Robert Edsel's Blog

Photo Courtesy of CNN

As they say in westerns, “where’s the sheriff when you need one?”

I previously wrote about the damage to Haiti’s great national cathedral (blog dated February 9) and pointed out the hope that restoring it can bring to the citizens of this devastated country.  These cultural symbols with which they have lived for decades bring hope and inspiration; they’re destruction conveys the opposite message.  But in Haiti, like in war torn Europe at the end of World War II, the damage to culture went far beyond buildings and structures to include paintings, sculpture…in fact, most every form art takes.  This was the overwhelming challenge faced by the Monuments Men and women in the days after the war.

Christiane Amanpour, one of the truly gifted journalists of our time, due in no small part to her years of travel and fascinating family of origin, “gets it” in my view on this and so many other subjects.  Art matters; culture matters.  They are priceless parts of our existence; when they are damaged or our ability to enjoy them restricted as was the case in Nazi Germany, our lives are greatly diminished in ways few appreciate until those horrible moments are presented.  Christiane has prepared a great piece about the cost to Haiti in terms of its loss of cultural heritage due to the damage of works of art from the earthquake. The link is http://www.cnn.com/haitilostart.html

We must always state how much we mourn those who are no longer in Haiti, the tragic victims of this epic natural disaster.  But our focus must now shift to those who have survived, and those who have a chance to recover.  As time passes, these symbols of hope—the cultural heritage of a nation—will become increasingly important to the people of Haiti, perhaps less due to a desire to enjoy them initially and more so knowing that until the day when the rebuilding has begun, their cultural patrimony is safe.  Compliments to Christiane Amanpour for her insights and program.

Photo Courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)

Perhaps one of the most controversial and misguided decisions of World War II was made when General Mark Clark of the U.S. Fifth Army ordered the Abbey of Monte Cassino to be bombed. Some Allied leaders, as well as the soldiers on the ground fighting the terrible battle of Monte Cassino and the general public, believed that the Germans occupied the monastery and were using it as an observation point. The Abbey of Monte Cassino had become a symbol of defeat, and many felt that the Allies could not advance until it was destroyed.

Photo Courtesy of NARA

On February 15, 1944, Allied pilots were told that their “target is a huge ancient monastery which the Germans have chosen as a key defense point and have loaded with heavy guns…In the past few days this monastery has accounted for the lives of 2,000 American boys…this Monastery MUST be destroyed and everyone in it as there is no one in it but Germans.”[1] From 9:28 am to 1:33 pm, 453.5 tons of bombs were dropped on the Abbey of Monte Cassino. The abbey, founded in AD 529 and the birthplace of the Benedictine order, was bombed into oblivion.

Nazi Field Marshal Kesserlring’s headquarters was informed of the bombings by 10:30 am. “His chief of staff, Major-General Siefgried Westphal, asked by telephone, “Has it done us any harm from a military point of view?” He was told by his counterpart at the Tenth Army, “No, because we are not occupying it.” [2]

Photo Courtesy of NARA

The Vatican quickly responded, calling the destruction of the abbey “a colossal blunder” and a “piece of gross stupidity.” Thankfully, the lesson was learned and the Monuments Men swung into full action shortly after the bombing of the Abbey. They sought to ensure that historic monuments were never again treated with such disregard, or destroyed so carelessly.

[2] Ibid.

The National Cathedral of Haiti devastated by the recent earthquake. (Photo Courtesy of Polaris Images)

I’ve often said that perhaps the most redeeming aspect of the historic work of the Monuments Men is one of hope…that in the face of man’s inhumanity to his fellow man, and amidst the great human suffering and devastation to homes, towns, and ways of life as a consequence of World War II, a small group of volunteers emerged to risk their lives and everything they had accomplished to rescue and preserve the cultural legacy of civilization for future generations.  This story is certainly filled with heroism, valor, and harrowing close calls in which western civilization’s most beloved works of art and monuments were in jeopardy of being destroyed.   But the story is also one of hope that the lessons of the Monuments Men during World War II would enable future generations to be better prepared to deal with similar situations.

In Haiti, a natural disaster of war-like scope has devastated the nation and its people and suspended the normal functioning of their society.  The deaths of hundreds of thousands of people, and more importantly all ongoing efforts to save the lives of others while creating a stable safe living environment must be the paramount concern.  This will be years in the doing; no quick fix exists.  Haiti’s long history of poverty and decades of kleptocratic leadership have created that reality despite noble efforts, and some signs of progress, these past few years.   Because of the protracted time that rebuilding even a modicum portion of the infrastructure will require, hope—and all its symbols—will have an added significance.

