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Pre WW2 identified photograph of Dutch Air Force Observer


Tonomachi
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Tonomachi

I was going through some photographs I've purchased over the years at flea markets and came across this one which was unusual in that it came out of Northern California.  This officer is identified as Siegfried Goldschmidt who was educated in England and served with the Netherlands Army in the Dutch East Indies prior to WW2 and during the war was some sort of intelligence officer as he spoke Dutch, German and English.  I believe the three stars on his collar in front of a propeller indicates he was an Air Force Captain and the wings on his chest are those of an observer.

 

 

 

 

IMG_3411.JPG

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You are correct. This is a Captain from the Air branch and he is an observer.

The W in his wing means 'waarnemer' and that is an observer. 

I expicitly say 'air branch' as the Dutch Air Force came into existance after WW2. Nice Picture You Got !

 

Regards

Herman

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  • 1 year later...

I checked this officer. His full name was Hellmuth Siegfried Goldschmidt. Born jan 3th, 1895. He became a Dutch reserve officer in 1915 as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Cavalry. In 1934 he was promoted to reserve Ritmeester (Captain in the Cavalry).  In the early thirties he was trained as an observer and was temporary transfered to the Air branch.

During the mobilisation in 1939 he was mobilised. During the attack of the Germans into the Netherlands in May 1940 he got separated from his unit. After questioning what happened his explanation was insufficient. This led to a court martial in 1943 and he was dishonorable discharged from the Dutch Army. 

 

He was not present in court. He was trained by the Germans as an agent and in 1943 he was already in the UK via Portugal. He offered his services as a double agent to the allies and was brought to the US and handled by the FBI. If you google him using his full name you will find a lot more about him.

 

I never thought that checking this person would lead to a story like this.

 

I will attach his Dutch Army service file  (in Dutch). The spy details you will find via Google. 

 

Regards 

Herman 

NL-HaNA_2.13.04_771_0201-1.jpg

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Outstanding research.  As you say, you never know what kind of story you will find with some of these folks.  I once found a sword whose owner was court Martialed and wound up breaking rocks at Leavenworth.  My guy acted as his own counsel and you know what they say... "When you represent yourself you have a fool as a client."

 

 

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21 hours ago, Hermann said:

I checked this officer. His full name was Hellmuth Siegfried Goldschmidt. Born jan 3th, 1895. He became a Dutch reserve officer in 1915 as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Cavalry. In 1934 he was promoted to reserve Ritmeester (Captain in the Cavalry).  In the early thirties he was trained as an observer and was temporary transfered to the Air branch.

During the mobilisation in 1939 he was mobilised. During the attack of the Germans into the Netherlands in May 1940 he got separated from his unit. After questioning what happened his explanation was insufficient. This led to a court martial in 1943 and he was dishonorable discharged from the Dutch Army. 

 

He was not present in court. He was trained by the Germans as an agent and in 1943 he was already in the UK via Portugal. He offered his services as a double agent to the allies and was brought to the US and handled by the FBI. If you google him using his full name you will find a lot more about him.

 

I never thought that checking this person would lead to a story like this.

 

I will attach his Dutch Army service file  (in Dutch). The spy details you will find via Google. 

 

Regards 

Herman 

NL-HaNA_2.13.04_771_0201-1.jpg

Many thanks for this additional information which is a shocker!

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  • 3 weeks later...

I have been reading some of the declassified FBI files on Hellmuth S. Goldschmidt and what a character.  Upon his dishonorable discharge he probably offered his services to the German Abweher or may have been recruited by them as he spoke native Dutch, English and German.  He was first trained as a spy and then sent to Portugal where he immediately offered his services as a double agent with the allies.  He was sent to England however the British Inteligence Service found him to be a low-grade agent and too much of an administrative problem to work with due to his constant womanizing so they offered his services to the Americans.  The FBI utilized him despite his handler’s description of a worthless and irresponsible individual of low mentality, not amenable to directions or control and utterly devoid of any patriotic motives.  The sole reason for his willingness to serve as a double-cross agent can be explained by his greedy character and desire for self-aggrandizement.  He has an appetite for women which is excessive and catholic.   He refused a cover position within the Dutch Consulate and instead wanted the FBI to get his old job back at the Shell Oil Company where he had a position before the war.   His reasons for coming to America was that their intelligence services paid more and along with any monies he could get out of the Germans this was on top of his salary with the Shell Oil Company.   I guess the FBI were forced to work with all kinds of people during the war as one of the things the Germans asked for were possible drop off points along the coast where additional agents could be dropped off by submarine.  I don’t know what became of this guy as I couldn't find anything about his death.  I hope they didn’t give this guy US citizenship.  The reason I couldn’t find anything might be due to him being given a new identity after the war by the FBI.   Who knows?

 

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