MASON-MACFARLANE NOEL: (1889-1953) British Lieutenant-General who served as Governor of Gibraltar 1942-44 during World War II. Mason-MacFarlane proposed the assassination of Adolf Hitler to the British government. Fountain pen ink signature ('F N MacFarlane, Lt. General') on a small, irregularly clipped piece. Neatly mounted to a small page removed from an autograph album, G

 

Mason-MacFarlane, described as a 'courageous eccentric', had his proposal to assassinate Hitler turned down by his superiors. Lord Halifax, the Foreign Secretary, said of Mason-MacFarlane's plan to assassinate Hitler while he was on a stand reviewing the Wehrmacht for his 50^th birthday celebrations on 20^th April 1939, 'We have not reached that stage….when we have to use assassination as a substitute for diplomacy'. Hitler for his part regarded Mason-MacFarlane as a personal enemy.