Hermann and Albert Göring: Two Very Different Brothers
Hermann Göring was Adolf Hitler's second-in-command, while his lesser-known brother Albert saved many Jews and dissidents persecuted by the Nazis.
Events in Vienna, March 1938
Paramilitary groups in leather boots and brown uniforms marched through Vienna, celebrating Nazi Germany's annexation of Austria. Members of Adolf Hitler's Sturmabteilung (SA) hung signs saying I am a Jewish pig
around an old woman’s neck. A man pushed through the crowd to help her, leading to a fistfight. Although he survived, resisting the Nazis was dangerous, and he was imprisoned.
Albert Göring’s Protection Due to His Name
The man was Albert Göring, brother of Hermann Göring, Supreme Commander of the Air Force and one of Hitler's closest aides. Despite his family ties, Albert actively opposed the Nazis and helped those targeted by them.
“What he saw was against everything that he believed in and he had no option,” says William Hastings Burke, author of Thirty Four: The Key to Göring's Last Secret.
Contrasting Brothers
- Hermann Göring was power-hungry and narcissistic, a supporter of Hitler since 1922.
- Albert was a charming bon vivant without political ambitions, who rejected Nazi ideology and brutality.
- Albert’s opposition to the Nazis was similar to that of Oskar Schindler.
These differences explain how two brothers could take such opposite paths during the Nazi era.
Author’s summary: The Göring brothers embodied starkly contrasting legacies: Hermann embraced Nazi power, while Albert courageously resisted from within his family circle.