Hope buys time…hope buys patience…hope can provide a reason to fight for life just one more day until improvement comes, no matter how slight. Hope can bring a sense of confidence about there being tomorrows.  And in my judgment, the people of Haiti need hope as desperately as they need medicine, doctors, and financial aid.  What then can be done that would bring a disproportionate benefit to the aid dollars and individual acts of mercy?  Let us for a moment look to the past as a guide.

Rouen Cathedral damaged by bombing in 1944 (Photo Courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration)

The thousands of discoveries during World War ll made by the Monuments Men of hidden paintings, stained glass, pieces of sculpture, and other art objects too often overshadows their initial assignment which was to protect monuments, i.e., churches, libraries, museums, and other important historical structures, hence the nickname “Monuments Men.”   The Monuments Men were not responsible for restoring these buildings, but they did oftentimes implement crucial temporary repairs that mitigated damage and enabled restoration at a later date.  They also made key determinations about which structures were damaged beyond repair and those that, while severely damaged, could in fact be rebuilt using as much of the original materials and structure as possible.

Many examples of the results of their work and other people of good will exist, but two that are prominent and serve to illustrate the point are the great cathedral in Rouen, and the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in Berlin.  The Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Rouen was severely damaged in April 1944 by Western Allied bombing, and again during the D-Day invasion two months later.  It was repaired after the war and remains one of Europe’s great gothic cathedrals, dating back to 1202!  The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, built in honor of Germany’s Emperor (1858-1888), was nearly destroyed in a Western Allied air raid on November 23, 1943.  As late as May 24th, 1953, the church was still unrepaired with parishioners attending services in the ruins of the structure.  Repairs to the church didn’t begin until 1959 and required 4 years to finish.

The National Cathedral of Haiti before the earthquake (Photo Courtesy of Wikipedia Images)

And After (Photo Courtesy of Wikipedia Images)

Haiti’s great church, the National Cathedral in Port-au-Prince, was severely damaged by the earthquake.  Built between 1884 and 1914, the Cathédrale de Port-au-Prince is a Roman Catholic Church of hugely symbolic importance to Haitians, more than 90% of whom are Catholic. It is, along with the presidential palace, the most identifiable structure in the nation.  (To put this into perspective, imagine the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. being destroyed, or St. Patrick’s in New York City.)  While the roof collapsed, much of the structure’s walls remain standing, in fact eerily similar to the scenes of destruction to the Rouen and Berlin churches.  Those churches were rebuilt:  the National Cathedral in Port-au-Prince should be also.

Imagine the impact on these shattered Haitian lives to see this revered structure rebuilt and done so in a way to withstand future earthquakes? And not rebuilt for them, but rebuilt BY THEM combining their physical participation with the technological assistance of experts in such matters, and the funding and support of kindred organizations such as the Vatican, the World Monuments Fund, and others.  The symbol of hope and reassurance to the people of Haiti that there WILL be a tomorrow would be immense and inspirational.  With guidance and assistance from those in the United States, including our government, it would send a message to the world that the leaders of this nation understand the importance of respect for the preservation of cultural property in a way our actions in the aftermath of the looting of the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad in 2003 did just the opposite. This was the very essence of why the Monuments Men were created, the core objective of their mission.  It worked in war torn Europe after the deaths of 60 million people.  Why then should it not work in Haiti?

Gemaldegalerie Linz Album XIII

Augsburger Geschlechterbuch or “Augsburg Book of Nobles”

On Friday we gathered at the State Department for a ceremony marking the return of two irreplaceable documents, one of which was located by the Monuments Men Foundation.  The Gemaldegalerie Linz Album XIII was a prized possession of Hitler and documented German 19^th century works of art he had accumulated, both through purchase and theft, for the Fuhrermuseum he planned to build in his hometown.  The other document is known as the Augsburger Geschlechterbuch or “Augsburg Book of Nobles” which belongs to the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart.  While each item was taken by a U.S. Army soldier, the circumstances of their respective returns couldn’t have been more different.

Mr. Robert Edsel, Mr. John Pistone, and Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat, German Ambassador Klaus Scharioth, and Minister of the Interior for Baden-Wuerttemberg, Heribert Rech

This great occasion also honored one of those veterans, Mr. John Pistone, who upon learning about the importance of the Gemaldegalerie Linz Album agreed to work through the Monuments Men Foundation to ensure its return to Germany.  In contrast, the person in possession of the Augsburg Book of Nobles refused to return it and only through years of litigation was it eventually delivered to the State Department.

