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Codename Nikolaus

Dr. Bodo Hechelhammer, chief historian of the BND, will deliver a lecture on the early years of the German intelligence service, introducing the American and German agents behind Germany’s Cold War spy operation.

Date & Time

Monday
Mar. 16, 2015
1:00pm – 2:00pm ET

Location

5th Floor, Woodrow Wilson Center
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Overview

Codename Nikolaus:

The Early Years of German-American Intelligence Cooperation

On St Nicholas Day, December 6th 1947, Reinhard Gehlen began to organize a spy ring with the help of the US Army intelligence and the CIA in Pullarch, Bavaria. 68 years later, Pullarch remains the headquarters of the Bundesnachtrichtendienst (BND), Germany's Federal Intelligence Service.

Join us as Dr. Bodo Hechelhammer, chief historian of the BND, delivers a lecture on the early years of the German intelligence service, introducing the American and German agents behind Germany’s Cold War spy operation. Dr. Hechelhammer’s new book, Geheimobjekt Pullach (Ch. Links) draws on numerous archives and private collections and, for the first time, materials from the BND archives.


Dr. Bodo Hechelhammer is Director of the Historical Research Working Group of the German Federal Intelligence Service, as well as editor of the Bulletin of the Research Working Group “History of the BND”.

Dr. Hechelhammer studied Geography, Medieval and Contemporary History, and Art History at TU Darmstadt. He obtained his doctorates from the Justus-Liebig-University Gießen and TU Darmstadt respectively, and was a research associate there at the Institute for History. Since 2010, he has directed the internal research group for history at the BND after serving for many years as an intelligence officer at the BND.

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Cold War International History Project

The Cold War International History Project supports the full and prompt release of historical materials by governments on all sides of the Cold War. Through an award winning Digital Archive, the Project allows scholars, journalists, students, and the interested public to reassess the Cold War and its many contemporary legacies. It is part of the Wilson Center's History and Public Policy Program.  Read more

History and Public Policy Program

The History and Public Policy Program makes public the primary source record of 20th and 21st century international history from repositories around the world, facilitates scholarship based on those records, and uses these materials to provide context for classroom, public, and policy debates on global affairs.  Read more

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