Guarding Rudolf Hess, Hitler's Deputy Führer (262)

Cold War Conversations

Ian Sanders

Society & Culture, Documentary, History

4.8 • 758 Ratings

🗓️ 19 November 2022

⏱️ 57 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Dave Phillips is a Yeoman Warder at the Tower of London. The Yeoman Warders have been guarding the Tower since Tudor times. Dave joined the British Army aged 16 into the Royal Irish Rangers. We hear of his early years in the Army in Northern Ireland and his posting to West Berlin. In West Berlin Dave is part of the force that guarded Rudolf Hess, a leading member of the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany and appointed Deputy Führer to Adolf Hitler in 1933. On 10 May 1941, Hess made a solo flight to Scotland, where he hoped to arrange peace talks with the British. He was arrested and stood trial at the 1946 Nuremberg trials of major war criminals. The court convicted him of crimes against peace and of conspiracy with other German leaders to commit crimes and was given a life sentence in Berlin’s Spandau Prison. Dave describes interactions with Hess, as well as the guard duties and operation of the prison. 0:00 Introduction and Dave Phillips' early experiences in Berlin 1:04 The story of Rudolph Hess and his arrest 6:16 Dave's experiences in Berlin and Spandau Prison 15:38 A typical day for Hess in Spandau Prison and guarding duties 24:56 Hess's time at the Tower of London and conversations with him 28:59 Military training in Berlin and preparations for a potential invasion 36:00 Interaction with other occupying forces and West Berlin locals 39:44 Dave's return to Berlin years later and reminiscing about the fall of the Berlin Wall 45:16 Career progression, service in Northern Ireland and UN Peacekeeping 49:22 Dave's current role as a Yeoman Warder at the Tower of London 52:54 Financial support and donations Table of contents powered by PodcastAI✨ Cold War history is disappearing; however, a simple monthly donation will keep this podcast on the air. You’ll become part of our community and get a sought-after CWC coaster as a thank you and bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping preserve Cold War history. Just go to https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ If a monthly contribution is not your cup of tea, We also welcome one-off donations via the same link. Episode videos and photos here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode262/ Support the project! https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/ Youtube https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Cold War Conversations, the home of real stories of the Cold War.
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0:35.6	Pretty much every time I was in those towers, Hess would be in his prison cell,
0:40.3	screaming, absolutely screaming the place down.
0:43.8	Let me just say it was quite scary as a young 18-year-old sitting in a pitch black,
0:47.4	listening to this screaming for two hours.
0:51.4	This is Cold War Conversations. If you're new here, you've come to the right place to listen to first-hand Cold War history accounts. Do make sure you follow us in your podcast app or join our emailing list to keep up with the latest episode.
1:10.6	Dave Phillips is a yeoman warder at the Tower of London.
1:14.5	The yeoman warders have been guarding the tower since Tudor times.
1:19.3	Dave joined the British Army, aged 16, into the Royal Irish Rangers.
1:23.7	We hear of his early years in the army in Northern Ireland,
1:27.3	and he's posting to West Berlin.
1:30.0	In West Berlin, Dave is part of the force that guarded Rudolf Hess, a leading member of the
1:35.3	Nazi party in Nazi Germany, and appointed Deputy Fuhrer to Adolf Hitler in 1933.
1:43.2	In 1941, Hess made a solo flight to Scotland where he hoped to arrange peace talks
	...

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