Lot 701

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Description:

ADOLF HITLER
(1889 - 1945) Fuhrer of Germany and Nazi Party leader, Hitler's bloody rise to power, his military seizure of most of Europe and North Africa and his genocidal racial policies culminated in suicide in his Berlin bunker as Russian troops approached. Outstanding and historically important typed D.S. "Adolf Hitler", 1p. legal folio, Berlin, Dec. 18, 1940, marked "SECRET - Enclosures to OKW/WFSt Nr. 981/40", In full: "The military history of Greater Germany's fight for freedom is to be researched and presented from the point of view of the Supreme Command. This is to assure the necessary uniformity in the writing of military history in its totality, without detriment to the objectives which individual branches of the Armed Forces have set for themselves. Further directives on this matter will be issued by the Chief of the High Command of the Wehrmacht". On Dec. 18, 1940, Hitler dictated Directive No. 21 ordering the Wehrmacht to prepare for an invasion of the Soviet Union, with the primary goal the total destruction of Russia's armed forces accomplished in a quick campaign. In the course of these preparations he was adamant that the Soviet Union be viewed as the aggressor - thus abgrogating the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 1939. In the above document Hitler makes reference to "Greater Germany", a term, according to John Toland, Albert Speer and Ernest L. Presseisen, specifically including the Soviet Union. He makes clear the necessity of having the Soviet campaign "researched and presented from the point of view of the Supreme Command...to assure the necessary uniformity in the writing of military history in its totality...", in essence a justification of his military agenda and an explanation to the German people. On June 22, 1941, a German press release announced Hitler's reasons for Germany's attack against the Soviet Union, citing: "After the German-Russian Friendship Treaty in the Autumn of 1939, we hoped for an easing of tensions with Russia. This hope, however, was crushed by Soviet Russia's extortionist demands against both Finland and the Baltic states as well as against Romania". Interestingly, he omitted the fact that on Dec. 18, 1940 there was extreme Soviet resistance to the German advance in the Balkans, an incident that strongly contributed to his enragement and subsequent approval of Operation Barbarossa and issuance of the document we are offering. An excellent opportunity to acquire a document directly linked to the most important campaign of the Second World War. Usual folds and left edge expertly reinforced on verso, overall very good condition.

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January 21, 2010 10:00 AM EST
Stamford, CT, US

Alexander Historical Auctions LLC

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