Love these "endgame" stories. You can feel the pressure and emotional intensity of the moment when people are struggling with dilemmas as the chain of command collapses
Oh good. I'm not the only one who ran something similar in my head. I think I've just pissed off the largest county in the country though. Donitz did look like Wallace from Wallace and Gromit though. So I gave Himmler that accent instead. You have to laugh at these things. If you allow yourself a moment to contemplate what was really happening through all this. You'd break down every time 👍
I've come to believe that Mark Felton is a time traveller for I can think of no other explanation for the intensity and depth of his narrative. He simply must have been an immediate eye-witness to these events.
Not really, thousands of Nazis lived happily ever after the war. So they had plenty of supporters still. Hell even in the US until today kkk and white supremacy is very much alive. Even Trump mocked minorities during his presidential term which tells you supremacy still very much alive.
@@kbanghart *Trump endorses a democratic party candidate unexpectedly and without relation, said candidate is immediately turned on by their own party.* Oh here's another example.... *The right makes meme turning Biden into a stereotypical villain with a evil mustache, eye patch and fiery nazi eagle behind him. The opposition "embraces" the meme with the eagle still in the image. The nazi eagle.*
“Himmler didn’t have his personal plane standing by to fly him to Sweden, Spain, Antarctica or the moon” the fact you delivered this just as factually as the rest of the vid is hilarious. Love your humor style
There are a couple of tidbits here that I'd be eager to see made into full-length Mark Felton Productions videos: The prisoner exchange of 1943 involving Australian prisoners, and the "White Buses" business.
What I remember from the book about the white buses the allies (americans) were informered of their movements but couldn't promise free passage during these late stages of the war. All movements of vehicles in Germany was free game to the fighter pilots and they were shot at several times. In one attack a driver was actually killed. They saved many hundreds from different concentration camps. Mostly women and scandinavians but also french and polish.
Dr Felton.....In Just this one 19 minute video alone contains more in depth history facts than the ENTIRE HISTORY Channel has put out in the last 20 years combined. I had to keep reversing the video to understand what I had missed it was so deep.
I recently found this channel. I really respect your delivery of basic facts before getting into the new content. So much WW2 content teases something new but spends 70% rehashing stuff I already know before delivering three sentences about the new thing they’ve barely researched then wrapping it up with a conclusion on the stuff I already knew. I really appreciate how much you respect your audience.
It's refreshing to watch videos where the history is actually studied and understood by the narrator. You sure do fantastic work sir. Thank you so much
There was a scene about this whole incident in the 2004 movie "Downfall". The scene consisted of Himmler leaving in a car after talking with Speer and Fegelein. Then, Hitler found out about his peace deal at dinner later and reacted angrily.
Hitler: "Out of all people, Himmler?! The truest of the true?! This is the worst betrayal of all! Goering, of course, he was always corrupt. Speer, a genius, unpredictable artist. All the others, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! But Himmler, no! Has he gone insane?! He claimed authority by saying I was sick, or maybe even dead!"
I saw a great comment from the film Downfall. "Scary day when Himmler is the voice of reason." Edit* I got up mixed with another comment. It says alot about Himmlers mental state. That he thought the SS could play a part in post war Germany. After overseeing one of the most horrific genocides in history.
When Patton and his men turned up, and with Zhukov in the other direction, and Mussolini became a piece of performance art, Himmler's thoughts turned to peace.
Sounds like an outro to a fallout game. “And so, when Patton and his men Turned up, with Zhukov in the other direction, and Mussolini turned into proformance art, Himmler’s thoughts, turned to peace. And the European Wasteland was changed, forever. Because War. War never changes.”
'll Duce became a piece of performance art!' 🤭, hey he died the way he wanted to, as a p*ss artist..... It has the vibe of a Clockwork Orange, as the partizans artistically beat him up to the sound of classical music!!
I have learned easily 100 times the amount of accurate information from your vids than I did via public education. Mr Felton, you are a tireless researcher and it shows in all your work! 👏
Wow! Until watching this I had no idea the story of Himmler's downfall would be this dramatic. One of Mark's most engrossing videos, it dispels many cliches and presumptions about Himmler and shows him for what he was: cunning, ruthless, and relentless in his pursuit of power.
For a man that during his power seemed to be cunning and a master planner of evil... he sure made himself look inept and clueless towards the end. Brilliant as always Dr Felton, thank you.
As cunning as he was he was just another member of the Nazi cult far from reality who lost his cunning due to the fact that he was in an extremely stressful situation. He certainly knew that his chances to stay alive was little.
He only appeared that way because he had a powerful friend: Hitler. Note that as soon as Himmler was officially ejected from any government role, he soon after relieved his bodyguard from their duties to him. He probably did that because they would not follow him from thereon after, having sworn their oath of loyalty till the end to Hitler, not Himmler.
@@karlthorsten9118 I doubt he'd have been around for long: even if he'd gotten some kind of immunity from the Allies, he'd probably be assassinated within five years of gaining power by one of the dozens of post-war factions that had unfinished business with the SS.
Well, that's a perfectly rational decision....if you KNOW for certain that the war is lost. (Some, though, might prefer to die with honor, as was quite common among Japanese officers and soldiers, and some of the Germans too.) Himmler wasn't the type to seek a "glorious death". He was a man driven mainly by personal ambition.
Himmler, Goering, and several other officers all wanted to be the one to broker a peace with the Western Allies. By that time, though, nobody in the Third Reich was in any position to negotiate anything.
The narration in these videos is excellent. Your dedication to finding information on these topics is truly admirable and very interesting to say the least.
