German Field Marshal Beaten With His Own Baton!
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- čas přidán 15. 06. 2024
- In May 1945, German Field Marshal Erhard Milch surrendered to British Commandos. During the course of the ceremony, he was severely beaten by an irate British brigadier - using Milch's own Field Marshal's baton. What could have caused this strange incident?
Dr. Mark Felton is a well-known British historian, the author of 22 non-fiction books, including bestsellers 'Zero Night' and 'Castle of the Eagles', both currently being developed into movies in Hollywood. In addition to writing, Mark also appears regularly in television documentaries around the world, including on The History Channel, Netflix, National Geographic, Quest, American Heroes Channel and RMC Decouverte. His books have formed the background to several TV and radio documentaries. More information about Mark can be found at: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Fe...
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Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Mark Felton Productions. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Mark Felton Productions does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.
Primary Sources:
- 'Endgame 1945' by David Stafford, (Little, Brown & Company: 2007)
- 'When Shall Their Glory Fade?' by James Dunning, (Frontline Books: 2011)
- 'The Rise and Fall of the Luftwaffe' by David Irving, (Purnell Book Services: 1973)
- 'Clash By Night: A Commando Chronicle' by Derek Mills-Roberts, (William Kimber, 1956)
Credit: Genet
No point in crying over spilled Milch.
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I want to thank Mark Felton for greatly enhancing my understanding of WW2. I taught history for 35 years and I learn something new every week thanks to Mark. Thanks Mark.
War Criminals on paper & they did what they had to do , shorten the proceedings of a lengthy trial followed by a rope. Allie troops & its diversity of Religions it was bound to happen. Not like the SS kept prisoners , they were murderers themselves.
Many of us would certainly agree, Scott. Every episode is a revelation.
I thought i knew ss and i do have ss history snd copies of ss wittman ss sign up papers. But mark nailed it
I agree. He finds out all sorts of interesting stuff. If you do teach again, remember these were the elite of a socialist party, a national socialist party committed to the working class (always of course) who died in their millions. There's clues in the name.
@@black5f "When fascism comes to America, it will come wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross." That's what I think of right wingers.
Dang. I never knew about the accidental bombing of those prisoner ships. How terrible.
they always keep things like that quiet,,
@@ianhandforth5672
There was lots of friendly and mistaken fire incidence.
It happened several time in the Pacific, Japan would not identify the ships as carriers of POWs. It might have been the same for the Germans in this example.
To put a different light to this tragedy, there were many concentration camp survivors who wished the Allies had bombed the camps.
Compare this story to the slaughter of jewish concentration camp survivors killed by Polish civilians as they sought to return to their prewar homes
Who leaked the info to the Allies? Bottom of the Baltic, best way to rid the Nazi's of their mess. It happened several times, the largest maritime disaster is the Soviet torpedoing the Wilhelm Gustloff, Jan '45. 10,000 German refugees died.
I recall seeing a photo of a Japanese general surrendering to an Allied officer and offering him a handshake, to which the officer basically told him to "shove it." Seems that general got off lightly in comparison to Milch.
An american officer, i presume?
similar when the British arrived in Scandinavia and the German commander offered his hand, the British officer curtly refused. these Nazis bastards deserved nothing but contempt. they had kept Hitler in power and done his bidding without question. occupied countries and murdered their citizens.
I found a Marine corps photo of Japanese K.I.A it looked Odd that the Soldiers were wearing their shoes 👞 on what was left of their legs ... disturbing however very Brady
That's a unsubstantiated rumor.
The Jap officer's name is Lt. Gen. Torashiro Kawabe of the IJAGS and leader of the Japanese surrender delegation that arrived on Manila on August 19, 1945 whose handshake was refused by Col. Sidney Mashbir, commandant of the Allied Translator and Interpreter Section (ATIS) - SWPA
at least Monty had a good sense of humor
I'm sure Monty didn't blame him one bit.
@@wayneantoniazzi2706 Probably envied him the opportunity.
@@wayneantoniazzi2706probably had visions of doing that himself.
@@joelellis7035 No doubt!
@@wayneantoniazzi2706 Certainly Patton wouldn't have🎖
Milch: Man, I’m so lucky to have surrendered to you chaps.
Mills: 😡
Mills: "Wanna bet?"
After the beating: "Your mistake was surrendering to me!" Possibly.
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Detestable behavior. Mills is a shameful disgrace to Chivalry.
"Not as lucky as you think, Jerry" (cracks knuckles)
@@howardsternssmicrophone9332 he was as chivalrous as the other side were to their opponent captives. Not saying he should have done it - but…. even the Nazis were disgusted with their own actions… then they all ran away (got legal visas) to other countries- because they knew what they did was wrong. 😑
Thank you Dr Felton for putting this episode into context of 1945 and not through our lense of 2024.
A fact that sadly has escaped many of the people commenting on this video!
