May 9, 1945 - this date is familiar to every resident modern Russia and the post-Soviet space as a day Great Victory over fascism. Unfortunately, historical facts are not always unambiguous, which is what allows some historians of Western Europe to distort events. The signing of the act of unconditional surrender of Germany took place a little differently than we all know from the history books, but this should not change the idea of ​​​​the course and results of that bloody war.

Offensive

The Red Army from the winter of 43-44 drove the Germans to the border on all fronts. Fierce battles exhausted the enemy forces, but also created difficulties for the Soviet soldiers. The liberation of Karelia, Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia took place during 1944, the Red Army reached the borders of the aggressor's country. The signing of the act of unconditional surrender of Germany is yet to come, the troops, exhausted by many kilometers of marches, need to be regrouped for a decisive battle. became a matter of prestige for our country, and the allies in the anti-Hitler coalition also aspired to this. January 1945 was the moment of no return for the Nazis, the war was lost completely, but their resistance on the outskirts of Berlin became all the more fierce. The creation of many fortified areas, the reorganization of army units, the pulling of divisions to the eastern front - Hitler takes these actions in order to stop the Soviet troops. In part, he manages to delay the attack on Berlin, it is postponed from February to April 1945. The operation is carefully planned and prepared, all possible reserves and armaments are drawn up to the advancing fronts. From April 16 to 17, 1945, the offensive begins with the forces of two fronts - the first Belorussian (Marshal Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich) and the first Ukrainian (Chief Commander Ivan Stepanovich Konev), the second Belorussian Front (Rokossovsky Konstantin Konstantinovich) should encircle the city and prevent attempts to break through . As if those terrible four years of the war had not happened, the wounded stood up and went to Berlin, despite the fierce resistance of the Nazis, swept away the fortifications, everyone knew that this was the path to victory. Only by noon in 1945 the capital of the Third Reich fell into complete silence, the remnants of the garrison surrendered and the Soviet banners replaced the swastika on the remains of the destroyed buildings.

Allies

In the summer of 1944, the mass offensive of the allied forces began in the western direction. It is due, first of all, to the too rapid onslaught of the Red Army along the entire length of the eastern front line. The landing of the Norman troops, the strategic bombing of the main industrial regions of the Third Reich, military operations on the territory of Belgium, France and Germany greatly complicate the position of Nazi Germany. The capture of the territory of the Ruhr region, the south of Austria makes it possible for the aggressor to advance deep into the territory of the country. The legendary meeting of Soviet and allied troops on the Elbe River in April 45 is actually the last step in the war. The capitulation of fascist Germany becomes a matter of time, especially since it has already been partially begun by some armies of the Wehrmacht. From a political point of view, the capture of Berlin was necessary for the Allies as well as for the USSR, Eisenhower repeatedly mentions this. For the united parts of the British, Americans and Canadians, this offensive operation was theoretically possible. After the unsuccessful Ardennes counter-offensive, German troops retreat almost along the entire front without fierce fighting, trying to transfer combat-ready units to the eastern direction. Hitler actually turned his back on the allies of the USSR, directing all his efforts to stop the Red Army. The second front advanced very slowly, the command of the coalition formations did not want to big losses among his soldiers during the assaults on well-fortified Berlin and its suburbs.

Germans

Until the very end, Hitler waited for a split in the coalition and changes on the front line. He was sure that the meeting of the allies would turn into a new war against the USSR. When his expectations were not met, he decided to make peace with the US and Britain, which would make it possible to close the second front. Negotiations were disrupted due to timely received information from Soviet intelligence. This fact significantly accelerated the process of the offensive of the Red Army and prevented the possibility of concluding a separate peace. The Allies had to strongly insist on the observance of all the Yalta agreements, which implied the signing of the act of unconditional surrender of Germany. Hitler was ready to “surrender” Berlin to the Anglo-American troops; he failed to do this thanks to the Soviet command. The offensive and assault on the capital of the Third Reich became a matter of honor for our troops. The Nazis defended themselves fanatically, there was nowhere to retreat, the approaches to the city became powerful fortified areas.

Yalta Conference

Massive offensive operations on the eastern and western fronts made it clear to the Nazis that the complete surrender of Germany was already close. 1945 (its beginning) did not leave Hitler a chance to win and the opportunity to wage a protracted war in both directions. understood the importance of an agreed peaceful solution to territorial and political transformations in liberated Europe. Representatives of high level three allied powers in February 1945 gathered in Yalta. Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill not only determined the future of Germany, Poland, Italy, France, they created a new bipolar order in Europe, which was observed for the next 40 years. Of course, in the current conditions, none of the countries could dictate their terms, so the results of this historic conference partially satisfied the demands of the leaders. But the main issue was the destruction of fascism and nationalism, the danger of the emergence of such ruling regimes was recognized by all participants.

Document preparation

The signing of the act of unconditional surrender of Germany took place in 1945, but as early as 1943 the draft of this document was agreed upon by all countries of the anti-Hitler coalition. The initiator of its creation was Roosevelt, the document itself was drawn up with the participation of an advisory commission consisting of European experts. The text of the draft was quite extensive and was rather advisory in nature, therefore, in fact, Germany's capitulation was signed after a completely different document was drawn up. American officers approached its compilation from a military, purely pragmatic side. The six paragraphs of the document contained specific requirements, certain dates and procedures in case of violation of any article, which were historical.

Partial surrender

Several large military units of the Wehrmacht surrendered to the Allied forces before an agreement was signed on the complete surrender of the Nazis. German groups and entire armies sought to break through to the west so as not to fight the Russians. Their command realized that the war was over, and they could get asylum only by surrendering to the Americans and the British. Especially groups of SS troops, famous for atrocities on the territory of the USSR, fled from the rapidly advancing Russians. The first case of surrender was recorded on April 29, 1945 in Italy. On May 2, the garrison of Berlin surrendered to Soviet troops, on May 4 naval forces Germany in Denmark, Holland laid down their arms in front of the British, on May 5, Army Group G capitulated, reaching the Americans from Austria.

First Document

May 8, 1945 - this date in Europe is considered the Day of Victory over fascism. It was not chosen by chance, in fact, representatives of the new German government signed the surrender on May 7, and the document was supposed to come into force the next day. Admiral Friedeburg, as part of a German delegation, arrived in the Rhine, where Eisenhower's headquarters were based, with a proposal to surrender on May 5, 1945. The Nazis began to bargain with the allies on the terms of the document, trying to play for time and withdraw as many troops and civilians as possible beyond the western front line, while not stopping attempts to contain Soviet army in the east direction. Eisenhower completely rejected all the arguments of the Germans, insisting on the complete and unconditional surrender of Germany and the signing of the document by all parties to the conflict. On May 6, representatives of all allied forces were summoned to the Rhine. Soviet history textbooks do not reflect who signed the act of surrender of Germany in the first version, but the names of these people have been preserved: from the USSR - General Susloparov, from the combined forces of the Allies - General Smith, from Germany - General Jodl, Admiral Friedeburg.

Stalin

Ivan Alekseevich Susloparov was a member of the Soviet mission at the Allied headquarters, therefore, before putting his signature under historical document, passed the information to Moscow. The answer came late, but its fourth paragraph implied the possibility of making changes to the original version, which Stalin took advantage of. He insisted on re-signing the act, the following arguments were given as arguments:

1. After the signing of the surrender, the Nazis continued to conduct active defensive military operations on the eastern front.
2. Stalin attached great importance to the place where the surrender of Germany was signed. For this, in his opinion, only the capital of the defeated state is suitable.
3. Susloparov did not have the authority to sign this document.

The allies agreed with his opinion, especially since in fact it was a repetition of the procedure, which did not change its essence.

Surrender of Germany

The date for ratification of the previous treaty was set for May 8, 1945. At 2243 hours European time, the procedure for signing the surrender was completed, and it was already the next day in Moscow. That is why on the morning of May 9, the end of the war and the complete defeat of Nazi Germany were announced on the territory of the USSR. In fact, the document was signed without significant changes, from the Soviet command it was signed by Marshal Konstantinovich, from the allied forces - by Marshal Arthur Tedder, from Germany - by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Wehrmacht, Colonel-General of the Luftwaffe Stumpf, Admiral of the Navy Friedeburg. The witnesses were General Latre de Tassigny (France), General Spaats (USA).

