The Last Days - Part 3 | Suite101.com

With the decision to stay, Hitler seemed to have quietened somewhat and he invited Goebbels and his wife and children to join him in the bunker. Eva Braun had already arrived, on 15th April. Hitler had met her shortly after the death of his niece who, it appears, was the one real passion of his life. For 12 years Eva had been Hitler’s mistress, living at Berghof, always waiting for Hitler’s visits. As loyal to him as many of the fanatic SS guards who were still in the bunker, she had come to be with him at what had to be considered the end. That is, the end pragmatically and still not fully acknowledged by Hitler. He still had grandiose plans for halting armies, even counter attacking and the daily strategy meetings still took place. However, these meetings took place without Keitel and Jodl. On the night of 22nd April, Hitler had also ordered them out. Neither had wanted to go but they, fanatic Nazis, were forced to obey his explicit instructions to escape south to take control of the armies still fighting there.

Goering and Himmler, besides getting away, had their own ideas about the future course of events. Once he had established a headquarters, Himmler got in touch with Swedish authorities in the first feelers to negotiating a surrender. Goering, on the other hand, had no thought of surrender. In the crazy way of the time, he was more interested in a decree made by Hitler on 29th June 1941. This said that if Hitler should die, or become incapacitated, Goering was to take over. Instead of trying to do just that, Goering consulted the lawyers, who agreed with him, and he then sent Hitler a telegram saying that he would consider himself Germany’s new leader if he had not heard to the contrary within a few hours. He was soon disabused by a ringing reply thattold him he had committed high treason but that his life would be spared because of his long and faithful service, if he immediately gave up all his offices. Bormann, who hated Goering, sent another telegram which ordered the arrest of the Field Marshall! All this can only be thought of as sheer lunacy at a time when the Russians were within yards of the Chancellery.

Earlier, on 19th March, Hitler had made the ‘scorched earth’ order whereby, if his orders had been carried out, the total capital assets of Germany would have been destroyed. Albert Speer, who had for so long controlled the supply of military material, had guessed that such an order would be issued and had written to Hitler not to do so. With the outcome of the war certain within a month or two, he wrote that Germany must still have these assets in order to have something to build on after the war. It was only through Speer and a group of Army officers, who traveled all over what they could reach of Germany, who prevented fanatic Nazi gauleiters and others from carrying out the order. Now, on 23rd April, Speer flew in in his private light plane, to say goodbye to Hitler and to tell him of his actions in ensuring Hitler’s orders were not carried out. Speer was excused but not so Himmler. On 28th April, ten days before the end, when such matters were completely academic, the Propaganda Ministry radio staff picked up a BBC news item reporting Himmler’s peace efforts. Hitler, according to a witness, ‘raged like a madman’ at this news until he collapsed. Not having Himmler to hand, Hitler took his liaison officer and had him shot.