The Case of Albert Speer: Can we find beauty in an architecture which has clearly and intentionally served to legitimize a political system we despise?
Jake Joesph Richardson Jake Joseph Richardson 1
Hitler and Speer examine the plans of their Germania Jake Joseph Richardson 2
“You pig of a traitor. We have looked for you for a long time. You who as our Fuehrer’s architect pofited when he went from victory to victory. You, who planned to gas him and his staff when he defended our Berlin. You Pig played the penitent, and barricaded in a villa guarded by dogs betrayed us. Your lying scribbles show your true charachter...with speechifying toadying to the victors and sending money to Jewish organizations...you are trying to get yourself readmitted to society... you money grapping pig... When we put an end to you, no one will care. No one will shed a single tear. And we will put an end to you. Rely on it”1 - L.P Hauptsturmfuhrer. Letter received to Speer on morning of first visit to Heidelberg (1978)
1 L P Hauptsturmfuhrer. Letter to Albert Speer. 1978. MS. Germany, Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg. Jake Joseph Richardson 3
Jake Joseph Richardson 4
The Case of Albert Speer: Can we find beauty in an architecture which has clearly and intentionally served to legitimize a political system we despise?
Jake Joseph Richardson
A dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the Degree of BA Architecture 2015
Newcastle University
Jake Joseph Richardson 5
Jake Joseph Richardson 6
Acknowledgments I would like to thanks Professor Andrew Ballantyne for his encouragement and support throughout the process of writing this dissertation.
I would also like to thank Pat Evans for her patient proof reading.
Jake Joseph Richardson 7
Jake Joseph Richardson 8
CONTENTS PROLOGUE
13
INTRODUCTION
20
PART I - THE RELATIONSHIP 1 - Magnetsim 24 2 - Legacy 28 3 - Unrequited Love 31 PART II - ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN 4 - Politics in Stone 38 5 - Ruin Theory 42 6 - Megalomania 51 7- Audience 61 PART III - MORALITY 8 - Moral Vacuity 74 9 - Ideologies 76 10 - Role of The Architect Today
81
PART IV - CONCLUSION 11 - Classical 88 12 - Judgment 90 SOURCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY List Of Illustrations 96 The Speer Corpus 100 Other Original Sources 102 Other Works 104
Jake Joseph Richardson 9
Jake Joseph Richardson 10
“Die Tat ist alles, nichts der Ruhum.”2 (“The Deed is all, the glory nil”) - Goethe, Faust II
“I’ll have them wall all Germany with brass”3 - Marlowe, Dr Faustus
“Wenn Hitler uberhaupt Freunde Gehabt hatte, ware ich bestimmt einer seiner engen Freunde gewesen.”4 (“If Hitler had actually had friends, I would certainly have been one of his close freinds.”) - Albert Speer, at Nuremberg, 19 June 1946
“But it was strange that as the years passed, I demonstrated more and more interest in architecture.”5 - Adolf Hitler
2 Faust Goethe. Hochgebirg (1832) p. 2. 3 Christopher Marlowe, John D. Jump. Doctor Faustus (Manchester: Manchester UP, 1976) p. 12. 4 Joachim Fest, Speer: The Final Verdict (London: Phoenix Press, 1999) p. 340. 5 Adolf, Hitler and Ralph Manheim. Mein Kampf (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1943) p. 22. Jake Joseph Richardson 11
Hitler and Speer take a stroll near the Fuhrer’s temporary Headquarters in the Ukraine 1942 Jake Joseph Richardson 12
Prologue
-
“Can a sword, that has killed unjustly, be called beautiful?
-
Can a war criminal be a great artist?”
- “Does a corrupt political purpose necessarily corrupt the fine art?” -
“Can beauty be at the service of assassins, or does artistic quality transcend its political abuses?”
-
“If architecture often serves to legitimize tyrannical power,
does that mean the power of architecture is of a doubtful moral nature?” -
“More personally: can we find beauty in an architecture, which has clearly and intentionally served to legitimize a political system we despise?”6
I
f all architects were granted the power to realize their dreams, would any question the source of such power? Would moral obligations
continue to suffer in favour of these self-centred endeavours? What kind of architecture is produced from such circumstances? I am using Albert Speer as a case study to see how morality and desire affect design, in
6 Leon Krier. “An Architecture of Desire”, in Albert Speer Architecture 19321942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985) pp. 217-228; p. 219. Jake Joseph Richardson 13
addition to seeing “what comes from one man’s holding unrestricted power in his hands.”7
7 Bertina Loeffler. “Albert Speer.” Albert Speer. Web. 07 Jan. 2015. <http://www. auschwitz.dk/speer.htm>. Jake Joseph Richardson 14
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Every autobiography is a dubious enterprise. For the underlying assumption is that a chair exisits in which a man can sit down to contemplete his own life, to compare its phases, it survey its development, and to penetrate its meanings. Every man can and surely ought to take stock of himself even in the present moment, any more than in the whole of his pastâ&#x20AC;?8 - Karl Bath
Albert Speer stood trial at Nuremberg in September 1945 where he was charged for war crimes, waging wars of aggression, crimes against humanity and crimes against peace.9 In 1947 he began a twenty-year long sentence in Spandau prison. My interest, however does not lie in these proceedings, I will make no attempt to absolve this man from the crimes for which he was convicted. Speer was the only one of the defendants during the trials at Nuremberg to partake in self-criticism of his role in the regime; nevertheless, it did not occur to him to be selfcritical of his architectural contributions. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The architecture I designed for the regime is the least of my troubles; it even seems to me sometimes that it is after all better than the Trocadero in Paris or the Lomonossow 8 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 17. 9 Edward R, Zilbert. Albert Speer and the Nazi Ministry of Arms (London: Associated University Presses Inc, 1981) Jake Joseph Richardson 15
University in Moscow”10
My focus, as it were, may be typified by Koolhass’s comment, “What happens now, seventy years later, when all has passed to mere memory? The third Reich has been abolished, Speer has passed, and all that remains is a handful of models and an array of sketchy plans.”11 However what I wish to consider throughout my dissertation is a series of possibilities as to how “classical architecture could have emerged virtually unwounded,”12 particularly when, in the opinion of some critics, it has suffered a demise from which it is yet to recover.
In order to compose such theories it will became necessary to analyse Speer from various perspectives. The moral choices he made throughout his architectural career were deeply affected by his social and psychological condition. Thus, I believe it necessary to dissect, not only his architecture, but his role as an architect, this leading to the role morality plays in architecture, and the effects of war on such moral decisions. Then taking this forward, looking at the role of the architect today to discover the extent of an architect’s moral obligation. 10 Albert Speer. Spandau: The Secret Diaries (New York: Macmillan, 1976) p. 67. 11 Rem Koolhaas, Hal Foster. Junkspace (London: Notting Hill Editions, 2013) p. 67. 12 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Issuu. Web. 10 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu. com/saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. Jake Joseph Richardson 16
Primarily, it is essential to fully understand the complex relationship between Speer and Hitler, from which he could never fully isolate himself. In doing so, one can begin to “piece together the fragile mental state of not only one man, but an entire population”13 hypnotized by such extensive propaganda. “What happened to the nation of thinkers… the “good”…and how did intelligent, well-intentioned, educated principled people… become so caught up in the movement”.14 Some insight into the degradation of Speer’s character could be the strong feelings and fascination he had for Hitler. This was to provide the basis not only for his architectural visions but also his decisions to “ignore the horrors that surrounded him”.15
“The party struck me as an organised troop that was easy to lead”16 - Albert Speer
13 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Issuu. Web. 22 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu. com/saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. 14 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 15. 15 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Issuu. Web. 8 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu. com/saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. 16 Albert, Speer. The Slave State (London: Orion Group, 1981) p. 4. Jake Joseph Richardson 17
Speer examines model of Germania (Berlin Masterplan)
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“Transcript from the trial of Albert Speer, 1946 Jackson (prosecuting lawyer): You knew the policy of the Nazi Party and the policy of the government towards the Jews, did you not?”