Hostilities

Many fascist groups did not recognize the surrender and continued to resist the Soviet troops (on the territory of Austria and Czechoslovakia), hoping to break through to the west and surrender to the Allies. Such attempts were thwarted by the destruction of enemy groups, so actual military operations were carried out on the eastern front until May 19, 1945. About 1,500,000 German soldiers and 100 generals surrendered to Soviet troops after 8 May. The number of individual clashes was significant, scattered enemy groups often resisted our soldiers, so the list of those killed in this terrible war is not limited to the date of May 9th. The conclusion of peace between the main parties to the conflict did not occur at the time of the signing of the act of "surrender of Germany". The date that will put an end to the military confrontation will come only in June 1945. At this time, a document will be drawn up and signed, which is based on the principle of post-war government of the country.

Victory

Levitan announced the end of the Great Patriotic War on May 9, 1945. This day is a holiday of the Victory of the Soviet multinational people over Nazi Germany. And then, and now it doesn’t matter what date the capitulation was signed, 7 or 8, the main thing is the fact of signing the document. Many peoples suffered in this war, but the Russians will always be proud that they were not broken and liberated their homeland and part of Europe. The victory was difficult, cost many millions of lives, and the duty of each modern man- prevent a repetition of such a tragedy. The signing of the act of unconditional surrender of Germany happened twice, but the significance of this document is unambiguous.

May 9 is firmly associated with Victory Day. This date is associated with the signing of the act of surrender of Nazi Germany. This is also written in school textbooks. But other countries of the anti-Hitler coalition always celebrated Victory Day on May 8th. Where does such a discrepancy come from and how did the Nazi elite actually surrender?

In mid-April 1945, Soviet troops deployed a large offensive operation in the direction of Berlin and in a matter of days took the city. In the German army at that time, complete chaos reigned, in anticipation of the impending defeat, many Nazis committed suicide. Goebbels' propagandists obviously overdid it, telling myths about the "terrible Red Army men." Hitler, who was in the bunker of the Reich Chancellery, “surrendered”

April 30, committed suicide. And the very next day, a red flag fluttered over the Reichstag.

However, the Fuhrer's suicide and the fall of Berlin did not mean the surrender of Germany, which had more than a million soldiers in the ranks. The new government of the country, headed by Grand Admiral Karl Dennits, was inclined to continue hostilities on Eastern Front. In the western direction, the Germans pursued a policy of so-called private capitulations. Beginning on May 4, one after another, the German armies laid down their arms in front of the Americans in Holland, Bavaria, Denmark, and Austria.

May 7, 1945 at 2.41 in Reims, the United States and England arbitrarily accepted the surrender of Germany. From the USSR, Major General Ivan Susloparov was at the Allied headquarters as a permanent representative. He was clearly unprepared for such an unexpected turn of events. Fearing that the act in Reims could infringe on the interests of the USSR, the general sent the text of the act of surrender to Moscow before the signing ceremony, requesting additional instructions. However, by the appointed time, the answer did not come. The head of the Soviet military mission found himself in a very delicate position. It is hard to even imagine how this decision came to him, but he agreed to sign the document at his own peril and risk, including a clause on the possible repetition of the ceremony at the request of any of the allied states.

Susloparov's prudence came in handy. Stalin was extremely annoyed by the signing of the surrender at Reims and categorically refused to recognize this document as final. It turned out really unfair and dishonest. The fighting on the Soviet-German front was still going on, and in the West the war was considered already over. For almost three years, under various pretexts, the Allies delayed the opening of the second front, but for a whole day they were ahead of the USSR with the announcement of Victory, thereby hoping to push back its contribution to the defeat of fascism.

Here is what Marshal Zhukov recalled on this occasion: “On May 7, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief called me in Berlin and said: “Today in Reims, the Germans signed an act of unconditional surrender. The Soviet people, not the allies, bore the brunt of the war on their shoulders. Therefore, surrender must be signed before the High Command of all countries of the anti-Hitler coalition, and not only before the command of the allied forces. Stalin demanded a new signing of the act of surrender in Berlin taken by the Red Army. The ceremony was scheduled for May 9 at 24.00 Moscow time.

From their table to the table of the Presidium, where the Act of Unconditional Surrender was signed, the members of the German delegation had to walk exactly eight steps. This had a special meaning. That is how long the German delegation went to the trailer of Marshal Foch in 1918, when the Act of Surrender of Germany in the First World War was signed

In the middle of the day on May 8, representatives of the Allied High Command arrived at the Tempelhof airfield in Berlin: Eisenhower's deputy, British Air Marshal Arthur Tedder, US Air Force Commander General Carl Spaats and French general Jean-Marie Gabriel de Lattre de Tassigny. From the airfield, the Allies headed for the Berlin suburb of Karlhorst. Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, General Admiral of the Fleet von Friedeburg and Colonel General of Aviation Hans Stumpf were taken there under the protection of the former Chief of Staff of the Wehrmacht Supreme High Command.

Marshal Zhukov accepted the surrender from the Soviet side. The ceremony was held in the dining room military engineering school. Our countryman from Borisov, Mikhail Filonov (unfortunately, he is no longer alive. - Approx. Aut.) was an eyewitness to this historic event. And this is what he told me:

- The headquarters was located in the school

5th Shock Army of the 1st Belorussian Front. At the headquarters, I served as a sapper. And on the night of May 9, I was appointed duty officer in the hall. Most of the officers came to the conference straight from the front lines. And so they entered the hall - without parade uniforms, awards, with hastily fastened order strips. In a small smoking room nearby, I saw Keitel nervously choking on cigarette smoke. The winners defiantly went out to smoke in the adjacent room.

After listening to the interpreter, Keitel jumped up abruptly, approached with undisguised anger and sat down at the table. At that moment, his monocle fell out. He corrected it and with a trembling hand began to quickly sign the Act. In those moments, something incredible happened around. Photographers, cameramen, pushing each other, rushed to shoot historical shots. Someone even jumped on the table where the generals were sitting. From the flashes of many cameras, the hall was filled with smoke. The guards had a hard time keeping order. After Keitel, the document was signed in turn by Zhukov and representatives of the United States, Great Britain and France. Then the German delegation was asked to leave the hall. It was 0 hours 43 minutes Moscow time.

Tatyana Koroleva, who worked as a waitress that day, recalls: “There was literally an explosion of emotions. Everyone began to hug, kiss, shout something, cry. They took autographs: some on money, some on photographs or a notebook.” When everyone calmed down, tables were brought in and food and drinks were arranged. Snacks were brought specially from Moscow. Yes, what! Sturgeon, salmon, caviar... All this was washed down with vodka and cognac. The toasts sounded non-stop. They drank for marshals, then for infantry, pilots, tankers, sailors, orderlies, army cooks. Suddenly someone remembered the German delegation. Like, they, too, probably need to be fed. Everyone looked at Zhukov. After a second pause, he ordered: “Take them vodka. Let them drink to our Victory!” Thus was put an end to the history of the most terrible war.

From the text of the Act of Military Surrender of the Armed Forces of Germany:

1. We, the undersigned, acting on behalf of the German High Command, agree to the unconditional surrender of all our armed forces on land, at sea and in the air, as well as all forces currently under German command, to the Supreme High Command of the Red Army and at the same time Supreme Command of the Allied Expeditionary Forces.

2. The German High Command will immediately issue orders to all German commanders of the land, sea and air forces ... to cease hostilities at 23.01 hours Central European Time on May 8, 1945, to remain in their places where they are at this time, and completely disarm, handing over all their weapons and military equipment to local Allied commanders or officers assigned by representatives of the Allied High Command, not to destroy or cause any damage to steamships, ships and aircraft, their engines, hulls and equipment, as well as vehicles, weapons, apparatus and everything in general military - technical means of warfare.

3. In the event that the German High Command or any armed forces under its command fail to act in accordance with this act of surrender, the High Command of the Red Army, as well as the High Command of the Allied Expeditionary Forces, will take such punitive measures or other action they deem necessary.

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German Surrender Act

Who signed the German Surrender Act?

Germany's act of surrender ended World War II in Europe. The final text was signed in Karlshorst (Berlin area) on the night of May 8, 1945 by representatives of the three types of troops of the High Command of the German Armed Forces on the one hand and the Allied Expeditionary Forces, together with the Supreme Commander of the Red Army, on the other. Representatives of France and the United States signed the document as witnesses. An earlier version of the text was signed during a ceremony in Reims in the early hours of May 7, 1945. In the West, May 8 is known as Victory Day in Europe, and in the post-Soviet states, Victory Day is celebrated on May 9, since the final signing took place after midnight Moscow time.

