> when Hitler died, Irish President Eamon de Valera went to the German embassy and signed the book of condolences <
I remember reading about that. By then most of the Nazi death camps had been liberated. The secret was out. So I wonder who gave de Valera the stupid advice to go to the German embassy.
De Valera was not Irish. He was born in 1882 in New York.
I think that it was a combination of a reflexive jab at Britain and genuine regret for Germany’s defeat. Worse was that Irish who had fought for Britain in WW II suffered decades of official discrimination and hostility from the Irish government when they returned home. De Valera was stubborn and narrow-minded, with the Ireland of his era defined by poverty and lack of opportunity.