@MarkFeltonProductions Milch was lucky Mills-Roberts didn't pull his side arm and end him right there. And he'd had every right to do so, imho. My father was a Combat Veteran with the US Army Air Force in the South Pacific. I still have photos dad sent back to mom from Iwo Jima. She made albums for dad.
@@SMichaelDeHart Same here. Son of a US combat veteran in Europe. They weren't terribly fond of the SS to begin with. After Buchenwald, SS guys many times weren't given the option of surrender if officers weren't around. Sometimes even if they were around. Though Milch isn't SS, he's still of the same mold. Very late in life, dad still had no problem with that. As he said, we didn't see the things he saw.
It’s amazing how at the end of the war in Europe how many Germans claimed to have had no idea about the concentration camps. Like wise it appears there were more claims by the French of having been members of the French resistance at the end of the war than was actually in it during whole of the occupation. 🤔
@@steveofthewildnorth7493 dad's total dislike (putting it mildly) of the Japanese was him till he passed in '06 at 88yo. Dad was a Flightline Engineer and Mechanic on the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. After the US Marines took control of the airfields on Iwo Jima, dad's squadron was one of the first onto the island. The Marines were still clearing off the Japanese soldiers entrenched in the miles of tunnels. 2 pilots of another squadron in dad's group had their th○at's cut by the Japanese after being caught out on the beach while swimming. The pilots weren't supposed to be where they were, but it still p!ssed off the entire group.
"All expenses paid trip to Siberia" 😅
Yes, I come for the history lesson and the British humour. 😁
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They were all the rage at the time !!
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Mulch probably saw the reviews on Tripadvisor …
Milch was lucky he didn't get taken and dumped in the Russian line's.
Or just mysteriously disappeared in the 1945 fog of war
Other than Schörner, did they do this to anyone else? If they were commanding troops would the convention be that they have to stay with them?
You wouldn't feel that way if you found out you missed an all expenses paid trip to the sylvan glades of Siberia!
"Zo, were are we koing?"
"We are going to see some friends of yours.. Don't worry about packing.."
I actually thought the story may be heading that way, especially after he bragged about escaping their advance, then basically calling them sub-humans.
Dear Mark as an amateur historian I do love your different take on things. I like how you don't do the normal subjects usually covered by historians but go for the more unusual stories like giving a field marshal a good hiding. These stories give a more realistic take on what actually happened and are far more interesting. There is so much unknown about WW2 and when the archived secrets finally get released will expect more great revelations. Keep it up please and a big thank you.
I would have to disagree in some small part that there is a lot of unknowns about WW2. I would say it is the greatest documented war in history. Think of some recent wars like both Iraq wars, and Afghanistan. We know almost nothing about what went on over there and there is even less footage of it. We don't know it all when it comes to WW2 but we know a hell of a lot more than any other war in history!
@@Renagade5150 The history is always written by the winners.
@@Essentialbathroomsthe Germans have written a mountain on WWII.
@@Essentialbathrooms That's not true. Just one small example is how everybody today repeats Goebbels' propaganda claim that 100,000 died in the bombing of Dresden.
@@Essentialbathrooms That's just something lazy revisionists like to say .
British man so angry he beats German Field Marshal with own baton then steals it, gets medal, makes Herman Goering laugh during war crimes trial, baton's sale used for grandchildren's college fund."
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WW2 in a nutshell
My now deceased father inlaw was captured by the Germans after his ship was sunk in the Atlantic by a German raider and spent 6 months in the hold with his crewmates. They were held below the main guns and most suffered hearing loss from the constant barrages. He then was transported to a Nazi concentration camp in Germany and spent 3 years in captivity enduring hellish conditions. On the day he was rescued by allied forces he and his fellow inmates overheard the Nazis saying Hitler had ordered all of them to be executed. It was by the grace of God and the Allied soldiers that captured the prison that same day they survived what was to be their fate. He went on to live to 93. God rest his soul. 🇦🇺
Not sure i believe in this tall tale
I call BS on that one. 😂
Germans didn’t send allied POWs to a KZ 🤥
your father in law lied to you.
The only Western POW's I know about Hitler personally ordering the execution of were the escapees from Stalag Luft 3.
Mills Roberts was robbed by poor quality Baton construction…
" German quality" 😂
Or, the beating was so harsh, despite the quality it broke
@guadalupe8589 a much higher quality man using the baton as well
That Baton did not deserve that treatment
Goering was sick to death of German equipment breaking down.
He once shouted angrily that after the war, he'd get himself a British radio, just to have something which worked properly.
True story.
Best WW2 channel on youtube! Thanks Dr. Felton for all your hard work!
Shame the British film industry don't make movies about people like Mills-Roberts. Had he been American, Hollywood would of been all over a event like this
Maybe the British should make a movie then.
@@erichl1167one of our war criminals’ how to assault and battery an POW
After the people who made Rasputin get sued by the still living Russian aristocrats shown in the movie, it will probably never happen unless they use made up people
@@454FatJack Considering what Milch supported and did... They Gave Mills A Well Earned Medal For That Beating!!!
