Taking the Hard Road - Edward O’Rourke & opposing Hitler

Edward O’Rourke is not a name you expect to encounter in the history of Eastern Europe, yet he is a celebrated figure in the Polish city of Gdansk for the role he played in opposing the rise of the Nazis in the city in the 1930s.

In this episode I am joined by the Irish Times journalist Derek Scally to explore the life of Edward O'Rourke which was in a word unique. This episode reveals why a man born near Minsk in the Russian Empire in 1876 was named O’Rourke and how he went to oppose Fascism at a time when many of his contemporaries were supporting Hitler.

This is the image at the start of the show https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_Landmesser#/media/File:August-Landmesser-Almanya-1936.jpg  

Follow Derek on twitter - @DerekinBerlin 

Articles references in the podcast 

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/irishman-honoured-in-polish-city-where-he-warned-of-nazi-danger-1.642893 - 

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/2023/07/04/sean-lester-and-edward-phelan-irish-world-leaders/    

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