“Speer: I knew that the National Socialist Party was anti-Semitic, and I knew that the Jews were being evacuated from Germany.”
“Jackson: In fact you participated in that evacuation, did you not?”
“Speer: No.”17
17 James McMillan. Five Men at Nuremberg (London: Harrap, 1985) p. 334. Jake Joseph Richardson 19
Introduction
“One seldom recognizes the devil when he is putting his hand on your shoulder.”18
“W
hat would have happened if Hitler has asked me to make decisions that required utmost hardness… How far would
I have gone? If I had occupied a different position, to what extent would I have ordered atrocities if Hitler had told me to do so?”19 It is this dilemma, which invites investigation into Speer’s morality; how far would he have gone? Was his relationship with Hitler simply for architectural ambition and was he, “above all an architect.”?20
This by no means an attempt to exonerate Speer from his actions, nevertheless his situation provides the perfect opportunity to investigate the possible implications of a destructive architecture and the mind of the architect that inspired it. I am not going to attempt to salvage the architecture but investigate the parts played by morality and desire. I 18 Michael ,Wade. Leadership’s Adversary: Winning the War between Leadership and Management (New York: Nova Science, 2002) p. 11. 19 Albert Speer. Infiltration (New York: MacMillan, 1981) p. 4. 20 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 21. Jake Joseph Richardson 20
intend to evaluate Speer’s moral choices in an attempt to judge the place of morality in architecture.
In addition his architecture decisions will be examined in an attempt to understand what he wished to achieve. Importantly how these decisions were affected by Hitler, “To create stone constructions that will document the political will and cultural ability of our era for thousands of years?”21 Was Speer so fixated with Hitler’s plans for the new that he lost what he, himself, has stood for? It becomes apparent that moral vacuity is essential if one is to act as Speer did, and evaluation of this is required in order to establish a resolution.
21 Joseph Goebbels. Adolf Hitler: Bilder Aus Dem Leben Des Führers (AltonaBahrenfeld: Cigaretten-Bilderdienst, 1936) p. 30. Jake Joseph Richardson 21
Hitler and Speer take a stroll near the Fuhrerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s temporary Headquarters in the Ukraine (Summer 1942) Jake Joseph Richardson 22
PART ONE The Relationship
Jake Joseph Richardson 23
1
Magnetsim
“I think now that although my reaction to Hitler was indeed more to him – his magnetism, if you like – than to his speech.”22
“A
fter years of frustrated efforts, I was wild to accomplish things – and twenty-eight years old. For the commission to do great
buildings, I would have sold my soul like Faust. Now I had found my Mephistopheles. He seemed no less engaging than Goethe’s.”23 However, it can be dangerous to say that it was simply Speer’s love for architecture, which governed his relationship with Hitler. It becomes, on further investigation, something much more incriminating.
As Richard Winston said, “He would have gladly sold his soul to the devil in exchange for a patron who would make use of his architectural voice.”24 Hitler gave Speer this voice which offered him the opportunity to do great things; hence it was not politics that drew him to Hitler. 22 Gitta Sereny. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995) p. 84. 23 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 52. 24 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 13. Jake Joseph Richardson 24
1 â&#x20AC;&#x153;What drew him was the personality of the Fuehrer, the scale of the blue prints for recovery, and later the wonderful opportunity to design buildings. It was through Hitler and the Party that Speer could realize his youthful architectural ambitions and acquire new ones beyond anything he had imaginedâ&#x20AC;?25 It was this unique relationship and not his architectural decisions that would later haunt Speer during his time in Spandau, rather than the role he played in the Party.
25 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 15. Jake Joseph Richardson 25
1
“I never analysed any of this then, but at the time I never analysed anything; I just accepted – gratefully, I think, rather than as my due – that I was going to have a wonderful life, wonderful beyond any dreams.”26
I
ndeed one may concede that architectural ambition was the trigger began relationship. Speer himself said, “as architect of Hitler I would
have been perfectly safe after a lost war – nobody would have taken an architect to court.”27 It was his personal connection to Hitler, which at
first had seemed a blessing, that would prove the curse Speer would later spend his life trying to understand. “Because of Hitler’s passion for building, I was in [constant] close personal contact with him… If he had been capable of [friendship], I would indubitably have been one of his closest friends…”28
July 28th, 1932, Albert Speer was about to go on vacation, when he received a phone call, one which would cost the unemployed architect his holiday. Karl Hanke, head of organizations in the Nazi Party Berlin, had an assignment for him. Speer was to remodel the Party’s district 26 106. 27 28
Gitta Sereny. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995) p. Albert Speer. Spandau: The Secret Diaries (New York: Macmillan, 1976) p. 57. Joachim Fest, Speer: The Final Verdict (London: Phoenix Press, 1999) p. 340. Jake Joseph Richardson 26
1 hall.
This was to provide a turning point, one which would lead to Speer becoming Hitler’s favourite architect. Had Hanke called later it would have been too late, “I regarded this coincidence as the luckiest turning point in my life.”29 During the course of his time in Spandau, Speer came upon the readings of James Hopwood Jeans. The following paragraph describes this turning of events.
“The course of a railway train is uniquely prescribed for it at most points of its journey by the rails on which it runs. Here and there, however, it comes to a junction at which alternative courses are open to it, and it may be turned on to one or the other by the quite negligible expenditure of energy involved in moving the points.”30
29 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 29. 30 James Hopwood Jeans. Physics & Philosophy (Cambridge: UP, 1943) p. 211. Jake Joseph Richardson 27
2
Legacy
“I need someone who will be able to continue after my death with the authority I have conferred on him. I saw you as that man.”31
H
itler’s intense and immediate admiration for Speer is clear to see and it may be that another factor was, “I often asked myself
whether he was projecting upon me his unfulfilled youthful dreams of being a great architect.”32 This shared love for architecture formed the personal connection between them. At the early stages of their relationship, Speer was engrossed in his work and sought approval for his accomplishments. “No, of course not,” [he said] “that’s the whole point - I unreservedly admired him, could see no fault in him and honestly could hardly believe my luck.”33 Both Speer and Hitler sought the same goal - to follow their dreams. “The two men shared the same dream of going down in history by creating gigantic constructions that would far surpass anything ever done before.”34 31 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 52. 32 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 59. 33 Gitta Sereny. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995) p. 106. 34 Matthias Schmidt. Albert Speer: The End of a Myth (New York: St. Martin’s, 1984) p. 42. Jake Joseph Richardson 28
2 Speer was just the person to accomplish Hitler’s architectural dreams, although it is nowhere suggested that he shared Hitler’s more extensive dream of world domination.
