvid Harnack thought Schiltze Boizen
Speaker 1: was really too dangerous to work with, but he did
Speaker 1: have a history of anti Nazi work. His revolutionary views
Speaker 1: had gotten him arrested by the Essay when he was younger.
Speaker 1: He came to their attention running a leftist periodical called Gegner,
Speaker 1: which translates to Opponent. After being beaten severely and having
Speaker 1: swastikas carved into his legs, among other tortures which led
Speaker 1: to hospitalization, he was finally released through the influence of
Speaker 1: his socialite mother. His co editor, Henry er Lange, who
Speaker 1: was half Jewish, did not survive this encounter. Schiltza Voisen
Speaker 1: is often reported as saying, after this horrific event quote,
Speaker 1: I have put my revenge on ice. It was after
Speaker 1: that he enrolled in pilot school and joined the German military,
Speaker 1: again through his parents influence and apparently true to his word,
Speaker 1: because as he appeared the perfect soldier and officer, he
Speaker 1: was actually collecting intelligence and feeding it to the spy ring.
Speaker 1: He eventually earned a degree of trust from Harnack and Mildred.
Speaker 1: As the nineteen thirties came to a close, Arvid had
Speaker 1: grown increasingly worried for Mildred's safety because of her foreigner status.
Speaker 1: He bought her an open ticket to return to the
Speaker 1: US abort a steamship. She refused us to go, but
Speaker 1: kept the ticket with her at all times. Her belief
Speaker 1: was that she had work to do in Germany, and
Speaker 1: she also just didn't want to leave her husband's side.
Speaker 1: In the months leading up to June, the Red Orchestra
Speaker 1: warned Soviet agents repeatedly about the impending Operation Barbarossa that
Speaker 1: was Hitler's plan to invade the Soviet Union, but those
Speaker 1: warnings were not heated, and the initial attacks took the
Speaker 1: Soviet military by surprise from the top down in the structure.
Speaker 1: And for people that were involved in the Red Orchestra,
Speaker 1: who had really gone to great effort and endangered themselves
Speaker 1: and their families to share this intelligence with the Soviets,
Speaker 1: this whole thing was incredibly frustrating. Meanwhile, the Heaths had
Speaker 1: been recalled from the US embassy just before the bombing,
Speaker 1: of Pearl Harbor led to the US joining the war.
Speaker 1: The embassy in Berlin was empty and the network of
Speaker 1: informants that had once connected through it was broken. Ultimately,
Speaker 1: the Red Orchestra was compromised in the fall of ninety
Speaker 1: two biaus sloppy move on the part of the Soviets.
Speaker 1: They reached out to a contact in Brussels via radio
Speaker 1: and relayed the names and addresses of the Harnacks as
Speaker 1: well as other associates advising resistance in Brussels, that they
Speaker 1: should contact them in Berlin. That communication was intercepted by
Speaker 1: the Germans. The Nazis quickly moved to arrest all of
Speaker 1: the members, eventually taking hundreds into custody. Yeah, we're not
Speaker 1: going super deep into the Red Orchestra itself, but there
Speaker 1: were like it's usually laid out as like three pockets,
Speaker 1: and so the Berlin pocket was the one obviously that
Speaker 1: the Harnacks were part of. But they were moving to
Speaker 1: arrest huge groups of people kind of across the resistance
Speaker 1: efforts throughout Europe. Mildred and Arvid went to the Baltic coast,
Speaker 1: and there's been speculation that they may have intended to
Speaker 1: try to escape to Sweden, knowing that they had been
Speaker 1: compromised and were in danger, but if they were making
Speaker 1: an escape attempt that failed. They were instead arrested at
Speaker 1: the Gestapo at the cottage that they had rented in
Speaker 1: a seaside fishing town. Mildred was still carrying the ticket
Speaker 1: Arvid had bought her for passage to North America with
Speaker 1: the Transatlantic shipping company United States Lines. The Harnacks were
Speaker 1: taken to the Gestapo headquarters and interrogated by Nazi agents
Speaker 1: known for their use of torture. Mildred was placed in
Speaker 1: Charlottenburg Women's Prison, and she was interrogated every day. We're
Speaker 1: about to move into the Harnack's time after they were captured,
Speaker 1: but before we get into that, we're going to take
Speaker 1: a quick break and here from the sponsors that keep
Speaker 1: Stuffy miss in history class going. The Harnack's trials were swift,
Speaker 1: and they were not particularly interested in actually weighing the evidence.
