‘Do not forget that war is a defeat, always. We were not born to kill, but to make people grow. Let us find a way for peace.’ Pope Francis, The People’s Pope
Swiss TV and Radio, Operation Sunrise – Tessin, Switzerland During WW2
Centro Incontri Umani – History of the Houses and the Plaque
The houses on the site of the Centre were built around the turn of the twentieth century. The Centre’s orientation to ‘Encourage Understanding, Respect and Peace Internationally’ is in tune with the ideals held by the Stinnes-Gaevernitz family. These resonate with the aspirations of human beings found in all strata of society who pursue projects that assist in furthering human dignity and diversity. They often labour quietly and invisibly, to bring together the people of the earth.
The events that led to the end of the Second World War are commemorated on the plaque on the small pink house adjacent to the large rambling house of the Centro called the Wrangel House. The Wrangel House was used for international peace conferences throughout World War I, saving thousands of lives.
of the German armies in Italy in 1945. Photo © Maya
The End of the Second World War
The Stinnes von-Schulze Gaevernitz Family Involvement
‘Sunrise’ was the code name given to the diplomatic activities that led to the end of the Second World War. It is the thrilling story of a small group of courageous men who met secretly in 1945 in Ascona, in the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland, to negotiate the ending of the war in Italy. They included Allen Dulles, director of the OSS (Office of the Strategic Services) and precursor of the CIA, of which he was director from 1953-61. Dulles had come to Switzerland specifically to gather information on how to support the resistance forces against the Nazis and Fascists.
Other important participants at the meetings were Gero von Schulze Gaevernitz, Dulles’s good friend and closest collaborator; Major Max Waibel, a senior officer in the Swiss Intelligence, and senior Allied generals and Italian leaders of the military. General Karl Wolff deserves special mention. He was Himmler’s personal representative and commander of all SS troops in Italy, hence crucial at the discussions.
Swiss neutrality during the war meant they could maintain vital connections with the German and Allied Intelligence.
Edmund Stinnes, a successful businessman and entrepreneur, born in Germany as the eldest son of Hugo Stinnes, made his home in Ascona especially available for these secret negotiations. Gero von S. Gaevernitz, of German Jewish descent and a naturalised American citizen, was the brother of Edmund’s wife, Margiana Stinnes. His father, Gerhart von Schulze-Gaevernitz, was a well-known professor of Political Science at Freiburg University. He helped draw up the pre-Hitler Weimar Constitution and was liberally orientated, striving throughout his life for American-British-German rapprochement.
General Heinrich von Vietinghoff and General Wolff
During the delicate negotiations, General Wolff and other senior officials agreed to defy Hitler and Himmler’s orders to ‘scorch the earth’. Hitler’s orders entailed the burning and destroying of the remnants of the industry and economy of Italy and the rest of Europe, even Germany itself. Through his charisma and close connection to senior members of the Resistance Movement in Germany, Gero von S. Gaevernitz was a key figure in the secret negotiations leading to the end of the Second World War and concomitantly averting the ‘scorching of the earth’ and saving the lives of countless people.
The entire process, referred to as ‘Sunrise,’ was one of the most successful intelligence operations of our time. On 2 May 1945 Winston Churchill announced the first great German surrender in the Houses of Parliament, as Germany capitulated to the Allied forces. Churchill declared, ‘The war against Fascism and Nazism on that front is over.’
By Dr. Angela R. Hobart and Maya Hobart
Dr. Angela Hobart is the Founder-Director of the Fondazione Centro Incontri Umani, Maya Hobart is a trustee of Fondazione Centro Incontri Umani and the founder of Outside Voices.
This brief account of events is drawn from the Secret Surrender by Allen Dulles, Harper and Row Publishers, New York, First Edition, 1966.
To read more about the Secret Meetings in Ascona and see film footage of the signing of the agreement confirming the surrender of 1,000,000 German Nazi troops in Italy, visit the Swiss National Museum Blog. The article from the Swiss National Museum will be featured on Outside Voices Website, coming soon.
