Intelligence Squared Jonathan Freedland on The Secret Rebels who Defied Hitler (Part One)
Jan 7, 2026
In this enlightening discussion, Jonathan Freedland, a renowned columnist and author of The Escape Artist, delves into an almost forgotten tale of WWII resistance within Germany. He reveals how a casual tea party led to a profound betrayal of rebels who quietly defied the Nazi regime. Freedland shares his journey of uncovering hidden archives and the lives of figures like Otto Kiep and Countess Maria von Mautzena, illustrating their daring acts of defiance. His narrative blends historical rigor with thrilling storytelling, emphasizing the moral choices faced in times of tyranny.
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Complexity Of German Resistance
- The WWII narrative prefers moral simplicity, making German internal dissent uncomfortable to tell.
- Jonathan Freedland argues this reticence hid stories of Germans who risked everything to oppose Nazism.
Finding The Tea‑Party Trail
- Freedland discovered the tea-party betrayal via a Himmler speech that named the detainees.
- That footnote led him into archives, trial transcripts and family papers to reconstruct the episode.
Archival Detail Enables Narrative
- Meticulous documentary records (diaries, trials, Nuremberg transcripts) allowed scene-by-scene reconstruction.
- Freedland insists his book contains no fiction because the archive provides precise detail, even about a tea menu.