Speaker 1: That was also true for other members of the Red
Speaker 1: Orchestra that had been captured. The Germans had long known
Speaker 1: that there had to be a spy ring with a
Speaker 1: branch operating in Berlin, and as Red Orchestra was un yield,
Speaker 1: they felt justified in pursuing the harshest possible penalties for
Speaker 1: that activity. Nazi judge Manfred Rhoder oversaw the trials. He
Speaker 1: was known as one of Hitler's blood judges, and he
Speaker 1: sought the steepest possible penalties. Were all involved in Red Orchestra,
Speaker 1: demanding death sentences for most. Arvid was found guilty of
Speaker 1: high treason and espionage and was sentenced to death, and
Speaker 1: his deep love for Mildred is evident in his last
Speaker 1: letter to her, which is dated December four. It opens
Speaker 1: with quote, my dear beloved heart, in the last few months,
Speaker 1: I found the strength to be inwardly calm and composed.
Speaker 1: And when I await that which is coming as calmly
Speaker 1: and composed, I have to thank above all the fact
Speaker 1: that I feel a strong attachment to all that is
Speaker 1: good and beautiful in this world, and that towards the
Speaker 1: whole earth. I have the feeling which sings out of
Speaker 1: the poet Whitman. As far as people come into the question,
Speaker 1: it has been the ones close to me, and especially you,
Speaker 1: who embodied these two feelings for me. Despite all the severity,
Speaker 1: I look back gladly on my life up to now,
Speaker 1: the bright outweighed the dark, and our marriage was, for
Speaker 1: the greatest part the reason for this. That letter continues
Speaker 1: on Arvid reminisces about moments in their life together, including
Speaker 1: the picnic where they got engaged, and also just conversations
Speaker 1: with Mildred that shaped the person he was. He tells
Speaker 1: her that the more that he thinks about it, the
Speaker 1: more good memories he recalls, and he encourages his wife
Speaker 1: to reminisce similarly about their marriage and their families to
Speaker 1: remember quote that the feelings of love merge in the world,
Speaker 1: and then he concluded with quote, you are in my heart.
Speaker 1: My greatest wish is that you are happy when you
Speaker 1: think of me. I am when I think of you,
Speaker 1: many many kisses. I hug you tight your A. Seven
Speaker 1: days later was his official sentencing, and he was executed
Speaker 1: on December twenty two by hanging at Plots and Z.
Speaker 1: It was a particularly brutal hanging. Mildred was not informed
Speaker 1: of her husband's death, but knowing that he had been sentenced,
Speaker 1: she wrote quote, it can be assumed that I am widowed.
Speaker 1: Arvid went to his death knowing that Mildred had been
Speaker 1: found guilty of aiding treasonous activities and sentenced to six
Speaker 1: years in prison. He had tried to see her one
Speaker 1: last time, but that request was denied. Still though he
Speaker 1: was confident that she could serve her sentence and then
Speaker 1: would one day be free. But what Arvid did not know, uh.
Speaker 1: And he also thought at this point that like things
Speaker 1: were falling apart enough in in the German military, that
Speaker 1: it was going to be over soon, and he kind
Speaker 1: of was very hopeful. But he didn't know that Hitler
Speaker 1: had called for Mildred to be retried, and while she
Speaker 1: was incarcerated, this once lively woman who was so full
Speaker 1: of passion for literature and just adoration for her husband,
Speaker 1: turn into a much different person. Her hair turned from
Speaker 1: blonde to white in a fairly short period of time.
Speaker 1: She started to exhibit behavior that is often described as
Speaker 1: bordering on madness. She had really withered away to skin
Speaker 1: and bone. She was very thin. She at one point
Speaker 1: is said to have attempted suicide by swallowing pins. But
Speaker 1: despite what was obviously just a time of understandably incredible
Speaker 1: stress and sorrow, she also during this time returned to
Speaker 1: one of her dearest loves, which is literature and In
Speaker 1: her final days, she worked on translating a book of
Speaker 1: poems by Gerta in her cell. Chaplin Harold post Chal
Speaker 1: visited her, and it's his account that describes her physical
Speaker 1: condition that we mentioned just a moment ago. It was
Speaker 1: through him that Mildred had Arvid's death confirmed, and that's
Speaker 1: how she knew how he had spent his last days
Speaker 1: and moments. The chaplain had also smuggled in some family
Speaker 1: photos and an orange from Arvid's sister. Mildred kissed her
Speaker 1: mother's photo and wrote on the back quote, the face
Speaker 1: of my mother expresses everything that I want to say
Speaker 1: at this moment. The space was with me all through
Speaker 1: these last months. Immediately before her execution by guillotine, Mildred's
Speaker 1: last words were, ich haba Deutschland. Also giliped my apologies
Speaker 1: from my bad German, but that translates to and I
Speaker 1: have loved Germany so much. She was murdered on February
Speaker 1: three at sixty seven pm. Mildred fish Harnack had the
Speaker 1: sad distinction of being the only American woman executed at
Speaker 1: Adolf Hitler's direct order. She was forty years old when
Speaker 1: she died, just as Mildred had been uncertain of Arvid's death.
