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TRANSCRIPTION
- 2 - (5)
It appears that the cruiser incident had been
regarded as serious and that discussions had taken
place between Eden, Beck and Delbos, the new French
Foreign Minister. Beck had agreed that he would
undertake the mission of demanding an explanation
from Berlin, as Poland had charge of Danzig's
foreign affairs.
On Wednesday I had further discussions, including
one with Beck, and the Council that evening
at a special meeting decided to place my Report
on the Agenda of the Special Session.
I should remark here that my caution in handling
this opening phase had led me to report "for
the information of the Council" and I had not asked
that the matter should be discussed, leaving that
responsibility to the Council. President Greiser was
informed by the Secretariat that the matter would
be on the Agenda, but it was also indicated to him
that his presence was not regarded as essential,
as it was a matter between the League and Germany.
The press began to publish rumours of German concentration
on the East Prussian frontier and of
an expected coup.
On July 2nd I had further conversations, and
that evening one with Lubienski, Beck's personal
lieutenant. Everyone knew that Germany would
at some time raise the Danzig problem. The question
was whether a better settlement could be made now
on broad lines, with some hope of stabilising
affairs here for a longer period. I was convinced
personally that the first move had been made.
Developments might be slow but they were coming.
I did not know how genuine and real was the Polish
view that Danzig under the present regime was vital
to the life of the Polish nation, but although it
was outside my actual duties I could not refrain
from suggesting that this opportunity should be
taken by Poland to go more deeply into the question
than the mere cruiser incident, and see if greater
stability in this part of Europe could not be
reached. Lubienski half hinted to me that this
idea was not absent from Beck's mind.
The German press attack continued and the
"Diplomatische Korrespondenz", the mouthpiece
of the Wilhelmstrasse, joined in with an article
saying that I was personally psychologically
unsuitable and moved by animosity and partiality.
I refused to make any comment to the innumerable
press people who approached me, on the grounds that
the main charge was that I had carried out the
duties entrusted to me by the League, and that the
question was not at all a personal one.
Both Eden and Beck told me that their Ambassadors
had been seen by Baron von Neurath who had assured
them that the Danzig incident would not be developed
and would pass quietly. Then came the news that
Greiser was coming to Geneva. He had long conversations
in Berlin and arrived on July 4th in
Geneva. The Poles and the British were still more
or less satisfied that a short formal discussion
would finish the matter at the Council that evening.
To both of them I expressed some anxiety as to what
instructions Greiser had got in Berlin. Beck had
a talk with Greiser before the meeting, but nobody
expected the violent tirade which Greiser delivered
at the Council table. A certain amount of personal
abuse of myself was mingled with insulting remarks
about the League. He certainly created a sensation
both by the matter and the manner of his speech,
as can be seen from the press cuttings. The Council
Language(s) of Transcription
LOCATION
Gdańsk (Poland) (54.3612, 18.5499)
Story Location
ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT
Document Date
Document Type
Document Description
Language of Description
Keywords
External Web Resources
People
Arthur Greiser
Description: German politician (NSDAP), MdR, Senate President of the Free City of Danzig, Reich Governor and Gauleiter of the NSDAP
Wikidata Reference: Q213826
Jerzy Łubieński
Description: Acted as a representative of Polish Foreign Minister Józef Beck in the Free City of Danzig
Wikidata Reference: Q111469215
Konstantin von Neurath
Description: German Foreign Minister, Ambassador and Reich Protector in Bohemia and Moravia
Wikidata Reference: Q153421
STORY INFORMATION
Title
Diary 3: May 1936 - February 1937
Creator
Lester | Seán | 1888-1959
Contributor
Lester, Seán, 1888-1959
Seán Lester
Coverage
name=Twentieth century; start=1936-05-06; end=1937-02-01
Date
6 May 1936-1 February 1937
Type
Text
Rights
This collection has been digitised and made available by Dublin City University Library. Please credit Dublin City University Library when using these images, creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Language
eng
Identifier
#ng45f7525
LandingPage
https://www.europeana.eu/item/707/_ng45f7525Country
Ireland
DatasetName
707__Dublin_City_University
Begin
1936-05-01
End
1937-02-28
Language
en
Created
2022-03-23T16:13:34.244Z
2022-03-23T16:14:08.313666Z
2022-03-23T16:14:08.314189Z
Story Description
Consists of unbound typed diary entries, documents and letters relating to Lester's final months as High Commissioner of the League of Nations in Danzig. Lester left Danzig on 22 December 1936 having been promoted to the position of Deputy Secretary General of the League. He took up his new appointment in Geneva on 16 January 1937. Includes document written by Lester outlining the context for the file: 'The following fragments are the only notes I have of my last six months in Danzig ... The reason they are so fragmentary ... was that the crisis in Danzig developed so quickly and in such uncertainty that I could not safely keep any record of certain matters, either in my house or my Office. For three months at any rate I was not at all sure that my house and Office might not be occupied any day by the political Police or the Storm Troopers [sic].' - Document comprising of two diary entries, the first from 6 May 1936 (pages 1-3) and the second from early July 1936 (pages 4-9) combined together as a single entry. The section from 6 May 1936 is duplicated in Diary 2: January-June 1936 in the collection [diary C1/2]. Includes diary entries (some marked 'Private Diary') from the following dates: 8, 17, [?20], 23 (two entries with this date, one titled 'Relations with Greiser'), 24, and 28 July 1936; 3, 5, 6 and 7 August 1936 (two copies); 12 September 1936; 16, 19 and 24 October 1936; 22 December 1936 and 1 February 1937. Entries were all written in Danzig apart from the final entry (1 February 1937) which was written in Geneva. Includes undated notes on Albert Forster, the Nazi Party's Gauleiter in Danzig, that was originally filed between diary entries from 24 October 1936 and 22 December 1936, and was thus possibly written during that period. Includes copy letters from Lester to Joseph Avenol, Secretary General of the League of Nations, from the following dates: 11, 14 and 24 July 1926; 1 August 1936 (two copies of two different letters from this date). Most of the letters are marked 'Personal', 'Personal and Confidential', or 'Personal; Secret'.
