Origins & Early Life

John Amery (14 March 1912 – 19 December 1945) was a British fascist and Nazi collaborator during World War II. He was the originator of the British Free Corps, a volunteer Waffen-SS unit composed of former British and Dominion prisoners of war. Amery conducted recruitment efforts, and made propaganda broadcasts for Germany. He later gave direct support to Italian dictator Benito Mussolini.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

He was prosecuted by the British authorities and pleaded guilty to eight counts of high treason, for which he was sentenced to death, seven months after the war in Europe ended. Born in Chelsea, London, John Amery (known as "Jack") was the elder of two children of British statesman Leo Amery, a member of parliament and later Conservative government minister; Leo's mother was a Hungarian Jew who had converted to Protestantism. John's younger brother, Julian, also became a Member of Parliament and served as a minister in a Conservative government in the 1970s. Amery was a difficult child who ran through a succession of private tutors. He attended nursery at Miss Ironside's School, whose eponymous headmistress described him as "unteachable".

Enduring Legacy & Impact

Like his father, he was sent to Harrow School...

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