NationMaster - Encyclopedia: German Instrument of Surrender

The German Instrument of Surrender was the legal instrument by which the High Command of the German Armed Forces surrendered simultaneously to the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force and to the Soviet High command at the end of World War II in Europe. Legal instrument is a legal term of art that is used for any written legal document such as a certificate, a deed, a will, an Act of Parliament or a law passed by a competent legislative body in municipal (domestic) or international law. ... Oberkommando der Wehrmacht OKW most notably stands for Oberkommando der Wehrmacht - the high Command of the Third Reich armed forces. ... Wehrmacht (armed forces, literally defence force(s)) was the name of the armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. ... A representation of the changes in territory controlled by Allies and Axis powers over the course of the war. ... Soviet redirects here. ... During the Battle for Berlin, the Red Flag was raised over the Reichstag, May 1945. ...

First Act

The first Instrument of Surrender was signed at Reims, France, at 02:41 hours on 7 May 1945. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Colonel General is a senior military rank which is used in some of the world’s militaries. ... Alfred Jodl (May 10, 1890 â€“ October 16, 1946) was a German military commander, attaining the position of Chief of the Operations Staff of the Armed Forces High Command (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, or OKW) during World War II, acting as deputy to Wilhelm Keitel. ... Reims (English traditionally Rheims) (pronounced in French) is a city of northern France, 144 km (89 miles) east-northeast of Paris. ... is the 127th day of the year (128th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ...

The unconditional surrender of the German armed forces was signed by Generaloberst Alfred Jodl, on behalf of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (German language: High Command of armed forces) and as the representative for the new Reich President, Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz. Unconditional surrender refers to a surrender without conditions, except for those provided by international law. ... Colonel General is a senior military rank which is used in some of the world’s militaries. ... Alfred Jodl (May 10, 1890 â€“ October 16, 1946) was a German military commander, attaining the position of Chief of the Operations Staff of the Armed Forces High Command (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, or OKW) during World War II, acting as deputy to Wilhelm Keitel. ... The command flag for the Chief of the High Command of the German Armed Forces (1938 - 1941) The command flag for a Generalfeldmarschall as the Chief of the High Command of the German Armed Forces (1941 - 1945) The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht or OKW (Wehrmacht High Command, Armed Forces High Command... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with President of Germany. ... German Grand Admiral Sleeve Insignia Grand Admiral Shoulder Insignia In the German Navy the rank of Grand Admiral (GroÃŸadmiral) was considered the highest Naval rank. ... Karl DÃ¶nitz (IPA pronunciation: ); September 16, 1891â€“December 24, 1980) was a German naval leader, who was in command of the Kriegsmarine during World War II and was President of Germany for 23 days after Adolf Hitlers suicide. ...