@@454FatJack You have no idea where he was coming from, though, or what you would have done in the same position. As just a hypothetical supposition, let's say your son or a bunch of your fellow servicemen, were starved and tortured to death as a POW in one of his camps. It is easy to judge, sitting where you are right now (I'm guessing, since I know nothing about you, obviously, but it's a pretty damned solid bet).
Being a Cold War, Air Force Vet myself and having lived in Germany for 3 years, I have a great affection for the German people.
HOWEVER…I am also the son of a WWII Navy Vet, and my wife’s dad was a WWII Army Vet.
My dad was in the Pacific and my wife’s dad fought his way through N. Africa, Sicily, Italy and then was shot in Belgium and spent a year recoving in a hospital.
Both lived to be in their 70’s and 80’s years of age and I heard many of their war time stories.
Myself, while being stationed on a German AFB in the early 80’s, I was in an German RC airplane flying club and I got to hear German WWII stories from Luftwaffe and Bundeswehr Vets.
I felt fortunate to hear all of these stories and simply listened.
For that reason, they trusted me and I did not judge as the war…after all, was a long time over and had been decided.
Having said all of that…the atrocities were so bad and so many millions died, not only in the concentration camps…but out in the streets for ALL to see.
Remember Kristal Nacht…Crystal Night?
No one can ever convince me that only a very few knew of the camps.
The SS acted with inpunity, the Generals were not stupid but to save their behinds, chose to.
This is why I have ZERO sympathy for the anger that was dealt to them during and after the war was over.
They CHOSE their path.
In my humble opinion…WWII could have been avoided.
The first cause was the extreme severity of the Versaille Treaty.
It made it imposslible to recover economically from WWI.
When it takes a wheel barrow full of DM’s to buy a loaf of bread and people are starving, then they will vote into office anyone that can offer them a way out.
This is exactly how Hitler came into power.
The second way that WWII could have been avoided…was to put an early stop to Hitler’s advances in Austria & Czechoslavkia.
Chamberlain came back after a meeting with Hitler…holding a worthless piece of paper and announcing, “Peace in our Time”.
It wasn’t too long after that, that Poland was attack and then western Europe was then taken over quickly.
The Nazis…and I emphasize Nazi’s…which is short for National Socialists, and the, “National Socialist German Workers Party”, or NSDAP, were guilty…make no mistake.
Yes, many were soldiers and were forced to obey orders, but once you know of the existance of those camps, see unarmed people being shot in the street, any person would KNOW that such things are not and could never be an honorable action.
A lot of the Generals and officers should have had the CRAP beat out of them and have their noses RUBBED INTO THE DIRT of those camps afterwards.
Reality…is reality….wake up.
USAF Vet.
Cold War
Let us recall the British established concentration camps in South Africa and interned women and children and old men, of which 56,000 died while detained, a not so insignificant amount given the overall population of the Boers
I had an old German tell me that the concentration camps didn't exist. He was a stranger passing by and came over to talk about my classic car which I was working on. When he found out I was British, he suddenly offered this information. I didn't believe him, but I just nodded.
It was a very strange situation.
This was only ten years ago.
At the latest it should have ended in July 1940 but FDR and to a lesser extent Churchill were warmongers. The rest is history.
@@brandonkew9122 Brandon, altho this will never be a populair opinon you are right. but in general that applies to all forms of war and or colonialism.
German officers and soldiers broke their own rule's which where written down in their own soldiers service book 1 no rape 2 no killing of civilians 3 no obeying of criminal order's its all there in the service book.
This has to be one of the best historical documentaries that Mark Felton has produced.
You probably haven't seen many.
Exactly. Go /pol/ if you want unfiltered and objective factual history. /pol/ is always right.
At least Felton wasn't calling the allies "invaders" in this one.
Sunday with Mark Felton what a great way to enjoy Sunday.
Whoa, wait a minute, what’s this about Neustadt, and locals helping to round up camp survivors who had survived their transports being sunk nearby? I think that incident deserves a deep dive on its own!
There will probably be protests from the German embassy and the EU.
"Deep dive"?
"Deep dive" means it needs a more comprehensive understanding.
Bro its 2024 you still believed the germans were innocent bs ?
@@peterlyons8793 Deep dive would mean more of a detailed view of the topic and not necessarily all encompassing (comprehensive).
"If you play with the bull, your 'gonna get the horns."
A spaniard entered the chatroom- We wear red as well as the color of our flag for a reason.
