Rommel suicide details:minutes goodbye, the son wants to break through
Rommel was once one of Hitler's fierce generals, however, amazingly, on a seemingly ordinary day, he was forced to choose death because of Hitler's conspiracy.
In this poison bureau, Rommel only took ten minutes to say goodbye to his family and dissuade his wife and children who wanted to resist. In the end, he chose to take the poison and ended his brilliant military career.
In Manfred's memory, his father, Rommel, and mother held a religious cult of Hitler. This kind of worship not only came from Hitler's ideological cleansing of Nazi Germany, but also from Hitler's appreciation and promotion of Rommel.
In 1938, when Hitler read the book "The Infantry Offensive" in the afternoon, he repeatedly emphasized "attack, attack, attack", which not only reflected his love for offensive tactics, but also showed his high opinion of Rommel's military talents.
When Hitler opened the thick books and saw the name "Erwin Rommel" for the first time, he decided to meet this brilliant military strategist in person. The two had a great conversation, and Hitler was so impressed with Rommel's knowledge and abilities that he decided to promote him to the rank of captain of the Führer's base guard and confer the rank of major general.
In May 1940, Hitler launched a blitzkrieg against France, and Rommel, with his outstanding military talent, led the 7th Panzer Division to charge into battle, becoming a veritable "vanguard officer".
General Rommel's heroic deeds are astounding. In battle, he personally drove the tank in front of the charge, and his enthusiasm and loyalty made even Hitler feel awe.
However, this also worried Hitler, who repeatedly sent telegrams to Rommel stating that he could not sleep because of Rommel's safety concerns. Despite this, Rommel excelled in the battle, leading the Panzer Division to advance more than 350 kilometers in 40 days of fighting, and finally received the Knight's Iron Cross awarded by Hitler himself.
However, there is also a crisis behind the honor. On the North African battlefield in November 1942, Rommel was in a difficult situation. American troops under Eisenhower's command landed in Casablanca, and the German and Italian forces were flanked by Britain and America.
Although Hitler recalled Rommel to Germany, this did not change the fact that he was already in crisis.
Rommel heard the news of the surrender of the German and Italian troops in Tunisia on the radio, and the news was like a dark twilight, and the dull sound of the radio was repeated over and over again.
He looked in Hitler's direction as if he had heard the end of the Third Reich. As the war worsened, Hitler's body and mind weakened, and his orders began to become capricious.
Although Rommel was appointed commander of the army group in northern Italy, everyone knew that Hitler's "tentative" and "wait-and-see" attitude towards him was not only aimed at the war, but also at him.
Although Hitler no longer worried about Rommel, the operation to guard the "Atlantic rampart" still required Rommel's leadership.
In July 1944, Rommel was wounded by Allied bombers during the sixth week of the Normandy landings and was taken to hospital. On the 17th of the same month, the base camp of the Eastern Front of Germany"Wolf's Lair"Something terrible happened"Assassination Door"The protagonist of the event is Hitler, whose condition has deteriorated rapidly.
At that time, many senior German army officers were dissatisfied with the arbitrariness of the Nazi Party, and there was a long-standing resentment within the army against Hitler's military adventurism. In the summer of 1944, Germany's successive defeats on various battlefields had left them on all sides, but Hitler was stubborn and disregarded the lives of his soldiers.
The top German generals decided to assassinate Hitler and chose Stauffenberg. But the plan was not rigorous enough, which led to the failure of the assassination, and Hitler was only slightly wounded. Behind the scenes of Hitler's enraged mass manhunt**, about 5,000 people were killed and more than 10,000 were imprisoned in concentration camps, most of them innocent.
On the day of the operation, Rommel was in the hospital** and was close to Hitler, and no one suspected him. However, due to misunderstandings, false accusations, or facts, Hitler hated Rommel.
The secret list revealed shocking facts, and Rommel was designated as an "Reich**", which caused Hitler to fall into deep doubts. As a man obsessed with military affairs, was Rommel passionate enough about politics to be willing to abandon the battlefield and go to the political stage?
But Hitler soon understood that both himself and Rommel should die if they were seen by others as more suitable to be the head of state, because this was tantamount to a provocation to his own authority and position.
When the news reached Hitler's ears, he immediately made a private decision: "Rommel must be eliminated." At the same time, the results of the interrogation had been released, and the young Stauffenberg did not reveal any useful information until his death, as was the mayor of Herlingen, Ströling, remained silent.
However, his assistant, Lieutenant Colonel Hofack, was the opposite, realizing that he might well be killed, decided to take the risk of revealing the mastermind behind it, hoping to escape.
After this deliberation, in the basement of the Raphael Hotel in Berlin, Hofak revealed the names of the two marshals, Kruger and Rommel, during the second SS Security Interrogation.
Although the SS colonel had doubts about this information: "It was too deliberate, as if it were a preset trap." But no matter how many interrogations took place, Hofack always insisted that the two marshals were behind the scenes, "I don't care about life or death, I deeply regret what I have done in the past, I hate being deceived, I hate those who are behind me."
