Day of Vengeance (21 page)

His state funeral was attended by one of the largest ever assemblies of statesmen from around the world.

Was Albrecht Altenberg a real person? (see page 114)

Albrecht Altenberg is a fictional character, but there were a number of physicists working in Germany at the time. The most famous was Werner Heisenberg, who made significant contributions to quantum mechanics and is best known for the
‘uncertainty principle’ of quantum theory. Heisenberg was awarded the 1932 Nobel Prize in Physics. In 1939, after the discovery of nuclear fission, the German nuclear energy project, also known as the Uranium Club, was begun and Heisenberg was engaged by the Nazis to support their research efforts.

In 1942, Heisenberg was summoned to report to Albert Speer, Germany’s Minister of Armaments (who also toured Paris with Hitler in 1940), on the prospects for converting the Uranium Club’s research towards developing nuclear weapons. During the meeting, Heisenberg told Speer that a nuclear bomb could not be built before 1945. There remains controversy about Heisenberg’s involvement in the Nazi’s nuclear programme, the level of his commitment and the extent of his political affiliations. There is also debate about why the programme had achieved relatively little by the end of the war. Although work continued on reactor design through the war, evidence shows that the Germans did not come close to building a working reactor that could be used to develop material for a nuclear weapon.

Did Hitler travel to Paris in 1940? (see page 119)

Yes. Hitler’s only visit to Paris took place at 6 a.m. on 28th June 1940 and original footage of his visit exists today. Hitler’s entourage stopped at a number of famous Paris landmarks: the Opéra, the Madeleine, the Eiffel Tower, Les Invalides and
Sacré-Coeur
. Albert Speer, Hitler’s chief architect, and Brekel, a sculptor, accompanied Hitler on the tour.

What was the SS? (see page 111)

The SS – an abbreviation of
Schutzstaffel
or ‘Protection Squadron’ – was an ‘army within an army’ devised by Adolf Hitler and commanded by Heinrich Himmler. It was formed in 1925 as a personal guard unit for Adolf Hitler and grew from a small paramilitary group to become one of the most powerful organisations in Nazi Germany. The SS was responsible for some of the most shocking crimes of the Nazi era. In
Day of Vengeance,
SS officer Axel Gottschalk is a fictional character.

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Sara Newbery (fellow Soonhopian) for her help on the French scenes, Alison and David Stubley, Ann and Roger South, Amanda Wood, Ruth Huddleston, Anne Finnis, Ruth Martin, Helen Greathead, Will Steele, Ian Butterworth, Tom Sanderson, Phil Perry, Jayne Roscoe, Victoria Henderson, Richard Scrivener, Jonny Lambert, Caroline Knox and Pam Royds, and to Geoffrey Wellum for inspiration on the Battle of Britain scenes through his superb autobiography,
First Light
. Thanks too, as ever, to Sally, Peter, Tom, Annie and friends and family who continue to support Jack and Angus on their escapades through history.

by Johnny O’Brien

Jack is catapulted back to the start of the First World War, where the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand is about to throw the world into chaos. Should he intervene? Will he survive? The future of mankind is in Jack’s hands. The first dangerous mission in the Jack Christie Adventures sets the pace at full-throttle and the stakes as high as they go.

Paperback £5.99
ISBN 978–1–84877–091–1

ePub ISBN 978–1–84877–104–8
Mobi ISBN 978–1–84877–108–6

by Johnny O’Brien

In his second perilous mission, Jack travels back to an Elizabethan England riddled with treacherous plots. Amid sea battles, sword fights and subterfuge, Jack must defend the life of the queen, her kingdom, and the world as we know it. Dark dealings and deadly intrigue set the scene for the second thrilling journey in the Jack Christie Adventures.

Paperback £5.99
ISBN 978–1-84877–097–3

ePub ISBN 978–1–84877–107–9
Mobi ISBN 978–1–84877–115–4