You know I spoke to Mr Stevens the farmer in Eaglesham .He told me he saw the crashed remains of his plane being taken away on a low loader truck when he was a kid .I'm still friends with his son Robert .I know the exact spot where Hess "dropped" in .Just south of the roundabout at the sign for Bonnyton golf course .Best laugh is the golf course is owned by Jewish people from Newton Mearns .Scoff scoff.
Himmler was truly only loyal to himself. Perhaps his fealty toward Hitler was strong at first, but he used Hitler to build his own empire and carry out his own aims. It isn't any wonder that he undermined Hitler at the end. Thank you, Dr. Mark Felton!
@@taunteratwill1787 I doubt it, I’m sure he only asks people to help him because of his obvious expenses. After all Mr Felton is providing a service, which isn’t cost free.
I love these great history stories of Mark Felton and they should be part of history around all schools around the world 🌍 Thanks Mark for your research
@Edward Barney In fairness, I suspect he probably would have just been arrested by neutral Sweden and extradited back to Germany for trial as soon as the war was over. Even Francoist Spain deported Laval back to France, for example.
@@mikeromney4712 by "peace" you mean capitulate to German demands, when not even a single German soldier landed in the British isles. There was no real reason to surrender and Britain proved to be more than capable of defending itself.
@@MrKakibuy This was not my point..... Btw.: The term was "status quo ante" - back to the beginning....including the withdraw from the German occupied parts of Poland.....and it was certainly not a demand for surrender....;) All other assumptions about, what if Germany had actually carried out the starvation of England, without the battlefield in the east is a bit too speculative for me ...
I love how you always bring a really interesting story from the past, Dr. Felton. I would like to hear stories about the Finnish Winter War. Thank you Mark!
Mark, I've heard of this absurd meeting between Himmler and Heinrici, who took over the Vistula command, after Himmler bungled it. He proceeded to talk about adam/eve etc, if you can do a video about this transition that would be amazing.
This would make a great companion/sequel to “Downfall”. With dr. Felton as script writer of course. The last days of Himmler. Thank you doc for another outstanding video. And will I ever get tired of that epic music at the beginning of these videos? Probably not.
What I've been watching this for the past 5 minutes and 30 seconds thinking it was only a minute and 20 seconds long lol I guess that's how you know its good
The most thorough and precisely detailed information available anywhere, delivered in a soothing and entertaining manner by Dr. Felton, as he always does.
Thank God that of all the resources that everyone seemed to be short of, film stock was not one of them! It is almost ludicrous how many pictures and films were being produced by everyone even as the war reached its climax. You'd think making film would be unimportant, but everyone seems to have had plenty of it. A real treasure for future generations.
Its amazing how much there is. From leaders having a dinner to the streets of Stalingrad to ships in the pacific. Those film crews deserve so much more recognition
It was the first major war where portable, fairly rugged film cameras were available in large quantities, in private hands as well as used for generating news reports and propaganda. Moreover, the end-game happened in the heart of a highly-developed country, close to its capital city, where greater stocks of equipment and film were likely to be found.
I mean, look at todays society. People are selfish enough to film anything that moves in order to be popular on social media, even if that means not helping the subjects in need that are being filmed..... The media has always been ruthless and not cared. It was no different back then either. Anything to get ahead, or to create controversy, that will make money. Nothing jas changed, but we all know that.
Well look at this in this way : Every living human at that moment of time was aware how historically significant this true global war was for the course of humanity. And because of this besides film crews, journalists and photographers , everyone involved made great efforts to document everything minutely.
Color slide and motion picture film was first available in 1939 thanks to breakthrough research done by Kodak. I'm not sure if Agfa acquired a license from Kodak although it seems likely that it did. Black-and-white photography, however, seemed to predominate throughout the war.
Fantastic story including deceit, back stabbing, disloyalty, etc. As usual it's well researched, narrated with awesome archival pictures n films. Kudos. Looking forward to ur next one.
It's amazing that even though the Third Reich was crumbling Hitler's henchmen still thought there was something worth backstabbing each other and Hitler over to gain power over the crumbling Reich. Himmler tried to make a deal with the Western Allies with himself as the new supreme big boss, Goering tried to do the same with him as the new supreme big boss, Goebbels tried to do make a deal with the Soviets after Hitler's suicide. Of course the one thing Himmler had counted upon, growing Allied concern over the USSR seizing Eastern Europe, never played out as German leaders had hoped for as they failed to take into account that there was another war going on against Japan. US generals were not interested at all about keeping the Red Army as far east as possible. They were only interested in ending the war in Europe ASAP so they could shift US forces from Europe to the Pacific. And with Roosevelt dead US generals like Eisenhower and Bradley were fully in charge of the US war effort in Europe.
Yeah i wonder what they were really expecting after the war. They should have known that this was the end of the reich and sovereignty for germany. And i highly doubt even with them in a high position nationalsocialism would have worked on a defeated nation. What were their goals? Ally with the western Allies and fight together the soviets to free east prussia or even complete operation barbarossa? If they really thought so they were complete insane and miss reading the situation
I've said it before, I truly love your programs. Your dedication to research and history is fantastic. These were the worst people on earth. How do you figure out who was worse? Himmler? Borman? Who was it? Hard to figure out. Thank you again.
Another great video, Mark. Have you done a video specifically focusing on the relationships between Hitler’s inner circle? I.e struggle between Himmler, Goering, Bormann, Keitel, Speer, Ribbentrop, other field marshals and other key figures.
What did he expect, that the Allies would say "sure, all is forgiven"? Crazy. Anyway, Hitler relieved him of all his commands and he was once again a chicken farmer and appropriately choose a requisitioned farm house as his new HQ. Anyway, a great episode. Himmler's last days were always a bit of a mystery to me. Can't wait for the rest of the story.