One particularly interesting example of their relationship being somewhat more intricate, is Speer’s attempts to hide his marriage from Hitler. Having worked intensively together for nine months since their initial lunch together, it seems that Speer could hardly have forgotten to mention his wife. This could be seen as a darker fear of Hitler’s possible reaction to Margaret or could it have been because “It was not long before I was head over heels in love with Hitler…”35 Perhaps Speer had developed a relationship that was not romantic in the traditional sense and I wish to state I do not mean to suggest anything homoerotic; this has previously been dismissed by historians on a psychological basis. However, there was certainly a relationship akin to a fatherson connection. “Hitler perhaps found in the handsome, burningly ambitious, talented and successful architect an unconsciously idealised self-image ...”36
A position that can argued, is that Speer’s architectural triumph 35 Joachim Fest. Albert Speer: Conversations with Hitler’s Architect (Cambridge, UK: Polity, 2007) p. 19. 36 Ian Kershaw. Hitler: A Biography (New York: W.W. Norton, 2008) p. 35. Jake Joseph Richardson 29
2 “instilled a sense of pride in Hitler”37; something which Speer was happy to have created. “Therefore, their friendship could certainly have been the result of their shared interests”38, on the other hand it may also have been because Speer was everything that Hitler dreamed. “Speer was born into a wealthy family, he was a success at school and university,”39 in addition Speer was gifted in the topics in which Hitler had wanted to excel. Hitler writes in Mein Kampf “I was firmly convinced that some day I would make a name as an architect.”40 Perhaps Hitler saw in Speer the ability to channel his unachieved dreams and ambitions of becoming an architect. Fest, writes about the “fundamental nature of the bond”41 of Speer and Hitler42, believing they were brought together by “an emotional relationship”43. “He drew Speer to him like no one else, he singled him out and made him great.”44
37 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Issuu. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu. com/saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. 38 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Issuu. Web. 14 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu. com/saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. 39 Joachim Fest, Speer: The Final Verdict (London: Phoenix Press, 1999) p. 341 40 Adolf , Hitler and Ralph Manheim. Mein Kampf (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1943) p. 45. 41 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20Handbook. pdf>. 42 Joachim Fest, Speer: The Final Verdict (London: Phoenix Press, 1999) 43 Joachim Fest, Speer: The Final Verdict (London: Phoenix Press, 1999) p. 340. 44 Joachim Fest, Speer: The Final Verdict (London: Phoenix Press, 1999) p. 340. Jake Joseph Richardson 30
3
Unrequited love
“One of my associates summed up the character of this remarkable relationship: Do you know what you are? You are Hitler’s unrequited love!”45
T
here can be much deliberation about this “love”; however I find more significance in the relationship towards the time of Hitler’s
death. It is well documented that Speer turned against Hitler in the last few months of the war. What is interesting is the remnants of a deep emotional connection between the two that linger and affected Speer’s judgement. “Above all else” he said quietly, - “and it was obviously the greatest mistake of my life – I felt he was a human being; I mean by that, I felt he cared: not only about Germany, which in his own terrible way of course he did, but that he cared about people… that he cared about me.”46
“But now I found I couldn’t lie to him. I suppose it was again that
45 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 154. 46 Gitta Sereny. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995) p. 82. Jake Joseph Richardson 31
3 curious something. That feeling between me and him, or him and me”47 What is most intriguing is that by the early months of 1945 Speer had performed acts against Hitler for which anyone else would have been executed, yet apparently without punishment. It seems that Speer was not unaware of the evil behind Hitler, but as the above quote confirms, he could not replicate these feeling when they met.
It is possible to say that these contradictory feelings lie outside the boundaries of the question of morality. This relationship governed Speer’s actions on a more personal level; although perhaps not compatible with the title war criminal, it was the cause of all Speer’s wrongdoings. He was affected by having “fallen in love”48 and this seems to have made him unable to distance himself from his relationship with Hitler despite regretting the consequences of it. This is confirmed by Sereny who states, “and when Speer saw Hitler for” – she paused briefly – “what he really was…” again she paused. “…when he understood that, and yet so obviously still couldn’t abandon him…” she paused once more, “they just couldn’t give each other up, could they?”49
47 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 208. 48 Gitta Sereny. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995) p. 712. 49 Gitta Sereny. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995) p. 412. Jake Joseph Richardson 32
3 If we were to consider morality to be the differentiation in intentions, decisions and actions between those which are right and those who are wrong, one can put forward that it was this particular relationship that so greatly impacted Speer’s moral approach.
Speer insisted that his involvement with the Nazi regime was solely based on the architectural opportunities that were presented to him. Architecture was undoubtedly the lure that drew him into the regime, when all hopes for architectural development diminished and Speer had truly accepted that the war and his career were lost, there was still that “curious something.”50 For Speer the ending was not only the loss of the war but it was rather the severing of a connection between himself and the man who began it all “and the truth is that nothing he said provoked any feeling in me, positive or negative… it was nothing. And that was the tragic end of it all…”51
50 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 208. 51 Gitta Sereny. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995) p. 530. Jake Joseph Richardson 33
3 In the years after Speer’s release from Spandau, he would reflect on his architectural failings, stating that they were completely lacking any true sense of proportion. However what truly did haunt him for many years bore no relationship to his work as an architect. “That’s when the dreams began, “he said, “Dreams of his knowing what I did, dreams of his saying that I wanted to kill him. They went on for years, and even now they sometimes come back. Sometimes he isn’t even in the room in these dreams, but he is in the dreams, or he is the dream.”52 Thus it seems he could never truly shake off the feeling that his flaws lay not only in his architectural but his moral choices. “His betrayal of Hitler in his final months left a far more lasting impression.”53 Speer’s architecture could never overcome his “admiration for his Mephistopheles.”54 One could say that on the topic of morality, it was Speer’s unstoppable desire to accomplish great things that blinded him from the horrors that surrounded him in the Nazi Party. It is worrying that a well-educated man like Speer could be drawn in to such a horror and begs the question, how far the moral obligations of an architect go. Is it possible to accept that their role simply extends to the design of great buildings whatever the surrounding circumstances? 52 Gitta Sereny. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995) p. 544. 53 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Issuu. Web. 17 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu. com/saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. 54 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Issuu. Web. 5 Sept. 2014. <http://issuu. com/saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. Jake Joseph Richardson 34
3
Jake Joseph Richardson 35
Speer’s extrapolation of Hitler’s ideas for the main north-south axis at the heart of “Germania” (rebuilt Berlin). The model looks north from the South Station towards the Trumphal Arch and Great Hall with Dome. Jake Joseph Richardson 36
PART TWO Architectural Design
Jake Joseph Richardson 37
4
Politics in stone
“Architecture is politics in stone: That was Hitler’s concept for his buildings”.55
H
itler’s architect and armaments minister may have left Spandau, but the architect never truly escaped from the shackles. What
remains to be uncovered is whether such architecture can stand unadulterated; perhaps the cracks in Speer’s morality were all too visible alongside the great monuments he inspired.
The condemnation of Speer’s architecture reflects a fear deeply rooted in our moral judgement. It appears that, in our reluctance to be appreciative of any such terrible beauty, “we have waged war, not only on the artist but the art itself ”,56 refusing to acknowledge that beauty is something that may live independently of the abuser. What becomes difficult is how we separate Hitler’s influence, “Because Speer worked so closely with Hitler it is still difficult to come to an unbiased decision as 55 Bernhard Leitner, and Sophie Wilkins. “Albert Speer, the Architect from a Conversation of July 21, 1978.” October 20 (1982) p. 14. 56 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Issuu. Web. 5 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu. com/saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. Jake Joseph Richardson 38
4 to whose ideas were whose.”57 In response to this Joachim Fest writes, “Speer largely stuck to Hitler’s guidelines- as he admitted”58 Hitler himself had a profound idea concerning the type of architecture he wanted to be produced.
