How One Man Saved Poland’s Gold From The Nazis

Over the weekend, GATA reported on the launch of Poland’s Oddajcie Nasze Zloto or ‘Nazi Gold . This was following the revelation that the Bank of England had been compliant in the selling of gold looted by the Nazis from their victims and the countries they chose to invade.

The Bank of England, a bastion of stability sitting on an island, has done well during times of war or threats of war when it comes to protecting gold reserves. As we wrote about a while ago, Germany also sent their gold reserves to Threadneedle Street during the Cold War.

According to 1939 BIS accounts Poland had US$ 83 million of gold reserves, this works out at around 83 tons, however reports argue there were 75 tons. It may be that some gold was left in Romania (and later found by the Nazis) as the reserves made their way to Britain.

The fact that 75 tonnes left Poland is in part thanks to an English Captain that Poland’s gold reserves escaped the clutches of the Nazis. It is recorded in various sources that Captain Robert E. Brett’s ship, the SS Eocene, was in the Black sea on September 1st 1939. Having travelled by bus, truck and train across Eastern,the gold was now Captain Brett’s responsibility.

It was at the port of Constansa that he was met by the British Counsul who told him of the British Government and Polish authorities’ plan for Poland’s gold. Captain Brett’s ship was instructed to transport the 75 tons of gold to Istanbul where it would continue its journey to safety.

On the 15th of September the gold was secretly loaded onto SS Eocene. In an effort to avoid attracting the Nazi’s attention, Captain Brett darkened ship that evening and slipped out of the harbour. The BBC reports that Captain Brett and his precious cargo arrived in Istanbul on the 19th September.

From here the Turkish authorities arranged to have it moved on to French carriers in Beirut. It is my understanding that the gold was then stored in the Banque de France for some time before being transported to the Bank of England. However I would be interested to receive more details on this.

Would you still trust him with your gold?

It is interesting to think that the British central bank was once such a trusted ally that Poland handed over what was effectively its entire wealth for safe-keeping.

Now the Bank of England’s trustworthiness has come into question.

One may argue this is because it is sensible to ask such questions and carry out audits, but one can’t help but wonder if the concerns over rehypothecated gold and gold leasing have got the Poles thinking about the whereabouts of their gold.

The trend of nations wanting their gold bullion back and declining trust in other sovereign custodians continues. Perhaps these falling trust levels might enter the fiat system soon too?

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Written By: The Real Asset Company