Burning Moscow

Chapter 1722 The final victory (grand finale)

While waiting for Weidlin’s arrival, I called Zhukov and sent the new German Minister of Propaganda Frisch to negotiate. Weidlin, the commander of the Berlin City Defense, announced the surrender and the suicide of Goebbels and his family, one by one. Reported to him.

“Where is Ballman?” Hitler died, Goebbels died, and the new German leader Deniz has not yet taken office. Now the party minister with the most power in Berlin is Party Secretary Ballman. Zhukov is eager to know this time. Whether the negotiations have been authorized by Bowerman, so as to avoid another situation where the negotiation ends without a problem. “Did the negotiation delegation sent by Frich get his authorization?”

“Comrade Marshal,” I knew Ballman’s real situation at the moment without asking the negotiator, so I replied without hesitation: “Ballman has committed suicide by exploding a grenade at home. He and Goebbels’ whole family died.”

Zhukov was silent for a moment, and then asked: “What are you going to ask Frich’s representatives to do?”

“I intend to let Frisch speak on the radio to announce the deaths of Hitler and Goebbels to all the Germans.” I cautiously stated my long-considered plan: “I am telling them that our military command has already Accepted their unconditional surrender and placed Berlin and all its garrison under our protection.”

“Lida, your idea is pretty good.” Zhukov was quite interested in my plan, but he still had concerns: “How can you guarantee that Dr. Frisch’s speech to the German people on the radio is in line with ours. What about the requirements?”

“Comrade Marshal, you can rest assured of this.” Regarding Zhukov’s concerns, I assured him: “We will send people to supervise them to ensure that Dr. Frisch’s speech fully meets our requirements.”

“Very good.” Seeing that I had taken all the considerations into consideration, Zhukov praised me, and then said: “Now I will talk about the surrender clause that the German side is required to implement…”

I put down the phone, walked back to the negotiators, and said to them: “Gentlemen, I now announce to you the terms proposed by Marshal Zhukov:

First, the Soviet Command accepted Berlin’s surrender and ordered the cessation of military operations.

Second, all existing German civil and military authorities should declare to all soldiers, officers and residents that all military materials, buildings, public facilities, and things of important value should be properly maintained as they are and must not be destroyed or destroyed.

Third, please, Mr. Heinersdorf, please come to Dr. Hans Frisch with our officer, take him to the radio to give a speech, and then come back here.

Fourth, I emphasize once again: We will ensure the personal safety of soldiers, officers, generals and residents, and provide medical care to the wounded as much as possible.

Fifth, we ask the Germans not to carry out any provocative actions, such as shooting or other sabotage activities, otherwise, our army will be forced to take counterattack measures. ”

After listening to the terms I announced, Heinersdorf and the two assistants sitting on the left and right murmured a few words in a low voice, then looked up and cautiously said: “Your Excellency, I beg you to send special personnel, yes. Our Propaganda Department personnel carry out the necessary protection.”

Facing Heinersdorf, who was so afraid of death, I faintly smiled, and then said: “Before our troops entered Berlin, they had issued orders to the commanders and fighters to prevent them from hurting and lay down their weapons to our troops. The German soldiers who surrendered must ensure their personal safety.”

Seeing Heinersdorf breathed a sigh of relief, I added: “However, since the’People’s Stormtroopers’ organized by Hitler are all in plain clothes, we cannot accurately determine who is being coerced. To ensure the safety of our commanders and fighters who are diehard Nazis, as long as we see people wearing civilian clothes carrying offensive weapons, we will kill them mercilessly.”

My words shocked Hainersdorf. He quickly took out a brand-new Browning pistol from his pocket and put it on the table. At the same time, he said in a panic: “This is what I use to defend myself. Weapons, but since you said you can send someone to protect our personal safety, I don’t think this pistol can be used anymore. I will leave it to you as a memorial.

After Heinersdorf handed over the weapons, he turned to ask his deputy: “Have you brought any weapons? Hand them over, so as not to cause unnecessary trouble for yourself.” The two deputy shook their heads, indicating that they did not carry any. arms.