Yes, and if you fly into a country on ultralights to commit mass murder, ESPECIALLY a country that has F16s, F35s, Apache Longbows, etc with which to respond, you are going to get a lot worse than that, unfortunately. But that is kind of the way of the jungle. Life is hard, it is harder if you are stupid. ;-P
When I first saw that news, I made a statement to her just like the above, and told her that IMO, this REALLY wasn't gonna be pretty. I don't see many of them whooping it up in the streets now, over the beheading and raping of babies. Stupid is as stupid does. And yes, i fully realize what the political intent was by HAMASS, but it seems to have backfired somewhat. As one example, the Saudis still are not supporting them (Gaza). They did manage to derail the process for a while, though, and the majority of Gazan's probably no longer think HAMAS more responsible for their plight than Israel, even though that is STILL wrong, at least for the cause.
He might have been a hothead, but Mills-Roberts' demonstrated sentiment on meeting Milch was as restrained as anyone with a beating heart might have shown. I'm warming up to Montgomery. Another soul-searching video from this channel. Thanks, Mark.
The Brigadier was actually at the point that he was prepared to kill Milch, but stopped the bottle with his forearm.
Over 6000 prisoners killed by the Allies on a ship. That’s something you don’t get to hear very often.
It was a terrible tragedy, as a result of bad intel and is well know to WWII historians and documented.
I’ve been a huge WW2 history buff my entire life (since 5). I love how you nearly always bring an event to life that I never knew about! Thank-you Dr. Felton.
Is it your entire life or only since age 5? Get your story straight.
Milch was indeed lucky not to surrender to the Red Army.
he knew what would happen if he did thats why so many german Wehrmacht, Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine fled to the west especially after what they had done on the Eastern Front
@@paulkelk5142 Yes, Ferdinand Schorner comes to mind, a man who made it a point to surrender to U.S. forces then was promptly handed over to the Soviets! Released sometime in the 1950's he returned to Germany only....to be arrested again! However for reasons that remain obscure he was released.
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The Germans viewed the Russians as a sub-human species. Witnessing their behaviour over the last 860 or so days in Ukraine, it seems that the Germans were right.
Очень везучий.
One of the field marshals pictured, von Kleist, surrendered to the Western Allies but was extradited to the Russians on their demand and died in Russian captivity. What Kleist did on the Eastern Front that motivated the Russians to come after him I have no idea but they wanted him and got him.
My dad who passed last year 1st April at the age of 97 was one of the liberating British soldiers at Belsen, although he was Irish from Cork. The stories he told me of Belsen and of keeping those poor souls in the camp to stop widespread disease getting out. It troubled him all his life.
My father served in the US Army's medical corps and was in a unit that went into at least one of the death camps; he would never talk about the experience.
@@richardcleveland8549 God bless our dads for what they did, but the stories must be told so hopefully we never make the same mistakes.
Your father’s service and story are for me the true message here. A German field Marshall being beaten is a drop in the bucket compared to the true horrors of the Nazis. I can only imagine how incredibly difficult it must have been for your dad, both during the liberation and after the fact.
As an aside, my dad also served during the war, but in the Navy. He was there for the hunt on Bismarck aboard HMS Suffolk and later on the arctic convoys. His face had permanent marks from frostbite. Never spoke much of any of it but our parents story must not be forgotten or it will, as it so often does, happen again.
@@NicolaiAwesome I am only 55 yet when I tell some stories in work of what my dad had seen there is a bit of doubt of did it really happen !!!
What were his thoughts on the Irish Potato Famine?
Normally, I find the abuse of prisoners to be abhorrent.
But, try as I might, I just can't work up any outrage over this.
I suppose I'll just have to live with my failing.
Don't feel like the Lone Ranger.
I chortled to myself at least three times watching this! 😊
Monty: "Ah Brigadier I believe you have a thing about Field-Marshalls?" 🙂
The SS apparently felt the same way.
Hans Landa: you will be shot for this!
Lt. Aldo Raine: Nahh I don’t think so, more like chewed out, I’ve been chewed out before
'Mills, you are placed on Administrative leave... for a period of ten seconds - starting now! 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10. Right, off you go.'
Thanks Mark. Like that person said. You are the best WWII history channel ❤
Hate when that happens.
What ?
@@GnashercideYou know - that.
Yeah!!!! It sucks when it happens!!!
Hey👍👍
Too true
Hilter had ordered all captured commandos to be shot (probably after being torture) as a result of the St Nazaire raid. So whilst beating a Field Marshal may have been 'naughty', it's mild compared to what would have happened to Mich or his men if they had been captured after an operation.
No it was after operation Basalt on the Island of Serq early october 1942.
Three german soldiers were found killed with hands tied in the back after the SAS raid.
The history says they were shot because they tried to escape...
Even if it is said taking prisoners was one of the major goal of Basalt operation many of the missions carried by the SAS from 1941 to the landing on Normandy implied to take no prisoner. ( For the good and simple reason a little team of commando tasked with sabotage can't deal with prisoner)
SAS were often at the edge of war laws too...The LRDP who had the same missions with SAS and caused great damages to the german armies were not treated the way SAS ended to be...
He was not on a mission and the commandos constantly violated the geneva conventions. Well now they have the government they deserve.
