Photo: Feng Shan Ho, Consul General in Vienna, 1938, Manli Ho Collection 650 words / 3 ½ minute read Martin loved watching old war films and would get together with his friend the military historian Max Arthur, the two of them offering a running commentary with and over the characters in…
Photo: Sir Martin reading to his students in front of the ruins of Crematorium III in Birkenau, June 1996 (from Holocaust Journey) 350 words / 1 ½ minute read The above titled article was published in The Jerusalem Post on February 12. Unsurprisingly it piqued my interest. The author Eli Kavon…
Photo: In Ishmael’s House makes a cameo appearance in Small Apartments, directed by Jonas Äkerlund, 2012, near James Marsden, playing Bernard 390 words / 2 minute read Literally one of those if-you-blink-you-missed-it moments, Martin made a cameo appearance. Well, not really Martin, but rather one of his productions. Spotted in a…
Photo: Krzysztof Hejmanowski, left, the building inspector for the construction company, with Bartlomiej Gwozdz, left, the archaeologist, and some of the artefacts unearthed in Lodz. Photo by AP photographer Rafal Niedzielski 560 words / 3 minute read In January came the news that in December, during a building renovation in the…
Photo: Esther with Debra Brunner, Founder and CEO of The Together Plan, and Paul Demby, former Chair of the Trustees, 28 February 2019, photo ©Debra Brunner 450 words / 2 minute read After years of being “Patron” of The Together Plan I will be adding “real content” in the form of…
Photo: Winston Churchill addressing Congress, 26 December 1941; Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressing Congress, 21 December 2022 475 words / 2 ½ minute read Joint Session of Congress I feel greatly honoured that you should have invited me to enter the United States Senate Chamber and address the representatives of both branches of…
Photo: Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis with museum founder Sheikh Ahmed Al Mansoori at the Crossroads of Civilisation Museum’s Holocaust exhibit in Dubai, November 2022. 360 words / 2 minute read You might have missed it. But tucked away between the struggle of the brave women of Iran to be allowed to choose…
Photo: Churchill with Roosevelt give a joint press conference in Washington, 23 December 1941, photo Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library 350 words / 1 ½ minute read Germany declared war on the United States on 11 December 1941, four days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Churchill, concerned that the…
Photo: Left to right, Rivka Liebeskind (Dolek’s wife), Dolek Liebeskind, Miriam Liebeskind (Dolek’s sister). Rivka survived. Photo from Ghetto Fighters’ House, Israel. 530 words / 2 ½ minute read “We are fighting for three lines in the history books.” Adolf (Dolek) Liebeskind, Cracow, 20 November 1942 On December 22, a month…
Photo: The Western Front, November 11, photo by United States Signal Corps, from First World War 460 words / 2 minute read On the morning of 9 November 1918, the German armistice negotiators reached the Forest of Compiègne. The German military delegate, Major-General von Winterfeldt, was the son of the man…
Photo: Karl Huhle’s photo of Hitler descending the stairway at the Berghof near Berchtesgaden to meet the former Prime Minister Lloyd George in September 1936; the interpreter Paul-Otto Schmidt is in the centre, lifting his hat, and Joachim von Ribbentrop at the left. 800 words / 4 minute read “I am…
Photo: Barbara Winton with her father, Sir Nicholas Winton, and her book. 430 words / 2 minute read “Do you want to meet Nicholas Winton?” Not an offer people get every day, even an offer made to Martin Gilbert’s groupie and wife. It was 2005, Martin was writing his book on…
Photo: The cover of the first edition of Anne Frank’s diary, The Secret Annexe, published in Amsterdam in 1947. Many editions, translations, adaptations followed. 650 words / 3 minute read Anne Frank’s story has gone through many representations. My favourite is this one: The stage is set as a dwelling that has…
Photo: Part of one of the 32 pages of photos of those killed on 27 August 1942, or 14 Elul 5702 on the Hebrew calendar, corresponding to 10 September 2022, the 80th Yahrzeit, or anniversary of the destruction of Sarny’s Jewish community. 520 words / 2 ½ minute read If a…
Photo: Randolph and Catherine Churchill, on board the Queen Mary off Long Beach, California, 26 May 2016 Those in the Churchill world were saddened to hear of the passing of Catherine Churchill, Randolph’s wife, companion and helpmate. I really only got to know Randolph after Martin became ill, and saw Catherine…
Photo: John Gielgud as Aaron Jastrow, in Herman Wouk’s War and Remembrance 600 words/3 minute read How do we comprehend senseless evil? How do we respond when words lead to violence and to murder? (And with all the advances mankind has created to make life better, why is there even still…
Photo: Wing Commander Jim Wright DFC. 2275 words / 11 minute read 10 January 2008 Wing Commander A J Wright DFC RAF(Ret) to Sir Martin Gilbert via his website: With support from many in Canada, OZ, NZ and UK, but lacking the official help needed from the Bomber Command Association (BCA)…
Photo: The Vrba-Wetzler escape route from Auschwitz to Jewish leaders in Slovakia, to bring the news of the death camp to the Jews of Hungary 770 words / 3 minute read “I couldn’t believe my eyes,” was how Caroline Edwards described to the Congressional Committee the January 6th “war scene” she,…
Photo: 1 November 2015, with Alan Palmer, Oxford 720 words/ 3 ½ minute read One of the early inspirations in Martin’s life and subsequent historical work was his Highgate School History Master, his mentor, his friend, Alan Palmer who sadly died this spring in his 96th year. In 2005, with the 90th anniversary…
Photo: 14 March 2006, with Gerda Klein, Phoenix, Arizona 550 words/ 2 ½ minute read “Shaking my head, I stared at this man who was to me the embodiment of all heroism and liberty. He greeted me. I must tell him from the start, I resolved, so that he has…