The Watch of Von Ribbentrop

A Nazi Relic & Its Story

De: Cyril Marlen

Narrado por: Matthew Pulido

Ribbentrop’s Watch: The True Story of a Nazi Artefact by Cyril Marlen is a haunting investigation into how a single object can reflect the shadows of an entire regime. Part biography, part historical mystery, and part moral reckoning, this gripping narrative follows the journey of a seemingly ordinary wristwatch once worn by Joachim von Ribbentrop—Nazi Germany’s Foreign Minister and one of the most loyal figures in Hitler’s inner circle.

What makes this object extraordinary is not its design or rarity, but the role it played as a silent witness to some of the darkest decisions of the 20th century. Meticulously researched and powerfully written, the book begins with Ribbentrop’s unlikely rise—from wine merchant to architect of diplomatic pacts that fuelled Hitler’s war machine. Along the way, the listener encounters the chilling symbolism of status objects worn by members of the Third Reich, where a watch could signify both personal ambition and complicity in global catastrophe.

The story then moves beyond the war—into the chaos of defeat and the disbanding of Hitler’s regime. As Allied soldiers looted, documented, and repatriated stolen goods, the watch disappeared. Decades later, it resurfaced in the hands of a collector, sparking fierce debate among historians, survivors, and moral philosophers. Was it a mere souvenir, a war trophy, a historical artefact—or something more dangerous?

Cyril Marlen traces the watch’s path through time with forensic precision, interviewing everyone from Holocaust educators and museum curators to auction house specialists and descendants of World War II veterans. Each chapter uncovers a new layer of meaning: the ethics of collecting items linked to atrocities, the uneasy market for Nazi memorabilia, and the moral weight that physical objects can carry long after their owners are gone.

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Reckoning With What We Keep

I’ve never read a book that so clearly articulates the emotional and ethical power of historical objects. “Ribbentrop’s Watch” is unforgettable.

Raises Tough Questions, Offers No Easy Answers

Should Nazi artifacts be sold? Displayed? Hidden? This book doesn’t moralize but explores every angle with care and research. Thoughtful and nuanced from start to finish.

Disturbing Yet Necessary Reading

I wasn’t prepared for how deeply this book would affect me. It forces readers to confront uncomfortable truths about war trophies, memory, and how we commodify history. Essential reading for anyone interested in World War II or ethics.

Haunting and Thought-Provoking

This is not your typical World War II book. Marlen’s deep dive into a Nazi relic reveals the lasting psychological and cultural weight of physical objects. Disturbing in its implications, yet utterly fascinating.

Rare and Compelling Perspective on the Third Reich

Rather than retelling familiar stories, this book introduces a fresh angle—the post-war life of Nazi objects. You’ll never look at a historical artifact the same way again.

Ethics, Memory, and a Watch

This isn’t just a story about a Nazi relic—it’s about what it means to remember, to forget, and to assign meaning to things left behind. A powerful meditation on memory and history.

More Than Just a Watch

What starts as a story about a wristwatch becomes a profound exploration of memory, guilt, and legacy. Marlen unpacks Ribbentrop’s role in history while tackling uncomfortable questions about what we preserve—and why.

A Historian’s Detective Work

The amount of detail in this book is astonishing. Marlen clearly did his homework, and it pays off in a narrative that feels as suspenseful as it is significant.

An Object That Echoes Through History

This book brilliantly shows how one seemingly simple watch holds a universe of meaning. Cyril Marlen weaves together biography, history, and moral inquiry into an unforgettable narrative. A gripping, sobering read that made me rethink what artifacts really represent.

A Masterpiece of Historical Storytelling

Cyril Marlen takes a single object and builds a compelling, multi-layered narrative around it. The watch becomes a window into the Nazi hierarchy, post-war looting, and the ethics of memorabilia. Both chilling and illuminating.