This Instrument of Surrender applied to all military forces on land, at sea, and in the air who were at that point of time under the control of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW). Although the military commanders of most German forces obeyed the order to surrender issued by the German Armed Forces High Command not all commanders did so. The largest contingent not to do so were Army Group Centre under the command of Field Marshal Ferdinand Schörner who had been promoted to Commander-in-Chief of the Army on April 30 in Hitler's last will and testament. Like many institutions in Nazi Germany the control of the Army was split between the OKW and the German Army High Command (OKH). By 1945 the OKW commanded all German forces in every theatre apart from those on the Eastern Front which were under OKH control and which, before his suicide, had reported directly to Hitler. So it was not clear if Schörner was under the command of OKW on May 8 or if Dönitz, or von Krosigk, needed to order Schörner to surrender. In the end it was resolved by force of arms. On May 8, Schörner deserted his command and flew to Austria and the Soviet Army sent an overwhelming force against Army Group Centre in the Prague Offensive forcing all German units in Army Group Centre to capitulate by May 11. ^[1] Pursuant to this Instrument of Surrender, the German High Command issued orders to all forces under its command to cease active operations at exactly 23:01 hours Central European Time of May 8, 1945.^[2] Thus, this Instrument of Surrender legalized unconditional surrender of all armed forces under the German High Command, officially ending combat in Europe. Army Group Centre (Heeresgruppe Mitte in German) was created on 22 June 1941 when Army Group B was renamed Army Group Centre. ... Note: This article is about the military usage of the word marshal. For other usages, see the end of this article. ... Ferdinand SchÃ¶rner (December 5, 1892 - February 7, 1973) was a general and later Field Marshal in the German Wehrmacht during World War II. // Early life He was born in Munich, Bavaria. ... is the 120th day of the year (121st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The last will and testament of Adolf Hitler was dictated by Hitler to his secretary Traudl Junge in his Berlin FÃ¼hrerbunker on April 29, 1945, the day he and Eva Braun married. ... The Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH) was Germanys Army High Command from 1936 to 1945. ... is the 128th day of the year (129th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 128th day of the year (129th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Army Group Centre (Heeresgruppe Mitte in German) was created on 22 June 1941 when Army Group B was renamed Army Group Centre. ... Combatants Germany Soviet Union Czech Insurgents Commanders Ferdinand SchÃ¶rner Ivan Konev Strength 900,000 2,000,000 Casualties Unknown 11,997 killed or missing, 40,501 wounded or sick (52,498 casualties[1]) The Prague Offensive (Russian:ÐŸÑ€Ð°Ð¶ÑÐºÐ°Ñ Ð½Ð°ÑÑ‚ÑƒÐ¿Ð°Ñ‚ÐµÐ»ÑŒÐ½Ð°Ñ Ð¾Ð¿ÐµÑ€Ð°Ñ†Ð¸Ñ, Prazhskaya nastupatelnaya operacia, Prague Offensive Operation) was the last major battle of... is the 131st day of the year (132nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Time zones of Europe: Light colours indicate countries not observing summer time Central European Time (CET) is one of the names of the time zone that is 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. ... is the 128th day of the year (129th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... â€œFightsâ€ redirects here. ...

The Soviet Union's only representative in Rheims was General Ivan Susloparov, the Military Liaison Mission Commander. General Susloparov's scope of authority was not entirely clear, and he had no means of immediate contact with the Kremlin, but nevertheless decided to risk signing for the Soviet side. However, he noted that it could be replaced with a new version in the future.^[3] Stalin was indeed displeased by these events. He believed that the German surrender should have been accepted only by the envoy of the USSR Supreme command, and insisted the Rheims protocol be considered preliminary, with the main ceremony to be held in Berlin, where Marshal Zhukov was at the time.^[4] The Moscow Kremlin (Russian: ÐœÐ¾ÑÐºÐ¾Ð²ÑÐºÐ¸Ð¹ ÐšÑ€ÐµÐ¼Ð»ÑŒ) is a historic fortified complex at the very heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River (to the south), Saint Basils Cathedral (often mistaken by westerners as the Kremlin) and Red Square (to the east) and the Alexander Garden (to the west). ... Iosif (usually anglicized as Joseph) Vissarionovich Stalin (Russian: Иосиф Виссарионович Сталин), original name Ioseb Jughashvili (Georgian: იოსებ ჯუღაშვი&#4314... Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov, GCB (Russian: ) (December 1, 1896 [O.S. November 19]â€“June 18, 1974), was a Soviet military commander who, in the course of World War II, led the Red Army to liberate the Soviet Union from the Nazi occupation, to overrun...