Speaker 1: Her death was not confirmed to her family for several months.
Speaker 1: A news article ran in the Milwaukee Reader in May
Speaker 1: of ninety three under the headline Nazi's victim has kin here.
Speaker 1: The article was largely about Mildred's sister Marion, who is
Speaker 1: referred to only as Mrs Albert R. Carlson, and who
Speaker 1: contacted the paper after having seen another article about her
Speaker 1: sister suggesting that she was part of a Soviet plot.
Speaker 1: And the article, Marian says that she hadn't heard from
Speaker 1: Mildred since August of ninety two and that she's sure
Speaker 1: neither Mildred nor Arvid are Communists. She was trying to
Speaker 1: reach Mildred through the Red Cross during the period where
Speaker 1: Mildred's death wasn't known to her family. They wrote letters
Speaker 1: to Berlin hoping they could reach her, promising they would
Speaker 1: find the money to bring her home. After Mildred and
Speaker 1: Arvid had been executed, their story became confused and twisted
Speaker 1: because it was used in propaganda. In being tied to
Speaker 1: both the Soviets and the US and maintaining their cover
Speaker 1: as members of the Nazi Party, they had unfortunately created
Speaker 1: an easy opportunity for all other parties involved to write
Speaker 1: their story however they wished. In West Germany they were
Speaker 1: characterized as Soviet spies. In East Germany they were made
Speaker 1: into legendary heroes of the anti fa ashest Communist regime.
Speaker 1: The family did not receive word until September that Mildred
Speaker 1: was dead, when all of this was already being put
Speaker 1: into play. As the Cold War mounted, The Carnecks were
Speaker 1: labeled as Soviet sympathizers and spies by the Nazis who
Speaker 1: were working with the US, including Manfred Rhodor, who had
Speaker 1: sought the death penalty for both of them during their trials.
Speaker 1: Although many people sought to bring Rhodor to justice for
Speaker 1: his participation in war crimes, he was viewed as valuable
Speaker 1: as an informational asset because of the information he could
Speaker 1: provide regarding the Soviet Union. Uh he never faced any
Speaker 1: consequences for these actions. Nope. It also didn't matter that
Speaker 1: Arvid Harnack had been suspicious of Stalin. His story was
Speaker 1: rewritten to suit the Soviets, and both he and Mildred
Speaker 1: were issued posthumous medals by the Soviet Union. They also
Speaker 1: appeared on Soviet stamps, and an East Berlin High school
Speaker 1: was named after Mildred. In late nineteen forty seven, the
Speaker 1: University of Wisconsin Alumni magazine broke the story of Mildred's execution.
Speaker 1: This was big enough news that other papers reported on
Speaker 1: the alumni magazine getting the scoop. The Sheboygan Press ran
Speaker 1: the story under the headline state girl was beheaded by
Speaker 1: Hitler's personal edict. The story covers the details in pretty
Speaker 1: broad strokes. When it came out, the Alumni magazine was
Speaker 1: still a week away from shipping. It concludes with quote.
Speaker 1: The magazine reported it had learned most of the details
Speaker 1: of the executions from records of the U S. Office
Speaker 1: of Military Government. Other papers picked up the story, and
Speaker 1: soon Mildred's death was recounted and reported all over the US. Yeah,
Speaker 1: Urvid's death had been known since he had been sentenced
Speaker 1: to death, but that whole weird second trial situation UH
Speaker 1: meant that Mildred's just kind of got buried, And an
Speaker 1: investigation into Mildred's case had actually started in the US
Speaker 1: in ninety six under the oversight of the U. S.
Speaker 1: Army Counter Intelligence Corps. At the end of the year,
Speaker 1: the FBI also began an investigation into the matter, and
Speaker 1: the CIA also had files on Mildred and other members
Speaker 1: of the Red Orchestra, which were seated by lists that
Speaker 1: had appeared in Gestapo paperwork. When the CIA file was
Speaker 1: released in nineteen seventy six under the Freedom of Information Act,
Speaker 1: Mildred's entry was quite brief. It stated her year of birth,
Speaker 1: her attendance at the University at Wisconsin, and that she
Speaker 1: was quote in sympathy with her husband's devotion to communism.
Speaker 1: And while there was an early effort, also in ninety
Speaker 1: six to investigate whether Mildred had been denied due process,
Speaker 1: which would have been a war crime, it was determined
Speaker 1: that there had been enough evidence to convict her and
Speaker 1: sentenced her to death. The military's investigation was closed with
Speaker 1: a memo from a Lieutenant Colonel Ellis written on January
Speaker 1: fifty seven, which simply reads, quote, this case is classified
Speaker 1: special reference and should not have been referred for investigation.
