vault backup: 2026-10-15 11:55:05

10 - PEOPLE/(T-Z)/Louis de Wohl.md

@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ tags:
   - Nazi
   - Occult
 summary: "Louis de Wohl was a German-born Hungarian astrologer and British citizen who became a key figure in Allied black propaganda during World War II."
+updated: 2026-10-15
 born: 1903-01-24
 died: 1961-06-02
 location: "Berlin, Germany"
@@ -16,6 +17,8 @@ location: "Berlin, Germany"
 
 Louis de Wohl was a German-born Hungarian astrologer and British citizen who became a key figure in Allied black propaganda during [[World War II]]. He was one of the most high-profile astrologers in the Western world, with admirers including [[Lord Halifax]], Britain's Foreign Secretary, and the Duke of Alba, the ambassador from [[Spain]][^1].
 
+The National Archives holds a Security Service personal file on de Wohl covering August 31, 1940 to August 19, 1952. The catalogue describes him as a professional astrologer who worked for the [[Special Operations Executive]].[^2]
+
 De Wohl's mission in America, in the summer of 1941, was to elevate astrology into the realm of "astro-philosophy" and, more importantly, to influence American public opinion in favor of aiding [[Great Britain]]. His syndicated American column, "Stars Foretell," consistently emphasized the Nazi threat. Starting in June 1941, shortly after the [[Rudolf Hess]] affair, de Wohl's predictions became unusually specific and appeared to come true, such as his foretelling of a "strong collaborator of Hitler who is neither German nor a Nazi will go violently insane," which was followed by reports of Admiral Georges Robert, the Vichy High Commissioner of the French West Indies, going mad[^1].
 
 His escalating popularity led the [[Federal Communications Commission]] to lift its ban against astrologers and air an exclusive interview with him. He was also the first astrologer filmed for a U.S. newsreel. However, de Wohl's successful American career was a product of [[British Intelligence]], specifically through its operational arm in America, the [[British Security Coordination Office]]. His so-called manager was none other than the spymaster [[William Stephenson]], whom [[Winston Churchill]] famously called Intrepid. The [[American Federation of Scientific Astrologers]] and its 1941 convention had been fabricated by [[British Intelligence]]. The British spy agency would first feed information to de Wohl for his column, and then feed this bogus information to the U.S. press, which, unable to fact-check with [[Nazi Germany]], would report it as real[^1].
@@ -26,3 +29,4 @@ For the next few years, de Wohl was used by the Allies as a countermeasure to [[
 
 ### Footnotes
 [^1]: Jacobsen, Annie. *Phenomena: The Secret History of the U.S. Government's Investigations into Extrasensory Perception and Psychokinesis*. Little, Brown and Company, 2017.
+[^2]: The National Archives, Kew, Security Service personal file on Louis de Wohl, reference C11439609, covering August 31, 1940 to August 19, 1952. https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C11439609