"Slightly better than the nazis" is not really a flex.
@@BFOP15 The SAS had nothing to do with operations in WWII in NW Europe until 1944. Operation Basalt, the Sark raid was conducted by SOE who had attachments to No.12 and No.62 Commando.
Regarding the LRDG and the SAS, the Long Range Desert Group was the brainchild of Major Ralph Bagnold, who himself was a renowned expert on desert sands, the formulation of sand dunes etc. He taught the LRDG how to navigate the vast swathes of the Sahara Desert, he patented the condenser for the radiator were a vessel collects steam condensation and feeds it back into the radiator.
The LRDG at first were the taxi service for the SAS, they did not partake in the raids that the SAS undertook. The principle requirement for the LRDG was intelligence gathering, they were expert at that.
My Uncle was Rhodesian who volunteered for the LRDG, he was assigned to S1 and S2 Patrols, the "S" stood for Salisbury, the then capital of Rhodesia.
I remember him telling me of the taxi service they supplied to the SAS, until the SAS had enough experience to navigate the dune sea themselves.
He was still active up to the end of the war, providing intel on German shipping off the coastline of Istria in Yugoslavia, yes the LRDG were operational up to the end of hostilities in Europe. He was fluent in Ndebele and Shona, that was a bonus for radio comms as the Germans could not translate the signal information. He called in airstrikes of RAF and RAAF Beaufighters to take care of the enemy shipping.
It is a common misconception that the SAS were Commandos, they were not. Same as today in the UK's armed forces of which I have served. There are Royal Marine Commandos and then there is the SAS. Totally different.
Monty did have a sense of humor! Loved the quip about "....I hear you have a thing with Field Marshals." That was a great a surprisingly funny moment.
Thanks Dr. Felton!
I knew the New Zealand pilots were pretty handy in the Tempest but I didn't know they took out a field marshal. Thanks again Dr Mark Felton
They probably came in from the side in the Richie McCaw tradition....
My great uncle, Reg, was one of the British soldiers who liberated Belsen and was responsible for burying the dead. He came back from the war with a stutter which had started at Belsen and which never left him.
He also picked up a copy of Mein Kampf there, which must have been abandoned by an SS guard. After the war, when my grandmother was learning German, he gave it to her and my grandmother still has it.
My uncle was also one of the liberating soldiers of Belsen. He never wanted to talk about that experience, according to my father. After he passed away, I discovered a letter from an ex-prisoner sent to him after the war, thanking my uncle for helping him to return to what was left of his family.
My grandfather was in the British army that liberated Belsen and he said the Germans got off very lightly. Very.
shall we talk about how lightly ur ancestors got off?
Most Germans would have been unaware of the death camps and even if they had some idea they would not have been in any position to do anything about it. It's no different to people living in china or Russia today.
As for the British, no one was held accountable for the unnecessary end of war bombing and industrial level murder of civilians in cities like Dresden. Evil takes many forms.
@@MrLoger3ik your trolling but unless you just spawned from nothing then you too have ancestors, and they are responsible in some scale for something someone would consider totally evil and worthy of the worst fate.
Cry more nigga @@MrLoger3
@@MrLoger3This must be Jeremy Corbin's burner account.
Things certainly soured for Milch
Guess it's difficult to restrain one's self after seeing such barbarity.
isn't restraining from being barbarian the definition of barbarity?
@@ytrew9717- no, not restraining
@@TenOrbital so what? Do you believe human are deeply naturally motivated by virtuous (non selfish, rational) motives unlike all other living being (made of selfish genes)?
Funny when commandos complain about witnessing brutality......that's their stock and trade.
@@jb-xc4oh stock and trade AGAINST ARMED ENEMY COMBATANTS.
Not unarmed civilians and refugees like the SS roll.
I can't blame the old commando for going off on that POS. My father was with Patton when they liberated Buchenwald. He was just out of HS an 18 year old medic. I can't imagine what he saw and what he had to treat medically. My dad and I never got along,my mom said he changed completely from the boy she knew. He never spoke about the war.
I wish I had the maturity and knowledge of this when he was still with us,things may have been different.
You do wonder why they never talked about the war maybe they knew it was a disaster for Britain.
At least you had a dad. My dad was Buchenwald... fell out of a guard tower. Sad story.
My friend's grandfather never fully recovered after seeing the death camps, he was one of the few to saw it first hand.
@@RoyJNg interesting, but my grandfather's friend did see it first, was literally the first person in line. He was so traumatized he turned to sand. The government then covered it up so they didn't have to pay his military insurance policy, reported him as a deserter.
I wonder how your father treated black people in segregated America.
Spot on as always boss 👊, much appreciated 🙏
Well done Dr Felton your material should be used to teach our young people in school as mankind should never forget the what happened during the war.
The Channel 4 documentary about the bugged senior officers in British captivity at Trent Park puts paid to the lie that they didn't know.