“It is therefore no surprise that each political historical epoch searches in its art for the link with a period of equally heroic past. Greeks and Romans suddenly stand close to Teutons… because it is better to imitate good things than it is to produce new bad things, the intuitive creations of the people under consideration can without doubt fulfil the education and leading mission as a style today”.59
57 Barbara Lane. “Architects in Power: Politics and Ideology in the Work of Ernst May and Albert Speer.” Journal of Interdisciplinary History (Bryn Mawr College: 1986) p. 28. 58 Joachim Fest. Albert Speer: Conversations with Hitler’s Architect (Cambridge, UK: Polity, 2007) p. 20. 59 Adolf Hitler. “Speech to Party Conference.” (Nuremberg. 1 Sept. 1933) Speech. Jake Joseph Richardson 39
4 “As the Reich capital nation of sixty-million, Berlin must be raised to such a high level of urban planning and culture that it may compete with all the other capital cities of the world.”60 Here Speer recallss Hitler regarding the implications concerning architectural design on “people’s attitudes to ancient civilisations.”61 “All that remained to remind men of the great epochs of history was their monumental architecture, he would philosophise. What had remained of the Emperors of Rome? What would bear witness to them today if their buildings had not survived?”62 “Hitler’s orders to Speer regarding the nature and scale of Germania make it clear that he wanted to ensure that the Third Reich left”63 a “ever lasting and powerful impression for all time.”64 Hence the relevant passage in Speer’s memoirs is worth citing in full, since it reveals an important facet of Hitler’s thoughts about the architecture he wished to create in relation to Roman architecture;
60 Minutes of a meeting with representatives of the city of Berlin with Hitler (9/19/33. Date of the document 9/25/33) 61 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. 62 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 96. 63 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. 64 Frederic Spotts. Hitler and the Power of Aesthetics (Woodstock: Overlook, 2003) p. 70. Jake Joseph Richardson 40
4
“Hitler liked to say that the purpose of his buildings was to transmit his time and its spirit to posterity. Ultimately, all that remained to remind men of the great epochs of history was their monumental architecture, he remarked. What then remained of the emperors of the Roman Empire? What would still give evidence of them today, if not their buildings… So, today the buildings of the Roman Empire could enable Mussolini to refer to the heroic spirit of Rome when he wanted to inspire his people with the idea of a modern imperium. Our buildings must also speak to the conscience of future generation of Germans. With his arguments Hitler also underscored the value of a durable kind of construction”.65
65
Albert Speer. Erinnerungen (Berlin: Propyläen-Verlag, 1969) p. 68. Jake Joseph Richardson 41
5
Ruin theory
“Ruins, and images of ruins, have held a moral, emotional, and aesthetic fascination throughout history”66
I
n the book, De Ruïnebouwer,67 Marsman uses literary schemes in his attempt to unravel Speer. He comes to the conclusion Speer can
only be explained via the theatrical route. During Act 2, Scene 3,68 in a
conversation with Hitler about Speer’s Ruin theory, the Fuehrer states that Germans have to build like the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans; out of an inner necessity.69 Hitler accuses Speer of cheating by combining modern techniques with classic material applications, whereas Speer confronts his own urge to realize a similar high cultural standard in the near future. “Hitler accordingly approved Speer’s recommendation that, in order to provide a bridge of traditions to future generations, modern anonymous materials such as steel girders and ferroconcrete should be
66 Jackson John Brinckerhof. The Necessu for Ruins and Other Topics (Amherst: U of Massachusetts, 1980) p. 23 67 Hendrik Jan Marsman, Siet Zuijderland. Albert Speer, De Ruïnebouwer (Amsterdam: Querido’s Uitgeverij, 2013) 68 Hendrik Jan Marsman, Siet Zuijderland. Albert Speer, De Ruïnebouwer (Amsterdam: Querido’s Uitgeverij, 2013) p. 108-110. 69 Hendrik Jan Marsman, Siet Zuijderland. Albert Speer, De Ruïnebouwer (Amsterdam: Querido’s Uitgeverij, 2013) p. 108-110. Jake Joseph Richardson 42
5 avoided in the construction of monumental Party buildings.â&#x20AC;?70
70 Alexander Scobie. Hitlerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s State Architecture: The Impact of Classical Antiquity (University Park: Published for College Art Association by the Pennsylvania State UP, 1990) p. 94. Jake Joseph Richardson 43
5
“Beauty arose regardless of its utility and of the damage which it could cause.”71
“Speer had an obsession with the appearance of his architecture, acknowledging that it is instinctive to admire grandeur and associate it with a sense of strength or power.”72 Speer’s theory ocupies a mere paragraph in this 700 page autobiography. Conversely his architectural theory takes a unique vision towards the discipline;
71 Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Thomas Bailey Saunders. The Maxims and Reflections of Goethe (New York: Macmillan, 1893) p. 65. 72 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. Jake Joseph Richardson 44
5
“Modern buildings, at least within their concept, were obviously not equipped to come up with the possibility to close the gap of tradition with future generations as demanded by Hitler. Unthinkable that rusting ruins, like the ruins of the past, would be able to be of any heroic inspiration, something that was admired by Hitler. This dilemma would make it difficult for my theory: the application of special materials in combination with the demanding construction necessities should make it possible to create buildings, which would reveal after hundreds or (like we calculated) thousands of years, their ruinous state like Roman examples.”73
73
Albert Speer. Erinnerungen (Berlin: Propyläen-Verlag, 1969) p. 69. Jake Joseph Richardson 45
5
The Parthenon - a Greek building much admired by Speer
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5 So in designing’s these buildings with specific materials and building concepts, “Speer already foresaw their future roles as bridging the gap”74 between today’s (WWII) and future generations of Germans, when the buildings would have reached a state of ruin that could compete with examples such as the acropolis. As such his architecture is intended to be “The present moment emerging only from where our projected future is curled back into a past.”75 Speer saw in the distance the decline of the Nazi German regime. “They both saw in architecture a means, by which the current time spirit could be transferred in future generations”76
“The architecture is made the beholder of political and cultural events, and will bear its traces and scars throughout time”.77 Taken further, one could argue that his architecture “functions also as a narrative mode”78, which makes the historical time, human time. As a result not only the architect himself, but also the beholder and users are constantly part of 74 Leon Krier. “An Architecture of Desire”, in Albert Speer Architecture 19321942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985) pp. 217-228; p. 227. 75 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. 76 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. 77 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. 78 Bas Lewerissa. “Albert Speer; Champion of Temporality.” Issuu. Web. 07 Nov. 2014. <http://issuu.com/blewerissa/docs/albert_speer_corrected.16_5.footnotes_final. voor_p>. Jake Joseph Richardson 47
5 the creative process or talking about architecture, â&#x20AC;&#x153;its creation lasts long periods or in truth it never endsâ&#x20AC;?79
79 Alois Riegl. The Modern Cult of Monuments: Its Character and Its Origin (Cambridge (Mass.): MIT, 1982) p. 75. Jake Joseph Richardson 48
5
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Elevation (Above) Plans (Below) Reich Chancellery
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Megalomaniac
“The megalomaniac differs from the narcissist by the fact that he wishes to be powerful rather than charming, and seeks to be feared rather than loved. To this type belong many lunatics and most of the great men of history.”80
S
o often is this term associated with Speer’s architecture; however I believe it to be possible to comprehend how one can create an
architecture of fear and power without suffering from megalomania oneself. Speer points to the floor plan of the “new Chancellery building which involved a extensive expansion of the original Chancellery building,”81 this gives an indication to the “proportions by which his
megalomania had evolved.”82
80 Russell Bertrand. The Conquest of Happiness (New York: Liveright, 1930) p. 9. 81 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20Handbook. pdf>. 82 Ian Kershaw. Hitler: A Biography (New York: W.W. Norton, 2008) p. 227. Jake Joseph Richardson 51
6 Interestingly, “Speer labelled these dimensions as examples of megalomania.”83 Dan van der Vat believes Speer was equal to Hitler “as great a megalomaniac”84: “It cannot be emphasised too strongly that Speer expanded on his patron’s plans, increasing the dimensions of the Great Dome and other features. Megalomania was undoubtedly the driving force ...”85 Speer says in his autobiography during discussions with Hitler about the impact of the Chancellery “Hitler was well pleased with the long hike the diplomats had to take in the recently completed Chancellery ... I therefore doubled the distance [in the new building] .. making it somewhat more than a quarter of a mile.”86 showing that Speer pushed the humongous dimensions of the Chancellery. However if he were “indulge in this sort of behaviour, it was in the clear knowledge that Hitler would approve.”87 “Hitler may well have been a megalomaniac and Speer may have shared these dreams”88, however was 83 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. 84 Dan van der Vat, Albert Speer. The Good Nazi: The Life and Lies of Albert Speer (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1997) p. 70. 85 Dan van der Vat, Albert Speer. The Good Nazi: The Life and Lies of Albert Speer (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1997) p. 70. 86 Albert Speer’s ‘Infiltrations’, p. 355, quoted in G. Sereny, Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth, Picador, 1996, p. 221. 87 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20Handbook. pdf>. 88 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. Jake Joseph Richardson 52
6 he just empolyed to manufacture “Hitler’s dreams that dominated the size and shape of the new plans.”89
All major buildings Speer designed were styled in classical Greek fashion and were gargantuan,
“the Great Stadium in Nuremberg would hold 400,000 spectators, the great domed hall in Berlin (Volkshalle) would hold 150,000. The dimensions were intended to dwarf the buildings that inspired them: the Great Hall would be five times larger than St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, the great northsouth avenue would be two and half times longer and also wider than the Champs Elysées, and the Arch of Triumph would be over twice as tall as its Parisian namesake”.90
Thus Speers architecture was heavily burdened by its overwhelming desire to appear monumental; particularly in relation to the Berlin Dome. “The immense scale succeeded in transcending Hitler, allowing
89 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. 90 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. Jake Joseph Richardson 53
6
Section through great hall (Volkshalle)
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6 him to appear as more than a figure in front of the building”.91 It was the comprehension of the structure itself that enhanced the power of the Reich. Speer failed to comprehend this effect, believing that the “sheer scale of the Dome would render Hitler’s slight frame obsolete.”92 There is no architectural way to combat such an absence of scale, thus Speer’sattempts to create spaces as powerful as the dimensions that confined them were in vain. In such instances, the architecture could never surpass the political intent.