After I asked the staff officer to put away the pistol that Heinersdorf had placed on the table, I whispered to Cuikov the next steps. After he listened, he picked up a phone in front of him and said into the microphone: “Let Colonel Vaigachev and his translator, Warrant Lieutenant Zhuravlev, come to me.”

A few minutes later, Colonel Vaigachev, wearing a brand-new army coat, and Warrant Lieutenant Zhuravlev, an interpreter, appeared in our headquarters. Trikov walked in front of the two of them, and after looking at them carefully, he looked at Vaigachev and said, “Colonel, I now give you a glorious and arduous task.” He turned his body on his side and turned toward Heiner. Stovn snorted and continued, “You and Heinersdorf go to Dr. Hans Frisch. Frisch will order the army to surrender and order the equipment and technical weapons in the name of the new German government. The land is handed over to our army. Let Frich issue an announcement on the radio that the Soviet command has accepted their surrender and has placed Berlin and all its garrisons under its own protection. You must ensure that Frich goes smoothly. Arrived at our radio station and supervised his speech on all the points I said. After the speech, Frisch and his colleagues should come back here, and we will discuss the next step at this time. Understand? ”

Vaigachev glanced at Heinersdorf, then nodded his head and replied: “Understood, Comrade Commander, I will definitely complete the task you gave me.”

Just as Vaigachev was taking Heinersdorf and they were preparing to leave, they unexpectedly met Weidlin and his party who had just walked in from outside.

Weidlin, who was of medium build and looked a little old, glanced at the other side slantingly, and muttered something in German. The translator standing behind us quickly told us: “He said, he should have done this long ago!”

After Cui Koff listened to the translation, the expression on his face became happy. He turned his head and said to me: “It seems that except for a few diehards, all Germans feel that this meaningless war should be stopped.”

After Cui Koff shook hands with Weidlin who came over, he asked politely: “General Weidlin, are all the Berlin city defense forces under your command?”

“Yes!” The elderly Weidlin straightened up and replied blankly.

“What about the defenders of Berlin?” Trikov continued to ask, “Can you give them orders?”

Weidlin shook his head and said: “I gave all the troops an order to resist to the end last night, but today I gave them an order to stop the resistance. I don’t know how many people will obey my order.” He said When he got here, he was silent for a moment. He pointed to the map on the table and continued, “I have no right to command the remnants of the SS stationed here. Unless it is Himmler or General Klebs, the chief of the general staff. , Give them an order to surrender.”

“Himmler is not in Berlin, and we can’t get in touch with him.” As soon as Weidlin finished speaking, I immediately continued: “But General Klebs is a guest here. You can make a joint statement to urge people in Berlin. The Germans stopped resisting and lay down their weapons and surrendered to us.”

“What, General Klebs is here with you?” Weidlin’s eyes widened when he heard me say this, and he asked in an incredible tone: “How is this possible?”

“Nothing is impossible, General Weidlin.” In order to give Klebs a little dignity, I said to Weidlin euphemistically: “General Klebs, as Goebbels’ plenipotentiary representative, came to us to negotiate a ceasefire. Because Goebbels refused to allow the troops to lay down their arms and surrender, so our negotiations broke down. However, General Klebs was overly emotional and showed some minor discomforts in his body, so he stayed with us for training.”

Hearing that Klebs stayed with us to treat the illness, the expression on Weidlin’s face became lighter: “If General Klebs can show up, I would be very happy to draft a draft with him for the defenders to surrender completely. The command.”

When Klebs rushed over from Zhukov, the order drafted by Weidlin had been completed. In order to show his sincerity, Klebs read to us specifically: “On March 8, 1945, the Führer ended his life and left all those who were loyal to him. According to the Führer’s order: You German soldiers loyal to the Führer We should continue to fight for Berlin. Even though the ammunition and food are exhausted, and it is meaningless to continue to resist, we should continue to fight for Berlin. Now I declare a ceasefire, because every hour you continue to resist, the people of Berlin will be prolonged. And the suffering of our wounded. After consultation with the Soviet Command, I ask you to immediately stop resisting. The former commander of the Berlin Garrison Artillery Major General Weidlin.”

