Written By Darcy Gresham
The first UK exhibition dedicated to the work of Coco Chanel is currently open at the Victoria & Albert Museum and has been sold out for months. Entitled ‘Gabrielle Chanel: Fashion Manifesto,’ it showcases the establishment of the house of Chanel and the evolution of such iconic design. Interspersed amongst a display of little black dresses, perfume bottles, and suits, hints of Chanel’s personal life and relationships attempt to be heard amidst the overarching celebrity glamour. Chanel is synonymous with these designs and ideas, but how much is known about the darker side of her personal life – her Nazi friendships and allegiances?
The idea of separating the art and the artist transcends time and has become a pertinent question for scholars in almost every field. The question of changing morals, social norms, and traditions interlaced with celebrity status is a complicated discussion. You have, most likely, heard of Chanel in one form or another. The little black dress and Chanel No.5 perfume, amongst other works, have secured her legacy in fashion as well as popular thought. The immense popularity of the aforementioned V&A exhibit demonstrates as such. Chanel was a master of invention, especially in relation to her personal life where she paid her brothers ‘hush money’ to keep quiet about her and their childhood. This mystery surrounding specifics continued into adulthood and is most fascinating in relation to her war-time alliances. It is now almost universally acknowledged that Chanel collaborated with the Nazis. However, when analysing motivation, intent, and extent, scholars and fans begin to disagree and dissect information more carefully.
It is widely acknowledged that Chanel had an extensive affair with Hans Gunther von Dincklage, a Nazi agent who worked as a secret agent in France from the late 1930s into the years of German occupation. Through Dincklage, Chanel was involved in Operation Model Hat: she was sent to Madrid, aiming to pass on a message to Churchill that the Germans wanted to negotiate the end of the war. It was Chanel’s friendships with Winston Churchill, the Prince of Wales, and Hugh Grosvenor, the Duke of Westminster, that made her an appealing spy. The latter association is seen as the root of her code name ‘Westminster’ in alluding to her wealth of British knowledge, and less discreetly to her affair with the Duke in the 1920s. There were clear ways in which fascist rule benefited Chanel personally. She was able to free her nephew from a German prisoner-of-war camp where he was held as a member of the French Army. Additionally, the Nazi ideology of the superior Aryan race allowed her to seize control of her perfume business from Jewish partners, the Wertheimer family. Her political views were comfortable and acceptable at home in Paris, where she lived at the Ritz, a location also utilised by the Nazis as headquarters upon invasion.
Historians agree that collaboration between Chanel and the Nazis occurred. However, biographers are split on her Nazi sympathies. There are sources illustrating many an event at which Chanel socialised with Nazis and was invited to small gatherings and intimate occasions. There is, some say, no concrete proof that she was a Nazi herself. The main factors in this argument are that Chanel was a passionate and committed Anglophile, who believed in freedom as a central fight – the clash of these ideals with Nazism is used as counterevidence against her acquaintances. The choice of the V&A to exhibit documents about Chanel’s war spent in Paris (in the form of French governmental records of Chanel as part of the active resistance, transcripts of post-war interrogation of Nazi officials who name her as a trusted source) illustrate new ground in tackling her wartime record alongside fashion history. But how far does this new ground go? And is it far enough? There is centrality upon Chanel’s work eclipsing her personal life, and this is what the hordes of public are really there to see. However, in an age where we are considering both the good and bad sides of historic figures and how we celebrate them, the sharing of this information is vital for informed judgements to be made.
The answer is not black and white, it is every shade of colour that Chanel utilised in design. When pondering this question, we must consider how important this definition is to our understanding of Chanel, both as a human and her fashion legacy. There is no doubt that Coco Chanel is a revered designer around the world and holds legendary status. Should this understanding of the darker side of her life and political workings colour this? Is it even possible for such a legacy to be shaken by such an understanding? I would argue that her present-day status will not and would not be shaken by further knowledge of her wartime activities. Although each case of art and the artist differs, there is little harm to be done to the reputation of the House of Chanel by delving deeper into its founder’s political associations. Therefore, we should seek to uncover the reality behind the Nazi alignment and spy work of Coco Chanel. In doing this we can learn more about history, hidden wartime quests, covert messages, and the two-sided lives of key figures – and this does not mean that we cannot adore a little black dress.
Gabrielle Chanel: Fashion Manifesto at the V&A South Kensington closes on 10th March. Although sold out, members can visit without booking.
Bibliography
https://www.vam.ac.uk/exhibitions/gabrielle-chanel-fashion-manifesto
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20240220-the-truth-about-coco-chanel-and-the-nazis
https://theweek.com/culture-life/tv-radio/coco-chanel-and-the-nazis
https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=54412
Featured Image Credit: Los Angeles Times, English: Coco Chanel Sitting at a Desk during a Visit to Los Angeles, March 18, 1931, March 18, 1931, https://digital.library.ucla.edu/catalog/ark:/21198/zz0002nwv5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Coco_Chanel_in_Los_Angeles,_1931.jpg.
Retrospect Journal 
