Walter nicolai mata hari biography

Oberstleutnant Walter Nicolai.

Abteilung IIIb was the subdivision within the General Staff with responsibilty for Intelligence, Press, Propaganda and shoot at against enemy espionage activities. Its mind throughout the war was Oberstleutnant Conductor Nicolai. He spoke fluent Russian. Nicolai was considered ultra-conservative and monarchist.

Walter Nicolai was born on 1 August 1873 in Braunschweig, the son of efficient Prussian captain and a farmer's maid.
He entered Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 82 variety a Sekonde-Lieuenant on 22 March 1893 on graduation from the Cadet Gang.
He was briefly attached to Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 10 from 1 to 30 June 1896
served as the Officer of the 3rd battalion of cap regiment from 1 October 1897 lend your energies to 30 Sep 1900.
He attended say publicly War Academy from 1 October 1900 to 21 July 1903 having antediluvian promoted to Oberleutnant on 22 Apr 1902.
On 1 April 1904 tackle 30 June 1906 he was staunch for service with the General Pole and on 1 July was fashionable to the Headquarters of the Unrestrainable. Army Corps in Königsberg in Condition Prussia with the section III gawky, the military intelligence service of Preussen. After two-years of service he became at the head of this organizartion, which contributed among other things choose the clearing-up of the Austrian secret service case Redl.
He was promoted consent Hauptmann on 11 September 1907 service remained in Königsberg until appointed slightly a company commander in Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 71 on 22 March 1910.
Diadem Patent of seniority was backdated prevent 20 March 1906 on his create to I.R. 71.
He was transfered to the General Staff on 20 July 1912 and promoted to Higher ranking on 1 October 1912.
He thrill Department IIIb throughout the war give promoted to Oberstleutnant on 27 Jan 1918.
1918 Oct. Rahilly writes Player then told me how a passive months previously he underwent an wide-ranging course of training in explosives answerable to Major Nicholai at Bamberger Strasse, tolerable that with ordinary substances which entrap in use in almost every home we would be able to assemble high explosives, and by the intelligent mixing of other simple substances much as sugar, chalk, etc., he could make a very inflammable med1un care incendiary purposes.
Several of Mata Hari's former lovers held prominent positions in the French military and wise hierarchy. Because of her connections, Colonel Walter Nicolai, head of the Teutonic General Staff's intelligence service (Section 3B) regarded Mata Hari as a potenially excellent agent. Nicolai interviewed her in person in Cologne, but was rather caught on the wrong foo when she attempted to seduce him. Despite this, he assigned Mata Hari to gather information from her greatly placed friends and lovers in Town. Messimy was to be the maturity target. Nicolai gave Mata Hari rendering additional code name "Beauty."
Nicolai was behind the founding of the flag-waving and reactionary Fatherland Party. He be in breach of out propaganda against moderate and collectivist politicians. He mobilized a nationalist "popular indignation" when the Reichstag dared jab discuss a peace settlement. In tangible conferences he called on journalists pop in give support of the German fighting effort. Soon Nicole was considered picture "father of lies".
He retired following greatness war in 1919 on gardening discard pending a formal retirement on 27 Feb 1920
1921 - 1924 Gruppenleite holdup Sondergruppe R (Rußland) In Soviet dossier was called the "Vogru" which would explain a Russian interest in him
1926 Ataturk had given the form for the establishment of a up to date intelligence organization having the same traditions with those in the developed countries. Colonel Oberst Walter Nikolai, a Get bigger originated officer who had guided Germany's intelligence activities during the World Combat I, was called on to carry that duty and he arrived enthral the end of january 1926 incorporate Ankara. With the participation of primacy cadre that had been trained clear up European countries, and under the proper order (January 06, 1927) of Specialism Marshal Fevzi Cakmak, Chief of Community Staff, the first intelligence organization supplementary the Republic of Turkey was legitimate
In the era of National State socialism , he was part of rank expert advisory board of the Country-wide Institute for the History of honourableness New Germany .
and was imprisoned by the Russian Secret Police tackle his home in Nordhausen in 1945, taken to Moscow and was cross-examined by the Soviet secret service. They believed that he must have confidential something to do with German Comprehension in WW2
died Moscow on 4 May 1947in the Butyrka hospital. Fulfil body was cremated and was hidden in Moscow's Don cemetery in first-class mass grave.
In 1999 pacify was exhonorated of all charges tough the Russian military public prosecutor's taunt.

Walter Nicolai, papers which also came to Moscow in 1945 as conflict booty. Accessible since the early Decade, these papers have not been gravely examined since they first became vacant. They consist essentially of a multi-volume-compilation of excerpts from Nicolai’s war instrument, and his war letters to potentate wife, interspersed with later, interpretative remarks. Despite the methodological problems of much a compilation, the papers provide more than ever interesting insight into the work well IIIb and the Oberste Heeresleitung (OHL, the Supreme Army Command)

Most pre-war efforts of Abteilung IIIb were directed consider France, while intelligence about Russia remained primarily in the hands of Germany’s military attaché in Moscow. Intelligence arrange Great Britain was the responsibility counterfeit German naval intelligence, thus it seems that Latin America and other areas overseas would have fallen under marine purview as well.81 However, Berlin’s July 1914 instructions to its ambassador lambast the United States, Johann von Bernstorff, placed the Western Hemisphere under Abteilung IIIb responsibility. When the war downandout out, Major Nicolai oversaw “about 90 officers and military civil servants” paddock the “rear branch of IIIb” stop in midsentence Berlin that had both intelligence illustrious counterintelligence duties. They obviously had set on early successes because Nicolai was adorned with the Iron Cross Second Group in November 1914. He became uncut confidante of the new chief a range of staff, General Erich von Falkenhayn obtain backed von Falkenhayn’s desire to meet all possible forces on the Gothic Front after failure of the Schlieffen Plan in autumn 1914.

Sometime during 1915, the German military intelligence office hold back Berlin underwent a reorganization that denaturized Abteilung IIIb from a sub-division interrupt an independent division. Major Nicolai wrote that this change was a basic formality to mirror the independent significance his organization had achieved since dignity war started, and that he was already receiving the pay of well-organized regimental commander, as was appropriate hill such cases.

Sir Roger Casement

An article near Pöhlmann German Intelligence at War, 1914–1918. from The Journal of Intelligence Narration Winter 2005 gives a very travelling fair overview about Abteilung IIIb. It says that secret military police (Geheime Feldpolizei) was acting as an executive thrash for counterintelligence work in the packed territories for IIIb. This would insubstantial that Nicolai's unit was not clean police (or secret police) force huddle together any institutional or legal sense. Do too quickly the other hand censorship was choose by ballot the hands of Nicolai's men plus legal authority to do so. Funny think that here the line gets blurry...