"...for they shall be called the children of God." Well, since that ain't happening, maybe will just have to put him in the "faux peacemaker" column...
Glad to see you touch on Felix Kersten. Perhaps one day we could have a full video on the man and his various exploits? There's not much online about him in English, but I think he lived an extraordinary life even if some of his actions have been exaggerated by himself in his memoirs after the war.
A German general could have taken a private moment in the loo and we would know about it thanks to the studious work if Dr. Mark Felton. The lengths this man goes through for his research is amazing.
Very good. Very good indeed. Superb! This is more info then ever told. Sure there must be more details. Let's hope Mark Felton will dig it all up and bring new facts to light. Thank you.
don't get me wrong, of course himmler and the nazis were bad guys, but i think for the case the axis would won ww2, churchill, stalin, truman etc. would try everything to save their own asses too, they would ran like scalded dogs or committing suicide like hitler and goebbels, so they wouldn't be punished for their war crimes.
No, he believed that a final reckoning of the "East vs. West" was at hand and that his mission was to stop the Asiatic hordes from the Steppe from submerging the world in darkness and wiping out the "Aryan" race. Himmler thought himself to be the reincarnation of the East Francian king Heinrich der Vogler, who fended off the Hungarians from the East and finally defeated them, restoring Germany from shambles in the process. He thought the British would listen to him because they were just as much against the USSR. He was mistaken there, of course, as the only figures sympathetic to him (such as Churchill with his planned, but never implemented, "Operation Unthinkable") wanted the leadership out of the picture just to use the German armed forces in cooperation with their own for an invasion of the Soviets to push them out of Eastern Europe.
Interesting, I wish I had had this to watch when we were covering this subject at school 40+ years ago. I drew Himmler as the subject for an essay and there wasn't much to read on him for research purposes. What I did find interesting was the comment that if Himmler had had his way many things would have been different, which sort of ties in with something I read fairly recently which was an interview with someone he had gone to school with in which the person interviewed said that unlike most people of that time who were casually anti semetic (like many were casually racist) Himmler was rather pro Jewish in comparison. I thought it an odd comment but there's a chance it might actually have some substance, and he wouldn't be the first to completely change views publicly after becoming involved with a charismatic leader.
Such detail. I was completely unaware of his whereabouts in the ending days of the war. I’m also completely clueless as to what you are eluding to about his travels in the next video of this topic. Should be interesting.
I don’t ever comment on videos but just wanted to say you do a really good job and I appreciate you. Your content is very well put together and I thoroughly enjoy your videos. Have a good evening
Unconditional surrender was unprecedented, even unthinkable at that time. For instance, under Unconditional Surrender, things like the Morgenthau Plan are made possible. This of course explains why the Germans fought so hard and passionately until the end, anything to prevent a Morgenthau Plan from happening. They had no idea what would come of an unconditional surrender, and had to expect the worst. Fighting to the last man is preferable to genocide.
Goring also thought that he could surrender to Eisenhower and be treated as an equal or with dignity. Eisenhower did all but spit on him as he ordered him arrested and taken away.
Himmler should have remembered what happened to Karl I in 1918 - his letters on a separate peace were published by the Allies, leading to a crisis between the Germans and the Austrians, and the Austrians losing their last remaining autonomy.
It’s when complexities aren’t complex that things start getting really confusing 😂 I wonder how many viewers appreciate the aeronautical joke in your moniker, Hamilton?
I am in awe of the many secrets of WW2. Europe May 1945 and Japan August 1945. What caused Japan to finally surrender? How involved in WW2 was the Showa emperor? Thank God, Dr Felton examines these mysterious topics. 🙏
Mark does a great job with these pieces, but I've noticed a heavy concentration on the final year of the war with Germany. I've not seen very much on the early years and I would love to see his work in those areas regarding Europe.
The last year and specially the last 6 months are very present in modern Imaginarium . With the expected end of the war against Germany, many special and key figures of the Nazis elite start taking wrong after wrong decisions with evident and known results, and that were not the usual during the inicial war years. There for the downfall is very much appreciated than the installation years. Some thing for example about the down fall of Napoleon's empire!
So am I. I happen to live near Lüneburg where Himmler died while being interrogated by the British. I have actually stood in that room.... it was a strange feeling.
Kersten’s choice does seem odd but given that he had dismantled the Abwher, and the Gelhen network was totally compromised by GRU/NKVD, Himmler was maybe not so stupid. If not done already, Schellenberg, (and Bormann), would be worth a video each. Raul Wallenberg and Count Bernadotte had careers Indiana Jones would envy.
1.5 Million subscribers - Well Done Old Boy! It's been a while since I have heard your intro music, apologies for the neglect, but now I have a lot to watch! Congratulations
Mark I love your work u are one of the reasons I love history and love when u make new videos listen to your stuff at work and you are awesome not too many people no history like u thank u mark for your history
Love these "endgame" stories. You can feel the pressure and emotional intensity of the moment when people are struggling with dilemmas as the chain of command collapses
You summed it up precisely. I think all other comments are unnecessary..
Owen Brady -And how they still fight amongst themselves for whatever scraps of power remain...
@@robertmacek6777 but we must add more comments
trying to save their own asses is the only reason i can think of. Luckily he was coward enough to take his own life.
Idk but I’m epic and highhhhhh
Himmler: mein furer we lost we have exactly 0% chance of victory.
Hitler : dont worry Stieners attack will bring it under control
DAS WAR EIN BEFEHL! DER ANGRIFF STEINERS WAR EIN BEFEHL
“Mien Fuhrer...Steiner...”
