ABSTRACT
Ernst Wilhelm Bohle was a reasonably smart twenty-nine year old who now recognized that a way had been opened for him to possibly realize his dream of becoming involved in the foreign policy apparatus of a new Germany if the Nazis took power, and as the newly appointed Gauleiter of the Auslandsorganisation (AO) of the NSDAP, he had an important position within the party structure. However, the challenge he faced was maneuvering through the labyrinth that surrounded German foreign affairs. Not only would there be a resistant and entrenched pre-Hitler diplomatic corps that was certain it could not be replaced, but a number of Nazi Party members, some with far more infl uence than Bohle commanded, anxious to have a say in foreign policy making and who would oppose any expansion of AO power.