In this case, I won't tell a lie. Despite the fact that the kill order had been issued, Hitler was still considering Rommel's loyalty to him, and he repeatedly asked Himmler, the leader of the SS Reich: "Kruger may be involved, but Rommel, I cannot find a reason for him to betray me." ”
However, when Hitler heard Himmler's report on Hofak's confession, he was silent for a moment, and then asked: "Is there pressure being exerted?" ”
Although there were still doubts about the authenticity of the confession, Himmler's next sentence completely dashed his hopes: "According to the interrogators, he confessed voluntarily, and was not tortured, and he confessed everything in the hope of saving his life." ”
However, Hitler sneered and said: "Such a person cannot be left under any circumstances." "At the same time, Rommel was lying in a hospital bed in Paris Lewasine, and he knew nothing about the impending danger.
He told his wife, Lucy, that he should receive a 6th Honorable Wounded Ribbon and a Gold Medal for the Wounded. However, on August 7, 1944, everything went as planned, but Rommel found that there was no appreciation and smile in the Führer's eyes.
The next day, he returned to his hometown and told his wife, Lucy, "It will take me at least eight weeks to get back into the army this time." ”
Lucy smiled, "I wish you were eight months long." Rommel had a serious expression, "The situation at the front line is so tense that keeping me at home for two months will make me anxious." ”
He caressed his son Manfred's head affectionately, "You have already joined the army, why are you at home at this time?" "I happened to be on vacation, and my mother said that you are back, and I think I should accompany you ......"The family entered the room in a joyful atmosphere, it was the calm before the storm and their last warm together.
On a sleepy afternoon, the arrival of Burgdorf shattered the tranquility. His serious expression unnerved Rommel, and his greeting stopped ringing.
Bugdorf took a letter from his pocket and whispered to him: "Marshal Keitel gave it to you." He began to read out the testimony of Hofak and others, each word like a sharp knife piercing Rommel's heart.
His heart began to fall silent, but as the testimony progressed, his anger began to burn. If it weren't for the marshal's dignity and bearing that supported him, he would probably have scolded Bugdorf a hundred times.
Today, however, all the justifications seem to be unable to change the facts. His pain is hidden deep beneath the façade of indifference.
After Burgdorff finished speaking, Rommel seemed to be waiting for his response. After a long time, he asked, "Does the leader know about this?" It was only then that a short lament escaped Rommel's throat.
It seems that this is the end of the matter, and I can only accept all the consequences. Burgdorf then recounted what Keitel had told him privately: "The leader promised that if you chose to end yourself, the Third Reich would keep your treason strictly secret, that the German people would not know about it, and that no extreme measures would be taken against your family." ”
Lucy ......A hint of contradiction flashed through his mind.
The other party replied: "Lucy will receive a field marshal's pension, which is a recognition of your previous contributions to the Empire." However, for a traitor, this may seem like a favor, but it is actually a punishment for his betrayal.
If Rommel chooses to appeal or resist, he will be ruined, his wife will be separated, and he will face the harshest condemnation. Erwin Rommel had endured countless bullets and life and death tests, all for the Third Reich.
Today, however, he is going to die of treason, in a conspiracy he never participated in, for the organization of the General Staff Headquarters, to which he never belonged! He was grieving, but no one responded.
There is no joy or sorrow in the eyes of the person opposite, and there is no pity. In the end, Rommel simply said: "It is already a great gift for the Führer to allow a 'traitor' to commit suicide and to preserve my honor." ”
So, let's get started. Although Bugdorf could not bear it, he did not dare to show the slightest sympathy.
Marshal Rommel asked for only ten minutes to say goodbye to his family before saying goodbye to this world. He couldn't *** because he had no money on hand, but he needed to find a way to let him go quietly.
His request was answered, and a special medicine was sent that would work in a short time. For Hitler, as his "traitor", he had done his duty, and even chose for him the poison of immediate death.
Rommel was deeply grateful, but asked for the ten minutes to say goodbye to his family, his last goodbye.
Burgdorf naturally followed, although he did not look like Rommel was about to run away. The car was already waiting outside the door of Rommel's mansion, and he had his crutches clung under his arm, because his injuries had not yet fully recovered.
He walked inside and looked at his wife and son, who had just turned 15, and his heart was filled with pain. He briefly confessed, from panic to fear to reluctance, Lucy almost fainted, while young Manfred looked at the car outside the door from a distance and asked unwillingly, "Is this really the only way we can die?"
Is there no other way? However, Rommel just glanced at his young son, he was so young, this was a little Rommel full of infinite possibilities.
At a glance, Manfred understood that his father's parting was of his own free will. Before sending his father to the car, Rommel reached out again, gently shook his son's hand, and whispered, "Go upstairs and see your mother." ”
Then, he closed the car door and left.
On October 14, 1944, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel died suddenly in his car. The news shocked the whole world, and countless people were saddened. His funeral was a state funeral, but not many people knew that the black sedan was weaving through the crowd and eventually taking his body to the city hospital in Ulm under the guise of first aid.
The General History of the World, Vol. 4, edited by Zou Bo, was published in 2011 and edited by Li Li.