Bidspirit auction | SIGNED TYPESCRIPT OF THE GERMAN

SIGNED TYPESCRIPT OF THE GERMAN INSTRUCTIONS FOR SURRENDER NEGOTIATIONS - SIGNED TYPESCRIPT OF THE GERMAN INSTRUCTIONS FOR SURRENDER NEGOTIATIONS Post-war typed copy of the May 6 1945 instructions given by German president Grossadmiral KARL DONITZ to Field Marshal ALBERT JODL immediately prior to Jodl’s departure for Reims to negotiate a hoped-for separate peace with the Western Allies. In 4.5 x 8 inch document reads part: “…Try once again to explain the reasons we wish to make this separate surrender to the Americans. If you have no more success with Eisenhower than [Admiral Hans-Georg von] Friedeburg had offer a simultaneous surrender on all fronts to be implemented in two phases. During the first phase all hostilities will have ceased but the German troops will still be allowed liberty of movement. During the second phase this liberty will be withheld… try to make the interval…as long as possible…The greater your success… the greater will be the number of German soldiers and refugees who will find salvation in the west…” Fine. From the outset Donitz’s chief concern was to see as many soldiers captured by the British and Americans as possible. At the time he wrote these instructions over two million German soldiers faced capture by vengeful Soviet forces in the east.