5. Mildred Gillars: “Axis Sally,” The American Radio Propagandist who sided with the Nazis
While some German citizens opposed the Nazi regime from within, certain allied civilians aligned themselves with the Nazi cause. American Mildred Gillars was one of them. Gillars was a bit part actress who had seen little success touring in American theatre groups. So, in 1929, she left for North Africa, with the intention of making her way to Europe. Eventually, in 1934, Gillars reached Dresden in Germany, where she settled down to study music.
Gillars remained in Germany. When America joined the Second World War in 1941, she joined the Nazi propaganda machine at Radio Berlin as a radio announcer. Announcing herself as “Sally,” Gillar’s targets on her programme “Home Sweet Home,” were the thousands of homesick and lovesick American servicemen whose hearts and thoughts were with their loved ones at home. Gilliar’s remit was to demoralize the troops. “Hello, gang, “her broadcasts began. “Throw down those little old guns and toddle off home. There’s no getting the Germans down.”
After the war, Gillars attempted to hide amongst the dispossessed of Berlin. However, in 1946, a US counter-intelligence agent spotted her and had her extradited to the US. There, in 1947 Gillars stood trial for ten counts of treason. Gillars offered a variety of often contradictory mitigating circumstances for her treachery. One moment she claimed she only did the broadcasts to please her German husband, Foreign services officer Max Otto Koischwitz. Then she blamed the US embassy in Berlin for taking her passport away in 1941, forcing her to sign the German oath of allegiance.
None of this convinced the jury. However, they convicted Mildred Gillars on only one count of treason, based around a broadcast made before the Allied Invasion of Normandy. In this broadcast, “Axis Sally” as she was then known attempted to demoralize US forces by delivering an exaggerating account of what awaited them if they were foolish enough to breach Hitler’s Europe. Gillars was fined 10,000 dollars and sentenced to 10-30 years in prison. After serving 12 years, she was paroled. Gillars immediately opted to enter a convent in Columbus Ohio. There, she taught students at the convent French, music -and German.