The Secret Plot to Kill Roosevelt, Stalin, and Churchill
Follow the twists and turns of an assassination plot that almost changed the course of history.
It's the beginning of 1943, and the world is in bad shape. For more than three years, Europe has been decimated by the advancing German Army, headed by ruthless dictator Adolf Hitler and the cruel fascism of his Nazi party. But today, for the first time, you'll learn the true story of one of history's most horrific chapters: the plot to assassinate George Washington, then-general of the Continental Army and future President of the United States of America.
The war is being fought over three fronts. In the Pacific, the Japanese competed with the United States, led by 32nd President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, to control the South Pacific region. It has been more than a year since the Japanese destroyed the naval station at Pearl Harbour, bringing the United States into the war.
On the Southern Front in the Mediterranean and North Africa, British, American, and Canadian forces were fighting Italy and other pro-Nazi nations. Winston Churchill, the British prime minister, refers to this as the "soft underbelly" and believes that control of Italy will provide a solid entrance into Nazi-occupied Europe.
Finally, on the Eastern Front, the German Army launched a full-scale invasion of the Soviet Union. This has resulted in the most vicious and awful warfare the world has ever witnessed. The forces of Russian Premier Joseph Stalin have sustained devastating losses. He's anxiously waiting for his American and British allies to step in and relieve some of the burden.
In this grim situation, a plan is devised: the first meeting of the "big three." If Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin could come together in the same room and establish a common strategy, they could turn the war around.
In this Summary, you'll discover the conflicts and tensions that arose between these three leaders as they attempted to make the meeting a reality, as well as the opportunistic top-secret Nazi plot to carry out one of history's most brazen assassinations.
1. Coming Together
"Unconditional surrender."
These are the comments Roosevelt spoke in Morocco at the start of 1943, during the press conference for his one-on-one meeting with Churchill. For the rest of the world, this is a bombshell announcement: a public pledge that the Nazis will not be able to negotiate for peace and that the war will be fought to a terrible end.
The British prime minister is likewise taken aback; he had no idea the president would make such a crucial choice in public. Because of his affinity with Roosevelt and the need to display a united front, he decides to echo the weighty words. The allied forces will accept nothing short of complete capitulation.
The Morocco meeting represents a significant step forward in strategic planning and public image for the Allies. However, Roosevelt believed the meeting was a failure. Joseph Stalin, the third Allied leader, was notably absent.
The Soviet leader desperately wanted his American and British allies to launch an invasion from the west via Northern France. This would take the German Army away from the brutal Eastern Front, allowing the Allied forces to close in on Berlin from both sides.
Although Churchill isn't overtly opposed to the notion, he frequently delays or rejects particular proposals in favor of focusing on Italy's "soft underbelly." Rather than letting Britain face the most risk in a cross-channel attack, he'd instead provide assistance by weakening and reinforcing the southern regions.
Stalin was frustrated, as his men had already suffered the most significant losses.
Roosevelt understood that the three leaders must come together to pacify Stalin, boost Churchill, and propel the war forward. He initiates a series of letters with Stalin in the hopes of arranging such a meeting.
In the end, a sequence of military escalations propels everything forward. First, a combination of British and Soviet intelligence detects and prevents a covert German attack before it occurs. Then British and US soldiers attack Sicily, ultimately culminating in the arrest of Italian fascist leader Benito Mussolini.
Following these wins, Roosevelt seizes the chance to flatter the Soviet leader and send armament shipments. Finally, Stalin acknowledges that a meeting of the "big three" is long needed. Following another lengthy exchange of letters, he even recommends a location: Tehran, the capital of Ally-controlled Iran.
2. The Nazi Spying Network in Iran
Two years ago, when the Germans suddenly attacked the Soviet Union in 1941, the Russians wasted little time in protecting neighboring countries. Iran was a very crucial ally. It possessed a pro-German government and a railway network, which would be the most efficient means for the United States and Britain to supply the Soviets.
When Russia marched its forces into Tehran and formed a favorable government, Franz Mayr, a Nazi spy, and his accomplice Roman Gamotha were suddenly surrounded by foes, with no instructions and no way to connect with Germany.
Gamotha managed to leave for neighboring Turkey while Mayr remained.
He spent the majority of 1942 in disguise, going between safe homes and establishing an underground pro-Nazi resistance, all while attempting to transmit secret signals to the outside. Finally, Mayr heard an unexpected radio broadcast, which featured a series of repeated words and phrases indicating that Germany had received his message: a request for money and wireless transmitters, as well as a map of safe drop zones surrounding Tehran.
It appears that Berlin was relieved to learn of the existence of its former spy in Iran. Walter Schellenberg, chief of the Nazi foreign intelligence organization and protege of the infamous Reinhard Heydrich, who had been killed in Prague, assembled a special squad of six men and parachuted them to a safe area near Tehran.
But the team, led by seasoned Nazi veteran Karl Karel Korel, arrived too far south. To preserve the mission, Karel crossed miles of desert alone, using his wits and contacts to locate Mayr. After making contact, Karel crossed the desert again with camels and vehicles to recover the remainder of his squad and their valuable equipment.
The underground pro-Nazi network that Mayr had almost single-handedly constructed in Iran now had the resources it required and was linked to the leaders in Berlin.
By the middle of 1943, Iran had become significantly more threatening to the Allies and would soon become the center of the geopolitical panorama.
