Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-05-05
Montgomery Rejects Surrender of Three East Front Armies

the Germans facing the Allies In
the north had been under way fol-
two days before the signing, Mar
shall Montgomery revealed.
Gen. Guenther Blumentritt, COM
mander of all German forces be.
tween the Baltic and the Wesel
River, sent message to Marshal
Montgomery May 2, offering to sur
render the German 18th and 21st
Armies and the Sd Tank Army
which were facing the Russians
The Allied commanders reply was
fiat no"
Those armies are fighting the
Russians" he said. IF there is any
surrendering to be done it should
be to the Russians. I am not going
to have any dealings on the eastern
flank and the Russian front"
Surrender Largest
Since 1918 Armistice
NEW YORK, May S R.-Bill
Downs. Columbia Broadcasting Sys-
tenn correspondent, said in broad
cast from Hamburg last night:
More than a million Germans
on Field Marshal Montgomery's 2lst
Army Group front surrendered on
this historic May the 4th, bringing
hostilities to an end for the Cana
dian Army fighting in Holland and
the British I'd Army fighting in
Northern Germany. 1t was the
biggest mass surrender of German
forces since the armistice of 1918.
"A German surrender mission
headed by Admiral Won Friedeberg
commander in chief of the Ger
man Navy, signed articles of un-
conditional surrender for the Ger
man land, sea and air forces, fac
ing the Canadian LIST Army and the
British I'd Army, at 6:25 O'Clock
this Friday evening. Field Marshal
Montgomery signed in behalf of the
Allied supreme commander in chief
Gen. Eisenhower.
The signing occurred in a tent
set up especially for the ceremony
in front Of Marshal Montgomery
headquarters on the Luneberg
Heath just south of Hamburg. 1t
is significant that the Northern
German armies were surrendered
on this artificially-forested heath
which for years has served as the
training ground and birth place for
German armies. 1t was here that
technically large part of the
Wehrmacht died.
Must Affect Holdouts.
THE only nation in Northern Eu-
rope yet to be liberated is Norway
There still is the Dunkerque pocket
but these events must have a ire
mendouS effect on the Germans still
holding out there.
In the words Of Field Marshal
Montgomery, as he walked to the
tent where the official signing took
place, grinned, and commented to
the reporters: This is the mo-
mentP 1t was a great moment, a
historic moment, there in the cold
rain, the clustering winds on the
Luneberg Heath, in the heart of
Northern Germany, a great moment
not only for Britain and Canada
and for the American 82d Airborne
Division. and the American 9th In
fantry Division and the American
7th Armored Division fighting under
the End Army in its hour Of VIC
tory
What happened was that this
drive to the Baltic carried the ID
Army thrust directly behind the
line of retreat of the Germany Army
group, the Nazi armies retreating
before the drive in the north by
Gen. Rokossovsky's forces advancing
westward.
In the first three days it is esti-
mated that more than half a mil
lion prisoners were taken, mostly
from this army group retreatine
westward. That explains the large
number of staff officers who fell into
British hands during these fateful
days. We were capturing the gen.
erals before encountering their
llentlllS troops.
HOisted White Flag.
ON Wednesday, May 2, Ger
man general, who said he com
manded the so-called army group
hoisted white flag and sent ar
emissary to the headquarters of the
British I'd Army. He said he COM
manded all the forces between the
Baltic and the Weser River. He said
he wanted to surrender this army
group.
Gen. Dempsey, commander of the
I'd Army, replied that he should
start moving, and a rendezvous was
arranged for Thursday, yesterday
The German general did not appear
but he sent word that negotiations
were going on much higher leve
than his military station. He coulo
not negotiate.
ut was yesterday that party OF
four higher German officials again
hoisted a white flag and drove into
the British lines. Ahead of the party
was Admiral Won Friedeberg, com.
mander in chief of the German
navy. who replaced Admiral Doe.
nitz while the latter assumed the
-,