The Nazi spy pastor
Subtitle: Carl Krepper and the war in America
By: J. Francis Watson
Publisher: Praeger
Published: 2014
Place of publication: Santa Barbara, California
Language: eng
Number of pages: 208
ISBN-13: 9781440828072; 9781440828089
Subjects: World War, 1939-1945; Secret service; German Espionage; History; Sabotage; Spies; Biography
Description: "One man could have enabled the most audacious terrorist threat against America prior to 9/11 and helped the Nazis win World War II—the Nazi spy pastor, Carl Krepper. His riveting story brings to light a forgotten chapter in the history of the Second World War. As America continues to wrestle with issues surrounding the threat of sabotage and terrorism, this eye-opening work details a very real threat faced by our country in the Second World War, and the key aspects of the underground war that was fought in this country by Nazi agents. The Nazi Spy Pastor: Carl Krepper and the War in America presents the fascinating true story of a secret plot to be executed on American soil--a German sabotage operation with intended targets in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Illinois. This book chronicles, for the first time, the remarkable life of Carl Krepper--naturalized American citizen, Lutheran pastor, and the Nazi deep-cover operative who could have made possible the greatest terrorist threat on American soil prior to the attacks on September 11th. Historian J. Francis Watson draws on newly declassified archival and documentary materials to tell the full story of how a devoted clergyman lost his way and betrayed his calling, instead advocating an ideology that supported genocide and the deaths of innocent victims in America, and how he came to play a key role in the Pastorius sabotage plot. The book covers fascinating cloak-and-dagger details of submarine infiltrations, safe houses, and secret codes, detailing Krepper's life, his work as a Nazi agent, and the FBI sting operation that finally brought about his arrest in December of 1944. This little-known, real-life espionage story will serve students of World War II history and appeal to readers interested in immigration and the integration of immigrant populations as well as the histories of New York and New Jersey." -- Publisher's description
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 199-203) and index.
Table of contents: title: Student at the school for spies; title: Carl Krepper, pastor; title: Evolution of a Nazi: Pastor Krepper in Newark, New Jersey; title: On the road to the Reich; title: Carl Krepper and his mission in America; title: Krepper and the Pastorius Plot; title: Spy vs counter-spy; title: Trailing a spy; title: The reluctant spy; title: Bring him in: plans to catch a "Nazi spy aide"; title: The arrest of a Nazi agent; title: "God and the Reich were closely identified in his mind".