The assassination of Walter Rathenau.

Walter Rathenau was a complex character. Born into a family of wealthy industrialists he was a highly respected engineer, businessman, philosopher, journalist and statesman. Though Rathenau remained unmarried throughout his life, he nevertheless maintained long and close friendships and correspondence with prominent society ladies. These liaisons did not prevent gossip querying whether Herr Rathenau might be a “confirmed bachelor“, even though no evidence exists to support such speculation. With such a CV, it seems almost an afterthought to note that Rathenau was also of Jewish descent. He described himself thus: “I am a German of Jewish origin. My people are the German people, my home is German land, my belief is German belief, which stands above all denominations““. Rathenau is recalled for his highly efficient management of Germany’s economy during WWI. He marshalled Germany’s dwindling resources and directed its industrial production, brilliantly improvising to g