There were three versions of the document of surrender in different languages. Only Russian and English version are authentic.

Preparation of the text of the Act of Surrender of Germany

The preparation of the text of the Act of Surrender was initiated by the representatives of the three allied powers - the USA, the USSR and the United Kingdom - in the European Consultative Commission (EAC) during 1944. By January 3, 1944, the EAC Security Committee proposed that Germany's defeat be recorded in a single document of unconditional surrender. In addition, the Committee proposed that the Instrument of Surrender be signed by representatives of the German High Command. The reason for this recommendation was the desire to prevent the situation with the "legend of a stab in the back", created in Germany after the defeat in the First World War. Since the Instrument of Surrender in November 1918 was signed only by representatives of the German civilian government, military leaders subsequently argued that the German army high command had no responsibility for this document.

Not everyone agreed with the Committee's predictions regarding the end of the war. Ambassador William Strang, British Representative to the EAC, argued the following:

At the present time it is impossible to foresee under what circumstances hostilities with Germany might finally be stopped. Therefore, we cannot say which regimen of the procedure will be the most suitable. Would a full and detailed truce be considered optimal, for example, or would a shorter truce granting basic powers be preferred, or perhaps not a general truce but a succession of local capitulations by enemy commanders.

The terms of Germany's surrender were first brought up for discussion at the first meeting of the EAC on January 14, 1944. The final text was agreed on July 28, 1944. After it was accepted by the three allied powers.

The agreed text consisted of three parts. The first part contained a brief preamble: "The Government and High Command of Germany, accepting and recognizing the total defeat of the German armed forces on land, sea and air, hereby announce the unconditional surrender of Germany."

The Act of Surrender itself consisted of fourteen articles. The second part (Articles 1 to 5) concerned the military surrender on behalf of the high command of all forces on land, sea and air, the surrender of weapons and the evacuation of the military from all territories outside the German borders at the time of December 31, 1937, as well as the procedure for surrender in captivity. The third part (Articles 6 to 12) was related to the transfer by the German government of almost all of its powers and authority to Allied representatives, the release and repatriation of prisoners and forced laborers, the cessation of radio broadcasting, the provision of intelligence and other information, the non-destruction of weapons and infrastructure, the responsibility of Nazi leaders for war crimes, as well as with the right granted to Allied representatives to issue proclamations, orders, directives and instructions covering "additional political, administrative, economic, financial, military and other demands arising from the total defeat of Germany". The key article in the third part was article 12, which implies that the German government and German command will fully obey any orders, orders and instructions of accredited Allied representatives. In the understanding of the Allies, this gave unlimited possibilities for imposing measures to ensure restitution and compensation for war losses. Articles 13 and 14 determined the date of surrender and the languages ​​in which the final text was recorded.

The Yalta Conference in February 1945 led to the further development of the terms of surrender. It was decided that post-war Germany would be divided into four occupation zones for administration: British, French, United States, and Soviet respectively. In addition, separately at Yalta, it was agreed that in July 1944 an additional clause 12a would be added, providing that the representatives of the Allies "may take measures that they consider necessary to ensure future peace and security, including complete disarmament, demilitarization and dismemberment Germany". France, however, did not participate in the Yalta Agreement, which created a diplomatic problem, since the formal inclusion of an additional clause in the text of the EAC would inevitably require France to be equally represented in any dismemberment decisions. Until this issue was resolved, there were actually two versions of the text of the EAC: one that included a clause on dismemberment, and the second without it. In addition, by the end of March 1945, the British government began to doubt that when Germany was completely defeated (which was necessary condition to agree on the Instrument of Surrender), it will retain some institution of civil authority capable of signing the document of surrender and carrying out its provisions. Therefore, it has been proposed that the EAC text be recast as a unilateral declaration by the Allied Powers of victory over Germany, assuming Allied sovereignty over the former German state. It was in this form that the text agreed to by the EAC was finally enshrined as the Declaration of Defeat for Germany.

At the same time, the Allied Joint Chiefs of Staff agreed in August 1944 general recommendations for local military formations, binding upon surrender. Surrender was to be unconditional and concerned only military aspects, no agreements were to be made with the enemy. Moreover, the partial surrender was not to be in conflict with any subsequent instrument of surrender which might subsequently be concluded by the three Allied Powers in respect of Germany. These principles formed the basis of a series of partial surrenders of German troops to the Western Allies in April and May 1945.

The text compiled by the EAC was not used when the Germans signed the acts of surrender in Reims and Berlin. Instead, a simplified version was used, relating only to military operations, based on the wording of documents on the partial surrender of German troops in Italy, signed in Caserta. The reasons for this substitution are still a matter of dispute. It could be due to both the doubt that the German signatories would agree to the provisions of the full text, and the ongoing uncertainty associated with the discussion of the provisions for the dismemberment of the country. But this meant that the text signed in Reims was not agreed in advance with the Soviet command.

Surrender of German troops

On April 30, 1945, Adolf Hitler committed suicide in the bunker of the Berlin Chancellery, having previously made a will, according to which Admiral Karl Dönitz was appointed Hitler's successor as head of state and received the title of President of the Reich. But with the fall of Berlin two days later, when American and Soviet forces united at Torgau on the Elbe, the German territory hitherto under German military control was divided in two. In addition, the speed of the Allied advance in March 1945 - along with Hitler's insistent orders to fight to the last - resulted in the surviving German military remaining in isolated pockets in the occupied territories, for the most part outside of pre-Nazi Germany. Dönitz tried to form a government near the Danish border at Flensburg. There, on May 2, 1945, he was joined by the Commander-in-Chief of the Wehrmacht, Wilhelm Keitel, who had previously moved to Krampnitz (near Potsdam) during the Battle of Berlin, and then to Rheinsberg.

By the time of Hitler's death, the German armed forces remained in the following territories:

the Atlantic pockets of La Rochelle, St. Nazaire, Lorient, Dunkirk and the Channel Islands; the Greek islands of Crete, Rhodes and Dodecanese; southern Norway, Denmark, western Holland, northern Croatia and Italy; Austria; Bohemia and Moravia; the Courland peninsula in Latvia and Hel in Poland; and also in German territory: to the northwest, towards Hamburg, next to the British and Canadian forces; in Mecklenburg, Pomerania and the besieged city of Breslau, next to the Soviet troops; in southern Bavaria towards Berchtesgaden, next to the American and French forces.

How Nazi Germany Surrendered

German troops in Italy and Western Austria

German military leaders in Italy were in secret negotiations for a partial surrender. The agreements were signed at Caserta on 29 April 1945 and were to come into force on 2 May. Field Marshal Albert Kesselring, commander-in-chief of Army Group South, initially refused to surrender, but once Hitler's death was confirmed, he agreed to it.

German troops in northwestern Germany, Holland and Denmark

On May 4, 1945, German troops, acting in accordance with the instructions of the Dönitz government, in the face of the British and Canadian 21st Army Group, signed the act of surrender at Lüneburg. The act came into force on May 5.

German troops in Bavaria and southern Germany

On May 5, 1945, all German forces in Bavaria and Southwest Germany signed an act of surrender to the Americans at Haar near Munich. The act came into force on May 6.

Reasons for surrender in Caserta were formed within the German military command. But from May 2, 1945, the Dönitz government took control of the process, pursuing a deliberate policy of successive partial capitulations in the west. This was done in order to buy time and redeploy as many military formations as possible in a western direction in order to save them from Soviet or Yugoslav captivity and allow them to surrender to the British and Americans. In addition, Dönitz hoped to continue to evacuate soldiers and civilians by sea from the Hel Peninsula and its adjacent Baltic coastal areas. Dönitz and Keitel were strongly opposed to any orders for surrender to the Soviets. This was due both to unrelenting anti-Bolshevism and the fact that they could not be sure of providing legal protection for prisoners of war.

