Myth of 'humane' Rommel debunked

Kyt · Dec 26, 2008

Why aren't I surprised? Seems to be that Rommel ahs been eulogised just because he got caught up in the anti-Hitler plot. Personally I've never thought that was enough to rehabilitate him for being an active Nazi.

Myth of 'humane' Nazi Erwin Rommel debunked - Telegraph

Erwin Rommel, probably the best-known German soldier of the Second World War, was considered to be a chivalrous and humane general, even by the Allied forces who fought him.

But a new exhibition in Stuttgart calls into question the true nature of the man known as the "Desert Fox".

"The Rommel Myth" strips away the legends that surround the man who faced off against Britain's Desert Rats in North Africa and who committed suicide after being implicated in a plot to kill Adolf Hitler, the Daily Mail reports.

A spokesman for the History House, the foundation which is staging the exhibition, said: "Rommel was a fabrication of Nazi propaganda."

He cited a diary entry by Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels in 1941 that said: "I would strongly advise that now, as soon as the battle for North Africa has been decided, Rommel be elevated to a kind of popular hero."

Germans have traditionally been taught that Rommel was a good man, surrounded by evil.

But Gestapo documents in the exhibition paint a different picture.

They reveal that even as he was being led away by secret policeman he spoke of his devotion to Hitler.

"I loved the Fuhrer and I love him still. I am innocent of any involvement in the assassination attempt,' he said.

"I served my Fatherland to the best of my ability and would do so again."

The traditional image of Rommel is also shaken by letters he wrote and memorandum from Nazi leaders, which reveal he was a willing tool of the party.

"Rommel was turned into a veritable icon: Great Britain and the USA, too, rendered homage to Rommel, the hero," the exhibition explains.
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The real Rommel: Enduring myth of the decent Nazi is debunked | Mail Online

His reputation has endured as a warrior-gentleman.

Known as the Desert Fox, Erwin Rommel was said to be feared but respected by the Allied forces who opposed him in the Second World War.

However, an exhibition has opened that questions his longstanding reputation.

'The Rommel Myth' in Stuttgart aims to strip away the legends that surround the general who faced off against Britain's Desert Rats in North Africa and who committed suicide after being implicated in a plot to kill Adolf Hitler.

Germans, who have learned to scorn the military men who served Hitler, have traditionally been taught that Rommel was the one good apple in a barrel of bad ones.

But this exhibition forces them to think again.

Gestapo documents on show reveal that even as he was being led away he said to the secret policeman: 'I loved the Fuhrer and I love him still. I am innocent of any involvement in the assassination attempt.

'I served my Fatherland to the best of my ability and would do so again.'

When he realised the choice that Hitler had laid upon the table for him - suicide or a show trial - he saw his wife for the last time and told her: 'Within 15 minutes I will be dead.'

He was driven to a small village where he took poison.

The image of Rommel is also shaken by letters he wrote and memorandum from Nazi bigwigs which tend to paint him more as Hitler's poodle than the Desert Fox of legend.

Part of the exhibition is devoted to the notion that his desert victories may have paved the way for the export of the Holocaust to the Middle East.

The exhibition suggests that, had Rommel succeeded in driving the Eighth Army, under Montgomery, out of North Africa, he would have led his troops into Palestine to begin the round-up, deportation and executions of Jews living there - many of them Germans who had managed to escape Nazism.

Much of the exhibition depicts him as a willing tool of his Fuhrer.

A spokesman for the History House, the foundation which is staging the exhibition, said: 'Rommel was a fabrication of Nazi propaganda.'

He cited a diary entry by Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels in 1941 that said: 'I would strongly advise that now, as soon as the battle for North Africa has been decided, Rommel be elevated to a kind of popular hero.'

The exhibition spokesman added: 'Rommel willingly - and successfully - lent himself to the exercise.

'Rommel was turned into a veritable icon: Great Britain and the USA, too, rendered homage to Rommel, the hero.'
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liverpool annie · Dec 27, 2008

Kyt said: ↑

Why aren't I surprised? Seems to be that Rommel ahs been eulogised just because he got caught up in the anti-Hitler plot. Personally I've never thought that was enough to rehabilitate him for being an active Nazi.

Myth of 'humane' Nazi Erwin Rommel debunked - Telegraph

The real Rommel: Enduring myth of the decent Nazi is debunked | Mail Online
Click to expand...

My Father in Law was a Desert Rat .... and he always said he admired Rommel ... because he was a good soldier ...... and smart !! .... I won't say what he said about Monty !! :doh:

Annie

Kyt · Dec 27, 2008

Oh, I would love to hear what he said about Monty. That's another myth that needs bursting - it is always claimed that he was loved by all his troops etc etc etc

liverpool annie · Dec 27, 2008

Kyt said: ↑

it is always claimed that he was loved by all his troops etc etc etc
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I hardly think so !!!!!!!!!!! :biggrin1:

Kyt · Dec 27, 2008

Such a tease Annie...come on, spill the beans

liverpool annie · Dec 27, 2008

Kyt said: ↑

Such a tease Annie...come on, spill the beans
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I think the last sentence here speaks volumes !!

The author is sympathetic and understanding of the problems involved in planning the invasion, and of the character of the armies taking part in the fighting. Perhaps the army that has taken the most criticism over the Normandy battles has been the British - it was sluggish and unimaginative. The author digs deeper to understand why it behaved this way. A good example is that of the 7th armoured div, also known as the famous Desert Rats. Their performance during Normandy was little short of incompetent, and this was supposed to be the most veteran of the British units. Equally disappointing was the equally veteran 51st Highland div. Why? The author offers a number of possibilities, some of which do lead to some very interesting thoughts. Some of it was bad generalship - Britain had very few competent divisional or corps commanders (you do have to feel especially sorry for the Dominion soldiers). Some of it was ingrained culture - mobile warfare was something much of the British army just couldn't get its head around - although on the plus side, they knew what they were doing when it came to a tenacious defence. Some of the attacks mounted by the British army were close to farcical, with neither the officers nor the soldiers. Some came down to poor preparation - the veteran Desert Rats did not train with the Normandy bocage in mind. But most interestingly, the author suggests that perhaps the British soldier - veterans of Italy, Sicily, two years of desert war and even Dunkirk in some cases - maybe, just maybe these soldiers who had looked death in the face on many occasions were simply not prepared to stick their neck out any more.
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Decision in Normandy (Penguin Classics): Carlo D'Este: Amazon.co.uk: Books

liverpool annie · Dec 27, 2008

They were scruffy - dirty from smoke of petrol fires - and not a bit like soldiers ! most of them harden desert rats - having fought in the Palestine Army .... Desert .... Italy and France .... some of them old enough to be your Father and all Londoners !! ....................

Ernie huntley

spidge · Dec 27, 2008

Thanks Annie,

I enjoyed reading that!

Einzelkampfer · Jan 15, 2009

Reportedly, when Montgomery was asked who the three greatest generals in history were, he answered, "Well, the other two were Napoleon and Alexander the Great!"

As for the Rommel myth, remember that anyone can cherry-pick events and facts - some totally out of context - from any famous person's life. However, I would like to see the exhibit and better glean the context of these bits of evidence.

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Myth of 'humane' Rommel debunked

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Kyt Άρης

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