Recently uncovered photographs show a delegation from the British Legion meeting Adolf Hitler in July 1935. The 148 images were found in a swastika-embossed album by an employee at the Legion's London headquarters.
The photos depict British World War I veterans being saluted by Germans, and delegation leader Maj Francis Fetherston-Godley shaking hands with Hitler's deputy Rudolph Hess. The delegation also met Hermann Goering, head of the Luftwaffe, and some members dined with Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS.
While the album does not include photographs of the visit to Dachau concentration camp, details are documented in Legion archives. Records show they viewed solitary confinement cells, where Jews were already imprisoned alongside 'workshy', 'professionally criminal' and 'moral perverts'.
Legion press officer Liam Maguire, writing in the Daily Mail, said he was shocked to find the album. The arrival in Berlin involved thousands lining the streets, which German historians suggest was stage-managed. There were concerns the visit would be used as propaganda.
The Legion stated the trip aimed to 'foster close relations with German veteran organisations and promote peace'. A reciprocal visit by 800 German ex-servicemen to Britain in September 1938 included a Nazi salute during a Thames boat trip, captured on film.