After a series of partial capitulations, the following army groups remained at the front (except those that were closed on the islands and in fortress ports): the Ostmark Army Group, which opposed Soviet troops in eastern Austria and Western Bohemia; Army Group E, which faced Yugoslav forces in Croatia; the remnants of the Vistula Army Group, which opposed the Soviet troops in Mecklenburg; and Army Group Center, which opposed Soviet forces in eastern Bohemia and Moravia. From 5 May Army Group Center was also involved in the brutal suppression of the Prague uprising. The occupying German army, consisting of about 400,000 well-equipped soldiers, remained in Norway under the command of General Franz Böhme. In the early morning of May 6, the general in Sweden was contacted by a German minister to determine whether the occupying army should go for a partial surrender, requesting the role of mediator from neutral Sweden, but the general was unwilling to carry out any order other than a general surrender order from the German High Command. In the West, on almost all fronts, it was possible to stop hostilities between the Western Allies and German troops. At the same time, in its radio orders, the Dönitz government continued to oppose the German surrender to Soviet troops in Courland, Bohemia and Mecklenburg. trying, moreover, to cancel the ongoing surrender negotiations in Berlin and Breslau. German troops in the east were ordered to retake the path to the west. Realizing that if this continued, the Soviet command would suspect the Western Allies of wanting to conclude a separate peace (however, this was exactly what Dönitz intended), Eisenhower decided that the Allies would no longer agree on any partial surrenders, and instructed the Dönitz government to send their representatives to the headquarters -the apartment of the High Command of the Allied Expeditionary Forces in Reims, in order to agree on the terms of the general surrender of all German troops simultaneously to all the Allied Powers.

Act of unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany

Dönitz's spokesman, Admiral Friedeburg, informed him on May 6 that Eisenhower now insisted on "immediate, simultaneous and unconditional surrender on all fronts." General Jodl was sent to Reims to try to convince Eisenhower, but he did not go to any discussions and at 9.00 pm on May 6 announced that if complete surrender was not carried out, he would close the British and American front and resume the bombardment of held German positions and cities. Jodl telegraphed this message to Dönitz. He responded by allowing Jodl to sign the act of unconditional surrender, subject to negotiations on a 48-hour delay in the entry into force of the act, apparently in order to have time to bring the surrender order to the attention of German military units on the outskirts.

Consequently, the first Instrument of Surrender was signed at Reims on 7 May 1945 at 02:41 CET. The signing took place in the red brick building of the Technical College of Reims, which served as the headquarters of the Supreme Command of the Allied Expeditionary Forces. It was due to enter into force on 8 May at 23:01 CET (one minute after midnight BST), 48 hours after the start of final negotiations.

The document on the unconditional surrender of the German armed forces by the Supreme High Command was signed by Jodl. On behalf of the Supreme High Command of the Allied Expeditionary Force, the document was signed by Walter Bedel Smith, and on behalf of the Soviet command, Ivan Susloparov. Major General Francois Sevez signed the act as an official witness.

Eisenhower continued negotiations with General Headquarters of the USSR Supreme High Command Alexei Antonov. By order of Antonov, General Susloparov was seconded to the headquarters of the High Command of the Expeditionary Forces to represent in the surrender negotiations Soviet Union. The text of the Act of Surrender was telegraphed to General Antonov in the early hours of May 7, but by the time of the surrender ceremony, the Soviet Union had not agreed on the text of the Act and did not officially authorize General Susloparov to sign the Act as a representative of the Soviet command. Therefore, Eisenhower agreed with Susloparov that the German emissaries should sign a separate document stating that authorized representatives of each of the German armed forces would be present at the official ratification of the act of surrender at a time and place to be appointed by the Allied High Command.

Commitments made by German emissaries to the Allied High Command

The German emissaries signed an agreement that the following German officers would arrive on site at a time appointed by the Supreme Command of the Allied Expeditionary Force and the Soviet Command, ready and authorized to sign on behalf of the German Command the formal ratification of the Act of Unconditional Surrender of the German Armed Forces.

Supreme Commander; Commander-in-Chief of the Army; Commander-in-Chief of the Navy; Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force.

Signed:

Approximately six hours after the signing of the Act in Reims, a response was received from the Soviet command that the Act of Surrender could not be adopted, firstly, because its text differed from the agreed EAC, and secondly, because Susloparov did not have the authority to sign it. These objections were, however, only pretexts: the main requirement of the Soviet command was that the adoption of the Act of Surrender should become a unique, one-of-a-kind historical event that would fully reflect the main contribution to the final victory made by the Soviet people. The Soviet Union argued that the signing should not take place in the liberated territory that had suffered from German aggression, but in the seat of the government that spread the aggressive ideology: in Berlin. In addition, the Soviet Union noted that although the terms of surrender fixed at Reims required the German armed forces to cease all hostilities and remain in their current positions, they did not contain an explicit requirement to lay down their arms and surrender. "What must happen here is the surrender of the German troops and their surrender." Eisenhower immediately agreed, acknowledging that the Instrument of Surrender signed at Reims should be regarded as "a brief document of unconditional military surrender." He undertook to take part in the "more formal signing" of the text, with the necessary amendments made to it, which was to take place in Berlin on May 8 with the participation of correctly accredited representatives of the German high command and under the chairmanship of Marshal Zhukov. In addition, Eisenhower clarified his position by stating that the German troops who would continue to fight against the USSR after due date, "will lose the status of military personnel, which means that in case of surrender to the Americans or the British, they will be immediately transferred to Soviet captivity."

The consequences of the signing of the Reims Act were limited to consolidating the current ceasefire between the German and Allied forces. In the east, however, the fighting continued unabated, especially as the German forces at the time intensified their air and ground attacks on the rebels in Prague. At the same time, the naval evacuation of German troops through the Baltic continued. Dönitz issued new orders to continue resisting the Soviet forces, taking advantage of the 48-hour pause before the surrender took effect to redouble his efforts to rescue German military units from Soviet captivity. It soon became clear that he had sanctioned the signing of the general surrender at Reims, without any good faith intentions towards the signed one, and that, consequently, neither the Soviet command nor the German troops would accept the Reims surrender as a reason for a real cessation of hostilities towards each other. General Schörner, commander of Army Group Center, broadcast a message to his troops on May 8, 1945, condemning the "false rumors" that the German high command had capitulated to the Soviet and allied commands: "The struggle in the West is over. But there can be no question of capitulation to the Bolsheviks."

Eisenhower further secured the personal presence of the commanders-in-chief of each of the three branches of the German armed forces. They flew from Flensburg to Berlin early on May 8th, where they waited until 10:00 p.m. for the arrival of the allied delegation, after which they were presented with the amended text of the Instrument of Surrender. The final version of the Act of Military Surrender was dated May 8, as it was supposed to be signed before midnight at the headquarters of the Soviet military administration in Karlshorst, a district of Berlin (now the territory of the German-Russian Museum "Berlin-Karlshorst"). Since Eisenhower's status as Supreme Allied Commander in Western Europe formally surpassed the status of Marshal Zhukov, on behalf of the Western Allies, the Act was to be signed by Deputy Eisenhower Air Chief Marshal Tedder. The amendments proposed by the Soviet Union to the Reims text were easily accepted by the Western Allies, but the identification and appointment of Allied signatories proved more problematic. The French troops acted under the control of the High Command of the Allied Forces, but General de Gaulle demanded that General de Tassigny sign the document on behalf of the French High Command. But in this case, the absence of an American signature on the document would be politically unacceptable. And the Soviet Union wanted to see no more than three allies among the signatories of the final Act of Surrender, one of which was supposed to be Zhukov. After repeated revisions, each requiring reprinting and translation, it was finally agreed that the French and Americans would sign the document as witnesses. Due to revisions, the final versions were not ready for signing even after midnight, and the actual signing dragged on until almost 1 am on 9 May CET. The date was then changed to 8 May to bring the document into line with the Reims agreement as well as the public announcements of surrender already made by Western leaders.

The final Act of Military Surrender differed from the one signed at Reims mainly in regard to the requirement that, along with the German High Command, three German signatories representing the full extent of the three branches of the armed forces be present. Otherwise, the amended text of the Act provided, according to the expanded Article 2, the disarmament of the German troops and the surrender of weapons to the Allied commanders in the field. This section was intended to ensure not only the cessation of hostilities by the German armed forces against regular Allied troops, but also the disarmament of the troops, their disbandment and surrender. Field Marshal Keitel initially ignored the changes in the text and suggested that the German troops be granted an additional grace period of 12 hours before they were subjected to punitive measures for non-compliance with Article 5. In reality, he had to be content with Zhukov's verbal promise.

