Speer joined the Nazi party in 1930. He was ambitious and came to Hitler's attention by (good) fortune. Gitta Sereny's biography, 'Speer, His Battle With truth' is a masterpiece. (I'm not a Nazi and nor was she) He damned himself by association. If you read Hugh Trevor Roper's forensic investigation into the last days of Hitler, Trevor Roper is brilliant in his summation of Speer's character.
And yet. Speer had self knowledge. Far too late, he turned against Hitler and disobeyed the scorched earth policy, disobedience of which was punishable by death. He was a relic by the time he was forty. Condemned to 20 years in prison and to always be looking to the past. And so, we listen to songs of redemption. Over 40 years. How far do you need to travel until redemption is not an option?
He tried for redemption. He was not a virulent anti semite and on his release from Spandau and the publication of his memoirs, he donated huge amounts of money to Jewish charities. In his lifetime, he never admitted to knowledge of the holocaust.