After finishing reading, Krebs also picked up his pen and signed his name on the back: General Klebs, Chief of Staff of the German Army. After the signing, he handed me the sentence that was a little uncomfortable, and at the same time said: “General Oshanina, as long as you play this surrender order, I believe that the resistance in Berlin will be completely ended!”

I took the surrender order from Klebs, and shook hands with him and Weidlin one by one, and said sincerely: “Two generals, everything you have done today saved Germany from the brink of destruction. , I believe history will remember you, and the German people will remember you!”

After arranging for Krebs and the others to go to the empty room next to them to rest, I called Zhukov, reported the surrender order, and then asked him for instructions: “Comrade Marshal, what shall we do next? Let Berlin Does your radio station broadcast this surrender order?”

“It’s not enough to use radio alone. Perhaps many German soldiers who are fighting cannot listen to the radio.” After Zhukov listened to it, he immediately added: “I will let the Political Department of the Front Army mobilize the radio vehicle to sign Krebs and Weidlin together. The surrender book is broadcast along the street to make sure everyone can hear it.”

Not long after we sent the original surrender book to the front army headquarters, there was an announcement broadcast by the radio van outside the window. Although I did not understand German, I knew very well that they were playing Kleber on a loop. The armistice order from Sis and Weidlin called on the German officers and soldiers who were still stubborn to lay down their weapons and surrender.

In the early morning of March 10, the window suddenly became quiet, and I couldn’t hear the explosion that I was used to, even the sporadic gunfire. Dukhanov, the deputy commander of the Group Army, walked in from outside and reported to me and Cuikov: “Comrade Commander, I have already figured out that the red flag on the top floor of the Capitol is the 150th Division of the 79th Infantry Corps of the 3rd Assault Group. The three fighters…”

When I heard this, I couldn’t help feeling that the correcting power of history was so powerful. Although Cuikov’s troops rushed into the Capitol first, the soldier who finally planted the red flag on the roof was still General Kuznetsov’s. Subordinate.

I heard Pronin sigh in a low voice, regretting that his troops did not first plant the red flag on the top floor of the Capitol, so I persuaded him: “Comrade Military Commissioner, don’t sigh, although I am not a commander of the 8th Guards Army. Putting the red flag on the top of the building, after all, it was the commanders of our Belarusian First Front that completed this action that is enough to be recorded in history.” After a pause, I went on to say, “Compared with Marshal Konev’s troops. , We are lucky. According to the attack area designated by the Supreme Command, they can only advance to the zoo in the southwest of the Tier Garden area and have to turn around to attack other areas. .”

Standing in front of the window, Cui Koff, after looking at the scenery outside for a while, suddenly turned his head and said to us: “Comrade commanders, we have won. We have finally defeated the fascist invaders. Are you interested in going to the street with me? look?”

Before I could answer, the high-frequency phone leading to the front headquarters rang. A staff officer standing nearby picked up the phone and listened for a moment, then handed the microphone over to me and said respectfully: “Comrade Deputy Commander of the Front Army, your call.”

I walked over and picked up the microphone. As soon as I was close to my ear, I heard Zhukov’s voice coming from inside: “It’s over, Lida, everything is over. The Berlin defenders are surrendering to our army in all places. We Victory!”

Perhaps it was too excited that Zhukov’s voice suddenly stopped. After a while, I heard him continue to say: “The only disappointing thing now is that I have not been able to capture Hitler alive. If I can capture that guy alive, it will be a What a delightful thing, it’s a pity that I can’t fulfill my promise to capture Hitler a few years ago.” Zhukov sighed involuntarily when he said that, and changed the topic: “I plan to go to the Reichstag in person, and Our commanders celebrated the victory. Lida, you call Cui Kefu and them all, let’s celebrate this great victory together!”