There's a book as well, by Sönke Neitzel, a good read
Most of those generals were captured in North Africa too, so they knew even before the Germans really ramped up the exterminations in 1944.
There weren't any Germans who didn't know what was happening. Ordinary Germans drove the trains that took prisoners to the camps, they bid for their possessions in street auctions and businesses, they delivered food and supplies to the camps and they were families of those who worked there. Collective amnesia is a very handy thing to have sometimes.
Imagine the _arrogance_ of being a senior officer in enemy captivity and thinking you weren't being listened to.
I used to live near bergan,and the belson camp was about a mile away in a clearing in some woods...You could probably smell it....And the fact so many german high command did a runner or committed suicide says how much they knew.
In the words of Sergeant Major Williams, "Oh dear, what a shame, never mind."
"Carry on"....luverly boy.....
Happy Father's Day to all those young men who never lived long enough to become one.
I remember reading about those two ships being sunk and the horrible death toll of prisoners. The same thing happened in the Pacific when a ship carrying British and American POWs was sunk. In both cases the ships carried no identification such as a red cross so that the attackers didn't know their cargo and assumed they were carrying troops and war material. I had two uncles who liberated POW camps, one in the Philippines and one in Germany and both said that the treatment of the internees was horrendous and beyond describable. The Allies took far better care of their enemies then they deserved!
"Teddy f'n Williams knocks it out of the park!! Fenway on its feet!!!"
The beating reminds me of the closing scene.
"You'll be court martialed for this!"
"No, more like chewed out. I've been chewed out before."
This comment deserves to be pinned.
His memoirs The Rise & Fall of the Luftwaffe (1973) is a great read and gives a good insight into the political machinations that led to the Me-262 being fortuitously delayed for another 2 years and Milch being asked to save the Stalingrad airlift from complete failure.
Hitler delayed the ME-262 because he wanted it to be a fighter bomber.
That is higly in question, to say the least, and the book is of course old and did not hold up to modern information. The Me 262 was never deleyed for 2 years, the reason why it did not enter the war sooner was mainly because of problems with engines - something which was not even really fixed WHEN it entered service. Thas was just a typical myth quite some Germans fabricated of lost chances.
Milch had a rivalry with Ernst Henkel that resulted in delays to the 219 night fighter, which could have caused great damage to bomber command.
Incompetent and with no moral fiber. Poor combination.
@@marcbartuschka6372 Modern information, or lies? Just because something is "modern", does not represent that it is more accurate or better. Look at what has been done to the dictionary.5 Nouns are now verbs, and adjectives are now nouns, all in an effort to promote business, or lend validity to ideologies.
Let's not forget that Hitler's 'Commando Order' meant that any captured allied commandos were to be shot. One can understand their aggression even more.
Many years ago, I read Peter Ustinov's autobiography (called "Dear Me" possibly?). In it, he wrote about reviewing many hours of film taken by army film units after world war 2. None of them were labeled, so they could be very surprising. In one of them, a German field marshal surrendered by handing over his ceremonial baton. The officer he surrendered to hefted it and felt the weight of it, then struck the field marshal over the head with it, knocking the man unconscious. I had thought that this recent video would be about that incident, but it doesn't seem to be. If it was, the incident was filmed.
Milch was really lucky “Mills Bomb” didn’t beat him with Milch’s ornate baton. Diamonds are pretty hard and sharp-edged, you know. 😊
Who says they were real?
Hitler probably made sure they were zircon. I'll bet Milch did not-see that coming!
@@donkeyslayer9879 1940s.....
I saw the ornate baton at a show in Atlanta , in 1986. The display case had a card that said, " Not For Sale "....
@@donkeyslayer9879 Cubic zirconia wasn't synthesized in a manner appropriate for jewelery usage until 1973, and didn't begin being used in jewelery until 1976/77. Full-on synthetic diamonds are even more recent. The diamonds on the baton are real.
Field Marshall Wilhelm Keitel, Military Donkey - Literally spat Pepsi on my monitor screen at that, and I'm not even mad about it. Never stop being you, Mark.
Other German top officers called Keitel "Lakaitel," lakai being the German word for lackey. He wasn't too popular with his contemporaries.
He was a pathetic human being after being arrested.
The interviews by psychologist Leon Goldensohn in his book, The Nuremberg interviews give you a good insight to just how pathetic he was.
Splendid video as always. Many thanks Dr Felton!
RIP, all those victims of WW2. Thanks for the history, Dr Mark!
🎖️🏆🤗🙏
Thank you for sharing this
My uncle Harry was one of the troops who liberated Belsen. I know nothing more than what I found out in books and newsreels, as he and his generation never talked about their experiences.
Milch: 'Why are you so worried about Bergen-Belsen and the murdered prisoners at Neustadt? They are not humans!' No wonder Brigadier Roberts lost his temper and Montgomery was understanding!
"On first sighting the enemy, I naturally gave the order to advance. That's my style, sir."
