Clare Hollingworth and the discovery of Germany's preparations for its offensive against Poland in 1939
By Péter MARTON The Google Doodle provided me with some instant inspiration for my scholarly work this morning. It is the late war and foreign affairs correspondent Clare Hollingworth's 106th birthday today. Sadly, she is not around to celebrate it, having passed away at the remarkable age of 105 this January. Among the achievements of her long career most prominently mentioned by people remembering her is her supposed discovery of Nazi Germany's force build-up along the Polish frontier. Time for some myth-busting! Back in January, writing her obituary, newspapers were happy to cite an anecdotal version of the story, copying details of the legendary reconnaissance feat from each other. Some of these details may come originally from a biography by Patrick Garrett ("Of Fortunes and War"), as referenced and quoted here : "Driving alongside a valley, where a hessian screen that blocked the view had been pitched alongside the road, suddenly there wa...