eneral Dietrich von Saucken clapped his hands in front of Hitler and, with remarkable courage, said, “I will not receive orders from a local leader!” Do not imagine that this courage came from the lack of sense or stupidity within a man, oh. No, this courage came from a man that knew what he was talking about and dared to prove that Hitler was a bad tactician.
Hitler was stuck thinking that World War II used the same strategies and tactics as World War I, which he had the honor to fight in. This type of warfare was totally different, with more armored vehicles, more air combat, and especially more extended combat. Hitler was still stuck with the mentality of trench warfare from World War I.
General Dietrich von Saucken
General Dietrich was one of the best generals in the German army, with lots of combat experience from World War I. He was wounded seven times during the First World War, fought for the German army, and at one point was stationed in Russia, where he also learned the language. During World War II, General Dietrich von Saucken took part in numerous battles and was decorated for his heroic deeds, and it was extremely obvious that he tried to save as many men from his division as possible.
However, in February 1945, his position as general was removed because he insinuated that the war should not continue, as he did so in vain, but a month later, he was reinstated due to the recognition of his merits and of the fact that he is an extremely good general.
Hitler summoned him to his bunker and ordered him to take part in East Prussia’s defense against the Red Army advance and to report everything that happened to Gauleiter Forster (the Gauleiter was a local party leader, each region having such a leader), but von Saucken did not accept such a thing, that he, a general, should receive orders from a local leader. At that moment, he slapped the table and objected, a behavior that caught the Nazi leader’s attention.
Moreover, he had the courage to address Hitler by the nickname “sir”, without using the official title with which all his subordinates were to address him, namely “My Fuhrer”. However, after moments of silence, Hitler told him that he was fine and that he could command on his own, not taking orders from anyone and not reporting anything to anyone. What marked this event was the fact that Hitler complied with the general’s words and did not act in contradiction, which was extremely difficult to intuit and extremely unexpected.
Near the end of the war, when he was at the front, a plane was sent to rescue him to prevent him from becoming a prisoner in the hands of the Russians, but he refused this help, boarding the wounded soldiers. On May 8, 1945, when the war ended, he received the final military decoration and became the first German decorated since the Second World War. However, he was taken prisoner by the Red Army, as Germany was defeated, and the physical torture he endured during his imprisonment forced him to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair. After ten years in Russian captivity, he was released and repatriated.
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