Second Act

The second Act of Military Surrender was signed, shortly before midnight, on May 8^[5] in the outskirts of Berlin, Germany. The signing ceremony took place in a villa in an eastern suburb of Berlin called Karlshorst, where the German Russian Museum is located today. [1] The representatives of the USSR, Great Britain, France and the United States arrived shortly before midnight. After Zhukov opened the ceremony, the German command representatives headed by Wilhelm Keitel were invited into the room, where they signed the final German Act of Unconditional Surrender entering into force at 23:01 Central European Time. Image File history File links Zhukov_reads_capitulation_act. ... Image File history File links Zhukov_reads_capitulation_act. ... The rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union (Russian: Marshal Sovietskogo Soyuza [ÐœÐ°Ñ€ÑˆÐ°Ð» Ð¡Ð¾Ð²ÐµÑ‚ÑÐºÐ¾Ð³Ð¾ Ð¡Ð¾ÑŽÐ·Ð°]) was in practice the highest military rank of the Soviet Union. ... Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov, GCB (Russian: ) (December 1, 1896 [O.S. November 19]â€“June 18, 1974), was a Soviet military commander who, in the course of World War II, led the Red Army to liberate the Soviet Union from the Nazi occupation, to overrun... This article is about the capital of Germany. ... Arthur William Tedder, 1st Baron Tedder (July 11, 1890â€“June 3, 1967) was a significant British Marshal of the Royal Air Force. ... Marshal of the RAF sleeve/shoulder insignia Marshal of the Royal Air Force was the highest rank in the Royal Air Force. ... Image File history File links Wilhelm_Keitel_Kapitulation. ... Image File history File links Wilhelm_Keitel_Kapitulation. ... Note: This article is about the military usage of the word marshal. For other usages, see the end of this article. ... Generalfeldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel Wilhelm Bodewin Johann Gustav Keitel (September 22, 1882 - October 16, 1946) was a German field marshal (Generalfeldmarschall) and a senior military leader during World War II. // Keitel was born in Helmscherode, Brunswick, German Empire, the son of Carl Keitel, a middle-class landowner, and his wife Apollonia... is the 128th day of the year (129th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the capital of Germany. ... This article is about the capital of Germany. ... Karlshorst (literally meaning Karls nest in German) is a district of Berlin. ... Generalfeldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel Wilhelm Bodewin Johann Gustav Keitel (September 22, 1882 - October 16, 1946) was a German field marshal (Generalfeldmarschall) and a senior military leader during World War II. // Keitel was born in Helmscherode, Brunswick, German Empire, the son of Carl Keitel, a middle-class landowner, and his wife Apollonia...

Soviet Union did not allow the participation of Poland as representative. The rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union (Russian: Marshal Sovietskogo Soyuza [ÐœÐ°Ñ€ÑˆÐ°Ð» Ð¡Ð¾Ð²ÐµÑ‚ÑÐºÐ¾Ð³Ð¾ Ð¡Ð¾ÑŽÐ·Ð°]) was in practice the highest military rank of the Soviet Union. ... Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov, GCB (Russian: ) (December 1, 1896 [O.S. November 19]â€“June 18, 1974), was a Soviet military commander who, in the course of World War II, led the Red Army to liberate the Soviet Union from the Nazi occupation, to overrun... Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (abbreviated as SHAEF), was the command headquarters of the commander of Allied forces in North West Europe in 1944 and 1945. ... Marshal of the RAF sleeve/shoulder insignia Marshal of the Royal Air Force was the highest rank in the Royal Air Force. ... Arthur William Tedder, 1st Baron Tedder (July 11, 1890â€“June 3, 1967) was a significant British Marshal of the Royal Air Force. ... Jean de Lattre de Tassigny (February 2, 1889 - January 11, 1952) was a French military hero of World War II. Born at Mouilleron-en-Pareds (during the time of Georges Clemenceau, who was also born there), he graduated from school in 1911, and fought in World War I. He specialized... The French First Army was a field army of France that fought during World War I and World War II. // At the beginning of WWI the First Army was put in the charge of General Auguste Dubail and took part, along with the French Second Army, in the Invasion of... Carl Tooey Spaatz (June 28, 1891 â€“ July 14, 1974) was an American general in World War II. Carl Andrew Spatz (Spaatz added the second a in 1937 at the request of his wife and daughters to clarify the pronunciation of the name) was born on June 28, 1891, in Boyertown... The United States Strategic Air Forces was the command body of the American strategic bomber forces in Europe during World War II. It was formed on 22 February 1944 by the redesignation of the Eighth Air Force. ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... Hans-Georg von Friedeburg (born July 15, 1895-died May 23, 1945) was the deputy commander of the U-Boat Force of Nazi germany, September 1941 until January 1943, Commanding Admiral of the U-Boat Force February 1943 until April 1945, and Commanding Admiral of the Kriegsmarine in May 1945... The Kriegsmarine (or War Navy) was the name of the German Navy between 1935 and 1945, during the Nazi regime, superseding the Reichsmarine. ... Hans-JÃ¼rgen Stumpff (June 15, 1889 - March 9, 1968), was a German general of the Luftwaffe during the Second World War. ... The Deutsche Luftwaffe or (German: air force, literally Air Weapon IPA: ) is the commonly used term for the German air force. ... Generalfeldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel Wilhelm Bodewin Johann Gustav Keitel (September 22, 1882 - October 16, 1946) was a German field marshal (Generalfeldmarschall) and a senior military leader during World War II. // Keitel was born in Helmscherode, Brunswick, German Empire, the son of Carl Keitel, a middle-class landowner, and his wife Apollonia...