- Brigadier Derek Mills-Roberts, CBE, DSO & Bar, MC
How can we cite a man that had been through so much and been through so much seeing the horrors of the old, sick, women and children and call for anything but justified behavior.
My late wife's family fled Russia through Germany in 1947.
They applied for US immigration but were told there was a 10 year ban on immigration from Europe at that time.
So they immigrated to Sao Poulo, Brazil.
They settled in a Ukrainian neighborhood.
Next to that Ukrainian neighborhood was a German neighborhood.
It was filled with former German officers and their families.
I can only guess how many of them escaped the wrath of enraged allied man and the world.
To this day, any caucasion South Americans in Brazil or Argentina most likely keep secrets about their grandfather's grotesque and obscene misdeeds during WW2.
A Brazilian/Caucasian here.
One of the most interesting aspects, specially about the southern region of Brazil is how you got both Jews that fled from Nazi Wrath and Nazis that fled from justice, sometimes living in the same city !
Crazy stuff, nowadays most of the former German officers are dead.
On my city (Ponta Grossa), the last known SS man died in 2012.
Agreed, but life moves on.
By now white ppl are rare in Brazil I thought, there's probably still a caste code by skin color I'm sure, as I've heard Brazilians mention it before, especially in the political scenes. To us Americans Brazilian ppl are some of the world's most beautiful ppl because of all the mixing by now, there's a melting pot of just about all races there, I imagine Chinese will start buying everything soon and move there like they did Australia, and you can add that culture too.
@@shable1436 Lol, wut?
I assume you are talking about the Russian expats and not the German military ones, because Ukrainians hated the Germans more than the US, and even some of Europe.
The Germans killed something on the order of 20 million Russians, and quite a few Ukrainians, and then the USSR wiped out another 4-7 million Ukrainians in the Holodomor, intentionally starving them to death.
As the Russians rampaged through Germany, they returned the favor, as Russians always do, raping, looting, torturing, etc.
“Sold to a collector in Florida”
Of course it was, it had to be either Texas or Florida.
Florida man strikes again.
big on nazis, the republican states are. go figure.
A lot of wanna be Nazis in those two states
Texas! Woooooo!
I'll bet Harlan Crow has that baton now. He has a large collection of nazi crap.
Dr. Felton, you never cease to educate me.
Thanks for another banger of a video. I heard the story in the early 70s as a kid,my uncle Paul had been a refugee who managed to get out of Paris ahead of the invasion. He was really good about making sure that the children in the family understood what the war had been like.
I think this is one of your best videos, Mark. I have watched them for long time. Thank you !
Someone just accused your comrades of committing mass-murder. How do you respond?
a: "Oh my god, that's horrible!"
b: "I don't believe you, no way something like that could happen."
c: "Well they weren't people anyway."
LOL!
Mills chose the "Renegade" option.
monty overlooked the incident
no
Really Somme Tines I feel like a Musta been a tard yee...
The Dutch Boy was asking for it... The match was won and lost with Dancing Shoes 👞
What incident?
I think Monty approved but couldn’t say so
I can see Monty in my head doing just that to haha "I hear you've got a thing for Field Marshals!"
I never am disappointed by your mini docs Dr. Felton. Regards this British Brigadier I say
I fully understand your actions.
Under the circumstances, Milch got off light.
After a bit of research I found out why Monty didn't discipline Mills-Roberts: He had a cousin at Horse Guards, and friends at Court.
His cousin was with horses and friends were in Mr Courts bed ?
@@philgreene3617 It was a reference to a character from a British television series called Sharpe.
“The lips of fools bring them strife, and their mouths invite a beating.”
-Proverbs 18:6
"Jewishness" does, in fact, pass down the matrilineal route.
Thank you Dr.Felton from a young German guy learning about his ancestors history from not an englishman but from another human.❤️
jew
Mussolini had his mace impaled in his chest..
Definitely one of the top ten, "World's worst day at the office."
mace, swagger sticks, batons all went by the wayside after ww2.
@@murrayterry834by not the military police, but decorative ones yes. Marching you still see them, and cops had all types of batons since then
@@shable1436 true in most of the far east but at some point they have fallen out of favor as a form of symbolism.
@@murrayterry834 After seeing this and hearing that, is it any wonder why? :-)
A fascinating story, well told. As a avid reader of all WW2 books I had no knowledge of Milchs surrender. Such Nazi arrogance was avenged in true British style! Love Montys response!
What a title, keep doing what your doing! Is this part of a series about the end of field martials/high-ranking commanders?
Being beaten with your own baton comes after being hoisted with your own petard.
JD. I’ve followed your channel for some time now and it’s left a deep impression on me. I think it’s a combination of your presentation, the content, the historic context and the sheer emotion of thinking about what these guys went through for the freedom of the world. Long may you and your channel continue.
"freedom of the world" lol ... Take a look around. We aren't free. I can't even type what I really think on this comment I'm so "not free."
