Page
THE CHINA MAIL, TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 1953.
AN INDICTMENT OF
DANGEROUS
German army has flicting emotions the English mind.
Tinspired curiously con
На
in
There is admiration for formidable and cour- ugecus fighting force. There is also detestation of Prussian militarism and all that it stands for.
of
former Today the these sentiments is in the ascendant. Fear of Rusain has driven out fear of the Germans.
The world sees the extra ordinary spectacle of Bri- tain and America reviving and rearming that same military caste whose total obliteration had been one of their chief war alms only nine years before,
By no means everyone has felt happy at this as tounding volle fnce. Doubts About the wisdom of re- will be arming Germany greatly enhanced by the publication of one of the most important books contemporary history bo produced in the last 20 years."
on to
THEIR INTRIGUES
MR JOHN WHEELER-
BENNETT has told the story of the German army in politica from 1918 to 1946. It is a work of .great scholarship and nc- curney and It is fascinat- ingly written.
MEN
- servility which
• Should the Geïmans be re-almed? ́ Côn ́they bo'trusted? And even if most of them can be trusted, does the same apply to their military loaders? Or is the lust for power of the Prussian military costa too deeply ingrained over to be removed?
• These questions of the moment are thrown into sharp focus by this unimpassioned appraisal of the past history ond motiver of the man who twice this century have had all Europe by the throat-the rulers of the Garman army
By Robert Blake
Tho
army
only
Into
out B
nothing but disgust.
con
Inspiro
No one can lay down this fascinating book without a senso of profound alarm at Western polley towards Germany today:
the
for
It may be that the leaders of
new German army
von the time being, like Steckt, in favour of a republican It may be that un- Germany. like von Seccit, they are more anti-Russian than anti-Western. But one thing is certain: they pro above all pro-German,
If ever they should follow ona of their oldest traditions and interpret Germany's interests as Corp a mortal blow. But re- and again the generals allowed an alliance with Russla, or if covery was astonishingly quick. themselves to be browbeaten or equally menneing-they should alltempt by force to recapture lebeers
carrying naw bribed
the Eastern provinces and="85)» they must accept the stralcky which they new to be start World War II, the Western that
Fupporting Powers wil bitterly lament the Republic as a disagreeable tem- disastrous and
necesally. It survived thanks to their support, regime whose lender they knew day that they placed such form- a criminal lunatic-dolný idable power into ruch dan- oriental gerous hands, But this support was never so moreover with an support for a parlamentary nyk Letn, it was support for that mysterious entity the "German Releh," And the interests of the German Reich were-what the army said they were.
porary
Henes. the significance of Generul von Serckt's reply to un an President Ebert when
Presklent occasion of crisis the
asked:
"Will the Army stick to us. General?"
"The Army, Mr President, will stick to me," repiled van Steckt.
In return for the Army's mig- port the Republican leaders coll-
ved at wholesale evasion of the
Versalles disarmament provi- sion, and agreed to restore in practice, it not in theory, the privileged position of the prewar
meer class,
to be
T
GREETINGS FROM THE TORIES
IF YOU GET OUT
OF EGYPT
SA
Cummings
GREETINGS FROM NEGUIB IF YOU DON'T GET OUT OF EGYPT
0
"Oh, dear! My smile charms neither away!”
London Expoem: Service
CHAPTER THREE OF "TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY," THE SIXTH AND FINAL VOLUME OF THE WORLD WAR II MEMOIRS OF “THE ARCHITECT OF VICTORY"
THE BREAK-OUT AND ENTRY INTO PARIS
came
By Sir Winston Churchill
HE hour of the great American break-out under Gen. Omar By 1921 the composition of the
Bradley omeer Corps was actually more
ht 1944. aristocratic than it had been in
last. On July 25,
When the main American 1f14. By 1925 a Prosion field
struck offensive began and their VIIth Corps marshal, Hindenburg, had
Lo, Canadian Corps was check- Officer southwards from St President. The
the next day the ed on the Falaise road, some come Corps had come to regard its and
Corps, as that VIIth
on their Invidious comparisons were
be.
the
Mr Wheeler-Bennett, who is the greatest English ex- pert on modern Germany, own status not merely knew personally many of powerful body within the right, joined the battle. The made at our expense. the German generals whose State balat 23 the very State bombardment by the United Prime Minister to Gen.
of In 1932 the intrigues intrigues and machinations itself.
enn General von Schielcher over-States Air Force had been Montgomery,
threw the last vestiges of parlia- devastating, and mentary democracy.
itler became Chancellor.
he describes. No one necuse him of the ignorant
'LOYALTY'
to
the in- In 1933 fantry nasault prospered. prejudice against a conser
Then the armour leaped vative officer caste so often
through and swept on found in pink and leftist
the key point of Coutances. Nevertheless, his Acircles.
