When my neighbor fails to kill my family, then calls me to visit him in prison. What do I do?
Monsignor O’Flaherty was a charismatic Irish priest assigned to work for the Holy See while studying in Rome, used his connections to save lives of thousands, estimated at 65,000.
When the Gestapo learned what Monsignor O’Flaherty’s was doing, they painted a white line across St Peter's Square dividing the neutral Vatican from Nazi-controlled Rome. Guards stood watched, but never saw him, because he used disguises and became known as the "Scarlet Pimpernel of the Vatican" - as portrayed by Gregory Peck in the movie The Scarlet and the Black.
When the war was over, the Gestapo chief Herbert Kappler, who wanted to capture, torture and kill Monsignor O'Flaherty was sentenced to life in prison, Monsignor O’Flaherty visited the convicted war criminal. In prison, Kappler converted to Catholicism.
Monsignor O'Flaherty was an Irish Catholic priest, a senior official of the Roman Curia and a significant figure in the Catholic resistance to Nazism. During the Second World War, O'Flaherty was responsible for saving 6,500 Allied soldiersout and Jews. His ability to evade the traps set by the German Gestapo and Sicherheitsdienst (SDq q) earned him the nickname The Scarlet Pimpernel of the Vatican
When the Nazis began to crack down on prominent Jews and aristocratic anti-fascists. the Monsignor hid them in farms, monasteries, convents, his old college and his own residence. He visited American prisoners held in harsh conditions in Italian jails and began to offer shelter to Allied servicemen who turned up at the Vatican looking for sanctuary. His operation helped escaped prisoners-of-war and shot-down pilots. He recruited a group to assist him and set up a network of safe houses in Rome to hide them. Allied military who evaded capture or were able to escape, made their way to the Vatican seeking asylum and went to the Irish Embassy there – the only English-speaking embassy to remain open in Rome during the war.
The great singer, Delia Murphy Kiernan was an Irish singer and collector of Irish ballads. She recorded several 78 rpm records in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. During World War II, she aided Vatican official, Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty, while her husband, Dr. Thomas J. Kiernan, was the Irish Ambassador in Rome from
By the end if the war, Monsignor and his group had helped more than 6,500 Jews, American and British Soldiers escape the Nazis and he was referred to as “The Scarlet Pimpernel of the Vatican.” He also became a master of disguises to avoid capture from the Germans when he had to go beyond the 'White Line’ on his rescue missions. The White Line was a line painted on the streets outside the Vatican on the instructions of Herbert Kappler, the head of the Gestapo, to mark the point where the Vatican’s authority ended, and Nazi rule began. Kappler had learned of O’Flaherty’s operation and reminded O’Flaherty that if he was caught beyond that line he would be executed! In March 1944, after the Italian Resistance killed 33 German soldiers in a bomb attack, Hitler demanded revenge. Kappler ordered 10 Italians killed for each German soldier killed. His men killed 335 people in the Ardeatine Caves outside Rome. It was the worst atrocity on Italian soil during the War. Kappler also tried several times to kidnap and kill O’Flaherty and placed a bounty of 30,000 Lire on his head. Meanwhile, O’Flaherty continued to outwit Kappler with fake credentials and documents, a secret communication network and by evading capture by the Gestapo.
At the War Crimes trial after the war, Kappler was sentenced to life imprisonment with no parole for the Ardeatine Caves massacre. In a surprising move, Italy’s most hated prisoner wrote to his old rival inviting Msgr. O’Flaherty to visit him in prison; the Kerry cleric immediately went to meet with his former foe. Their meetings became regular affairs during which they discussed religion and literature. The Monsignor joked, “Here I am with this man who put 30,000 lire on my head and now we are sort of pals.” The feeling was mutual as Kappler described O’Flaherty as “a fatherly friend”. After his sentence, Kappler, who was Protestant, called on the Monsignor and the two men prayed together after which Msgr. O’Flaherty baptized Kappler. In what was probably Monsignor O’Flaherty’s greatest victory, Italy’s most notorious Nazi was welcomed into the Catholic Church by the very man he had tried so hard to kill.
By the end if the war, Monsignor and his group had helped more than 6,500 Jews, American and British Soldiers escape the Nazis and he was referred to as “The Scarlet Pimpernel of the Vatican.” He also became a master of disguises to avoid capture from the Germans when he had to go beyond the 'White Line’ on his rescue missions. The White Line was a line painted on the streets outside the Vatican on the instructions of Herbert Kappler, the head of the Gestapo, to mark the point where the Vatican’s authority ended, and Nazi rule began. Kappler had learned of O’Flaherty’s operation and reminded O’Flaherty that if he was caught beyond that line he would be executed! In March 1944, after the Italian Resistance killed 33 German soldiers in a bomb attack, Hitler demanded revenge. Kappler ordered 10 Italians killed for each German soldier killed. His men killed 335 people in the Ardeatine Caves outside Rome. It was the worst atrocity on Italian soil during the War. Kappler also tried several times to kidnap and kill O’Flaherty and placed a bounty of 30,000 Lire on his head. Meanwhile, O’Flaherty continued to outwit Kappler with fake credentials and documents, a secret communication network and by evading capture by the Gestapo.
At the War Crimes trial after the war, Kappler was sentenced to life imprisonment with no parole for the Ardeatine Caves massacre. In a surprising move, Italy’s most hated prisoner wrote to his old rival inviting Msgr. O’Flaherty to visit him in prison; the Kerry cleric immediately went to meet with his former foe. Their meetings became regular affairs during which they discussed religion and literature. The Monsignor joked, “Here I am with this man who put 30,000 lire on my head and now we are sort of pals.” The feeling was mutual as Kappler described O’Flaherty as “a fatherly friend”. After his sentence, Kappler, who was Protestant, called on the Monsignor and the two men prayed together after which Msgr. O’Flaherty baptized Kappler. In what was probably Monsignor O’Flaherty’s greatest victory, Italy’s most notorious Nazi was welcomed into the Catholic Church by the very man he had tried so hard to kill.
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