Happy fathers day
Happy fathers day to you also my friend
Another brilliant video Mark thanks for that 👍
"Your report impressed the Führer. He has appointed you commander of Berlin's defenses." "I'd rather be shot than have this honor..."
- General der Artillerie Helmuth Weidling, Downfall
I wonder if that was what he actually said, Germans have pretty good gallows humour
If he did say that, it was surely in jest. They knew their duty and would die fighting the soviets before getting captured, knowing it was probably a death sentence anyway. @@kenon6968
Since the German name for that film is “THE Downfall”, why is it always shortened to just “Downfall” in English?
@@wyattmcgee1 cos- its English language release title was just "Downfall"
@@wyattmcgee1 Idk I guess "The Downfall" doesn't quite have the same ring to just "Downfall"
Just got your book "The Coolie Generals."
Ripping read so far. The funny thing is I keep hearing your writing in your voice. (not a bad thing, but kinda funny)
The Ian Dury solution. My grandfather, who was at Anzio, and who's father was a journalist, took a jeep on his own initiative and went to see Belson for himself shortly after its liberation. He never forget what he saw.
Ian Dury! Classic! 🙂
Remember THE FALL, Mark E Smith, "who makes the Nazis." A thought provoking lyric.
Another fantastic piece about an interaction that I was previously unaware of. Well done, as always, Mark.
The only war history channel on CZcams worth watching... Mark Felton Productions is so far better than anything offered, hands down.
Thank you to Dr. Felton, one of the finest military historians in the world.
For a more general overview, the World War 2 series with Indie Neidell and Spartacus Olsen, is pretty good, too. If you're unaware, it's worth a look.
Just wait until I get my channel operational, telling of my valor in combat as a mall security guard at the Whispering Willows Mall .... as Mall Field Marshal.
@@josepherhardt164 It's o.k.
Well Eric Milch sure had a bad day . First he gets beaten up by British officer , then he gets robbed at gun point by British soldiers . And finally he gets put into a POW Camp … Well I have newer heard that story before . So this is the first time I learned something from Mark Felton . That you so much mister Felton …
The old adage applied: "Trouble comes in threes".
Given that British Commandos were subject to Hitler's Commando Order (Kommandobefel) this Milch fellow should consider himself very lucky indeed.
As I understand it the Commando Order was pretty much ignored by German generals. One, Anton Dostler, DID carry it out and executed some OSS personnel even though they were captured in uniform. Dostler was sentenced to death for war crimes after the surrender and executed by firing squad.
“Are you not ashamed of yourself”
Mills: 👊🏼👊🏼🍾
🥴
These obscure tidbits of history are why I’m subscribed and keep watching. Thanks once again Doctor Felton!
I read the title and "british commandos" in the description and immediately knew an Irishman was responsible! 🤣🤣🤣
Imagine if Paddy Mayne had accepted Milch's surrender.
Milch would've been crawling out on his hands and knees, blood squirting from his nose, broken teeth scattered across the floor, begging and screaming for mercy.
Imagine his horror seeing his great grandchildren supporting Hamas....
He wasn't Irish. Pretty much anyone can join a Guards regiment and he was English as were many of the troops.
*English
@@FredScuttle456 paddy maybe was a lawyer also.
Regardless of how the allied forces felt towards the atrocities committed by german forces, i found the lack of professionalism of Mills appalling and not corresponding to someone with his rank and experience.
Unless you served and were in their shoes, witnessed and experienced the horror of war yourself.
You're are in no position to judge them.
Thank you Dr. Felton for this feel good story! Always a treat.
Thanks for sharing!
Great story! It reminds me a little bit of the ending of the movie 'Inglorious Basterds". I wonder if Milch got a relatively lighter sentence at Nuremberg in part because he was abused as a prisoner? This story really underscores the restraint the Allies generally showed. It must have been horrific to discover the concentration camps. It makes me angry even though I was born decades after the events. To witness that and then have a pompous Field Marshall congratulate himself for surrendering to you because he expects to be treated well would probably make many men respond abusively.
Mark. Thanks for providing my Sunday Night entertainment!
Thanks for posting Mark.
Getting beat with anything that belongs to you is not a good look.
My grandfather performed a similar act after D-Day when an interrogation didn’t go as smoothly as he liked.
He was not reprimanded.
War is hell.
How is that possible when you are chinese?
@@ricr.96 I imagine part of the colonial troops? Idk. I just don’t get why Brits act so surprised when they had noses stuck in Hong Kong and other Asian countries. Now that I think about it Britain has a strange obsession with Asian countries 🤔
You can see why Kesselring is called ''Smiling Albert''
Wasn't his "smile" the result of a deformity of his upper lip? Scars? Dr. Felton, any background on this?
Yet another brilliant video! Thank you, Dr. Felton!
Thank you for this and many other videos, Dr. Felton.
😊🎉your channel is like time machine Dr. Felton. Kudos.