Deputy Secretary of State Jacob Lew, Minister Heribert Rech, German Ambassador Klaus Scharioth and Mr. Robert M. Edsel

Mr. Robert Edsel, Ambassador Klaus Scharioth, Minister Heribert Rech, and Deputy Secretary of State Jacob Lew

Ambassador Christian Kennedy, the U.S. Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues hosted the event and introduced each of the speakers after making poignant remarks about the importance of these two items being returned to Germany. His comments were underscored by Deputy Secretary of State Jacob Lew.  Accepting these items was German Ambassador Klaus Scharioth, and Heribert Rech, Minister of the Interior for Baden-Wuerttemberg, the state in which Stuttgart is located.  Both gentlemen spoke eloquently and candidly about this period of Germany’s history and the commitment Germany has today to doing everything possible to assist those victims of the Nazi era in recovering their stolen belongings.  At the same time, they expressed their desire to see items belonging to Germany returned home.  Minister Rech had tears in his eyes when he expressed the satisfaction that this important relic of his city’s history was finally going home.

Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat, Ambassador Christian Kennedy, and Deputy Secretary of State Jacob Lew

Each speaker commented on the important role of the Monuments Men during and after World War II and expressed their sincere appreciation for the work of the Monuments Men Foundation in not only preserving their legacy but in helping to locate and return items of such historic importance.  After all our hard work, these remarks were quite gratifying to hear.  Compliments were also directed to Mr. John Pistone for his role in coming forward to set the example for all veterans and their relatives who, like him, may have some item that was taken during the war that is a cultural object which should be returned.  When I first met with Mr. Pistone many months ago, I encouraged him to be a visible presence in the return of this document both to allow him to receive the credit he was due, but also to set the example for others.  He graciously agreed.  It was a very happy moment for the Monuments Men Foundation team to witness this fine veteran receive such praise in the presence of his family.  He later told me it was one of the proudest moments of his life…and that speaks volumes about what we at the Foundation are all about.

Mrs. Verna Pistone and her daughters Joan, Julianne and Laura

Photos courtesy of United States State Department

The imposing majesty of the National Gallery of Art and its remarkable collection deceive many visitors into believing it is centuries older than it is. In fact, this March, it will celebrate only its 70th year!

No sooner than the National Gallery opened than the nation was consumed with World War II; Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 7th.  The United States would soon be fighting on European soil for the second time within 24 years.  Included among the fighting forces would be a small group of men and women dedicated to saving the great cultural treasures of Europe formally know as the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives section, or MFAA. But they were better known as “Monuments Men”.

Because much of the Monuments Men operation was run out of the National Gallery by its director, David Finley, and others, my speaking engagement this past Sunday was a homecoming of sorts.  It was a distinct honor to stand before a full house of about 400 people to present these great heroes and their stories to a very well-informed and enthusiastic audience, especially after such a heartwarming introduction by Nancy Yeide, head of curatorial records and files, and a dear friend.

Having had the good fortune of visiting most of the world’s great museums, I can say with conviction that the National Gallery of Art is truly one of the greats. Every American should be very proud of our nation’s museum and thankful to Andrew Mellon, the man whose vision and generosity made this great institution a reality.

The Four Freedoms flag or "United Nations Honor Flag"

On January 6, 1941, Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered the “Four Freedoms” speech to Congress. While the United States was not yet formally involved in World War II, this address was delivered during the height of the Nazi occupation of Europe. President Roosevelt proposed four fundamental freedoms that everyone had the right to enjoy, a direct counter to the laws the Nazis were implementing on the continent of Europe:

1. Freedom of Speech and Expression

2. Freedom of Religion

3. Freedom from Want

4. Freedom from Fear

(Freedom of Speech)

Norman Rockwell’s Four Freedoms paintings were inspired by the speech. These four paintings toured across the country in 1943, raising over $130,000,000 in war bond sales.

Below is the speech in its entirety:

In the future days, which we seek to make secure, we look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms.

The first is freedom of speech and expression — everywhere in the world.

The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way — everywhere in the world.

The third is freedom from want — which, translated into world terms, means economic understandings which will secure to every nation a healthy peacetime life for its inhabitants — everywhere in the world.

The fourth is freedom from fear — which, translated into world terms, means a world-wide reduction of armaments to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no nation will be in a position to commit an act of physical aggression against any neighbor– anywhere in the world.

That is no vision of a distant millennium. It is a definite basis for a kind of world attainable in our own time and generation. That kind of world is the very antithesis of the so-called new order of tyranny which the dictators seek to create with the crash of a bomb.

To that new order we oppose the greater conception — the moral order. A good society is able to face schemes of world domination and foreign revolutions alike without fear.

Since the beginning of our American history, we have been engaged in change — in a perpetual peaceful revolution — a revolution which goes on steadily, quietly adjusting itself to changing conditions — without the concentration camp or the quick-lime in the ditch. The world order which we seek is the cooperation of free countries, working together in a friendly, civilized society.