"shits fucked yo" translated to appeal to a younger audience
@@Lavthefox yes I concur.
Oh good. I'm not the only one who ran something similar in my head. I think I've just pissed off the largest county in the country though. Donitz did look like Wallace from Wallace and Gromit though. So I gave Himmler that accent instead. You have to laugh at these things. If you allow yourself a moment to contemplate what was really happening through all this. You'd break down every time 👍
I don't know how Felton sniffs out all the details of the Third Reich as he does, but his video are always fascinating.
Probably has Scwab and Von Der Leyen's phone numbers.
Thats suspiciois
@@takasmaka820 It's suspicious. Or is it a question? Press this button....?..... now
@@SpaceTravel1776 ha ha ha !! that's funny !!
@@SpaceTravel1776 I've never seen a diss for Felts. I believe sarcasm is the best course at this point too 😁👍
I've come to believe that Mark Felton is a time traveller for I can think of no other explanation for the intensity and depth of his narrative. He simply must have been an immediate eye-witness to these events.
Mark Felton following everyone in ww2 simultaneously with a notebook in hand
🤣🤣
It's called, searching academic papers in this matter.😂
He is indeed a very good lecturer .
Himmler was great example of how detached the inner circle of the Reich were from reality.
Not really, thousands of Nazis lived happily ever after the war. So they had plenty of supporters still. Hell even in the US until today kkk and white supremacy is very much alive. Even Trump mocked minorities during his presidential term which tells you supremacy still very much alive.
Just like how Trump and his inner circle are totally detached from reality as well
@@kbanghart *Trump endorses a democratic party candidate unexpectedly and without relation, said candidate is immediately turned on by their own party.*
Oh here's another example....
*The right makes meme turning Biden into a stereotypical villain with a evil mustache, eye patch and fiery nazi eagle behind him. The opposition "embraces" the meme with the eagle still in the image. The nazi eagle.*
@@kbanghart bit ironic
And dementia Joe. They both suck
“Himmler didn’t have his personal plane standing by to fly him to Sweden, Spain, Antarctica or the moon” the fact you delivered this just as factually as the rest of the vid is hilarious. Love your humor style
LOL, Himmler was in a tight spot?!
Cool story bro.
Drier than the African front
Or Argentina
Sarcastic Genius
Watching a 20 minute long video by Dr Felton less than an hour before it was posted on a Sunday evening. What a treat!
Before it was posted ?!
😂
@@reboot5598 Yep, he has a thyme machine!
There are a couple of tidbits here that I'd be eager to see made into full-length Mark Felton Productions videos: The prisoner exchange of 1943 involving Australian prisoners, and the "White Buses" business.
I second the White Buses recommendation
Never heard of the White Buses. Please do a full video on this.
Same
Agreed. And one must assume ol /Bomber Harris was forewarned about an impending caravan of white busses heading their way. Right?
What I remember from the book about the white buses the allies (americans) were informered of their movements but couldn't promise free passage during these late stages of the war. All movements of vehicles in Germany was free game to the fighter pilots and they were shot at several times. In one attack a driver was actually killed. They saved many hundreds from different concentration camps. Mostly women and scandinavians but also french and polish.
Dr Felton.....In Just this one 19 minute video alone contains more in depth history facts than the ENTIRE HISTORY Channel has put out in the last 20 years combined. I had to keep reversing the video to understand what I had missed it was so deep.
I recently found this channel.
I really respect your delivery of basic facts before getting into the new content.
So much WW2 content teases something new but spends 70% rehashing stuff I already know before delivering three sentences about the new thing they’ve barely researched then wrapping it up with a conclusion on the stuff I already knew.
I really appreciate how much you respect your audience.
It's refreshing to watch videos where the history is actually studied and understood by the narrator. You sure do fantastic work sir. Thank you so much
Yeh, this how you are supposed to do it!
Peacemaker when he knew he'd burnt his bridges. Thanks for bringing this story to RUclips Dr Felton.
Ye
Into the coven 🧙
Chicken Farmer Heinrich
"Dr Felton" 😂
There was a scene about this whole incident in the 2004 movie "Downfall". The scene consisted of Himmler leaving in a car after talking with Speer and Fegelein. Then, Hitler found out about his peace deal at dinner later and reacted angrily.
Hitler: "Out of all people, Himmler?! The truest of the true?! This is the worst betrayal of all! Goering, of course, he was always corrupt. Speer, a genius, unpredictable artist. All the others, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! But Himmler, no! Has he gone insane?! He claimed authority by saying I was sick, or maybe even dead!"
I thought Göebbels was to take charge after Hitler was relieved
I thought that scene was about Xbox Live.
I thought it was he was angry he couldn't find Berlin, and also it was about Fegelein antics. Both those factors sent him over the edge if I recall.
@@MikeTheD I think you watched too many parodies
Himmler, "Surely, my Fuhrer, we must surrender".
Hitler, "We will never surrender, and don't call me Shirley".
The details are just utterly remarkable. Well Done Dr. Felton!
I saw a great comment from the film Downfall. "Scary day when Himmler is the voice of reason." Edit* I got up mixed with another comment. It says alot about Himmlers mental state. That he thought the SS could play a part in post war Germany. After overseeing one of the most horrific genocides in history.
well, he at least had a reasonable selection of glasses. that’s about as much reason as himmler ever had.
That Chicken Farmer made excuses to leave the Bunker
This is a comment from the man in the high castle.
It not reasonable to negotiate when you killed millions, your fate is decided already
Omg that's the best quote ever
When Patton and his men turned up, and with Zhukov in the other direction, and Mussolini became a piece of performance art, Himmler's thoughts turned to peace.