route The German escape 800 pages add up to a ter-
coast of Nor- odlous down that rible indictment, all the NEW things are more
than the complacency with mandy was cut, and the for the more darnning
which the allegedly honourable whole German defence west learning upon which it is Prussian officer class hadled the of the Vire was in jeopardy based and the moderation accession to power
of the most
retreating with which it is express terrible lyrant of modern times and chaos. The roads were
with When Hiller, after two days of jammed ed.
and the Allied had troops, bloodthirsty TASKFONE -
fighter clminated his only opposition, bombers and
tho and
S.A. Field bombers took a destructive Rohm Marshal yon Blemberg issued in toll of men and vehicles. Order of the Day:
The advance drove for-
Bound"
27 July, 44.. It was announced from S.II.A.E.F. last night had that the British sustained "quite a serious setback." I am not aware
of any facts that justify
statement.
It
nur
cheaply. I rejolee that armour and forward troops have taken Vire. It looks on the map as if you ought to have several quite substantia! cops.
quarters
Laval was
Was
to
su
drove of Patton's Third Army cas/ward in the "leng book'
which was to carry them to the gap between the Loire and Paris and down the Seine towards
The lown of ------·Rouen,
entered on Aug. G. and Le Mans on Aug.' 9. Few Germans were found in all this wide and the main dimeulty supplying the advancing Ameri- cans over long and ever-length- cning distances. cn
Except for a limited air-lift. everything had still to from the beaches riginal landing and pass
the western side of Normandy through Avranches to reach the front. Avranches therefore be enme the bottleneck, and offer- ed a tempting opportunity for a German attack striking west- ward from the neighbourhood of Falaise.
thero
one points no fewer than eight German Resistance divisions were
annihilated. troops. What had been the Falaise pocket was their grave.
ISENHOWER
After a brief and brusque dlr- cussion the capitulation of the Harrison was signed, and one by their remaining strong- were occupied by the
the and
regular
The clly was given over to a rapturous demonstration. Ger- man prisoners were spat ai, collaborators dragged through the streets, and the liberating troops feled. On this scene of
triumph Long-delay cu
was region
deter-
ihero 4 mined to avoid a battle for arrived Gen. de Gaulle, At Furis. Stalingrad
the Ruc St and Warsaw p.m. h; reached had proved the horrors of front Dominique, and tel.
-up. his al areaults and patriotic risings, beadquarters in the Ministry of and he therefore resolved to en- War.
Two hours later at the Hotel circle the capital and force the garrison to surrender or flee. By
tho Aug. 20 the time for action had come. Patton had crossed Seine near Mantes, and his
coma
of the or- down
bicau.
the
de Ville he appeared for first time as the leader of Free France before the -Jubilant population in company with the Resistance main Agures of the and Gens. Leclere and Juin, spontaneous burst
flank had reached a fight EACH
The French Underground had revolted. The police were
Patriot hands. An strice. The Frefecture the Resistance, Patton's
on
was in officer of reached
There was a of wild enthusiasm.
Next afternoon, on Aug. 20, de Gaulle made his formal entry foot down the. Champs
headquarters with on
ing or wes to Elten- to Notre Dame. There was one
~"The Fahrer-hay-personally I ward.Avranches-was-taken of talk here. I should like hower my surprise, Elsen- HE idea caught Hitler's tancy, these were
was
the
of
On Aug. I went again to Montgomery's headquarters by air, and after he had given me à vivid account with his maps, un American colonel arrived to The take me to Gen. Bradley. route had been carefully plan ned to thow me the frightful de-
on of the towns and v VDEtoilen <f
ages through which the United fought their Stats trapps had way. All the buildings were pul- verised by air bombing. such
We reached Bradley's hear
o'clock. about four me that only seems to minor retirements of, say, The General welcomed me cor- a mile have taken place dially, but I could feel on the right wing of your was great tension, as the battle was at its height and every few
arrived. recent attack, and that minutes mesinges there is no justification therefore cut my visit short and The Prussian Officer Corps
vital reports, and on the morn- Elysees to the Place de la Con- for using such an ex- motored back to my aeroplane,
Aug. 23, corde, and then in a Ale of cars was for a century and a half a
pression. body without parallel since the
Naturally this which awaited me.
to go on board I was about has created a good deal when, to
hower at Le Mans.
fusilade from the roof-tops by Praetorian Guard of the Roman
and he gave orders for the He had flown
The crowd Attached to Patton
hidden collaborators. Empire.
maximum possible_force_to_at___ By
direct allegiance to the Kaiser, atond- attacked and wiped out the
way French 2nd Armoured Division scattered, but after a short on July 31, and soon after-
of tack Mortain, burst its to know exactly what the frem London to his edvanced
through to Avranches, and thus landed in Normandy en Aug.