TRANSCRIPTION
LOCATION
DESCRIPTION
PEOPLE
STORY INFO
TUTORIAL
- 2 - (5)
It appears that the cruiser incident had been
regarded as serious and that discussions had taken
place between Eden, Beck and Delbos, the new French
Foreign Minister. Beck had agreed that he would
undertake the mission of demanding an explanation
from Berlin, as Poland had charge of Danzig's
foreign affairs.
On Wednesday I had further discussions, including
one with Beck, and the Council that evening
at a special meeting decided to place my Report
on the Agenda of the Special Session.
I should remark here that my caution in handling
this opening phase had led me to report "for
the information of the Council" and I had not asked
that the matter should be discussed, leaving that
responsibility to the Council. President Greiser was
informed by the Secretariat that the matter would
be on the Agenda, but it was also indicated to him
that his presence was not regarded as essential,
as it was a matter between the League and Germany.
The press began to publish rumours of German concentration
on the East Prussian frontier and of
an expected coup.
On July 2nd I had further conversations, and
that evening one with Lubienski, Beck's personal
lieutenant. Everyone knew that Germany would
at some time raise the Danzig problem. The question
was whether a better settlement could be made now
on broad lines, with some hope of stabilising
affairs here for a longer period. I was convinced
personally that the first move had been made.
Developments might be slow but they were coming.
I did not know how genuine and real was the Polish
view that Danzig under the present regime was vital
to the life of the Polish nation, but although it
was outside my actual duties I could not refrain
from suggesting that this opportunity should be
taken by Poland to go more deeply into the question
than the mere cruiser incident, and see if greater
stability in this part of Europe could not be
reached. Lubienski half hinted to me that this
idea was not absent from Beck's mind.
The German press attack continued and the
"Diplomatische Korrespondenz", the mouthpiece
of the Wilhelmstrasse, joined in with an article
saying that I was personally psychologically
unsuitable and moved by animosity and partiality.
I refused to make any comment to the innumerable
press people who approached me, on the grounds that
the main charge was that I had carried out the
duties entrusted to me by the League, and that the
question was not at all a personal one.
Both Eden and Beck told me that their Ambassadors
had been seen by Baron von Neurath who had assured
them that the Danzig incident would not be developed
and would pass quietly. Then came the news that
Greiser was coming to Geneva. He had long conversations
in Berlin and arrived on July 4th in
Geneva. The Poles and the British were still more
or less satisfied that a short formal discussion
would finish the matter at the Council that evening.
To both of them I expressed some anxiety as to what
instructions Greiser had got in Berlin. Beck had
a talk with Greiser before the meeting, but nobody
expected the violent tirade which Greiser delivered
at the Council table. A certain amount of personal
abuse of myself was mingled with insulting remarks
about the League. He certainly created a sensation
both by the matter and the manner of his speech,
as can be seen from the press cuttings. The Council
- English (English)
- 2 - (5)
It appears that the cruiser incident had been
regarded as serious and that discussions had taken
place between Eden, Beck and Delbos, the new French
Foreign Minister. Beck had agreed that he would
undertake the mission of demanding an explanation
from Berlin, as Poland had charge of Danzig's
foreign affairs.
On Wednesday I had further discussions, including
one with Beck, and the Council that evening
at a special meeting decided to place my Report
on the Agenda of the Special Session.