Speaker 1: Ship withdraw case from Detachment D, and do not continue
Speaker 1: the investigation. It wasn't until the Berlin Wall fell and
Speaker 1: Germany was reunited that researchers and scholars were able to
Speaker 1: work together to uncover a fuller picture of Mildred's story.
Speaker 1: Since then, she's been honored in a number of ways,
Speaker 1: both in Germany and in Wisconsin, including with plaques marking
Speaker 1: pivotal locations in her life and streets being named after her. Yeah,
Speaker 1: there are a lot um that. So I didn't make
Speaker 1: a long list because then it would just be us
Speaker 1: listing streets. Uh. In Mildred was memorialized with a statue
Speaker 1: in Madison, Wisconsin, which was created by architect John derbro
Speaker 1: It was placed on October thirty one of that year,
Speaker 1: and the formal dedication took place on July twelve, nineteen
Speaker 1: September sixt Mildred's birthday is also recognized as Mildred Harnack
Speaker 1: Day in the state of Wisconsin. That is the sad
Speaker 1: story of Mildred fish Harneck Street. Heartbreaking. Why did I picket?
Speaker 1: I don't know. I just felt like crying today. I
Speaker 1: guess do you have some some less tearful listener mail?
Speaker 1: It actually is tearful, but it's so sweet and I
Speaker 1: wanted to make sure that I congratulated this person. Um.
Speaker 1: This is from our listener McKenna, who it actually says
Speaker 1: crying over Disney ads. Uh. Right so high to Holly
Speaker 1: and Tracy. Like most people, I've been looking for a
Speaker 1: reason to write that I should have just written to
Speaker 1: tell you how amazing you are, But that time has
Speaker 1: finally come. In April, I was listening to your classic
Speaker 1: on the Haunted Mansion. I had just graduated college in
Speaker 1: the middle of a pandemic and was accepted to the
Speaker 1: Disney College Program. I was a public health major and
Speaker 1: could tell the program was going to be suspended for
Speaker 1: a while, so listening to the episode was bitter sweet.
Speaker 1: Cut to almost a year and a half later, and
Speaker 1: the program is back on. I was painting and listening
Speaker 1: to your podcasts when your ad for Disney came on.
Speaker 1: I learned the day before that I would be working
Speaker 1: at Disney's Hollywood Studios. When you mentioned it in the ad,
Speaker 1: I started crying. Oh, this makes me so happy for her.
Speaker 1: I'm getting choked up. I felt like we had come
Speaker 1: full circle. Disney episode and it was canceled Disney commercial
Speaker 1: when it started again. I'm actually leaving in less than
Speaker 1: twenty four hours and listening to the podcast while I
Speaker 1: pack and finished some last minute projects to calm my nerves.
Speaker 1: Thank you for the countless hours of entertainment and for
Speaker 1: just being the best. Now, for the best part of
Speaker 1: the email, I have included a picture of my dogs
Speaker 1: and my sister on the fourth of July, the only
Speaker 1: day they're allowed on the couch. From left to right, Bentley, Skeeter,
Speaker 1: and Lincoln, who is our pandemic puppy, who also responds
Speaker 1: to Mandy Patinkin. Thank you again and stay healthy McKenna. McKenna, congratulations.
Speaker 1: I hope you have so much fun. I have a
Speaker 1: deep love for Hollywood Studios, even before it became the
Speaker 1: Star Wars Park, so I'm super excited for you. I
Speaker 1: hope this is amazing. I love how your selection of
Speaker 1: dogs hits all of the various cute flavors, Like you
Speaker 1: have the cutee leffy dog, you have the cute kind
Speaker 1: of like houndy, short hair, and then just a big
Speaker 1: what looks like a cuddle bunny of love. And I
Speaker 1: love that he responds to Mandy Patinkin. Um, I hope
Speaker 1: this is the most amazing experience for you, and I'm
Speaker 1: so happy that we're kind of a little part of
Speaker 1: of of how you will market in your life. So um,
Speaker 1: thank you for emailing us. Thank you for sharing that
Speaker 1: with us, and again, I'm so happy for you. If
Speaker 1: you would like to email us something we're celebrating, or
Speaker 1: just your thoughts on this episode or any other, you
Speaker 1: can do that at History Podcast at iHeart radio dot com.
Speaker 1: You can also find us on social media as Missed
Speaker 1: in History. You can subscribe to the podcast on the
Speaker 1: i heeart radio app, or wherever you listen to your
Speaker 1: favorite shows. Stuff you Missed in History Class is a
Speaker 1: production of I heart Radio. For more podcasts from I
Speaker 1: heart Radio, visit the i heart radio app, Apple Podcasts,
Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.