Marie Vassiltchikov (1917–1978)
Auteur van Berlijns dagboek 1940-1945
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Fotografie: molodguard.ru
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Algemene kennis
- Pseudoniemen en naamsvarianten
- Vassiltchikov, Marie
Wassiltchikoff, Marie - Geboortedatum
- 1917-01-11
- Overlijdensdatum
- 1978-08-12
- Graflocatie
- Cremated
- Geslacht
- female
- Nationaliteit
- Russia
- Land (voor op de kaart)
- Russia
- Geboorteplaats
- St. Petersburg, Russia
- Plaats van overlijden
- London, England
- Oorzaak van overlijden
- Maladie (Leucémie)
- Woonplaatsen
- Berlin, Deutsches Reich
St. Petersburg, Russisches Reich
Vienna, Austria
Paris, France
London, England - Beroepen
- diarist
memoirist - Relaties
- Metternich, Tatiana (sister)
Wassiltschikow, Lydia (mother) - Organisaties
- Mnistère des Affaires étrangères du Reich (Secrétaire, 19 39 | 1945)
- Korte biografie
- Marie Vassiltchikov [or Wassiltschikow], was born in St. Petersburg to a family of Russian aristocrats who served in the Russian Imperial Parliament and at court. They fled Russia in 1919 following the Bolshevik Revolution. Marie spent her childhood as a refugee in France, Germany and Lithuania. She and her older sister Tatiana intermittently attended school at the Lycée of Saint Germain-en-Laye, when their parents were in funds. They spent the early years of World War II together in Germany, where they got jobs in the Foreign Ministry in Berlin. Many of Marie's close friends, including her boss, Adam von Trott zu Solz, were involved in the July 1944 plot to kill Hitler, and were executed. Marie kept secret diaries of her life in Berlin, including details of the conspiracy and the Allied bombing raids, written in shorthand. After the plot failed, she moved to Vienna, where she worked as a nurse. At the end of the war, she met and married Peter G. Harnden, an officer in U.S. military intelligence. They went to live in Paris, where Harden ran his own architectural firm. Marie's book Berlin Diaries: 1940-1945, was published after her death in 1985. It is considered one of the best and most informative first-hand accounts of the period.
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This is difficult. I love this topic and was quite prepared to love this book. The author was a White Russian whose aristocratic family escaped Stalin's terror and fled to Germany just before World War II. She was part of a crowd that was linked to the ill-fated July 20th attempt to assassinate Hitler. So, everything was is place for the perfect book. Not so. Until the actual attempt on Hitler's life, the diary entries are slogs through a catalog of the aristocracy of Eastern Europe and Germany, Austrian and Italy. There is lots of champagne and plenty of oysters between horrific bouts of Allied carpet bombing. There are sad storied of having to leave behind one's furs or crystal or.... What is missing is a real connection to all these people or any real feelings at all. It is a list- of aristocratic play pals, of castles for weekend visits, of dining and dancing, of bombed out houses and streets. That said, the book does get more interesting, perhaps because the author herself seems more invested emotionally in the horrors of the Nazi response to the attempted murder of Hitler. There are some few side notes that were quite resonant- the lack of foresight in the demands for "unconditional surrender" which may have prolonged the war, the refusal of the Allies to deal in any significant way with the rather large group inside Germany determined to stop Hitler, the apparent Allied attitude that all Germans were the same and all were complicit in the Nazi terror, and the devastation the Allied bombing had on the civilian population of Germany- ironically missing all the munitions factories for which they were supposedly aiming. Having read about the V bombs and the Blitz directed at London, I am not sure the author (or rather her brother who writes the comments between the diary entries) can really claim much moral high ground. I am not sure there is any such thing in war. Thus, the second half of the book is more interesting and would make an intriguing discussion for a history class. In fact, the last third is very interesting, but still plagued a bit by all the names of people we don't know or care about.… (meer)
I Loved this book. It taught me a different perspective on Germany during WWII and it allowed me to see into the lives of European aristocrats during the mid 20th century. Just read the review by Chris_El. He said everything I want to say but I give the book 5 stars.
Après des années de lecture sur l'époque, j'ignorais totalement ce témoignage et surtout son importance. Une jeune femme atypique au cœur du cœur du drame.
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Misschien vindt je deze ook leuk
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This offers a unique perspective on the events that she witnessed with little semblance to what war was like for ordinary people. So, we learn that travelling around Europe was still rather easy with people with the right papers, oysters were not rationed and were available as far as 1944, so were the rivers of confiscated French champagne. Bars and nightclubs were open as long as they weren't destroyed in the bouts of Allied carpet bombing and spending weekends in the countryside residences of her aristocrat friends was still a thing.
The most interesting part of the diaries is the author's connection to the officers involved in Operation Valkyrie. Even though she was well informed about the assassination plot she got out of the whole thing without even being questioned by the Gestapo, which seems very unlikely.
But, when you have friends in high places, everything's possible.
The tone of youthful naivete and aristocratic arrogance prominent in the first part of the book can be annoying. Missie drops a lot of names as her social calendar always seems to be fully booked and seems to be the only thing of interest to her.
Interestingly, for a diary of a young woman full of flippant details she occasionally jots down some astute observations about politics. However, we always remain on the surface since there is very little of her inner world exposed. So, don't expect much literary value here because this is above all a war log.
Personally, I found the last part of the diary the most interesting, because it contains some specific details about post-war life, refugee migrations etc. It is also the part where Missie experienced the most hardship, so it was easier to feel for her. By the end of this diary, I realized I actually enjoyed her voice and persevered through all the petty details she lists cause I was genuinely interested in what is going to happen to her.
What one must give to her is her unconquered spirit, for even in the worst of times when she could've stayed away from the capital she would "want to remain where the action is and that, of course, is Berlin".… (meer)