This nation has placed its destiny in the hands and heads and hearts of its millions of free men and women; and its faith in freedom under the guidance of God. Freedom means the supremacy of human rights everywhere. Our support goes to those who struggle to gain those rights or keep them. Our strength is our unity of purpose.

To that high concept there can be no end save victory.

From Congressional Record, 1941, Vol. 87, Pt. I

Today, The Monuments Men Year-End Newsletter for 2009 was released to the general public. Inside this newsletter, you can read about the various creative content we have produce, our ongoing engagement with the public through the media to bring much need attention to the Monuments Men, the various honors bestowed upon the Monuments Men Foundation, and all the incredible memories bringing this story to life.  Many thanks to all that have worked on this project through the years.

Please take a minute to read the The Monuments Men Year-End Newsletter.

If you would like to sign up for future newsletters, please click here (fill out form on the right side to submit).

65 years ago this was the greeting to our troops stationed in France who had just liberated that country 4 months earlier.  It was a fierce winter with more snow and colder temperatures than had been seen in any living person’s memory.  The Battle of the Bulge was raging with desperate conditions for fighting men and the local populace; some feared the outcome of the war hung in the balance.  But our troops then, just as they had in too many conflicts past, endured.  Many found a way, even if for a fleeting moment, to pause and recognize the day and its importance.  Some had the luxury of receiving gifts from home, others  a chance to write a loved one a message on an Army issued Christmas card such as the one below.  We came across this card in the course of my research for The Monuments Men and set it aside for use this year as a way of reminding us all how fortunate we are….to not be in a combat zone, to be able to enjoy this day with family and loved ones without risk of life or hardships of a winter outdoors with no shelter or food.  I also wanted it to serve as reminder to us all about the millions of young men and women in uniform who are stationed all over the world, walking a wall, on duty, doing their best—many at risk of life—to preserve the freedom and way of life we enjoy.

The official U.S. Army Christmas Card that Monuments Man Robert Posy sent home to his wife and son in December 1944.

So this Christmas in particular, on behalf of our team and the Monuments Men and women, we say “Merry Christmas to all; peace and safekeeping”.

Until the new year, be well.

Click Image to Enlarge

On December 21, 1941, directors from the great museums in America joined at the Metropolitan Museum in New York City for a historic meeting. In the aftermath of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, these cultural leaders realized that it was time to take action. Their initial concerns focused on the safety of American museums – would they be prepared for an attack on their own cities? Other logistical problems were a concern as well. In Boston, the Museum of Fine Arts had closed the Japanese galleries out of fear of angry mobs. The Met was closing at dusk to prevent visitors from running into things in the event of a blackout.

At the meeting, Paul Sachs issued a resolution, stating:

“If, in time of peace, our museums and art galleries are important to the community, in time of war they are doubly valuable. For then, when the petty and the trivial fall way and we are face to face with final and lasting values, we… must summon to our defense all our intellectual and spiritual resources. We must guard jealously all we have inherited from a long past, all we are capable of creating in a trying present, and all we are determined to preserve in a foreseeable future. Art is the imperishable and dynamic expression of these aims. It is, and always has been, the visible evidence of the activity of free minds.”

In hindsight, we know that a further attack on American soil never occurred. However, this meeting had lasting effects: it served as the birthplace of the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives section. After the Met meeting, Monuments Man George Stout and Harvard Professor Paul Sachs continued to reach out to museum leaders to develop a plan of action for when the Allies would inevitably arrive in Europe, for it had become obvious that it was the cultural treasures of Europe, not America, that would need protection. The Monuments Men were the embodiment the eloquent words Sachs spoke in December 1941.

December 16 marks the anniversary of the beginning of the Battle of the Bulge – the largest and most deadly battle U.S. Forces were engaged in during World War II. The Ardennes Offensive, as it is formally called, was the last major German offensive launched during the war along the western front. The fighting centered around the Ardennes Mountains in Belgium, France and Luxembourg in brutally cold weather. American casualties were over 80,000.

The letters and journals of the Monuments Men reveal a marked change of pace during the Battle of the Bulge. On December 16, Robert Posey received his Christmas package from his wife Alice and his son, Woogie. As he wrote to thank them for the phonograph Christmas greeting, he had no idea that days later he would be called up from duty as a Monuments Man and ordered to the front lines to “keep firing until you can’t fire anymore” at the approaching Germans.

Walker Hancock first found out about the Bulge as he drove to Waimes, Belgium to make a monuments inspection – he was stopped by an advanced unit and told the village was back under German control. He spent Christmas Even in a cellar in Liège, Belgium. Christmas Mass the next morning was interrupted by German bombs.

Like all the Allied heroes of World War II, the Monuments Men risked their lives to protect freedom and save the world from Nazi terror. For this, we are eternally grateful.