• We, the undersigned, acting on behalf of the German High Command, hereby consent to the unconditional surrender of all our armed forces on land, sea and air, as well as all forces now under German command, to the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force and at the same time Soviet High Command.

• The German High Command will immediately issue orders to all German commanders of the land, sea and air forces and all forces under German command to cease hostilities at 23 hours and one minute CET on May 8, 1945, to remain in the positions occupied by that time and disarm completely by handing over all weapons and equipment to Allied commanders in the field or to officers designated as representatives of the High Command of the Allied Forces. No ship, vessel or aircraft shall be destroyed and no damage shall be caused to its hull, engines or equipment.

• The German High Command will immediately assign appropriate commanders and ensure that all further orders issued by the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force and the Soviet High Command are carried out.

• This act of military surrender shall not preclude its replacement by another general instrument of surrender, drawn up by or on behalf of the United Nations, applicable to Germany and the German armed forces as a whole.

• In the event that the German High Command or any armed forces under its command fail to act in accordance with this Instrument of Surrender, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force, as well as the Soviet High Command, will take such punitive measures or other actions as they deem necessary.

• This act is drawn up in English, Russian and German. Only the English and Russian versions are authentic.

Signed:

• From the side of the Soviet Union: Marshal Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov on behalf of the Supreme High Command of the Red Army.
• From the British side: Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur William Tedder, Deputy Supreme Commander, Allied Expeditionary Force.
• For the United States as a witness: General Carl Spaatz, Commander of the US Strategic Air Force.
• From the French side as a witness: General Jean de Latre de Tassigny, commander of the French First Army.
• From the German side:
• Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, Chief General Staff Armed forces of Germany and the representative of the army.
• Admiral General Friedeburg, Commander-in-Chief of the Navy.
• Colonel General Stumpf, representative of the military air force.

The signing of the Instrument of Surrender in Berlin, for the most part, worked as expected: the bulk of the troops, including German military units in Courland and outposts in the Atlantic, surrendered on May 9 during an unofficial 12-hour grace period. Surrender to the Soviets in Bohemia and Moravia took longer, as some German troops in Bohemia continued to try to break through to the American front. Nevertheless, the general surrender took place, and units that sought to break through to the west were forced to surrender to the Soviets. The exception was Army Group E in Croatia, which for several days tried to force Marshal Tito to flee from the partisans. Many soldiers from these units managed to surrender to General Alexander in Italy. They included a significant number of Chetniks who fought in the collaborationist forces, who were subsequently returned to Yugoslavia and quickly executed without trial.

Why is Victory Day celebrated on May 9th?

The signing ceremony in Reims was attended by a significant number of reporters who were bound by an obligation not to disclose information about the surrender for 36 hours. Once it became clear that a second document would be required for the Instrument of Surrender to come into force, Eisenhower agreed to the need to temporarily conceal this information. It was assumed that all Allied Powers would be able to celebrate victory in Europe together on May 9, 1945. However, Edward Kennedy, Representative news agency The Associated Press in Paris violated the ban on May 7, causing the German surrender on May 8 to become top news in the Western media. As it became politically impossible to stick to the original schedule, it was decided that the Western Allies would celebrate Victory in Europe Day on May 8, but that Western leaders would not make a formal declaration of Victory until the evening (when the Berlin signing ceremony was to take place). The Soviet government made no announcement of the signing of the Reims Surrender Act (because it did not recognize it) and, adhering to the original dates, celebrated May 9, 1945, Victory Day.

Declaration of the Defeat of Germany

Although the German military, which signed the Act of Surrender in May 1945, acted on the instructions of Admiral Dönitz, none of the allied governments recognized that the current Flensburg government exercised competent civilian power. Therefore, the Allies insisted that the signatories from the German side should explicitly represent only the German military command. On May 23, 1945, the Flensburg government was dissolved and its members arrested.

End of Nazi Germany

During 1944 and 1945, countries that had previously been neutral towards Germany, as well as supporting it, joined the Allies and declared war on Germany. German embassies in these countries were closed, in accordance with the provisions of the Geneva Conventions, their property and archives were transferred to the custody of the so-called protecting powers (usually Switzerland or Sweden), similar actions were taken against the embassies of the former allied countries in Berlin. The US State Department prepared for the diplomatic post-war implications based on the assumption that Germany's unconditional surrender would be declared in accordance with a document agreed to by the EAC. V last days April 1945, the US State Department notified the Protecting Powers and other remaining neutral countries (for example, Ireland) that after the impending surrender of Germany, the German state would be divided among four allied countries, which would immediately recall all German diplomatic personnel, take control of state property, liquidate all power functions of the armed forces and will require the transfer of all archives and records to one or another embassy of the Western Allies. On May 8, 1945, these measures were put into effect in in full, despite the fact that from the German side the Act of Surrender was signed only by the German military command. The Western Allies presumed that the functioning of the German state had already ceased, and therefore the surrender of the German armed forces marked the end of Nazi Germany. Since the protecting powers fully complied with the requirements of the allied states, on May 8, 1945, the German state ceased to exist as a diplomatic entity (imperial Japan, the only one of the Axis countries remaining at war, by that time had already condemned the surrender of Germany and seized the German embassy in Tokyo).

Berlin Declaration 1945

However, since the Instrument of Surrender of 8 May 1945 was only signed by German military representatives, the civil provisions for Germany's unconditional surrender remained without a clear formal basis. Subsequently, the EAC document on the unconditional surrender of Germany, reworked into a declaration with an extended explanatory preamble, was unilaterally adopted by the four Allied Powers as the Declaration of the Defeat of Germany of June 5, 1945. This explained the position of the Allies, who believed that, as a result of their complete defeat, Germany did not have its own government or central authority, and also that the liberated vacant positions at the head of civil power in Germany were to be occupied exclusively by representatives of the allied powers (USA, USSR, United Kingdom and the French Republic) on behalf of the allied governments as a whole. Stalin, however, withdrew his support for the idea of ​​dismembering Germany, publicly rejecting the policy of dismemberment in his Victory over Germany speech addressed to the Soviet people May 8, 1945. As a result, the article on the dismemberment of Germany was not included in the Berlin text of the declaration.

Exactly 70 years ago, on May 8, 1945, on the outskirts of Berlin, Karlshorst, at 22:43 CET (May 9 at 00:43 Moscow time), the final act of the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany was signed.

A selection of photographs dedicated to this significant event.

1. The building of the German military engineering school in the suburbs of Berlin - Karlshorst, where the signing ceremony of the Act of unconditional surrender of Germany was held.

2. Representatives of Germany at the table during the signing of the Act of unconditional surrender. In the photo they are sitting from left to right: Colonel General Stumpf from the Air Force, Field Marshal Keitel from ground forces and Admiral General von Friedeburg from navy. 05/08/1945

3. American General Dwight Eisenhower and British Air Marshal Arthur Tedder at a press conference after the signing of the surrender of Germany in Reims (France) on May 7, 1945.

4. Representatives of the Allied Command after the signing of the surrender of Germany in Reims (Wrance) on May 7, 1945.
In the photo from left to right: Chief of the USSR military mission in France, Major General Ivan Alekseevich Susloparov (1897-1974), Chief of Staff of the Allied Forces in Europe, British Lieutenant General Sir Frederick Morgan Morgan, 1894-1967), American Lieutenant General Bedell Smith, American radio commentator Harry Butcher, American General Dwight Eisenhower, British Air Marshal Arthur Tedder and Chief of Staff of the British Navy Admiral Sir Harold Burro.

5. Colonel-General Alfred Jodl (center) signs the German surrender at the Allied Headquarters in Reims at 02.41 local time on 7 May 1945. Sitting next to Jodl are Grand Admiral Hans Georg von Friedeburg (right) and Jodl's adjutant Major Wilhelm Oxenius.

The leadership of the USSR was dissatisfied with the signing of the surrender of Germany in Reims, which was not agreed with the USSR and relegated the country that made the greatest contribution to the Victory to the background. At the suggestion of the Soviet government and personally I.V. Stalin and the Allies agreed to consider the procedure in Reims a preliminary surrender. The Allies also agreed that the matter should not be postponed, and appointed the signing of the German Surrender Act in full form in Berlin for May 8, 1945.