Postscript

Karl Dönitz continued to act as head of state, but his Flensburg government (so-called because it was based at Flensburg and controlled only a small area around the town) was not recognised by the Allied powers and was dissolved when its members were captured and arrested by British forces on May 23, 1945 at Flensburg. The Allies had a problem, because they realised that although the German armed forces had surrendered unconditionally, SHAEF had failed to use the document created by the "European Advisory Commission" (EAC) and so the civilian German government had not. This was considered a very important issue, because just as the civilian, but not military, surrender in 1918 had been used by Hitler to create the "stab in the back" argument, the Allies did not want to give a future hostile German regime a legal argument to resurrect an old quarrel. Eventually they decided not to recognise Dönitz's Government and to sign a four-power document instead, creating the Allied Control Council which included the following: Karl DÃ¶nitz (IPA pronunciation: ); September 16, 1891â€“December 24, 1980) was a German naval leader, who was in command of the Kriegsmarine during World War II and was President of Germany for 23 days after Adolf Hitlers suicide. ... The Flensburg government refers to the short-lived administration that attempted to rule Germany in May 1945 following the suicides of Adolf Hitler and Joseph Goebbels and the Fall of Berlin. ... Flensburg (Danish: Flensborg, Low Saxon: Flensborg, North Frisian: Flansborj) is an independent town in the North of the German state Schleswig-Holstein. ... is the 143rd day of the year (144th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... The formation of the European Advisory Commission (EAC) was agreed on at the Moscow Conference on October 30, 1943 between the foreign ministers of the United Kingdom, Anthony Eden, the United States of America, Cordell Hull, and the Soviet Union, Vyacheslav Molotov, and confirmed at the Teheran Conference in November. ... Kammergericht, Headquarters of the Allied Control Council The Allied Control Council or Allied Control Authority, known in German as the Alliierter Kontrollrat, also referred to as the Four Powers, was a military occupation governing body of the Allied Occupation Zones in Germany after the end of World War II in...

On 5 July 1945 the four-powers signed the document in Berlin and the de facto became the de jure.^[8] This imposition was in line with Article 4 of the Instrument of Surrender that had been included so that the EAC document, or something similar, could be imposed on the Germans after the military surrender. Article 4 stated that "This act of military surrender is without prejudice to, and will be superseded by any general instrument of surrender imposed by, or on behalf of the United Nations and applicable to GERMANY and the German armed forces as a whole."^[9] is the 186th day of the year (187th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... De facto is a Latin expression that means in fact or in practice. It is commonly used as opposed to de jure (meaning by law) when referring to matters of law or governance or technique (such as standards), that are found in the common experience as created or developed without... Look up De jure in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

In July/August 1945 the Allied leaders planned the new postwar German government, resettled war territory boundaries, ordered German demilitarization, denazification and settlements of war reparations at the Potsdam Conference. In military terms, a demilitarized zone (DMZ) is an area, usually the frontier or boundary between two or more groups, where military activity is not permitted, usually by treaty or other agreement. ... Denazification (German: Entnazifizierung) was an Allied initiative to rid German and Austrian society, culture, press, economy, judiciary and politics of any remnants of the Nazi regime. ... War reparations refer to the monetary compensation provided to a triumphant nation or coalition from a defeated nation or coalition. ... Harry S. Truman and Joseph Stalin meeting at the Potsdam Conference on July 18, 1945. ...

Contents

First Act

Second Act

Postscript

See also

References

Footnotes

Further reading