NEW YORK—Agostino von Hassell grew up listening to the chatter of old Prussian nobility, friends of his grandfathers’, a group of individuals who once conspired to assassinate Hitler.
Hassell’s paternal grandfather, Ulrich von Hassell, was a German diplomat during World War II. He was a leader of the German resistance, and communicated with British and U.S. intelligence. After the failed attempt to overthrow Hitler in 1944, Ulrich von Hassell was executed.
His maternal grandfather, Lt. Gen. Bogislav von Studnitz, was first commander during the occupation of Paris in 1940 during World War II; he was vehemently anti-Nazi and assassinated at Hitler’s order in January 1943.
Studnitz’s military photo hangs in Hassell’s office. Hassell, 61, is a stern-looking man with rimless glasses, who smokes and drinks red wine.
The office is decorated with possessions such as a Samurai helmet, military caps, and a colonial map.