6. The signing of the surrender of Germany in Reims on May 7, 1945. In the photo, from right to left: adjutant A. Jodl, Major Wilhelm Oxenius, Colonel General Alfred Jodl and Grand Admiral Hans Georg von Friedeburg; from left to right: Chief of Staff of the Allied Forces in Europe, British Lieutenant General Sir Frederick Morgan, French General Francois Seve, Chief of Staff of the British Navy, Admiral Sir Harold Burro, radio commentator Harry Butcher, American Lieutenant General Bedell Smith, Adjutant I.A. Susloparov Senior Lieutenant Ivan Chernyaev, Chief of the USSR military mission in France, Major General Ivan Alekseevich Susloparov (1897-1974), American General Carl Spaatz, cameraman Henry Bull, Colonel Ivan Zenkovich.

7. Colonel-General Alfred Jodl (center) signs the surrender of Germany at the headquarters of the allied forces in Reims at 02.41 local time on May 7, 1945.

8. Representatives of the German command come to the table to sign the surrender in Reims on May 7, 1945. In the photo from left to right: Adjutant A. Jodl, Major Wilhelm Oxenius, Colonel General Alfred Jodl and Grand Admiral Hans Georg von Friedeburg.

9. The head of the USSR military mission in France, Major General Ivan Alekseevich Susloparov (1897-1974), shakes hands with the commander of the allied forces in Europe, American General Dwight Eisenhower at the signing of the act of surrender of Germany in Reims on May 7, 1945. To the left of I.A. Susloparov - his adjutant senior lieutenant Ivan Chernyaev.

10. The Chief of Staff of the Allies in Europe, the American Lieutenant General Bedell Smith, signs the act of surrender of Germany in Reims on May 7, 1945. In the photo on the left is Admiral Sir Harold Burro, Chief of Staff of the British Navy, on the right is Major General Ivan Alekseevich Susloparov (1897-1974), head of the USSR military mission in France.

11. The head of the USSR military mission in France, Major General Ivan Alekseevich Susloparov (1897-1974), signs the act of surrender of Germany in Reims on May 7, 1945. In the photo on the far right is American General Carl Spaatz. To the left of I.A. Susloparov - his adjutant senior lieutenant Ivan Chernyaev.

12. Wehrmacht Artillery General Helmut Weidling leaves the bunker during the surrender of the Berlin garrison. May 2, 1945

13. Representative of the Supreme High Command of the Red Army, commander of the 1st Belorussian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov, who signed the Instrument of Surrender from the USSR. In the background is a Soviet cameraman filming the signing ceremony. Berlin. 09/08/1945

17. Representatives after the signing of the Act of unconditional surrender in Berlin-Karlshorst on May 8, 1945. The German act was signed by Field Marshal Keitel (in front to the right, with a marshal's baton) from the ground forces, Admiral General von Friedeburg (to the right behind Keitel) from the navy and Colonel General Stumpf (to the left of Keitel) from the military -but-air force.

18. Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, signing the Act of unconditional surrender of Germany from the German side, is served the text of the Act. To the left, second from the viewer, G.K. is sitting at the table. Zhukov, who signed the Act on behalf of the USSR. Berlin. 05/08/1945

19. Chief of the General Staff of the German Ground Forces, Infantry General Krebs (left), who arrived on May 1 at the location of the Soviet troops in order to draw the High Command into the negotiation process. On the same day, the general shot himself. Berlin. May 1, 1945

20. The Soviet delegation before the signing of the Act of unconditional surrender of all German armed forces. Berlin. 05/08/1945 Standing on the right - the representative of the Supreme High Command of the Red Army, the commander of the 1st Belorussian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union G.K. Zhukov, standing in the center with his hand raised - Deputy Commander of the 1st Belorussian Front, General of the Army V.D. Sokolovsky.

21. Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, who is signing the Act of Germany's unconditional surrender from the German side, is presented with the text of the Act. G.K. is sitting at the table on the left. Zhukov, who signed the Act on behalf of the USSR. Berlin. 05/08/1945

22. Representatives of the German command, headed by Field Marshal Keitel, are sent to sign the Act of Germany's unconditional surrender. May 8, Berlin, Karlhorst.

23. Chief of the General Staff of the German Ground Forces Lieutenant General of the Infantry Hans Krebs at the headquarters of the Soviet troops in Berlin. On May 1, Krebs arrived at the location of the Soviet troops in order to draw the High Command into the negotiation process. On the same day, the general shot himself.

24. The surrender of the Germans on the Frisch-Nerung spit, East Prussia. German and Soviet officers are discussing the terms of surrender and the procedure for surrendering German troops. 05/09/1945

25. Surrender of the Germans on the spit Frisch-Nerung, East Prussia. German and Soviet officers are discussing the terms of surrender and the procedure for surrendering German troops. 05/09/1945

26. Surrender of the Germans on the spit Frisch-Nerung, East Prussia. German officers accept from the Soviet officer the terms of surrender and the procedure for surrender. 05/09/1945

27. Surrender of the Germans on the spit Frisch-Nerung, East Prussia. German officers accept from the Soviet officer the terms of surrender and the procedure for surrender. 05/09/1945

28. Surrender of the Germans on the spit Frisch-Nerung, East Prussia. German and Soviet officers are discussing the terms of surrender and the procedure for surrendering German troops. 05/09/1945

29. The surrender of the Germans on the spit Frisch-Nerung, East Prussia.

30. Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel signs the act of unconditional surrender of Germany. Berlin, May 8, 1945, 22:43 CET (May 9 at 0:43 Moscow time).

31. Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel goes to the signing of the Act of unconditional surrender of Germany. Berlin. 05/08/1945

32. Arrival in Berlin for the ceremony of signing the Act of Surrender of Germany of the Air Chief MarshalGreat Britain Tedder A.V. Among those meeting: General of the Army Sokolovsky V.D. and commandant of BerlinColonel General Berzarin N.E. 05/08/1945

33. Arrival in Berlin, Field Marshal W. Keitel, Admiral of the Fleet H. Friedeburg and Colonel General of Aviation G. Stumpf to sign the Act of unconditional surrender of Germany. Among the escorts is General of the Army Sokolovsky V.D. and Colonel General Berzarin N.E. 05/08/1945

34. First Deputy People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR Vyshinsky A.Ya. andMarshal of the Soviet Union Zhukov G.K. heading to the signing ceremonyThe act of unconditional surrender of Germany. Karlshorst. 05/08/1945

35. Air Chief Marshal of Great Britain Sir Tedder A. and Marshal of the Soviet Union Zhukov G.K. looking through the documents on the terms of the surrender of Germany.

36. Signing Field Marshal Keitel W. Act of unconditional surrender of all armed forces in Germany. Berlin. Karlshorst. 05/08/1945

37. Commander of the 1st Belorussian Front Marshal of the Soviet Union Zhukov G.K.signs the Act of unconditional surrender of all German armed forces.

38. Dinner in honor of the Victory after the signing of the terms of the unconditional surrender of Germany. From left to right: Chief Air Marshal of Great Britain Sir Tedder A., ​​Marshal of the Soviet Union Zhukov G.K. Commander of the US Strategic Air Force General Spaats K. Berlin. 08-09.05.1945

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The photo selection is made on the basis of materials:

Russian state archive film and photo documents.

All photos are clickable.

Photo albums "Great Patriotic War"

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the USSR the USSR,
USA USA,
France France

Act of unconditional surrender of the German armed forces(English) German Instrument of Surrender, fr. Actes de capitulation de l'Allemagne Nazie, German Bedingungslose Kapitulation der Wehrmacht) - a legal document that established a truce on the fronts of World War II directed against Germany, obliging the German armed forces to cease hostilities and disarmament, preventing the destruction or damage of military equipment, which actually meant Germany's withdrawal from the war.

The act was signed by representatives of the High Command of the Wehrmacht, the High Command of the Western Allies and the Soviet Union on May 7 at 02:41 am in Reims (France). The surrender of Nazi Germany took effect on May 8 at 23:01 CET (May 9 at 01:01 Moscow time).

The dates of the official announcement by the heads of state of the signing of surrender - May 8 in European countries and May 9 in the USSR - began to be celebrated in the respective countries as Victory Day.

Document text preparation

The idea of ​​the unconditional surrender of Germany was first announced by President Roosevelt on January 13, 1943 at a conference in Casablanca and has since become the official position of the United Nations. The draft instrument of surrender since January 1944 was developed by the European Consultative Commission (ECC). This extensive document, entitled "Terms for the Surrender of Germany", was agreed at the end of July 1944 and approved by the heads of the allied governments.