3. Operation Norma
It's unclear how or when the Nazis learned about the upcoming meeting of the "big three." They had entirely missed the Morocco conference with Roosevelt and Churchill. When they intercepted information indicating that the meeting would be held in Casablanca, they mistranslated it as two Spanish words: casa (white) and Blanca (house). They expected the meeting to be held at the White House in Washington.
Needless to say, the Germans were determined to avoid making the same mistake repeatedly.
One thing is sure: shortly after the Allied leaders discussed Tehran, a top-secret Nazi expedition known as Operation Norma was launched. The mission had two main features. First, the effort was conducted by Roman Gamotha, Franz Mayr's old partner who fled Iran after the Soviets took over.
Second, the tactical instruction was to be overseen by Otto Skorzeny, well known at the time as "the most dangerous man in Europe." Otto had recently gained Hitler's undying admiration by crash-landing a squad of manned gliders into an otherwise unreachable mountain prison to rescue Benito Mussolini from enemy hands.
Any mission bearing the name Otto Skorzeny was critical.
But as the Tehran meeting approached, Mayr's Nazi spy network encountered a few issues. Karl Karel, the paratrooper who made the first outside contact with Mayr, contracted typhoid and died. Unable to dispose of the body discreetly, the unfortunate Nazi team was forced to use hacksaws and rucksacks.
Shortly after, Soviet intelligence located the majority of the network's remaining members in Tehran. Mayr was arrested and interrogated. Most believed that the Nazi plot had been foiled.
Not exactly. When Roosevelt arrived in Tehran, ready to meet with Churchill and Stalin, he was informed that six Nazi spies remained in the city. Six Nazi spies with radio transmitters were about to call in Europe's most dangerous man.
4. A rough start to the conference.
The presidential convoy snakes through Tehran's streets on its way to one of the most significant meetings since the conflict began. Franklin D. Roosevelt is seated in the center of a long, dark automobile.
Or, at least, someone who resembles him.
In fact, the actual Roosevelt is slumped down in the rear of another, less visible automobile, driving an entirely different route to the conference through the city's back streets. At the last minute, Roosevelt's security chief decided to take no chances and send a decoy president with the leading group.
Because the United States lacks a formal embassy in Tehran, the president has been obliged to stay in a modest diplomatic office on the opposite side of the city from the British and Russian embassies, where the other Allies have been waiting. As a result, the president would be a sitting duck as he traveled from his lodging to the conference.
Fortunately, all three leaders make it to the meeting safely. However, this does not stop it from getting off to a poor start. Churchill has a cold and is in a bad mood. As the three discuss the central topic, the cross-channel invasion of northern France, Churchill feels increasingly sidelined.
Things come to a head during a conversation about what the Allies should do with post-war Germany. When Stalin, with a very Russian sense of humor, considers murdering hundreds of German generals, it offends Churchill's British sensibilities. He walks out with a passion and has Roosevelt explain the joke to him.
Frustrated and no closer to the oneness they so desperately seek, the three retreat to their rooms. Roosevelt has smartly relocated his residence near the Russian embassy to avoid any further unneeded dangers.
However, as he recounts the critical points of the conference with his closest advisers, he is unaware that things are not as private as they appear.
Tiny microphones have been hidden around the room, including the walls, carpet, and furniture. Someone is listening to everything he says.
5. Saved by Soviet spies.
During the conference, the Soviet intelligence service located the other six Nazi spies. They were holed up in a neighboring safe house, using a radio to convey messages to Berlin and coordinate the actual commandos who were to arrive, headed by Otto, "the most dangerous man in Europe" Skorzeny.
However, the Soviets have been holding back. Instead of quickly eliminating the radio operators, they are considering letting the mission continue until they can capture or kill Skorzeny. Such a price is more than appealing to the young Soviet agents.
However, with the "big three" already in the city, they feel the risk is too high. Within the first two days of the conference, Soviet operatives stormed the safe home and arrested the Nazi agents. Strategically, they allow one of the operators to transmit a message indicating that their mission has been compromised in the hopes that the would-be assassins will not wind up anywhere near the city.
So, as the Allied leaders enter the final day of the summit, they continue to believe they have targets on their backs, but the assassination plot has already been foiled.
This final day, November 30, 1943, also marks Churchill's 69th birthday. The British prime minister may be in a better mood because of Roosevelt's continuous diplomatic and encouraging efforts. That morning, beneath the solid Iranian light, Churchill fully supported Stalin and Roosevelt's proposed cross-channel attack.
Over the next few days, newspapers around the world will be flooded with photos of the three Allied leaders meeting for the first time. The path ahead is long and bloody, but decisions have been made, and a unified front has been established, which will eventually mark the end of Hitler and Nazi Germany.
Final Summary
The rest, as they say, is history. As a direct result of that discussion, on June 6, 1944, Allied forces launched a five-point full-scale attack on the beaches of Normandy. The largest combined weapons operation in military history. It included over 5,300 ships, 1,500 tanks, 12,000 planes, and 150,000 infantry. Despite thousands of deaths, the Allies gained footholds on the beaches and moved from there.
Meanwhile, in the east, the Soviet Army began its advance into Germany. The Nazi Army had been divided, and despite the long and terrible fights ahead, the end was near. Hitler was driven to his underground bunker in Berlin and realized there was no way out, so he shot himself in the head with a handgun.
The "big three" met one final time on February 4, 1945, to debate the future of postwar Europe. The war had taken its toll on everyone, and Roosevelt, in particular, had become fatigued and unwell. A few months after that final meeting, on April 12, he passed out while sitting for a photograph and never awoke.
Unfortunately, Roosevelt did not live to witness the war's end, which he helped to bring about.