Russia at war 1941-1945

Russia, had been formed. In Russia it at first caused some mental confusion; for it was certainly a curious development coming, as it did, on top of the Krasnodar trial, at that time the high-water mark of anti-German "bestiality" propaganda. Abroad, it aroused acute suspicion in many quarters. It was whispered that the Russians were preparing for a separate peace with Germany, perhaps even with Hitler... Molotov assured the British Ambassador that the whole thing was nothing but propaganda intended to create

confusion in the minds of the German army and people, and so lower their resistance, which "Vansittartite" and "Ehrenburg" propaganda was obviously not doing; but the fact that the decision to form this Free German Committee had been taken unilaterally,

without any consultation with the Allies, left, at least for some time, many doubts in the minds of "ill-disposed" people abroad. There can, indeed, be little doubt that, at least until Teheran at the end of 1943, there was some fear, not least on the British-American side, of a "dirty deal". It is perhaps characteristic that during the fighting in Italy, where, especially during the autumn and winter, there were many hard and heart-breaking

moments, with little prospect of any early progress, the British troops at Monte Cassino and Monte Camino should (as we know) have been repeatedly told: "We've got to stick it, because if we have no foothold in Europe at all (and there won't be anything in France till next year) the Russians, tired of losing so many men, may pack up."

On the very day of the opening of the Krasnodar trial, the Russian press published with great prominence a written statement by a German officer, Oberleutnant of tanks Frankenfeld who said that, till the end, he had fought with distinction, but that he considered Germany's persistence in continuing the war as senseless and suicidal.

... On July 8 it became clear to us that the offensive had failed and that the whole year's campaign was lost. Now, much as it hurts me, I am absolutely convinced of

the inevitable defeat of Germany: the only questions are: how soon?—in two or six months?—and where?— in the east or in the west?

What was I to do? Die in the next days or months, without doing the German people any good? .. . and knowing that the continuation of the war would lead only to the senseless use of gas and even more fearful casualties? The future of the German

people is wholly in the hands of the victors.

Taking a long view of it, he decided to "hasten Germany's defeat".

But this was only a small prelude to what was to come five days later when, under

enormous headlines, the formation of the Free German Committee was announced. The

announcement took a peculiar form: the reproduction, in the Russian press, of the first number of Freies Deutschland, "Free Germany", organ of the National Committee. This paper explained that on July 12 and 13 (that is at the very time the Russian Orel offensive had begun) a conference had taken place in Moscow among German officers and

soldiers, together with various anti-Nazi Reichstag deputies and writers who had been in Moscow since before the war.

The delegates, the Soviet press said, came from all the German war-prisoners' camps in the Soviet Union, men of different social classes and of different political and religious views. The Committee was elected unanimously. The President was Erich Weinert, well-known German communist writer, and the vice-presidents, Major Carl Hetz, and

Lieutenant Graf von Einsiedel. (The latter explained, at the time of his capture, that he was a grandson of Bismarck's and said he regretted that Hitler had ignored Bismarck's golden rule not to attack Russia and the West at the same time.)

The Committee said that Germany was now in deadly danger, and in fact used many of

the arguments that were to be used a year later by those who attempted to assassinate Hitler in July 1944.