Should one isolate the qualities of the proposed great hall, it is evident that this desire to appear colossal is condemned solely for the purpose the hall would serve, as on its own colossal is not a negative term. In fact the great hall was designed to relate to its urban context and “imitate the scale of a valley along the north south axis, which expresses a desire to capture the beauty of a natural form.”93 Desire alone does not suffice; nor do idealistic notions of grandeur. Beauty of any kind is annihilated by an inherent need to dictate, hence superiority was not achieved through monumentality but rather quelled by banality. Nevertheless, the design 91 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. 92 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Web. 5 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu.com/ saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. 93 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. Jake Joseph Richardson 55
6 succeeded in that it served its purpose. The dream of a world empire is literally comprehensible in the design, â&#x20AC;&#x153;He was totally convinced of his world dominion.â&#x20AC;?94 Paradoxically, the purpose is inhumane thus the design is corrupted. In this instance, the purpose and design appear irreversibly intertwined; a strange occurrence when one considers that few remember Oppenheimer but no one forgets the atomic bomb.
94 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 182. Jake Joseph Richardson 56
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“Why always the biggest? I do this to restore to each individual German his self-respect. In an hundred areas I want to say this individual: We are not inferior; on the contrary, we are the complete equals of every nation.”95
This is the inherent flaw of Speer’s work. One cannot merely separate the architecture from the regime as they were one and the same. Speer may have admired the style of the Baroque era or sought to reproduce a neoclassical style, but his architecture could never truly imitate such marvels due to one main flaw, he believed his work to be his own. For example, if one were to consider Speer’s motives in the context of the rebuilding of Berlin, it is relatively simpler to decipher where his measured designs are, in his view, inferior to the monuments of the past, to which he aspired but believed to be unbuildable in the current conditions.
What is striking about Hitler’s attempts to justify these monuments as being for the people, is the complete lack of public or recreational space in his plans; thus the true purpose of the German people was to serve as pawns. What is certain is that Hitler possessed a far greater understanding of the relationship between crowds and power, than his 95
Adolf Hitler. Speech to Construction Workers (9 Jan. 1939) Speech. Jake Joseph Richardson 58
6 marionette, Speer.
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â&#x20AC;&#x153;Cathedral of lightâ&#x20AC;?: Albert Speer invented this intimidating form of public display, here seen at the Nazi Party Rally at Nuremberg in 1937
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Audience
“Of course, [Goebbels and] Hitler knew how to penetrate through to the instincts of their audiences; but in the deeper sense they derived their whole existence from these audiences” 96
T
he use of the word “audience” suggests something far more theatrical than architectural, which provides us with an
understanding of why Speer’s “cathedral of light” found, if not success, then at least recognition amongst his work. The Luftwaffe’s entire accumulation of searchlights provided an endless skyline with a sense of grandiosity that integrated with Speer’s Berlin plans. We see here an inherent desire to use sheer magnitude in his designs, which is an obscure trait for a student of Tessenow. “Beyond the representation of political might, the modern viewer can recognise a psychological intention in the building and project of the third Reich, an attempt to achieve effects through architectural means.”97 Thus Speer was able to create a realm where the audience became insignificant, shrouded in darkness and belittled by the towering searchlights. The impression of
96 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 38. 97 Albert Speer, Karl Arndt, Friedrich Georg, Lars Olof Larsson. Albert Speer, Architektur: Arbeiten, 1933-1942 (Berlin: Propyläen, 1978) p. 45. Jake Joseph Richardson 61
7 infinite space suddenly morphing into the sensation of containment, the columns of light now bars of steel. Nevertheless, the effect was remarkable.
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Zeppelinfeld during a Nazi Party Rally
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Zeppelinfeld today
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“Speer is more of an artist by nature. Admittedly he has great organizational talent but politically he is too inexperienced to be totally reliable in this critical time”98 - Goebbels
Goebbels’ statement is a fitting way to describe Speer’s architecture. His work may have indeed served as propaganda for the Nazi-socialist party; however, in truth, it was not dissimilar to the government buildings constructed throughout Western Europe at the time. “What Hitler envisaged as an attempt to assert the dominance of the Reich was merely a response to the underlying social and political needs of a country crippled by depression.”99 I would go further to suggest that Speer’s work was produced in spite of any Nazi ideology rather than inspire by it. However this speculation, can be condemned on the grounds that Hitler himself produced many of the initial sketches for Speer’s work. Taking the Zeppelinfeld or the great hall for examples of their political programme, it is noteworthy that such schemes commanded the magnitude of the structures conceived to facilitate up to a million people. In architectural terms however these massive stone structures 98 Paul Louis Lochner. The Goebbels Diaries (London: H. Hamilton, 1948. Diary Entry, March 27, 1945) p. 34. 99 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. Jake Joseph Richardson 66
7 were much in keeping with the modern movement. Though the repetition of vertical elements appears to speak more of classical architecture, the lack of ornamentation and accessible nature of these buildings are indicative of the progressions in architecture at the time.
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Adolf Hitler leaving the Altes Museum Jake Joseph Richardson 68
7 “We are much more comfortable with buildings that have been designed to enable bad things, provided those things seem remote”.100 The Nazis may not have been much worse than the Romans, but no one fears that by preserving the Coliseum it will bring back gladiatorial fights to the death. Whereas the return of Nazism seems possible if we are not able to prevent it. It is for this reason we have waged war on Speeer’s architecture, for example, the Zeppelinfeld which stood as a backdrop for Nazi symbolism. “Albert Speer’s projects for Berlin were tainted in this way – not all have been demolished, and the most grandiloquent were never built.”101 Interestingly however “Schinkel’s Altes Museum, which was pressed into service as a backdrop appropriate to rallies.”102 This is interesting, as “Speer hero-worshiped Sckinkel, but neither Schinkel nor his buildings have - in the long run-been irredeemably tainted by the association.”103
100 James Mason. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect: 14. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/Speer%20 Handbook.pdf>. 101 Kim Dovey. Framing Places: Mediating Power in Built Form (London: Routledge, 1999) p. 90. 102 Andrew Ballantyne. What Is Architecture? (London: Routledge, 2002) p. 23. 103 Colin St John Wilson. The Other Tradition of Modern Architecture: The Uncompleted Project (London: Academy Editions, 1995) p. 42-44. Jake Joseph Richardson 69
7
“At bottom, I think that his [Hitler’s] sense of political mission and his passion for architecture were always inseparable”104
Architecture can be seen as the art which moulds our world directly, in doing so one can comprehend the ease of corrupting art for political gains. “As I once stated in 1936, my buildings were not solely intended to express the essence of the national-socialist movement.”105 The term “Nazi architecture was coined to condemn that which we now fear to appreciate, but it convicts a mere memory. It is somewhat understandable that the buildings constructed during the Reich were destroyed. They spoke of a regime too horrifying to live on; the buildings themselves were not capable of shouldering such guilt. Thus there developed the necessity to condemn a movement, to criticise not only the structures but that which inspired them. “When forms of classicism became notorious means to express totalitarian power, they are devalued in the eyes of western democracies.”106 Hence classical architecture became liable for, not only the buildings of the Reich, but 104 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 80. 105 Jonathan R Manning. The Propaganda of Adolf Hitler: Authored by His Ministers of the Third Reich. (Phoenix, AZ, O’Sullivan Woodside and Co 1973) p. 72. 106 Lars Olof Larsson. “Classicism in the Architecture of the XXth Century.” in Albert Speer Architecture 1932-1942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985) pp. 233-246; p. 245. Jake Joseph Richardson 70
7 all that it represented; the difference between architectural style and political motive was lost in Speerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plans. This begs the question of whether it is ever possible to separate design from function, or in certain cases are they the same? Perhaps there is indeed merit to be found in such designs, but they have long since been obscured by a malevolence few are willing to dissect.
