During the German occupation of Rome from 1942–1944, Irishman Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty ran an escape organization for Allied POWs and civilians, including Jews. Safe within the Vatican state, he regularly ventured out in disguise to continue his mission, which earned him the nickname “the Pimpernel of the Vatican.” When the Allies entered Rome, he and his collaborators— priests, nuns, and laypeople of numerous nationalities and religious beliefs—had saved the lives of over 6,500 people.
The first new telling of this extraordinary story in decades, this book also addresses the fascinating dichotomy between O’Flaherty and Herbert Kappler, the Gestapo chief in Rome who ordered him killed, and who, after the war, reconciled with the monsignor, and even asked him to perform his baptism.
For his heroic efforts, O’Flaherty was awarded the highest honors, including a Congressional Medal, and was the first Irishman named the Notary of the Holy Office. His story was immortalized in the 1983 film The Scarlet and the Black, which starred Gregory Peck as O’Flaherty.
Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty...
Related Scanning WWII dates...
- 30 Oct 63: Hugh O'Flaherty, the Vatican Pimpernel, passes away
Resistance from the Pulpit...
Related WWII Store items...
Martin Niemoeller, Lutheran Pastor
- Hitler Came for Niemoeller:
The Nazi War Against Religion
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Lutheran Pastor
- Bonhoeffer:
Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy
Clemens August Graf von Galen, Catholic Bishop
- Bishop von Galen:
German Catholicism and National Socialism
Eivind Berggrav, Lutheran Bishop
- Bishop of the Resistance:
A Life of Eivind Berggrav, Bishop of Oslo, Norway
Hugh O'Flaherty, Catholic Monsignor
- The Vatican Pimpernel:
The World War II Exploits of the Monsignor Who Saved Over 6,500 Lives - The Scarlet and the Black
1983 made for TV movie
Righteous people and the saving of Jews from the Holocaust...
Related WWII Store items...
- The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler
DVD - The Other Schindler... Irena Sendler:
Savior of the Holocaust Children - Schindler's List
DVD, Blu-ray - Passage to Freedom:
The Sugihara Story - Sugihara -
Conspiracy of Kindness (DVD) - The Vatican Pimpernel:
The World War II Exploits of the Monsignor Who Saved Over 6,500 Lives - The Scarlet and the Black
1983 made for TV movie - The Search for Major Plagge:
The Nazi Who Saved Jews - The Righteous:
The Unsung Heroes of the Holocaust - The Righteous Among the Nations:
Rescuers of Jews During the Holocaust - Sheltering the Jews:
Stories of Holocaust Rescuers - Saving the Jews:
Men and Women who Defied the Final Solution - Righteous Gentiles of the Holocaust:
Genocide and Moral Obligation