Book excerpt: When Count Alexander Lynar retrieved the treasure trove of silver and porcelain that he had hidden at the end of World War II, the story made headlines around the world. In this work, Alexander Lynar recalls his privileged childhood in pre-war and wartime Germany on the family's two vast estates. He describes a way of life lost for ever and a childhood spent under the increasing dominance of the Nazis. As the war drew to a close, the Russians were poised to overrun the family estate at Gorlsdorf. On 20 April 1945, Hitler's birthday, 16-year-old Alexander, at home on sick leave before joining the navy, took charge of burying what valuables he could. With the help of their coachman, gamekeeper and an estate worker, 15 cases were buried and a map made recording the precise location of the treasure. Thanks to the loyalty of those who remained the secret was never disclosed.