The document was sent, in particular, to the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF), where, however, it was perceived not as a mandatory instruction, but as a recommendation. Therefore, when on May 4-5, 1945, the question of Germany's surrender practically arose, SHAEF did not use the existing document (perhaps fearing that disputes over the political articles contained in it would complicate negotiations with the Germans), but developed their own short, purely military document, which eventually became the act of military surrender. The text was drafted by a group of American officers close to Allied Commander-in-Chief Dwight Eisenhower; the main author was Colonel Phillimore ( English Reginald Henry Phillimore) of the 3rd (operational) division of SHAEF. In order to ensure that the text of the act of military surrender did not contradict the document of the ECC, at the suggestion of the British diplomat Ambassador Wynand, Article 4 was added to it, suggesting the possibility of replacing this act with “another general instrument of surrender concluded by or on behalf of the United Nations” (some Russian sources, however, they attribute the idea of ​​this article to the Soviet representative under the command of the Allies, Ivan Susloparov).

In turn, the document developed by the JCC became the basis for the declaration of the defeat of Germany, which was signed a month after the signing of the acts of military surrender.

Related videos

Partial surrenders

In Italy and Western Austria

On April 29, 1945, the act of surrender of Army Group C (C) was signed in Caserta by its commander, Colonel General G. Fitingof-Scheel, the terms of surrender came into force on May 2 at 12:00. The signing was preceded by secret negotiations between representatives of the United States and Great Britain with representatives of Germany (see Operation Sunrise).

In Berlin

On the northwestern fronts

On May 4, Admiral of the Fleet Hans-Georg Friedeburg, newly appointed Commander-in-Chief of the German Navy, signed the act of surrender of all German armed forces in Holland, Denmark, Schleswig-Holstein and North-West Germany to Field Marshal B. Montgomery's 21st Army Group. The surrender took effect on May 5 at 08:00.

In Bavaria and Western Austria

On May 5, Infantry General F. Schultz, who commanded Army Group G, operating in Bavaria and Western Austria, surrendered to the American General D. Devers. However, in the south, the Reich still had a large grouping of army groups "Center" and "Austria" (formerly "South") under the command of Field Marshal Albert Kesselring.

First act

The German government is for surrender only in the West

Having signed the act of surrender of German troops in the north on May 4 in Lüneburg, Admiral Friedeburg, on behalf of Dönitz, went to Reims, to Eisenhower's headquarters, in order to raise the question of the surrender of German troops on Western front. Due to bad weather in Reims, the plane landed in Brussels, then they had to travel by car, and the German delegation arrived in Reims only by 17:00 on May 5. Meanwhile, Eisenhower told his chief of staff, Walter Bedell Smith, who was receiving the delegation, that there would be no bargaining with the Germans and he did not intend to see the Germans until they signed the terms of surrender. The negotiations were entrusted to Generals W. B. Smith and Carl Strong (the latter was involved in the negotiations for the surrender of Italy in 1943).

Training

May 6 at SHAEF Representatives of the allied commands were summoned: members of the Soviet mission, General Susloparov and Colonel Zenkovich, as well as the Deputy Chief of the Supreme National Defense Staff of France, General Sevez (Chief of Staff, General Juyn, was in San Francisco at the founding conference of the UN). Eisenhower did his best to calm the suspicions of the Soviet representatives, who believed that the Anglo-American allies were ready to conspire with the Germans behind their backs. As for the role of Sevez, who signed the act as a witness, it turned out to be insignificant - the general, being a pure military man, did not try to defend the prestigious interests of France and, in particular, did not protest against the absence of the French flag in the room where the capitulation was signed. Eisenhower himself refused to participate in the signing ceremony for protocol reasons, since the German side was represented by the chief of staff, and not by the commander in chief - the ceremony, therefore, was supposed to take place at the level of chiefs of staff.

Negotiation

The school building in Reims where the surrender was signed

The negotiations took place in the premises of the operational department of the allied headquarters (this headquarters was located in the building, which was called the "red school building", in fact - in the building of the technical college). In order to demonstrate to Friedeburg the futility of the German position, Smith ordered the walls to be hung with maps indicating the situation on the fronts, as well as maps indicating strikes allegedly being prepared by the Allies. These maps were produced in Friedeburg great impression. Friedeburg offered Smith the surrender of the remaining German forces on the Western Front; Smith replied that Eisenhower refused to continue negotiations unless the offer of surrender also applied to the Eastern Front: only a general surrender was possible, and the troops in the West and East should remain in their places. Friedeburg replied to this that he did not have the authority to sign a general surrender. Having studied the text of the act of surrender presented to him, Friedeburg telegraphed Dönitz, asking permission to sign a general surrender or send Keitel and the commanders of the air and naval forces for this.

Dönitz found the surrender terms unacceptable and sent Alfred Jodl to Reims, who was known to be a strong opponent of surrender in the East. Jodl had to explain to Eisenhower why a general surrender was impossible. He arrived in Reims on the evening of 6 May. After an hour of discussion with him, Smith and Strong came to the conclusion that the Germans were simply playing for time in order to have time to transport as many troops and refugees to the West as possible, which they reported to Eisenhower. The latter told Smith to tell the Germans that “if they do not stop looking for excuses and stalling for time, I will immediately close the entire Allied front and stop the flow of refugees by force through the position of our troops. I will not tolerate any further delay." Having received this answer, Jodl realized that his situation was hopeless, and requested from Dönitz the authority for a general surrender. Dönitz called Eisenhower's behavior "a real blackmail", however, also realizing the hopelessness of the situation, shortly after midnight on May 7 instructed Keitel to answer: "Grand Admiral Dönitz grants the full right to sign in accordance with the conditions offered." Permission to sign was received by Jodl by radio at 00:40.

The signing ceremony was scheduled for 02:30 on 7 May. According to the text of the act, the German troops were to cease hostilities at 23:01 CET on May 8, that is, almost two days after the signing of the act. Dönitz hoped to take advantage of this time to move as many troops and refugees as possible to the West.

Signing

The act was signed on May 7 at 02:41 (CET) by the Chief of Operations Staff of the German Army High Command, Colonel General Alfred Jodl. The surrender was accepted from the USSR - Major General Ivan Alekseevich Susloparov, representative of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command under the command of the Allies, from the Anglo-American side - Lieutenant General of the US Army, Chief of the General Staff of the Allied Expeditionary Force Walter Bedell Smith. The act was also signed by Brigadier General Francois Sevez, Deputy Chief of the French National Defense Staff, as a witness. The English text of this act is authentic.

Without waiting for a message about the ceremony, at 01:35 Dönitz gave the following order to Field Marshal Kesselring and General Winter, which was also transmitted for information to the commander of the Army Group Center F. Schörner, the commander of the troops in Austria L. Rendulich and the commander of the troops of the South-East A. Leroux:

The task is to withdraw to the west as many of the troops operating on the Eastern Front as possible, while, if necessary, fighting their way through the positions of Soviet troops. Stop immediately any fighting against the Anglo-American troops and order the troops to surrender to them. The general surrender will be signed today at Eisenhower's headquarters. Eisenhower promised Colonel General Jodl that hostilities would cease on May 9, 1945 at 0000 hours German summer time...

There is a slightly different version of the translation from German, perhaps of the same order:

All troops opposing the eastern enemy should retreat to the West as soon as possible, if necessary, break through the battle formations of the Russians. Immediately stop all resistance to the Anglo-American troops and organize the surrender of troops. The general surrender will be signed today at Eisenhower's. Eisenhower promised Yodl a cease-fire by 0100 May 9, 1945 (German time).

On the evening of 8 May, Dönitz also sent a telegram to the Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe, Field Marshal Robert von Greim, to cease all active hostilities effective 9 May 1945 from 01:00 German Summer Time.

Radio message to the German people

On May 7 at 14:27 (according to other sources, 12:45) German radio (from Flensburg) officially announced the signing of the surrender. The foreign minister of the Dönitz government, Count Schwerin von Krosig, delivered the following speech:

Germans and Germans!

The Supreme High Command of the Wehrmacht, on the orders of Grand Admiral Dönitz, announced the unconditional surrender of the German troops. As the leading minister of the imperial government, formed by the grand admiral to complete all military tasks, I appeal to the German people at this tragic moment in our history ...