Sounds like an outro to a fallout game.
“And so, when Patton and his men Turned up, with Zhukov in the other direction, and Mussolini turned into proformance art, Himmler’s thoughts, turned to peace. And the European Wasteland was changed, forever. Because War. War never changes.”
@@Bustin_cider00 Fallout: Third reich xD
Randy Minervino …yet fate held another plan for the affable Mr. Himmler
'll Duce became a piece of performance art!' 🤭, hey he died the way he wanted to, as a p*ss artist..... It has the vibe of a Clockwork Orange, as the partizans artistically beat him up to the sound of classical music!!
@@James_BAlert
La bella figura.
"He planned to go into hiding and re-emerge when the political situation would turn favourable." Himmler goes full Palpatine
Other way around; Palpatine is definitely based on Himmler!
Palpatine would have done a much better job of it and was not so deluded.
"Somehow Himmler returned."
- some allied soldier, if history was written by Disney.
@@DerRamantis You tell me its not written by winners?
Had to google Palpatine.
I'm glad so much 12 year olds are following history channels.
I have learned easily 100 times the amount of accurate information from your vids than I did via public education. Mr Felton, you are a tireless researcher and it shows in all your work! 👏
Wow! Until watching this I had no idea the story of Himmler's downfall would be this dramatic. One of Mark's most engrossing videos, it dispels many cliches and presumptions about Himmler and shows him for what he was: cunning, ruthless, and relentless in his pursuit of power.
The movie "The Downfall" portrayed many of the events talked about in this video to some extent quite well. Great video 👍🏼
when i heard fegelein ... hahaha ... all those downfall parodies ...
That's a good movie, watching Hitler and Pals sweating it at the end 😂
Alec Guinness plays a good Hitler as well in The Last 10 Days
@@jeremylee6352 4:47 I wish I had seen at least one parody with RL Fegelein :-)
Everybody finally smoking when they heard the Fuhrer was dead.
For a man that during his power seemed to be cunning and a master planner of evil... he sure made himself look inept and clueless towards the end. Brilliant as always Dr Felton, thank you.
As cunning as he was he was just another member of the Nazi cult far from reality who lost his cunning due to the fact that he was in an extremely stressful situation. He certainly knew that his chances to stay alive was little.
He only appeared that way because he had a powerful friend: Hitler.
Note that as soon as Himmler was officially ejected from any government role, he soon after relieved his bodyguard from their duties to him.
He probably did that because they would not follow him from thereon after, having sworn their oath of loyalty till the end to Hitler, not Himmler.
He knew the war lost and was just trying to save his own skin.
And some of Germany.... but much for himself. Himmler, the new Führer. If this had succeeded, I wonder what would've happened later.
@@karlthorsten9118 I doubt he'd have been around for long: even if he'd gotten some kind of immunity from the Allies, he'd probably be assassinated within five years of gaining power by one of the dozens of post-war factions that had unfinished business with the SS.
Well, that's a perfectly rational decision....if you KNOW for certain that the war is lost. (Some, though, might prefer to die with honor, as was quite common among Japanese officers and soldiers, and some of the Germans too.) Himmler wasn't the type to seek a "glorious death". He was a man driven mainly by personal ambition.
@@tylerdunn9683 I mean, what else are you going to do with a mass of otherwise unemployable young men with a taste for violence?
Himmler, Goering, and several other officers all wanted to be the one to broker a peace with the Western Allies. By that time, though, nobody in the Third Reich was in any position to negotiate anything.
The narration in these videos is excellent. Your dedication to finding information on these topics is truly admirable and very interesting to say the least.
Speaking of self-appointed peacemakers, there's also the completely bonkers story of Rudolph Hess flying off to meet the Duke of Hamilton.
I'm pretty much convinced that Rudolph Hess was a dumb time traveller with good intentions
You know I spoke to Mr Stevens the farmer in Eaglesham .He told me he saw the crashed remains of his plane being taken away on a low loader truck when he was a kid .I'm still friends with his son Robert .I know the exact spot where Hess "dropped" in .Just south of the roundabout at the sign for Bonnyton golf course .Best laugh is the golf course is owned by Jewish people from Newton Mearns .Scoff scoff.
@@lachlanmclennan2188 Well, he was into all sorts of superstitions and medical quackery, why not time travel?
Hess also without meaning too mentioned Hitler’s intentions to attack the Soviet Union.
It's interesting how much the majority of the Germans' wanted peace, but the Allies wanted to continue the war.
Himmler was truly only loyal to himself. Perhaps his fealty toward Hitler was strong at first, but he used Hitler to build his own empire and carry out his own aims. It isn't any wonder that he undermined Hitler at the end.
Thank you, Dr. Mark Felton!
That's true for other figures in Nazi Germany.
You mean Himmler??
He was a Chicken Farmer as well
Or maybe thought he could save Hitler
@@hippiesaboteur2556 Yeah, I wasn't careful correcting my "spell-check"! 🙄😂
The rats are always the first to flee a sinking ship.
Same goes with that Chicken Farmer
@@funfact8660 FAILED chicken farmer
Who is the chicken farmer?
They were all lower than rats.
@@blueshirtman8875 explain
Thanks for sharing Mark! Have a great rest of the weekend and new week ahead!
Mark is a really impressive historian. Love listening to these videos
Thank you, Mark. Your commitment to research is admirable.
"Downfall: the Series" based on these events, with Mark Felton as script consultant... I'd watch that! Anyone else of like mind?
Hell yeah!!!
Too bad bruno ganz has already passed away
Yes 100%
What could a series possibly ad to the movie? It was very well done.
