Travellers in the Third Reich: The Rise of Fascism Through the Eyes of Everyday People

by Julia Boyd

Splendid though it was, the Ribbentrop party was to be eclipsed only two days later. Not content with having already hosted one magnificent occasion, Göring held another on the lawns of his brand new Air Ministry – then the largest office building in Europe. The far end of the garden, shrouded in darkness, was suddenly illuminated to reveal an eighteenth-century village complete with schuhplattling [traditional folk dancing] peasants, inn, post office, bakery, donkeys and merry-go-round. Göring himself, reported the French ambassador, rode the carousel until he was breathless.47 Vast women distributed pretzels and beer among the revellers. ‘There has never been anything like this since the days of Louis Quatorze,’ a fellow guest remarked to Channon. ‘Not since Nero,’ retorted Channon, adding that both Goebbels and Ribbentrop were ‘in despair with jealousy’.