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Partly-printed DS, in German, signed "Hermann Göring," one page, 7.75 x 12.75, November 30, 1945. Document headed (translated), "The International Military Tribunal, Defendant's Application for Summons for Witness," made while preparing his defense for the Nuremberg trials. Göring and his defense lawyer request testimony from "Ambassador Gauss," citing his knowledge of these facts: "a) That various enemy states for a long time before the outbreak of the last world war had made preparations for a war of aggression against Germany. b) That the enemy states to a considerable extent have violated the Hague Convention." Göring seeks the testimony to refute "the accusation made with regard to Germany and the accused Göring of similar behavior." Signed at the conclusion in pencil by Hermann Göring, and countersigned by his defense counsel, Otto Stahmer. Backed by archival paper and in fine condition. Accompanied by a contemporary English translation.
Friedrich Gaus was the longtime legal adviser of the German Foreign Office and a firsthand participant in one of the most consequential diplomatic arrangements preceding World War II. In August 1939, he helped prepare the secret supplementary protocol to the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, by which Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union divided much of Eastern Europe into respective spheres of influence in advance of Germany’s invasion of Poland; Gaus later supplied sworn testimony at Nuremberg concerning the existence and substance of the agreement.
Against that background, Göring’s request is especially revealing: rather than call Gaus to illuminate Germany’s own preparations for aggressive war, he sought to use the diplomat to argue that Germany’s enemies had themselves prepared wars of aggression and violated international law. The application thus captures a central feature of Göring’s Nuremberg defense—an effort to turn the prosecution’s accusations outward and portray Germany’s actions as comparable to, or provoked by, those of the Allied powers.
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