No one should be mistaken about the severity of the conditions that our opponents will impose on us. It is necessary, without any loud phrases, to clearly and soberly look them in the face. No one can doubt that the coming times will be harsh for each of us and will require sacrifices from us in all areas of life. We are obliged to bring them and be loyal to all the obligations that we assume. But we do not dare to despair and indulge in dull resignation to fate. We must find a way to get out of this darkness on the road of our future. Let the three guiding stars, which have always been the guarantee of a truly German essence, be unity, law and freedom ...

We must base our folk life right. Justice must become the supreme law and the main guiding thread for our people. We must recognize law both out of inner conviction and as the basis of our relations with other peoples. Respect for the treaties that have been concluded must be as sacred to us as the feeling of belonging to the European family of peoples, as a member of which we want to bring all our human, moral and material powers to the peak in order to heal the terrible wounds inflicted by the war.

Then we can hope that the atmosphere of hatred that now surrounds Germany throughout the world will give way to that reconciliation of peoples, without which the improvement of the world is unthinkable, and that freedom will again give us its signal, without which no people can live decently and with dignity.

We want to see the future of our people in the realization of the deepest and best forces of every living person to whom the world has given enduring creations and values. With pride in the heroic struggle of our people, we will combine the desire, as a link in Western Christian culture, to contribute to honest peaceful labor in the spirit of the best traditions of our people. May God not leave us in our trouble, may he sanctify our difficult work!

Public announcement ban

Although a group of 17 journalists attended the signing ceremony, the US and UK agreed to delay the public announcement of the surrender so that the Soviet Union could prepare a second surrender ceremony in Berlin. An oath was taken from the reporters that they would report the surrender only 36 hours later - at exactly 3 pm on May 8, 1945. In violation of the agreement, on May 7 at 15:41 (15:35 ) the German surrender was reported by the Associated Press, whose reporter, Edward Kennedy, after the German report, considered himself free from the promise to keep the event secret. For this, Kennedy was fired from the agency, and the silence about surrender continued in the West for another day - only on the afternoon of May 8 was it officially announced. In the Soviet Union, information about the surrender on May 7 was also initially banned, but then, after the signing of the final act in Karlshorst, the Reims act, called the "preliminary protocol of surrender", was mentioned in I. V. Stalin's appeal to the Soviet people, broadcast on the radio on May 9 at 21:00.

Second act

Susloparov's signature on the Reims Act

In publications, with reference to the memoirs of the then Chief of the Operations Department of the General Staff, Army General Sergei Shtemenko, the following situation is presented with the signing of the act in Reims (it is typical that in Shtemenko's memoirs, the Reims act is called either a document or a protocol).

On the evening of May 6, General Susloparov was received by the Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces, D. Eisenhower, who announced the forthcoming (at 02:30 on May 7, 1945) signing of the act of surrender, asked to transfer the text of the act to Moscow and obtain permission to sign the document. Susloparov “sent a telegram to Moscow about the forthcoming act of signing the surrender and the text of the protocol; asked for directions." At the time of the signing of the surrender, no instructions had been received from Moscow.

The head of the Soviet military mission decided to sign the document of surrender. At the same time, while providing an opportunity for the Soviet government to influence the subsequent course of events, if necessary, he made a note to the document. The note stated that this protocol of military surrender did not exclude the further signing of another, more perfect act of the surrender of Germany, if any allied government declared so.

This version, in slightly different interpretations, is found in many domestic publications, including those without references to Sergei Shtemenko's memoirs. However, in foreign publications there is no information that General Susloparov signed the act of surrender, making some note to it.

Shortly after signing the act, Susloparov received a telegram from Stalin with a categorical prohibition to sign the surrender.

The need for a second signing of surrender

Stalin was outraged by the signing of the surrender at Reims, in which the Western Allies played a leading role. He refused to recognize this act, demanding a new signing of it in Berlin, taken by the Red Army, and asking the Allies not to make official announcements of victory until the surrender took effect (that is, until May 9).

The latter demand was denied by both Churchill (who noted that parliament would demand information from him about the signing of the surrender) and Truman (who stated that Stalin's request came to him too late and it was no longer possible to cancel the announcement of victory). For his part, Stalin said:

The Treaty signed at Reims cannot be revoked, but it cannot be recognized either. Surrender must be committed as the most important historical act and accepted not on the territory of the victors, but where the fascist aggression came from - in Berlin, and not unilaterally, but necessarily by the supreme command of all countries of the anti-Hitler coalition.

In response, the Allies agreed to hold a second signing ceremony in Berlin. Eisenhower informed Jodl that the German commanders-in-chief of the branches of the armed forces were to appear for the final official procedure at a time and place to be indicated by the Soviet and Allied commands.

Address of the heads of state to the people on May 8, 1945

Immediately after the signing of the surrender in Reims, Eisenhower recommended that a simultaneous statement by the heads of state in Moscow, London and Washington be made on May 8 at 15:00 (CET), proclaiming May 9 as the day the war ended. After the Soviet command announced the need to re-sign the surrender, Eisenhower changed his first proposal, explaining that "it is unwise to make any statements until the Russians are completely satisfied." When it became clear that Moscow would not be able to speed up the time for the announcement of surrender, London and Washington decided to do this on May 8 (as originally proposed), proclaiming May 8 as the day for achieving victory in Europe.

At 15:15 CET on May 8, 1945, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill delivered a radio address to the people of his country. From Churchill's radio address:

... there is no reason to hide from the people the fact that General Eisenhower informed us of the signing of unconditional surrender in Reims, and also there is no reason forbidding us to celebrate today and tomorrow as the days of Victory in Europe. Today, perhaps, we will think more of ourselves. And tomorrow we must pay tribute to our Russian comrades, whose courage on the battlefields has become one of the most important components of our common victory.

Around the same time (according to the agreement - 36 hours after the signing of the surrender in Reims), other heads of state also made an appeal. In the United States (it was still morning there), President Harry Truman made a statement on the radio, who promised that he “would not make an official announcement until 9 a.m. Washington time on May 8, or 4 p.m. Moscow time, unless Marshal Stalin expressed his consent to earlier hour" Arthur William Tedder) (UK). General K. Spaatz (eng. Carl spaatz) (USA) and General J. de Lattre de Tassigny (fr. Jean de Lattre de Tassigny) (France) put their signatures as witnesses. It should be noted that at first, Eisenhower himself was going to fly to Berlin to accept the surrender on behalf of the Allied command, but he was stopped by the objections of Churchill and a group of officers from his entourage, dissatisfied with the second signing: indeed, Eisenhower's presence in Berlin, in the absence of Reims, seemed to diminish the Reims act and exalted the Berlin one. As a result, Eisenhower sent his second in command, Arthur Tedder, in his place.

Differences in the text of the two acts

The text of the act almost verbatim repeats the text of the Reims act, and the time of the ceasefire is confirmed - May 8 at 23:01 CET (May 9 at 01:01 Moscow time). The main changes in the text were as follows:

• in the English text, the expression Soviet High Command (Soviet High Command) is replaced by Supreme High Command of the Red Army (Supreme High Command of the Red Army);
• Article 2 has been expanded and detailed in terms of requirements for German armed forces disarmament, transfer and security of weapons and military property;
• removed preamble: "Only this text on English language is authoritative” and added Article 6 indicating: “This act is drawn up in Russian, English and German. Only Russian and English texts are authentic."

Subsequent events

By agreement between the governments of the USSR, the USA and Great Britain, an agreement was reached to consider the procedure in Reims preliminary. This is how it was interpreted in the USSR, where the significance of the act of May 7 was belittled in every possible way (in Stalin's address to the Soviet people, the Reims act is called "preliminary protocol of surrender"), while in the West it is regarded as the actual signing of surrender, and the act in Karlshorst - as its ratification. Thus, Churchill, in his radio address of May 8, stated: “Yesterday morning, at 2:41 in the morning, General Jodl<…>and Grand Admiral Dönitz<…>signed the act of unconditional surrender of all German land, sea and air forces<…>. Today this agreement will be ratified and confirmed in Berlin. It is significant, for example, that in the fundamental work of the American historian W. Shirer "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich", the act in Karlshorst is not even mentioned.

Soviet citizens learned about the signing of the surrender in Karlshorst from a message from the Sovinformburo on May 9, 1945 at 2:10 am Moscow time. Announcer Yuri Levitan read out the Act of military surrender of Nazi Germany and the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on declaring May 9 as a Victory Day, only military operations against Germany until May 9, 1945 are meant.