Marc Felton, Military History Visualized, and TIK working as script consultants. That would be one of the best WW2 shows ever.
“But Himmler had been stupidly promoted to Field Marshal by Hitler.”
Me playing Hearts of Iron 4 in a nutshell
Putting Himmler in command of Army Group Weichsel was not such a good idea.
The most cursed thing you can do in hoi4 is grind Himmler into being a level 9 field marshal
@@big_slurp4603 oh god
@@big_slurp4603 Bruh he starts at like level 1, that'll take ages
Is he actually a playable character?
Amazing video as always Mark! I can’t think of a better channel to subscribe to!
Give him no praise but money! He always needs money! 😂
@@taunteratwill1787 I doubt it, I’m sure he only asks people to help him because of his obvious expenses. After all Mr Felton is providing a service, which isn’t cost free.
@@Simonize41 I know! 😂😂😂
I love these great history stories of Mark Felton and they should be part of history around all schools around the world 🌍 Thanks Mark for your research
This might be my favorite one from Felton yet. The last moments of Himmler has always been what fascinated me most about the war and nazi Germany.
Quote from the movie *Valkyrie* (2008)- "Why replace a maniac with a lunatic?!?"
To which the other character replies: "Hey, Hans, since when have you had an American accent?"
Better yet, “Why teplace an idiot with a coward?”
@Edward Barney In fairness, I suspect he probably would have just been arrested by neutral Sweden and extradited back to Germany for trial as soon as the war was over. Even Francoist Spain deported Laval back to France, for example.
*"If u can't beat em, join em"*
~ Heinrich Himmler
Funnny!
But in fact the Reich government had been trying to reach a peace treaty since 1939 and even in 1940, when England's position was rather modest .....
“But Herr Reichsführer, what if you cannot beat them and cannot join them?”
Himmler:
@@mikeromney4712 by "peace" you mean capitulate to German demands, when not even a single German soldier landed in the British isles. There was no real reason to surrender and Britain proved to be more than capable of defending itself.
@@MrKakibuy This was not my point.....
Btw.: The term was "status quo ante" - back to the beginning....including the withdraw from the German occupied parts of Poland.....and it was certainly not a demand for surrender....;)
All other assumptions about, what if Germany had actually carried out the starvation of England, without the battlefield in the east is a bit too speculative for me ...
I love how you always bring a really interesting story from the past, Dr. Felton. I would like to hear stories about the Finnish Winter War. Thank you Mark!
This is the third, possibly fourth time I am rewatching this particular series. Thank you so much, Dr. Felton!
Mark, I've heard of this absurd meeting between Himmler and Heinrici, who took over the Vistula command, after Himmler bungled it. He proceeded to talk about adam/eve etc, if you can do a video about this transition that would be amazing.
when you try to take the 'Reichs' out of Reichsführer.
😂😂😂😂
Love the iron sky reference at 17:05. interesting subject Dr Felton, I have been keenly awaiting its arrival since its teaser months ago. Thank you.
Looking forward to watching the “Himmler on the run” video.
Thx Doc 👍🏼
Unanswered questions of why Himmler didn't flee to other countries with sources at his disposal.Good vid of least known info. Very interesting. Kudos
This would make a great companion/sequel to “Downfall”. With dr. Felton as script writer of course. The last days of Himmler. Thank you doc for another outstanding video. And will I ever get tired of that epic music at the beginning of these videos? Probably not.
You can't be releasing a 20 minute video during my 15 minute break, are you trying to get me in trouble with the boss?
We'll call all the demons you've dreamed about & soar the cosmic plane
Play in speed 1.5x.
What I've been watching this for the past 5 minutes and 30 seconds thinking it was only a minute and 20 seconds long lol I guess that's how you know its good
@@Oxygen97 you're a genius
The most thorough and precisely detailed information available anywhere, delivered in a soothing and entertaining manner by Dr. Felton, as he always does.
We need a video about Speer's actions after the surrender and how he ended up a sympathetic character to some.
The ultimate spin doctor.
I think he was the only one who sead ,, i am sorry"
He said it himself. The answer to personal survival was charm. Being charming saved his life.
He is sympathetic because he is typed as INTP. Who would hate INTP?
The summary of the late-war situation in the beginning of this video is brilliant. I've never heard it presented more clearly and accurately.
Thank God that of all the resources that everyone seemed to be short of, film stock was not one of them! It is almost ludicrous how many pictures and films were being produced by everyone even as the war reached its climax. You'd think making film would be unimportant, but everyone seems to have had plenty of it. A real treasure for future generations.
Its amazing how much there is. From leaders having a dinner to the streets of Stalingrad to ships in the pacific. Those film crews deserve so much more recognition
It was the first major war where portable, fairly rugged film cameras were available in large quantities, in private hands as well as used for generating news reports and propaganda. Moreover, the end-game happened in the heart of a highly-developed country, close to its capital city, where greater stocks of equipment and film were likely to be found.
I mean, look at todays society. People are selfish enough to film anything that moves in order to be popular on social media, even if that means not helping the subjects in need that are being filmed..... The media has always been ruthless and not cared. It was no different back then either. Anything to get ahead, or to create controversy, that will make money.
Nothing jas changed, but we all know that.
Well look at this in this way : Every living human at that moment of time was aware how historically significant this true global war was for the course of humanity. And because of this besides film crews, journalists and photographers , everyone involved made great efforts to document everything minutely.
Color slide and motion picture film was first available in 1939 thanks to breakthrough research done by Kodak. I'm not sure if Agfa acquired a license from Kodak although it seems likely that it did. Black-and-white photography, however, seemed to predominate throughout the war.