under Gen. Leclere, which had moment of panic the solemn order headquarters, and, hearing ing above civilian Low and mutineers with soldierly deci-
dedication of the liberation position is, in wards the sea corner, open-
my movements, intercepted me.
cut and
Patton's government, self-elected, socially sta
to maintain confidence He had not yet taken over the The German commanders were exemplary
communications and played an honourable part Paris proceeded to its end. courage. privileged, rigidly disciplined, it The Wehrmacht plodges new its ing the way to the Brittany
among wobblers or critics actual command of donors, but unanimous in condemning the arrived the same day, and was in the advance. De Gaulle was the most important institu- devotion and loyalty."
peninsula, was turned. The
the field from Montgomery; under Gen. tion in the German State.
Canadians,
project. in high places..
he supervised everything with
for assured by the Allied Suprente time before Hinden-
It certainly seems very vigilant eye, and
Realising that the battle
Commander that when the time Jost, Cama important for the British knew better than he how to The abdication of the Kalser, burg's death the army could Crerar, made a simultaneous
was already Normandy
crossing the Seine at many case have
suppressed attack from Caen down the
road. This
would Haler. Instead the army leaders Falaise
to a tremendous they wished to use four divisions came and as had been long Bug 30 our troops, were Army to strike hard and stand
points. Enemy Icsses had been win through; otherwise event without impairing the which had just arrived from the agreed-Leclerc's iroeps
Paris. That tremendous: 400,000 men, half swore a solemn personal oath of effectively, opposed by four
news of street of them prisoners, 1,300
tanks, there will grow. compari. authority he had delegated to Fifteenth Army in the north to be the first in
carry out an orderly retreat to evening the others,
Hitler S:ine. the two
on fighting in the capital decided 0.
20,000
1,500 vehicles,
field
guns. sons between the
having his way, and on Aug. 7 Elsenhower to und Leclerc
The German Seventh Army, and armies which will lead to
five Panzer and twd infantry was told to march.
all divisions that had been sent to dangerous recrimination
divisiona delivered vchement
→
Leclerc wrote to dd Gaulle: “I reinforce it, were torn to shreds, attack on Mortain from the cast. have had the impression of The Allied break-out from the
The blow fell
a single living over again the situation beach-bead had been delayed by
of 1940 in reverse complete bad weather and Hitler's mis United States division, but
firm and three others disorder on the enemy tide, taken resolve. But
once, that held came to its rid. After five days th
their columns completely
sur
battle e was over everything went of severe fighting and con- prised." Ho decided to act with a run, and the Seine was
air, centrated bombing from the
and evade. rather than boldly
reached rix days ahead of the the audacious onslaught was reduce the German concentra
planned time. thrown back in confusion, and, lons. On Aug. 24 the Arst de-
There has been criticism of as the enemy generals bad pre- tachments moved on the
city
slowness on the British front in dicted, the whole salient from
Rambouillet, where they Normandy, and the splendid Falalse to Mortain, full of Gex had arrived from Normandy the American advances of the later man troops, was at the mercy of converging attacks from three day before.. sides.
At any
reemed to have dealt the Omeer with
• The Nemerit of Power, by J. W. allegiance to the Fuhrer. If they Panzer divisions,
Wheeler-Bennett,
879 pager.
Macmillan,
» Bayer's « TONIC
THREE
Largest Morning"
Circulation
30%.
hoped to find in Hitler a mere
puppet they were disastrously mistaken. Under the Nazi regime the army was destined to reach the depths of humillation
was
commanded the whole and degradation, and to lose all MONTGOMERY, who still vestiges of independenes until in August 1944 n German field-battle line, thereupon trans- marshal was put to death by ferred the weight of the Bri- slow strangulation suspended tish attack to the other front from a meat hook.
and gave orders to the Bri-
The fact that a few brave men tish Second Army, under attempted in July 1944 to over-Gen. Dempsey, for a new throw Hitler when German thrust from Caumont to
close
In
по onc
and affect the fighting THE Third United States Army, Allied Tender Gems Patton, had now of the value crganisation. As you been formed and was in action. know, I have the fullest He detached two armoured and three infantry divisions for the confidence in you and you westward and southerly
drive to clear the Brittany peninsula. may count on me.
The cut-off enemy at once re- treated towards their fortified Forts. The French Resistance Movement, which hire number- ed 30,000 men, played a notablo part, and the peninsula quickly overrun
dolcat had become pulpably Vire. Preceded again by MONTGOMERY replied: the lamentable record of the heavy air bombing,
Inevitable should not blind us to
this
vast majority of the Officer started on July 30, and Vire Corps from 1934 onwards. Again was taken a few days later:
SILENT
Largest Afternoon, i
·Olsculation
SALESMEN
Largest Sunday.
