question Information on whether Joachim von Ribbentrop received the Egyptian Order of Ismail?

[Rusty Greaves]

I came across a listing of awards to Ulrich Friedrich-Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop from the TRACESOFWAR  website (https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/91889/Ribbentrop-von-Ulrich-Friedrich-Wilhelm-Joachim.htm). The final award listed for him is the Egyptian Order of Ismail, but no date for this award is provided. Does anyone know whether von Ribbentrop was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of Ismail and possibly the date of that honor? Would there be somewhere that I can check to look for any photos of him wearing this award?

Edited October 18, 2022 by hucks216

[922F]

Rusty, vR received the Grand Cordon. 

 

Google  [within the rubric]:  The Orders and medals of Joachim von Ribbentrop
by William C Stump  for an image of most of vR's group including Ismail & expansion of what you've already learned -- don't want to copy here due to potential issues.  Set was owned by Jeff Schramek [spelling?] as late as 2009.  Jeff died some years ago; do not know what happened to the set which he offered for sale for about 5 years before he died at a $5000 price.   Jeff 'believed' award was presented in 1936 or 1938 but never saw any confirmation.  Never saw any images of vR receiving or wearing the award.

[Rusty Greaves]

EJ, 

 

Many thanks for the reference to the online 2021 article by William Stump, a fascinating story of this assemblage of decorations awarded to von Ribbentrop! The photo with the Order of Ismail is not good, but the confirmation that he was awarded this is most interesting. What do you know about the politics of Egypt and Germany in the 1936-38 period, almost certainly under King Farouk I?

 

As I have scribbled elsewhere here on GMIC, my wife's great grandfather, Pierre Crabitès, retired from the Cairo District Mixed Courts in 1936, as the British blocked his advancement to the Appeals Court because of his anti-British sympathies, friendliness with King Fuad I, and support of Egyptian nationalism. He secured an appointment through the OSS with the State Department to return to Egypt. His closeness to the royal family was recognized as an asset in determining how King Farouk I would respond to Germany's efforts in the Muslim world or to the British opposition to Hitler. Note the telegrams from King Farouk I in 1942 and 1943 and a letter from Aly Maher (that accompanied a gift map) in 1938 to Crabitès in my post of 22 April 2018 in the thread "Egyptian Khedive Judges Badge question" in the "Middle East & Arab States" section here on GMIC. Crabitès briefly did work in Egypt beginning in April 1942. A communication in May 1942 from Ahmed Hassanein to Crabitès (mentioned in my 22 April, 2018 post) on behalf of King Farouk I hints at interest in supporting the Allied cause (State Department Document: 123 Crabitès, Pierre/7: Communiqué from Pierre Crabitès, transmitted by Alexander Kirk, Cairo, to Colonel Donovan, through the Secretary of State, 28 May, 1942). Crabitès later met with King Farouk I, shortly before Nazi losses in North Africa and the later defeat of Rommel by Mongomerty at El-Alamein The British objected to the assignment of Crabitès to Egypt, and the State Department and OSS had conflicting views on politics and imperialism. The State Dept. did not wish to upset the current situation in Egypt and wanted no conflict with the British. A subsequent re-assignment to Beirut (where he probably would have been of little use other than his language skills) was arranged by the State Dept, but the British occupation of Lebanon led again to concerns about Crabitès' anti-British sentiments and closeness to the palace in Cairo. He was rejected from a possible position in Ethiopia, then eventually the State Dept posted him to the American Legation in Baghdad.  Crabitès died there of pneumonia in October, 1943. Below are a few tidbits of some documentation of these complexities. 

 

 

 

 

Article by Pierre Crabitès recounting some of his familiarity with the royal family and various political personages, an audience at the Royal Yacht Club with King Farouk I and Ahmed Hassanein in 1939, and some discussions of Egypt's rejection of Hitler's advances (from: The Commonweal, Vol 32, No. 13, July 18, 1941: pp. 294-297). 

 

 

Letter from Elmer Davis, Director of the Office of War Information, April 19, 1943 to Pierre Crabitès following Britain's objections to allowing Crabitès to serve the war effort in Egypt or Beirut and the State Department's support of the British position that overruled the OSS recognition of his possible use in Cairo.  Obviously Crabitès was trying to find some way to use his experience for the war effort. He provided an early alarm call about Hitler in his publications and public lectures in the US both before and after he left Egypt in 1936. 

 

 

The grave of Pierre Crabitès in the British Civilian Christian Cemetery in Baghdad, October 1943. The individual in the photo is the Egyptian chargé d’affaires placing flowers on Crabitès' grave on behalf of King Farouk I. 

Edited October 7, 2022 by Rusty Greaves