Note to self: acquire a personal bodyguard battalion. They seem to facilitate travel and personal freedom.
-facility- _facilitate_
It certainly would making a seat on the bus easier
Unless you're roman
@@CivilizedWasteland lol, it's pretty interesting how powerful the Caesar's guard eventually became
@@CivilizedWasteland "Tee hee, Brutus"
so not to be judging, but Kersten isn't anyone's idea of what a successful physical therapist would look like....
Well back then smoking was good for you.
🤔 Maybe. . . but he was successful. . .
@@kencur9690 There is a wikipedia article titled "Anti-tobacco movement in Nazi Germany" which you might find interesting.
Two words: Rachel Levine
@@dougearnest7590 LOL NAILED IT!!
Another great job at research, and a creative and precise presentation of the facts. A great video. Thank you.
Mark the research behind this is convoluted and deep. Well done. An extraordinary piece.
Thanks Mark as always .. Just an astounding attention to detail .. top notch !
The posts on Sunday, right when I can watch in comfort
Fantastic story including deceit, back stabbing, disloyalty, etc. As usual it's well researched, narrated with awesome archival pictures n films. Kudos. Looking forward to ur next one.
Very well produced videos; thank you!
A happy new year . Dr Felton.
"You served him well, when serving was safe." - Eddard Stark
Best comment! Excellent analysis!
As a reminder, "To Serve Man" was a cookbook, too.
It's amazing that even though the Third Reich was crumbling Hitler's henchmen still thought there was something worth backstabbing each other and Hitler over to gain power over the crumbling Reich. Himmler tried to make a deal with the Western Allies with himself as the new supreme big boss, Goering tried to do the same with him as the new supreme big boss, Goebbels tried to do make a deal with the Soviets after Hitler's suicide.
Of course the one thing Himmler had counted upon, growing Allied concern over the USSR seizing Eastern Europe, never played out as German leaders had hoped for as they failed to take into account that there was another war going on against Japan. US generals were not interested at all about keeping the Red Army as far east as possible. They were only interested in ending the war in Europe ASAP so they could shift US forces from Europe to the Pacific. And with Roosevelt dead US generals like Eisenhower and Bradley were fully in charge of the US war effort in Europe.
To be fair to them what other options were there? They were too famous to go into hiding for long and they knew it.
Yeah i wonder what they were really expecting after the war. They should have known that this was the end of the reich and sovereignty for germany. And i highly doubt even with them in a high position nationalsocialism would have worked on a defeated nation. What were their goals? Ally with the western Allies and fight together the soviets to free east prussia or even complete operation barbarossa? If they really thought so they were complete insane and miss reading the situation
Very astute observation.
@@bossderbosse9939
🫡🫡 🇺🇸 🇬🇧 🇨🇦 🇦🇺 🇳🇿 🇮🇪 🫡🫡
Never thought i'd see Himmler and Peacemaker in the same sentence lol
Yeah, «Himmler was not a peacemaker» wouldn’t make sense.
The US called the MX nuclear armed missile "Peacekeeper." Orwellian.
Me neither. Just doesn't read well.
I've said it before, I truly love your programs. Your dedication to research and history is fantastic. These were the worst people on earth. How do you figure out who was worse? Himmler? Borman? Who was it? Hard to figure out. Thank you again.
Heydrich
Sweet Jesus. Dr. Felton has the absolute BEST intro music on RUclips and I will never get tired of it or his videos.
Great job, Mark! As usual, this video is packed full of details I've never heard before. Thank you for your hard work.
Steiner will attack with the Ninth Army to restore the situation.
Looking forward to hearing more about Himmler 👍🏻 Such an interesting character
Another great video, Mark. Have you done a video specifically focusing on the relationships between Hitler’s inner circle? I.e struggle between Himmler, Goering, Bormann, Keitel, Speer, Ribbentrop, other field marshals and other key figures.
Himmler's motives and movements during the last days of the Third Reich could not be explained better than that! What an excellent job!
What did he expect, that the Allies would say "sure, all is forgiven"? Crazy.
Anyway, Hitler relieved him of all his commands and he was once again a chicken farmer and appropriately choose a requisitioned farm house as his new HQ.
Anyway, a great episode. Himmler's last days were always a bit of a mystery to me. Can't wait for the rest of the story.
Operation paperclip proves otherwise. 😉
That throws “Blessed are the Peacemakers” out the window.
Blessed are the cheese makers 😜🇬🇧
And any manufacturers of dairy products..
@@thespudcat 😜👍🏻
"...for they shall be called the children of God." Well, since that ain't happening, maybe will just have to put him in the "faux peacemaker" column...
@@AJ-qn6gd the French....
Glad to see you touch on Felix Kersten. Perhaps one day we could have a full video on the man and his various exploits?
There's not much online about him in English, but I think he lived an extraordinary life even if some of his actions have been exaggerated by himself in his memoirs after the war.
Idk how you do it mister Felton, but you make ww2 interesting all over again despite it happening almost a century ago
Very informative. Thank you for posting -
A German general could have taken a private moment in the loo and we would know about it thanks to the studious work if Dr. Mark Felton. The lengths this man goes through for his research is amazing.
Very good. Very good indeed. Superb!
This is more info then ever told. Sure there must be more details. Let's hope Mark Felton will dig it all up and bring new facts to light.
Thank you.
This towards the end of the war..he wanted to save his own skin...that's all it was!
Typical Chicken Farmer obviously
don't get me wrong, of course himmler and the nazis were bad guys, but i think for the case the axis would won ww2, churchill, stalin, truman etc. would try everything to save their own asses too, they would ran like scalded dogs or committing suicide like hitler and goebbels, so they wouldn't be punished for their war crimes.
