The Mare's Nest

THE MARE’S NEST The War against Hitler’s Secret Vengeance Weapons “David Irving is the forensic pathologist of modern military history. He dissects, analyses and describes with an unflinching, unsqueamish surgical skill. His knife exposes the tumours, the cancers and horrors of war. The reader becomes a spectator in an operating theatre. Coolly detached himself, Mr. Irving spares him nothing.” The Economist This edition ISBN ‒‒‒ The editor of this work was Francis de Salis, who had previously edited Leon Uris’s novel Exodus David Irving’s The Mare’s Nest was first published in 64 by William Kimber Ltd, in London, and by Little, Brown Inc in Boston. In Italy it was published by Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, Milan; in Spain it appeared as Las Armas Secretas (Editorial Planeta, Barcerlona). In Germany it was a major bestseller, published in 64 as Die Geheimwaffen des III. Reichs by Sigbert Mohn Verlag of the Bertelsmann Group, and serialized in Der Spiegel. Subsequent German-language editions included a paperback published by Wilhelm Heyne Verlag of Munich and a book club edtion by Weltbild Verlag, of Augsburg. This revised edition of The Mare’s Nest is slightly abridged, but includes a hitherto unpublished chapter as a Prologue. First published November Revised edition published by Panther Books Electronic Edition Focal Point Classic Edition 2010 © Parforce UK Ltd. – An Adobe pdf (Portable Document Format) edition of this book is uploaded onto the FPP website at http://www.fpp.co.uk/books as a tool for students and academics. It may be downloaded for reading and study purposes only, and is not to be commercially distributed in any form. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be commercially reproduced, copied, or transmitted save with written permission of the author in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 6 (as amended). Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal pros- ecution and to civil claims for damages. Readers are invited to submit any typographical errors to David Irving by mail at the address below, or via email at [email protected]. Informed comments and correc- tions on historical points are also welcomed. Focal Point Publications Windsor sl4 6qs David Irving he Mare’s Nes The War Against Hitler’s Secret ‘Vengeance’ Weapons “Lord Cherwell still felt that at the end of the war when we knew the full story, we should find that the rocket was a mare’s nest.” Defence Committee (Operations) 25 October 43 What the Press said about this book In the destruction of dresden, Mr. David Irving has already given us one of the best and most illuminating books that have come out of the last war. One is tempted to say that The Mare’s Nest is an even better one. It is, first of all, an admirably clear and thorough account of the develop- ment, production and operational deployment of the secret weapons with which, as the twelfth hour approached, Germany still hoped to avenge her- self on Britain and even to win the war. It is also an account of the measures by which Britain tried to penetrate the mystery of the V-weapons and to counter the potential threat which they created; this seems to me one of the best descriptions I have ever read of how intelligence operations are actu- ally conducted and their results assessed. Lastly, the book gives us a slightly nightmarish illustration of how, in war, decisions of critical importance may be determined by factors, of ignorance, human fallibility, prejudice, egotism, which are hardly amenable to rational control. — The Spectator (London) Mr Irving’s book about the German V-weapons is remarkable because it describes in parallel how the fight proceeded not only on the British side, in the great argument about whether and what new German weapons were likely, but also among the Germans, in deciding to what weapons, new or old, resources ought to be applied at the war s climax. Inevitably, in Britain, a key actor is again Lord Cherwell: disdainful as ever of the views of lay and unscientific persons such as Mr Sandys, who was given the task in the spring of sifting the evidence for German rockets, dogmatic and obdurate as ever in sticking to his first view that these long range rockets were so unfeasible scientifically as to be, in his scornful words, a “mare’s nest” ; indignant and depressed when in the summer of 44 his sceptical views were, fortunately, overridden, not just by the laymen but by the scientists as well, when the decision was made that there was a threat to be met by massive old-style bombing. — The Economist One of the most fascinating books I have read for a long time . I wonder how many more skeletons are mouldering in Whitehall cupboards. — Cassandra [William Connor] in The Daily Mirror David Irving gives an authoritative account of the V-weapon offensive as seen from Germany and from Britain. It presents the results of meticulous research in both countries and is full of interesting quotations from official British and German documents. These have been successfully woven together