I should remark here that my caution in handling
this opening phase had led me to report "for
the information of the Council" and I had not asked
that the matter should be discussed, leaving that
responsibility to the Council. President Greiser was
informed by the Secretariat that the matter would
be on the Agenda, but it was also indicated to him
that his presence was not regarded as essential,
as it was a matter between the League and Germany.
The press began to publish rumours of German concentration
on the East Prussian frontier and of
an expected coup.
On July 2nd I had further conversations, and
that evening one with Lubienski, Beck's personal
lieutenant. Everyone knew that Germany would
at some time raise the Danzig problem. The question
was whether a better settlement could be made now
on broad lines, with some hope of stabilising
affairs here for a longer period. I was convinced
personally that the first move had been made.
Developments might be slow but they were coming.
I did not know how genuine and real was the Polish
view that Danzig under the present regime was vital
to the life of the Polish nation, but although it
was outside my actual duties I could not refrain
from suggesting that this opportunity should be
taken by Poland to go more deeply into the question
than the mere cruiser incident, and see if greater
stability in this part of Europe could not be
reached. Lubienski half hinted to me that this
idea was not absent from Beck's mind.
The German press attack continued and the
"Diplomatische Korrespondenz", the mouthpiece
of the Wilhelmstrasse, joined in with an article
saying that I was personally psychologically
unsuitable and moved by animosity and partiality.
I refused to make any comment to the innumerable
press people who approached me, on the grounds that
the main charge was that I had carried out the
duties entrusted to me by the League, and that the
question was not at all a personal one.
Both Eden and Beck told me that their Ambassadors
had been seen by Baron von Neurath who had assured
them that the Danzig incident would not be developed
and would pass quietly. Then came the news that
Greiser was coming to Geneva. He had long conversations
in Berlin and arrived on July 4th in
Geneva. The Poles and the British were still more
or less satisfied that a short formal discussion
would finish the matter at the Council that evening.
To both of them I expressed some anxiety as to what
instructions Greiser had got in Berlin. Beck had
a talk with Greiser before the meeting, but nobody
expected the violent tirade which Greiser delivered
at the Council table. A certain amount of personal
abuse of myself was mingled with insulting remarks
about the League. He certainly created a sensation
both by the matter and the manner of his speech,
as can be seen from the press cuttings. The Council
Language(s) of Transcription
English Translation
Transcription History
- 2 - (5) It appears that the cruiser incident had been regarded as serious and that discussions had taken place between Eden, Beck and Delbos, the new French Foreign Minister. Beck had agreed that he would undertake the mission of demanding an explanation from Berlin, as Poland had charge of Danzig's foreign affairs. On Wednesday I had further discussions, including one with Beck, and the Council that evening at a special meeting decided to place my Report on the Agenda of the Special Session. I should remark here that my caution in handling this opening phase had led me to report "for the information of the Council" and I had not asked that the matter should be discussed, leaving that responsibility to the Council. President Greiser was informed by the Secretariat that the matter would be on the Agenda, but it was also indicated to him that his presence was not regarded as essential, as it was a matter between the League and Germany. The press began to publish rumours of German concentration on the East Prussian frontier and of an expected coup. On July 2nd I had further conversations, and that evening one with Lubienski, Beck's personal lieutenant. Everyone knew that Germany would at some time raise the Danzig problem. The question was whether a better settlement could be made now on broad lines, with some hope of stabilising affairs here for a longer period. I was convinced personally that the first move had been made. Developments might be slow but they were coming. I did not know how genuine and real was the Polish view that Danzig under the present regime was vital to the life of the Polish nation, but although it was outside my actual duties I could not refrain from suggesting that this opportunity should be taken by Poland to go more deeply into the question than the mere cruiser incident, and see if greater stability in this part of Europe could not be reached. Lubienski half hinted to me that this idea was not absent from Beck's mind. The German press attack continued and the "Diplomatische Korrespondenz", the mouthpiece of the Wilhelmstrasse, joined in with an article saying that I was personally psychologically unsuitable and moved by animosity and partiality. I refused to make any comment to the innumerable press people who approached me, on the grounds that the main charge was that I had carried out the duties entrusted to me by the League, and that the question was not at all a personal one. Both Eden and Beck told me that their Ambassadors had been seen by Baron von Neurath who had assured them that the Danzig incident would not be developed and would pass quietly. Then came the news that Greiser was coming to Geneva. He had long conversations in Berlin and arrived on July 4th in Geneva. The Poles and the British were still more or less satisfied that a short formal discussion would finish the matter at the Council that evening. To both of them I expressed some anxiety as to what instructions Greiser had got in Berlin. Beck had a talk with Greiser before the meeting, but nobody expected the violent tirade which Greiser delivered at the Council table. A certain amount of personal abuse of myself was mingled with insulting remarks about the League. He certainly created a sensation both by the matter and the manner of his speech, as can be seen from the press cuttings. The Council
English Translation
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