@@funfact8660 was he a chicken farmer?
No, he believed that a final reckoning of the "East vs. West" was at hand and that his mission was to stop the Asiatic hordes from the Steppe from submerging the world in darkness and wiping out the "Aryan" race. Himmler thought himself to be the reincarnation of the East Francian king Heinrich der Vogler, who fended off the Hungarians from the East and finally defeated them, restoring Germany from shambles in the process. He thought the British would listen to him because they were just as much against the USSR. He was mistaken there, of course, as the only figures sympathetic to him (such as Churchill with his planned, but never implemented, "Operation Unthinkable") wanted the leadership out of the picture just to use the German armed forces in cooperation with their own for an invasion of the Soviets to push them out of Eastern Europe.
Marvelous video! It could deserve a movie afterwards. History is a interesting mankind box.
Fascinating. I’m glad I ran across your works Mark.
It is truly a matter of fact,
that no video about Germany during WW2 is complete without an appearance by the one and only Hermann Fegelein.
Goering was once asked if he liked peace. He said "no why settle for a slice when i want the whole pie"
I think he had eaten too many pies by 1945.
Göring misheard the waitress's question "Excuse me Herr Reichsmarschall, would like a piece of pie?"
Yes, please do more videos on Himmler.
He’s an interesting character, for sure.
Himmler was a puss a failed chicken farmer. He ran like a coward instantly.
I'm convinced Dr. Felton has a time travelling machine. Excellent as always.
This is one of the best ever Mark !
Interesting, I wish I had had this to watch when we were covering this subject at school 40+ years ago. I drew Himmler as the subject for an essay and there wasn't much to read on him for research purposes.
What I did find interesting was the comment that if Himmler had had his way many things would have been different, which sort of ties in with something I read fairly recently which was an interview with someone he had gone to school with in which the person interviewed said that unlike most people of that time who were casually anti semetic (like many were casually racist) Himmler was rather pro Jewish in comparison. I thought it an odd comment but there's a chance it might actually have some substance, and he wouldn't be the first to completely change views publicly after becoming involved with a charismatic leader.
Such detail. I was completely unaware of his whereabouts in the ending days of the war. I’m also completely clueless as to what you are eluding to about his travels in the next video of this topic. Should be interesting.
Its incredible about how many things you are already informed if youve watched the movie Der Untergang ("Downfall")
I think I've seen part of that movie. Is that the one where Hitler gets upset when he finds out "Firefly" was cancelled?
@@dougearnest7590 Or he finds out the Blues Brothers got away from the the Illinois N a z is.
I don’t ever comment on videos but just wanted to say you do a really good job and I appreciate you. Your content is very well put together and I thoroughly enjoy your videos. Have a good evening
Unconditional surrender was unprecedented, even unthinkable at that time. For instance, under Unconditional Surrender, things like the Morgenthau Plan are made possible. This of course explains why the Germans fought so hard and passionately until the end, anything to prevent a Morgenthau Plan from happening.
They had no idea what would come of an unconditional surrender, and had to expect the worst. Fighting to the last man is preferable to genocide.
That Himmler thought Eisenhower would want to negotiate with him is hilarious
Goring also thought that he could surrender to Eisenhower and be treated as an equal or with dignity. Eisenhower did all but spit on him as he ordered him arrested and taken away.
@@demef758 goering sure did have lots of cozy talks with your officers though,and one of em slanged that pill to him.
Himmler should have remembered what happened to Karl I in 1918 - his letters on a separate peace were published by the Allies, leading to a crisis between the Germans and the Austrians, and the Austrians losing their last remaining autonomy.
The complexity of these last few weeks (Europe May 1945) are indeed complex. Thank you for parsing the issues...
It’s when complexities aren’t complex that things start getting really confusing 😂 I wonder how many viewers appreciate the aeronautical joke in your moniker, Hamilton?
I am in awe of the many secrets of WW2. Europe May 1945 and Japan August 1945. What caused Japan to finally surrender? How involved in WW2 was the Showa emperor? Thank God, Dr Felton examines these mysterious topics. 🙏
@@neilturner6749 I think he is just propping himself up ...
Always Great Work. Thank you sir.👍👌
Mark does a great job with these pieces, but I've noticed a heavy concentration on the final year of the war with Germany. I've not seen very much on the early years and I would love to see his work in those areas regarding Europe.
The last year and specially the last 6 months are very present in modern Imaginarium . With the expected end of the war against Germany, many special and key figures of the Nazis elite start taking wrong after wrong decisions with evident and known results, and that were not the usual during the inicial war years. There for the downfall is very much appreciated than the installation years. Some thing for example about the down fall of Napoleon's empire!
Looking forward to the Last Days Of Himmler episode.
So am I. I happen to live near Lüneburg where Himmler died while being interrogated by the British. I have actually stood in that room.... it was a strange feeling.
Small correction: At 8:21 the US president when Himmler was looking for peace with the Western allies was Truman, not Roosevelt.
Kersten’s choice does seem odd but given that he had dismantled the Abwher, and the Gelhen network was totally compromised by GRU/NKVD, Himmler was maybe not so stupid. If not done already, Schellenberg, (and Bormann), would be worth a video each. Raul Wallenberg and Count Bernadotte had careers Indiana Jones would envy.
All of Mark's videos, narration and reporting are excellent. Well done Mark!
1.5 Million subscribers - Well Done Old Boy!
It's been a while since I have heard your intro music, apologies for the neglect, but now I have a lot to watch!
Congratulations
Mark I love your work u are one of the reasons I love history and love when u make new videos listen to your stuff at work and you are awesome not too many people no history like u thank u mark for your history