With support from the University of Richmond

History News Network

History News Network puts current events into historical perspective. Subscribe to our newsletter for new perspectives on the ways history continues to resonate in the present. Explore our archive of thousands of original op-eds and curated stories from around the web. Join us to learn more about the past, now.

Göring's Convertible Said to Be in America

A classic Mercedes-Benz dating back to the 1930s is currently being restored in North Carolina. Its owners claim it once belonged to the infamous Nazi official Hermann Göring, but the auto company is being cautious.

The Mercedes-Benz 540K cabriolet is an absolute rarity, with fewer than 200 manufactured before 1939. Now, one of the huge, eight-cylinder convertibles has turned up in the US state of North Carolina. "The car is worth several million dollars," says David Rathbun, one of its current owners. The steep price is not only due to its rare status, though. It also allegedly has a unique historical background -- the owners believe that during World War II, the convertible belonged to Hermann Göring, one of the leading members of the Nazi party....

Read entire article at Der Spiegel