Tapping Hitler's Generals

HEIM: It is incredible cheek to shoo these people for that reason. One can only repeat that if an army and an officers’ corps puts up with a thing like that–

BASSENGE: HEIM, you have always refused to countenance revolt on the part of the officers.

HEIM: I say, if we had been there, of course we would not have revolted, but history will one day establish as a fact, that an army which puts up with things of that kind is doomed to ruin.

BASSENGE: We ought to have revolted, at the latest, at the time of the FRITSCH affair.

HEYDTE: He didn’t interfere at the front, but he must be causing terrific trouble in our army at home.

HEIM: Is he killing everyone off there?

HEYDTE: Yes. Altogether most peculiar conditions across in the home army, after 20 July. I visited a friend of mine who was a recruit at the time as I was, and who is director of the ‘Foreign Armies Section’, and when I asked him how things were he simply replied: ‘I haven’t been shot yet, but it happens here that someone suddenly disappears and is gone, nobody knows where!’

BROICH: The only safe place is here in ENGLAND. (Laughter.)

[…]

Document 165

CSDIC (UK), GRGG 286

Report on information obtained from Senior Officers (PW) on 19–21 Feb. 45 [TNA, WO 208/4177]

SCHLIEBEN: Where were you actually taken from?

PFUHLSTEIN: It was done in the meanest way. I had that head wound and remained another four or five days with the ‘Division’. I then went home to WERTHEIM and then I was sent for and suddenly appointed commandant of the fortified area HOHENSTEIN-ORTELSBURGER WALD–it was considered a light job–which was about 180 km in breadth, and with the help of a few other people I was supposed to fortify it. I myself lived with a small staff at ALLENSTEIN. During the night of 31 August/1 September there was a tremendous knocking on my door and in came the commandant of ALLENSTEIN, a ‘Generalleutnant’ who was formerly in command of the IR 7 or 8,[466] followed by an SS man, a detective. So I, in my nightshirt, said: ‘What’s this?’ ‘I have an order from the FÜHRER to arrest you.’ He added–and it was a mean trick on his part–‘Arresting a comrade is the worst job I’ve ever had in my life. I really can’t bear to watch it. You must dress. Please dress quickly, I want to get the job finished. Hurry up, be quick!’ He was complaining the whole time about having to rush around in ALLENSTEIN at half-past one in the morning and forced me to hurry in a disgusting way. If he had been friendly he would have said: ‘Take a change of linen and so on with you.’ I was only able to dress, and when I was dressed this detective came up and manacled me. Twenty minutes after he’d told me that, I was standing in the street in the uniform of a ‘General’ wearing the Knight’s Cross, and with manacled hands.