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Tourists in Paris, June 1940: (Left to right) Speer, Hitler Jake Joseph Richardson 72
PART THREE Morality
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Moral Vacuity
â&#x20AC;&#x153;The production and conservation of values is one of the main concerns of human existence: all that a man does and is depends upon his taking part in his processâ&#x20AC;?107
W
as there some inherent flaw in Speerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s character that allowed him to implement such destructive decisions without
reservation? Architects are rarely held responsible for the implications of their designs, in fact one could say in certain cases they are revered for their attempts. Would Le Corbusier really have obliterated central Paris or would some stirring of his conscience have intervened? The question that lingers is, given the chance to ensure a place in history, would many object to numbing their consciences? One could almost say selling their souls to their dreams eternally, regardless of consequence.
107 221.
Lewis Mumford. The Conduct of Life (New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1951) p. Jake Joseph Richardson 74
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“People could find no place in their consciousness for such… unimaginable horror…they did not have the imagination, together with the courage, to face it”108
It is interesting that the architecture, rather than the designer himself, was the source of the deep psychological turmoil of the German people in the years following the war. It seems that there is something extremely distressing about the physicality of the “Nazi architecture”. Speer always insisted that his buildings were intended to reflect the Nazi-Socialist movement in a political manner; little reference is made to the psychological effect of representing such power and “intimidation in the physical form of the buildings.”109 Perhaps for a moment we can indulge ourselves in the notion of the Genius Loci, one can imagine that the buildings still possess something of the immorality of the regime that called for their construction; “that Nazi Architecture was merely a scapegoat”110 for the terror from which the German people could not escape. Therefore the degradation of the classical style would have to suffice when the horrors it unleashed could not be overcome. 108 Willem Visser ‘t Hooft. Memoirs (London: SCM, 1973) p. 166. 109 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Web. 5 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu.com/ saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. 110 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Web. 5 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu.com/ saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. Jake Joseph Richardson 75
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Ideologies
“The door handle is the handshake of the building.”111
S
peer’s designs were indeed intended to reflect the ideologies of the Reich. “Hitler wanted temporal effects and permanent witness”.112
Should his empire fall after centuries, he said, “The ruins of our buildings will bear witness to the strength of our will and magnitude of our faith.”113 It must be recognised that, as an architect, Speer would not have understood such ideologies in the same manner; rather remaining firmly apolitical entails adhering to his vision as an architect, thus designing in accordance to his understanding of these ideals. This is where the aforementioned romanticism becomes crucial as, if this intention was not political, then his work becomes that of a man creating a dreamscape, “a sentimental interpretation of the new Reich.”114
“In this sense, such buildings were manifestations of Speer’s deluded
111 Juhani, Pallasmaa. The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses (Chichester: Wiley-Academy, 2005) p. 12. 112 Albert Speer. “Foreword.” in Albert Speer Architecture 1932-1942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985) pp. 213-214; p. 214. 113 Albert Speer. “Foreword.” in Albert Speer Architecture 1932-1942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985) pp. 213-214; p. 214. 114 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Web. 5 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu.com/ saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. Jake Joseph Richardson 76
9 vision;”115 hence they can be only perceived as harmful when considered in conjunction with the purpose they were called to serve.
115 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Web. 5 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu.com/ saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. Jake Joseph Richardson 77
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“Because as an architect, all the things in my plan which I tried to achieve were indirectly filled with romanticism. All these huge buildings were dreams of a romantic man. I was really a romanticist during this time”116
The main questions of morality in architecture now come to the surface. Should one feel morally obliged to refuse commissions in which inhumane goals are being pursued? Is it the responsibility of the architect to prevent such negative outcomes or should one remain faithful to one’s primary role as a designer, regardless of the implications which go hand-in-hand with the designs. It could be as whether it is possible to separate the philosophy from the design or should conscience be the over-riding influence.
116 James M Mayo, Dennis E Domer “Albert Speer: Education and Values.” JAE 36.1 (1982) p. 44. Jake Joseph Richardson 78
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“Mental Power or Expression. What characters, we have to discover, did the Gothic builders love, or instinctively express in their work, as distinguished from all other builders?”117
John Ruskin faces similar questions in the way we identify the idea of Gothic. In how we separate the form from the power;
“And unless both the elements and the forms are there, we have no right to call the style Gothic. It is not enough that it has the Form, if it have not also the power and life. It is not enough that it has the Power, if it have not the form”118
Much the same as in Speer’s architecture it is impossible to separate the Nazi dogma from the design it had influenced. The important question comes how must we view the building if the philosophy which inspired it is corrupt.
117 John Ruskin. The Stones of Venice. Vol. 2 (London: J.-M. Dent and Sons, 1935) p. 154. 118 John Ruskin. The Stones of Venice. Vol. 2 (London: J.-M. Dent and Sons, 1935) p. 154. Jake Joseph Richardson 79
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Al Wakrah stadium in Qatar Jake Joseph Richardson 80
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Role of the architect today
“You’ve got to bumble forward into the unknown.”119 - Frank Gehry
T
his can be mirrored in modern times when, in June 2014 Zaha Hadid has been severely criticised by Rowan Moore,
the Observer’s architecture critic, who, accused her of “showing no concern”120 for the deaths of hundreds of migrant construction workers in Qatar. However, this seems barely relevant, as the football stadium she has designed for the 2022 World Cup has yet to be constructed. She is seeking damages, a halt to the review’s continued publication and a retraction. However it does raise the question as to where Hadid’s moral obligation falls. Is she just the employed for the design of such great buildings or does her role go further to the consideration of those performing the construction and the conditions they face.
