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| Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel with the Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler |
A Paris–based American historian claimed in his book, “Sleeping with the enemy: Coco chanel’s secret war” that the fashion French icon Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel was once a German spy during World War II.
We cannot deny the fact that Coco had an affair with a German aristocrat named Baron Hans Gunther von Dincklage, who was a professional Abwehr spy, but Coco as German spy? Wow! This could be a heck of an allegation.
After Hitler invaded the rest of France, the Nazi’s confiscated all companies that are owned by Jews, as part of their anti-Semitic propaganda. Coco used her position as an “Aryan” to make a petition on the German government to give her the sole ownership of “Perfums Chanel”, The house of the best-selling perfume Channel (which she personally formulated), owned by the Wertheimers, who were Jews.
Chanel was one of those who are called after the war as “Horizontal collaborators”, because they worked for the Germans. She was in fact staying at Ritz Hotel, which was made the head-quarter of the Germans during the occupation.
According to the author, Hal Vaughan, 84 year old World War II veteran. He was looking for documents on police records when suddenly he discovered that Channel was a German spy with an alias of “Westminster”. Coco was sent to Spain on a spy mission and she was also given an order to make a peace talk with Winston Churchill.
After the liberation of France, all German collaborators were jailed for treason, but Coco was released an hour late as ordered by the great Winston Churchill. She automatically flee to Switzerland after.
In 1954, channel returned to France to rebuilt her fashion empire, but his lines were not greatly patronized by Parisian due to her past connections with the Nazis. Rather, his collections were appreciated by British and American Costumers.
Coco died by the age of 87, in 1971, busy for the preparation of her summer collections, she was tired of a long drive and not feeling. Channel was found dead on her bed at Ritz hotel, where she lived for more than 30 years.