Dicculation
had reached.
· #Mul-
insiste
on
16
from
THE
tho
stages reemed to
to indicate greater I know of no "serious sot-
muccess on their part. than on back." Enemy has massed
By the end of the first week
To the south of it one corps
ours. It is therefore necessary great strength in area south in August the Germans, amount-
to emphasire again that the of Caen to oppose our advance ing to 45,000 garrison troops of the Third United States Army in that quarter. Very terday and bem pressed into their de which they reached on Aug 13, northwards
whole plan of campaign was to of four divisions, had been diverted Bghting took place yesterday had beca
through Alencon to Argentan, main thrust, led by Col. pivot on the British front and Billotte son of the command- draw the enemy's reserves in arx the day before canadian. fensive perimeters ut St, Male, The First United States Army, er of the First French Army that direction in order to help result the troops of Brest, Lorient, and St. Namire, under Gen. Hodges, thrust Group, who was killed in May, the American turning move- Corps were forced back 1,000
southwards from Vire, and the That night
the 1940, moved up frem; Orleans. ment... yards from farthest poslans Here they could be penned and
left to wither, thus saving Second British Army
tho thes
vanguard of tanks towards unnecessary losses which Immo-
my reached the Porte d'ilalic, and My policy since the begin diets gehulls would have re- Conde. The Canadian Army, ning has been to draw the quired. The damage done to supported again by heavy bomb at 0.22 precisely entered the main enemy armoured strength Cherboug had been enormous, ers, continued to press down the squire in front of the Hotel de
THE object of the Second- Bri- on to my eastern flank and.to and it was certain that whon road from Caen to Falaise, and Ville.
this time with greater success, Early Hext morning Billotte's tish Army was described in fight it there, 50` that our the Brittany ports ·wera cap-
columns held both its original plan as "to protect affairs on western flank could tured they would take a long for they reached their goal on armoured
In this time to repair.
Aug. 17.
banks of the Seine opposite the the flank of the United States proceed the easier.
Cite. By the afternoon the armies while the latter cap- policy I have succeeded; the
The fertility of the
headquarters of German tured. Cherbourgh, Angora, main enemy armoured berry" at Arromanches, the ahel- strength is now deployed on tered anchorages, and the
commander, Gen, von Choltitz, Nantes, and the Brittany porta
the Hotel Meurice, had bren By determination and hard my castern flank, to east foreseen development of small-
surrounded, and Choltitz sur Aghing als was achieved. the river Odon, and my er harbours on the Normandy UHE Allied air forces swept on
French, lieutenant, Gen. Eisenhower, "who fully affairs is the west are pro- coast had lessened the urgency to the crowded Germans with rendered to a
who brought him to Billette, comprehended the work of his eceding, the easier and the
of capturing the Brittany ports, in the long and narrow pocket,
arrived 'British comrades wrote in his Americans are going great which had been so prominent and, with the artillery, in Leclere had meanwhile
and established himself at - the official report:::"WI
Without guns,
in our carly plans. Moreover, flicted fearful slaughter. The
io Gare Montparnasso, - moving
sacrifices made by the Montgomery's optimism was with things
we Germany hold stubbornly going so well, justified by events, and on Aug, could count on gaining soon the the jaws of the gap at Falaise down in the afternoon to the Anglo-Canadian armies. In the
of Police
brutal, alugging battles for Caen 3 I telegraphed:
and, giving far better French ports from and
Profecture Argentan,
arid to thele: armour, tried - About four priority
Falalso the spectacular I am delighted that the un Havre to the north.
elsewhere by folding of your plan, which Brest, however, which held a to extricate all that, they could, Chollitz was taken before him, advances made you explained to me, has pro large garrison, under an activo But on Aug. 17. command and This was the end of the road the Allied forces could never cooded so well. It is clear that commander, was dangerous, and control broke down and the from Dunkirk to Inko Chad and have come about." buyurgan the enemy will hold on to his to be eliminated. It surrendered setne became a shambles, home again in low voice Continued Tomorrow) cartern Bank and hinge with on Sept. 19 to violant attacks The jaws closed on Aug. 20, Lectere spoke, his thoughts:
In by three United States divisions, and although by then a consid aloud: "Maintenant, ca y est" (World Copyright'reserved: Re- desperato vigour. ́ ́T'am clined to feel that the Brest While Brittany was thus, bo erable part of the enemy had and then In German he intro production, even partiallyzing peninsula will mop up pretty ing cleared or cooped, the best born able to scramble castward, duced himself to the vanquished, aby language, strictly prohibited.)
un-
in
o'clock
yon
j
the
A