119 Bob, Borson. “Design Quotes.” Life of an Architect. Web. 11 Jan. 2015. <http:// www.lifeofanarchitect.com/design-quotes/>. 120 Martin Filler. “The New York Review of Books.” (The Washington Post, 5 June 2014. Web. 4 Oct. 2014) <http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2014/jun/05/insolence-architecture/>. Jake Joseph Richardson 81
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Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, project for the Reichsbank, Berlin, 1933. Jake Joseph Richardson 82
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“Power is always dangerous. Power attracts the worst and corrupts the best”121 - Edward Abby
If Speer’s moral capability was comprised due to his prominent position in the Nazi Party, how would one explain the immoral decisions of his fellow architects at the time? When Mies van der Rohe arrived for work at the Bauhaus to find the school cordoned off, he chose to shut the school down himself, rather than succumb to the demands of Nazi politics. However Mies, who was starved for work, allowed himself to be shortlisted for the new Reichsbank, before Speer intervened. Is this chance all it takes to prevent an otherwise renowned architect turning down a more sinister path? If all architects were granted the power to realize their dreams, would any question the source of such power? “Will moral obligations continue to suffer in favour of these self-centred endeavours?”122 Speer encapsulated this when he said of Hitler, “I owe him the enthusiasm and the glory of my youth as well as belated horror
121 Joseph Demakis, Edward Abbey. The Ultimate Book of Quotations. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Google Books. Lulu.com. Web. 10 Sept. 2014. <https://books.google.co.uk/ books?id=kOnjAwAAQBAJ&dq=edward+abbey+book+%22Power+is+always+dangerous.+Power+attracts+the+worst+and+corrupts+the+best%22&source=gbs_ navlinks_s>. 122 Jennifer Hogan. “No Angel From Hell.” Web. 5 Oct. 2014. <http://issuu.com/ saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>. Jake Joseph Richardson 83
10 and guilt.â&#x20AC;?123
123 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 20. Jake Joseph Richardson 84
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Three architects inspect progress on the house of German Arts in Munich 1935: (Left to right) Professor Gall, Hitler, Speer. Jake Joseph Richardson 86
PART FOUR Conclusion
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Classical
“For centuries architecture, painting and sculpture have been called the fine arts”124
S
peer highlights how a series of errors and the repression of a particular style and taste have led to the dismissal of those universal
principles and authority on which all classical architecture was based for thousands of years. “An authority without memory is blind and powerless for it will be led by anyone who chooses to be its guide.”125
This is why architecture today is dictated by engineers, sociologists, fire-officers and the alike. “Ever since they lost their philosophical and artistic foundations, architects have had nothing left with which to oppose the rule of number, money and politics unable to transcend the venal interest of industrial states and economies, they have no alternative but to serve and be their slavish and cruel instrument.”126
Hence the vanishing empire of architecture and the “growing dominion 124 Steen Eiler, Rasmussen. Experiencing Architecture (Cambridge: M.I.T., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1962) p. 9. 125 Leon Krier. “An Architecture of Desire”, in Albert Speer Architecture 19321942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985) pp. 217-228; p. 227. 126 Leon Krier. “An Architecture of Desire”, in Albert Speer Architecture 19321942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985) pp. 217-228; p. 227. Jake Joseph Richardson 88
11 of money are today irreconcilably antagonistic”127, for they are opposite forms of accumulation. Architecture means building up a common world of moral and artistic value, while money is hoarded at the expense of nature and culture. Thus the fictitious polemics which oppose authoritarian and democratic architecture are mere diversions from the fundamental problems of work, culture and heritage.
127 Leon Krier. “An Architecture of Desire”, in Albert Speer Architecture 19321942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985) pp. 217-228; p. 227. Jake Joseph Richardson 89
12
Judgment
“Of course I was perfectly aware that [Hitler] sought world domination… [At] that time I asked for nothing better. That was the point of my buildings. They would have looked grotesque if Hitler has sat still in Germany. All I wanted was for this great man to dominate the globe.”128
F
ollowing my research there is one question that arises. Would another architect in his position have done as he did? Unfortunately
such a question can only be answered with theoretical possibilities. What I firmly believe is that a man, though he may be corrupt, is still entirely capable of creating something of beauty.
128 186.
Gitta Sereny. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995) p. Jake Joseph Richardson 90
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“There are good and bad buildings, humane and inhumane forms of producing, using or exploiting architecture. Thus, basilicas are transformed into churches, and palaces turned into libraries, villas used for hotels, or entire cites become concentration camps. Architecture is not political. It is an instrument of politics, for better or worse”129
Thus architecture should be capable of standing independent of the crooked regime for which it was constructed.
129 Leon Krier. “An Architecture of Desire”, in Albert Speer Architecture 19321942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985) pp. 217-228; p. 227. Jake Joseph Richardson 91
12
“Along with its fantastic quality I also became aware of the cruel element in this architecture. It had been the very expression of a tyranny”130
It was not until Speer’s imprisonment that he was finally able to reflect on the architecture he had helped to create. “He lived in a twilight world between knowing and not knowing”.131 “He had very few friends in his life, and he never felt relaxed. There was that wall between him and others,’ writes Sereny, ‘and he accepted it. He made do, I think, because he didn’t know how to do anything else,”132
“It was human fault that cast the shadow on Speer’s architecture.”133 I hope that in another seventy years, classical architecture will find the respect and admiration it once it had in the past. As for the architecture of Speer and the man himself, if a single person can find values in his works, without remorse, then the architecture at least may finally be absolved from his shadow. Architects today as in the past are 130 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 159. 131 Willem Visser ‘t Hooft. Memoirs (London: SCM, 1973) p. 13. 132 Gitta Sereny. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995) p. 687. 133 Leon Krier. “An Architecture of Desire”, in Albert Speer Architecture 19321942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985) pp. 217-228; p. 227. Jake Joseph Richardson 92
12 in a privileged position to shape the world going forward. It is our responsibility to think, not only how the building appears but how it will be perceived by future generations.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;But in the end my feelings about it are highly skepticalâ&#x20AC;?134 - Albert Speer
134 Albert Speer, Richard Winston, Clara Winston, and Eugene Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970) p. 698. Jake Joseph Richardson 93
Speer in Spandau prison early 1960s Jake Joseph Richardson 94
SOURCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY
Jake Joseph Richardson 95
List Of Illustrations PROLOGUE Hitler and Speer examine the plans of their Germania135 Speer examines model of Germania136 Speer and Hitler in the Ukraine137 PART ONE Speer and Hitler in the Ukraine138 PART TWO The Great Hall as seen through the Triumphal Arch139 The Parthenon in Athens140 Plans/Elevation Reich Chancellery141 Section through Great Hall142 135 Weidenfeld Archive 136 Weidenfeld Archive 137 Weidenfeld Archive 138 Weidenfeld Archive 139 Bildarchiv Preubischer Kulturbesitz, Berlin 140 Parthenon. Digital image. Wikipedia. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Parthenon>. (Accessed: 9th October 2014) 141 Hodgson, Simon. Reich Chancellery Plan. Digital image. Architecture Urbanism Interiors. <http://www.sdbs.bm/blog/2014/5/26/stan-the-man.html>. (Accessed: 10th December 2014) 142 Albert Speer (Heidelberg) Jake Joseph Richardson 96
Cathedral of Light143 Zeppelinfeld144 Zeppelinfeld today145 Adolf Hitler leaving the Altes Museum146 PART THREE Speer and Hitler in Paris147 Al Wakrah Stadium in Qatar 148 Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, project for the Reichsbank, Berlin, 1933149 PART FOUR Professor Gall, Hitler and Speer150 143 Bayerische Staatsbibiothek, Munchen 144 The Zeppelinfeld, Nuremberg. Digital image. Holocaust Search Project. <http://www.holocaustresearchproject.org/holoprelude/nsdapgal/Zeppelin%20 Field%20and%20Grandstand%20on%20the%20Nazi%20Party%20Rally%20 Grounds%20in%20Nuremberg.jpg>. (Accessed: 28th Dec 2014) 145 Ă reas De Desfile Do Partido Nazista. Digital image. Wikipedia. <http:// pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ă reas_de_desfile_do_partido_nazista>. (Accessed: 12th December 2014) 146 Berlin, The Cold War Years Part 3. A Hot War in Reality. Digital image. Harveyblackauthor. <http://harveyblackauthor.org/tag/altes-museum/> (Accessed: 5th January 2015) 147 Bildarchiv Preubischer Kulturbesitz, Berlin 148 Fairs, Marcus. Al Wakrah Stadium in Qatar. Digital image. De Zeen. N.p., 24 Nov. 2013. Web. 11 Jan. 2015. <http://www.dezeen.com/2013/11/24/zaha-hadid-dismisses-vagina-stadium-jibes-as-ridiculous/>. 149 Reichsbank, Berlin, 1933. Digital image. Art History. <http://www.arthistory. upenn.edu/spr01/282/w6c3i16.htm>. (Accessed: 20th Sept 2014) 150 Dan van der Vat Jake Joseph Richardson 97
Speer in Spandau151
151
Ullstein - dap(85) Jake Joseph Richardson 98
Jake Joseph Richardson 99
THE SPEER CORPUS
(The main works by or about Speer) (*Indicates dependent on Speer)
Brinckerhof, John, Jackson. The Necessu for Ruins and Other Topics (Amherst: U of Massachusetts, 1980).