into a coherent narra- tive, written in a brisk style... The account of how we progressively pieced together the technical details of the V- rocket is an absorbing story of scientific detection. Students will find in The Mare’s Nest a mine of impor- tant information, while much wider circles will enjoy David Irving’s vivid presentation of a strange story. — Duncan Sandys in The Evening Standard (London) The story of Hitler’s, secret weapons contains a rich catalogue of human folly, and David Irving’s excellent book can be read with profit by statesmen on both sides of the Iron Curtain. Mr Irving produces some startling figures . The flying-bomb, at £125 each, was a cheap killer. By contrast, the V- cost £, each to deliver a similar payload. Indeed, it might be argued that the V- did more harm to the German war effort than the entire Allied strategic bombing offensive. How, Mr Irving asks, could a perceptive military economist like Albert Speer, the German Minister of Supply, allow such a thing to happen? — Paul Johnson in The New Statesman (London) This is a factual account, based upon original documents and a great deal of fresh information . but for sheer drama it has never been surpassed by the most sensational “thriller.” . In these circumstances it is not difficult to understand why, when Mr. Irving’s book is once taken up, it is not easily put down. — Sir Charles Petries in The Illustrated London News, December 6, 64 . and more at fpp.co.uk/reviews David Irving is the son of a Royal Navy commander. After visiting Imperial College of Science & Technology and University College London, he spent a year in Germany working in a steel mill and perfecting his fluency in the German language. The author of this work was given access to official documents; he alone Among his thirty-odd books, the best-known include Hitler’s War; is responsible for the statements made, for the conclusions drawn and for Churchill’s War, vol. i: “Struggle for Power,” vol. ii: “Triumph in Adver- the views expressed in this work. In accordance with established practice in thesesity”, circumstances and vol. iii: “The he Sundered was not Dream”;permitted Accident, to identify the Death of offi cialGeneral documents of whichSikorski; he made The use. Destruction of Dresden; The Mare’s Nest; The German Atomic Bomb; The Destruction of Convoy PQ17; The Rise and Fall of the Luftwaffe; Göring: a Biography, and Nuremberg, the Last Battle. He has also translated several works by other authors including Field- Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, Reinhard Gehlen, and Niki Lauda. He lives in Windsor, England, and has raised five daughters. Photo: Adolf Hitler’s generals visit Wernher von Braun’s secret missile establishment at Peenemünde in March 1941 he Mare’s Nes David Irving The War Against Hitler’s Secret Vengeance Weapons F FOCAL POINT Books by David Irving Und Deutschlands Städte Starben Nicht (with Günter Karweina) The Destruction of Dresden The Mare’s Nest The Destruction of Convoy PQ. The Memoirs of Field Marshal Keitel (translator) Accident. The Death of General Sikorski The Virus House Formula : The Art & Science of Grand Prix Driving, by Niki Lauda (translator) Breach of Security (with Prof. D C Watt) The Service. The Memoirs of General Reinhard Gehlen (translator and editor) The Rise and Fall of the Luftwaffe Hitler und seine Feldherren Hitler’s War The Trail of the Fox The War Path Der Nürnberger Prozess Mord aus Staatsräson Wie Krank War Hitler Wirklich? Uprising! One Nation’s Nightmare: Hungary 6 The War between the Generals Von Guernica bis Vietnam The Secret Diaries of Hitler’s Doctor Adolf Hitler: The Medical Diaries Der Morgenthau-Plan 44/4 (documentation) Churchill’s War vol. i: The Struggle for Power Göring. A Biography Hess: The Missing Years Führer und Reichskanzler Das Reich hört mit Deutschlands Ostgrenze Hitler’s War & The War Path (updated, one-volume edition) Die Nacht, in der die Dämme Brachen Der unbekannte Dr. Goebbels (1938 diary ed. and transcribed) Apocalypse 4. The Destruction of Dresden Goebbels. Mastermind of the Third Reich Nuremberg, the Last Battle Churchill’s War, vol. ii: Triumph in Adversity Banged Up: Survival as a Political Prisoner in 21st Century Europe in preparation: Churchill’s War, vol. iii: The Sundered Dream Heinrich Himmler Contents Acknowledgements 3 Prologue Introduction Programmes of Revenge 25 The Intelligence Attack 4 Operation Hydra 107 The Bodyline Investigation 3 The Rocket in Eclipse 3 Retribution 33 The A4 Ascendant 6 Account Due 302 appendix i: Evidence on the Comparative Costs of Rockets and Flying Bombs 3 appendix ii: The author recalls something of the history of this book 321 Index 33 Acknowledgements No book of this nature would be possible without the unselfish co- operation of several hundreds of people who, having participated in the events portrayed, are able to assist in establishing the circumstances, successes and failures of the Allied Intelligence attack on German secret weapons in the Second World War.

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