Art in War

Appreciating and preserving art and culture is a difficult task in wartime. Thankfully, devastated European countries had not entirely lost collections of artwork during WWII. Edwin Carter Rae, once a Professor of the Fine Arts at the University of Illinois (1939-1942, 1947-1979), joined the U.S. Air Force in 1942 with quite an unusual job. Rae would strategically map out areas that would result in the most enemy casualties, while simultaneously attempting to inflict the least damage on buildings which he believed held valuable art.

As the War continued, the attention to detail while pin-pointing the best detonation sites began to fade. Rae continued his efforts by repossessing art stolen by the Nazis and returning it to their rightful place. These efforts required incredible forward-thinking, recognizing the importance of art restoration during and after the Second World War.

Monuments Men

In the next chapter in his life, Edwin Carter Rae was promoted to be a captain of the famous unit nicknamed the “Monuments Men,” a group of 3,500 people focused on art restoration after WWII. During his time as “Chief of the Monuments,” Rae continued his efforts to de-nazify art and museums in Germany, and helped assemble the first post war exhibitions in Germany. The Monuments Men were responsible for the restoration of over 5 million pieces of art.

The Art He Saved

Below is a photograph of one of the most popular items Edwin Carter Rae handled, the Holy Crown of Hungary. The crown was discreetly transported out of Austria-Hungary and secured by a United States Infantry unit in Austria in 1945. The crown was so important that President Jimmy Carter took it upon himself to personally return it. Edwin Carter Rae was awarded a Legion of Honor in France for his life’s work, along with numerous thank you letters from Europeans.

He returned to teaching at the University of Illinois after working with the Monuments Men. He was a highly regarded scholar in Medieval Italian architecture. While chair of the Art History department he expanded the number of faculty in the department and created a doctoral program in art history. He passed away in Urbana, Illinois in 2002.

His Photobook

Edwin Carter Rae took detailed notes and photos while he was stationed at the Munich Central Collecting Point, established to reposition stolen art and cultural objects from the Nazi regime. In his album, Edwin Carter Rae photographed multiple pieces that he worked with and returned to their rightful places. Rae also photographed some of the destruction in Munich as a result of the war.

How much art would the world have lost, if it weren’t for the forward thinking of Edwin Carter Rae and others like the Monuments Men?