Fest, Joachim, C. Albert Speer: Conversations with Hitler’s Architect (Cambridge, UK: Polity, 2007).*
Krier, Leon. “An Architecture of Desire.”, in Albert Speer Architecture 1932-1942., edited by Krier Leon (New York: Monacelli, 1985).
Bernhard Leitner, Wilkins Sophie. “Albert Speer, the Architect from a Conversation of July 21, 1978.” October 20 (1982).
Sereny, Gitta. Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth (New York: Knopf, 1995).*
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Speer, Albert. Erinnerungen. (Berlin: Propyläen-Verlag, 1969).*
Speer, Albert. Winston, Richard. Winston, Clara. and Eugene, Davidson. Inside the Third Reich: Memoirs (New York: Macmillan, 1970).*
Speer, Albert. Infiltration (New York: MacMillan, 1981).*
Speer, Albert. “Foreword.”, in Albert Speer Architecture 1932-1942., edited by Leon Krier (New York: Monacelli, 1985).*
Speer, Albert. Spandau: The Secret Diaries. (New York: Macmillan, 1976).*
Speer, Albert. Der Sklavenstaat. (New York: Macmillan, 1981).*
Speer, Albert. The Slave State (London: Orion Group, 1981).*
Vat Dan Van Der. Speer, Albert. The Good Nazi: The Life and Lies of Albert Speer (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1997).
Jake Joseph Richardson 101
OTHER ORIGINAL SOURCES
Goebbels, Joseph. Adolf Hitler: Bilder Aus Dem Leben Des Führers (Altona-Bahrenfeld: Cigaretten-Bilderdienst, 1936).
Goethe, Faust. Hochgebirg. (1832).
Hauptsturmfuhrer, L, P. Letter to Albert Speer. 1978. MS. Germany, Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg.
Hitler, Adolf. Speech to Construction Workers. (9 Jan. 1939) Speech.
Hitler, Adolf. “Speech to Party Conference.” (Nuremberg. 1 Sept. 1933). Speech. Hitler, Adolf, and Manheim, Ralph. Mein Kampf (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1943) p. 45.
Lochner, Louis, Paul. The Goebbels Diaries (London: H. Hamilton, 1948).
Jake Joseph Richardson 102
Minutes of a meeting with representatives of the city of Berlin with Hitler (9/19/33. Date of the document 9/25/33).
Jake Joseph Richardson 103
OTHER WORKS
Arndt, Karl. Georg, Friedrich. Larsson, Lars Olof. and Georg, C. Meerwein. Albert Speer, Architektur: Arbeiten, 1933-1942 (Berlin: Propyläen, 1978).
Ballantyne, Andrew. What Is Architecture? (London: Routledge, 2002).
Bas, Lewerissa. “Albert Speer; Champion of Temporality.” Web. 07 Nov. 2014. <http://issuu.com/blewerissa/docs/albert_speer_corrected.16_5. footnotes_final.voor_p>.
Demakis, Joseph. Edward, Abbey. The Ultimate Book of Quotations. Google Books. Lulu.com. Web. 10 Sept. 2014. <https://books.google. co.uk/
Borson, Bob. “Design Quotes.” Life of an Architect. Web. 11 Jan. 2015. <http://www.lifeofanarchitect.com/design-quotes/>.
Dovey, Kim. Framing Places: Mediating Power in Built Form (London: Routledge, 1999). Jake Joseph Richardson 104
Fest, Joachim. Speer: The Final Verdict (Phoenix Press, London, 1999).
Filler, Martin. “The New York Review of Books.” (The Washington Post. 5 June 2014. Web. 4 Oct. 2014) <http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2014/jun/05/insolence-architecture/>.
Goethe, Johann, Wolfgang, Von. Saunders, Bailey, Thomas. The Maxims and Reflections of Goethe (New York: Macmillan, 1893).
Hogan, Jennifer. “No Angel From Hell.” Issuu. Web. 5 Oct. 2014. <http:// issuu.com/saulpublications/docs/2013_volume2/105>.
Jackson, John Brinckerhof. The Necessu for Ruins and Other Topics (Amherst: U of Massachusetts, 1980).
Jeans, Hopwood, James. Physics & Philosophy (Cambridge: UP, 1943).
Kershaw, Ian. Hitler: A Biography (New York: W.W. Norton, 2008). Koolhaas, Rem. Foster Hal. Junkspace (London: Notting Hill Editions, 2013).
Jake Joseph Richardson 105
Lane, Barbara. “Architects in Power: Politics and Ideology in the Work of Ernst May and Albert Speer.” Journal of Interdisciplinary History (Bryn Mawr College: 1986).
Larsson, Lars Olof. “Classicism in the Architecture of the XXth Century.” in Albert Speer Architecture 1932-1942., edited by Krier Leon (New York: Monacelli, 1985).
Loeffler, Bertina. “Albert Speer.” Albert Speer. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Jan. 2015. <http://www.auschwitz.dk/speer.htm>.
Manning, Jonathan R. The Propaganda of Adolf Hitler: Authored by His Ministers of the Third Reich, Hermann Goering (Phoenix, AZ, O’Sullivan Woodside and Co.: n.p., 1973).
Marlowe, Christopher. Jump, John, D. Doctor Faustus (Manchester: Manchester UP, 1976).
Mason, James. “Judging Albert Speer.” Trying to Judge Albert Speer as an Architect. Web. 23 Aug. 2014. <http://mkc.nsw.edu.au:3390/PDFs/ Speer%20Handbook.pdf>.
Jake Joseph Richardson 106
Mayo, James, M, Domer, Dennis, E. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Albert Speer: Education and Values.â&#x20AC;? 1.36 (1982).
McMillan, James. Five Men at Nuremberg (London: Harrap 1985). Riegl Alois. The Modern Cult of Monuments: Its Character and Its Origin. (Cambridge (Mass.): MIT, 1982).
Mertins, Detlef. The Threatening and Enticing Face of Prehistorv: Walter Benjamin and the Utopia of Glass. In Assemblage, 29, (April, 18).
Mumford, Lewis. The Conduct of Life (New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1951).
Pallasmaa, Juhani. The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses (Chichester: Wiley-Academy, 2005)
Rasmussen, Steen Eiler. Experiencing Architecture (Cambridge: M.I.T., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1962)
Ruskin, John. The Stones of Venice. Vol. 2 (London: J.-M. Dent and Sons, 1935).
Jake Joseph Richardson 107
Russell, Bertrand. The Conquest of Happiness (New York: Liveright, 1930).
Schmidt, Matthias. Albert Speer: The End of a Myth (New York: St. Martin’s, 1984).
Scobie, Alexander. Hitler’s State Architecture: The Impact of Classical Antiquity (University Park: Published for College Art Association by the Pennsylvania State UP, 1990).
Spotts, Frederic. Hitler and the Power of Aesthetics (Woodstock: Overlook, 2003).
Vioque, Guillermo, Galán. Zoltowski, J, J. and Martial, Martial. Book VII: A Commentary (Leiden: Brill, 2002).
Wade, Michael. Leadership’s Adversary: Winning the War between Leadership and Management (New York: Nova Science, 2002) p. 11.
Wilson, Colin, St. John. The Other Tradition of Modern Architecture: The Uncompleted Project. (London: Academy Editions, 1995).
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Visser â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;t Hooft, Willem. Memoirs (London: SCM, 1973). Zilbert R, Edward. Albert Speer and the Nazi Ministry of Arms (London: Associated University Presses Inc, 1981)
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