Marshal Rommel
On October 14, 1944, German Field Marshal Rommel, known as the "Fox of the Desert", died suddenly at the age of 53, which was very surprising. At the time, German officials reported that Rommel had died of a cerebral hemorrhage caused by his injuries. Hitler said in his condolences: "Rommel, like his heroic deeds in North Africa, will be remembered forever by the Third Reich." Four days later, Hitler ordered a grand state funeral for the Field Marshal of Nazi Germany, nicknamed "Desert Fox, Eagle of the Reich." At the funeral, Rommel's coffin was covered with Nazi flags, and the scene was extremely solemn. Not only the German people could not believe Rommel's death, but even the leaders of the enemy Allied Powers could not believe that a small car accident wound caused the healthy Rommel to die suddenly. Opinions have long been divided about the true cause of Rommel's death. One theory is the closest to the truth, that is, Rommel was involved in a conspiracy to overthrow Hitler, and finally under Hitler's persecution, Rommel chose to commit suicide by poisoning.
Rommel was a legendary figure who had served in the Army for 34 years before his death, but he spent 6 years on the battlefield. It was this 6-year battlefield career that made him rise from an obscure Wehrmacht officer to one of the world's leading ranks.
Rommel
Born in 1891 to an intellectual family in Heidenheim, Germany, Rommel's grandfather was a teacher, his father was a secondary school principal, and his mother was the daughter of a former governor of Württemberg. On July 19, 1910, after two years of secondary school, Rommel enlisted in the army at the repeated insistence of his father. You may wonder why Rommel's father, who was the headmaster, must have asked his son to join the army instead of studying well. One of the reasons for this was that Rommel had been frail since childhood, so his father wanted him to go to the barracks to get a workout and become stronger. The second reason was that people at that time were proud to join the military. After joining the army, Rommel was sent to the Royal Danzig Cadet School in Germany for further studies, and graduated eight months later, when the principal evaluated him as "quite outstanding." In 1917, Rommel, a company commander, led his men through the Crophra Line, conquered Monte, and captured the town of Gennone, and did a very good job. At the age of 26, Rommel was awarded the Medal of Merit by Kaiser II, the highest honorary medal of the Prussian army and the one that many German soldiers dreamed of for the rest of their lives.
Rommel and Hitler
In October 1929, Rommel was sent to the Drester Infantry Academy as an instructor, during which time Rommel wrote a tactical book called Infantry Attack, which was called the best textbook for infantry, coinciding with the rise of German militarism at that time, Rommel's books were very popular, and Rommel became an idol of German youth worship. Because of this book, Rommel was favored by Hitler, thus promoting him to the temporary commander of the Führer's base camp, and it can be said that Hitler's appearance changed Rommel's life. Returning from the African battlefield in 1942, Rommel successively served as commander of Army Group B in Italy and France, and Rommel felt that he had "fallen out of favor".
Rommel's remains
On 17 July 1944, Rommel was hit by Allied aircraft on his way from the headquarters of the Society of Normandy, and Rommel suffered minor head injuries. Three days later, a group of German officers and government officials created the "720" incident that shocked the world in an attempt to murder Hitler. Hitler, who escaped the attack, immediately ordered an investigation and arrested some of the officers. Rommel's name was prominently inscribed on a large number of documents, and even in the face of a large number of so-called evidence and testimonies, Hitler was hesitant to deal with Rommel, because Rommel's prestige in Germany was high, which forced Hitler to think twice. But Hitler's confidant Baumann wrote in his report to Hitler: "Rommel once said that 'after the assassination is successful he will lead the new government'", and hitler finally made up his mind to kill Rommel.
Soon Rommel's home was surrounded, and two generals entered his home with poison, and after a brief conversation, Rommel learned the purpose of their trip. Rommel told his family that if he drank the poison, the family would not be implicated. If you don't drink it, not only will you be sent to a military court, but you will eventually lose your life and reputation, and your family will be implicated. After saying goodbye to his family, Rommel dressed and holding his field marshal baton followed the two generals into the car, and when the car reached a forest, Rommel drank a small bottle of potassium cyanide and died quickly. In this way, a generation of famous generals did not die on the battlefield, but in political struggles.