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Dietrich von Choltitz

17 quotes

“Even today, I can not say with certainty whether he himself believed in his words or whether he was knowingly deceiving those around him to urge him to keep to the end.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Ever since our enemies have refused to listen to and obey our Führer, the whole war has gone badly.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Gentlemen, you are the leaders of the best soldiers in the world. I will give you five or six of my own men; we will cover your back with sustained barrage fire to protect you while you cross the rue de Rivoli. All you need to do is force open a door to fight your way to the tapestry.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) first seen 1944 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: To two SS-Manns about retrieving the Bayeux Tapestry, 21 August 1944
“Have you read Churchill's speech? Appalling beyond all words! A Jewish brigade to go to Germany! Then the French will take the west and the Poles the east. The hate in that speech! I am completely shattered.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) first seen 1944 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: To Karl-Wilhelm von Schlieben about Winston Churchill's speech on September 28 1944
“He was trembling all over and the desk on which he was leaning shook. He was bathed in perspiration and became more agitated.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I am a soldier. I get orders. I execute them.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I asked the Field Marshal von Manstein if he would take part in the actions against Hitler. Manstein was sitting in a chair and reading the Bible. Quick, almost embarrassed, he put it aside and covered it with some papers.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) first seen 1952 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: About Erich von Manstein, "Der Spiegel", nr. 14, p. 12, 2 April 1952, spiegel.de
“I stood in front of him and I saw an old, stooped, bloated man with gray, slick hair, barely standing on his legs.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: About Adolf Hitler. Quoted in one of the German newspapers from 1994.
“I was at Stalingrad, you know... And from that time onwards I have done nothing but manoeuvre to escape encirclement by the enemy: retreat on retreat, defeat upon defeat. And here I am in marvellous Paris. What do you think is going to happen now?”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) first seen 1945 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Dallas, Gregor (2006). 1945: The War That Never Ended p. 178. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300119886
“If for the first time I had disobeyed, it was because I knew that Hitler was insane.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) first seen 1964 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: About refusing to obey Hitler's orders. Quoted in a 1964 interview.
“No doubt: I was in front of a madman. The awareness that the existence of our people was in the hands of an insane person, unable to dominate the situation [...] weighed on me with all its strength.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Oh, Field Marshal, so far it would have been a funeral without military honors, maybe now it can become one with military honors.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) first seen 1944 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: In a conversation with Günther von Kluge, August 1944 (quoted in a book brennt paris? - adolf hitler)
“Paris is like a pretty woman; when she gives you a smack, you don't smack back.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) first seen 1945 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Dallas, Gregor (2006). 1945: The War That Never Ended p. 178. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300119886
“French officer: Do you speak German? Choltitz: Probably better than you.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Since Sevastopol, it has been my fate to cover the retreat of our armies and destroy the cities behind them.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Mitcham, Samuel W. (2009). Defenders of Fortress Europe: The Untold Story of the German Officers During the Allied Invasion. Potomac Books, Inc. p. 121
“They were just a gang of riffraff. Everybody talks all the time of the "Resistance" or the "Forces Françaises de l'intérieur" as if they were organized and disciplined troops, as if they had any real authority. But they are nothing but freeshooters firing on my men. If it continues I promise you I will take tough action. I will order that Paris be defended and will destroy the city before evacuating it.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) first seen 1945 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Dallas, Gregor (2006). 1945: The War That Never Ended p. 178. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300119886
“We all share the guilt. We went along with everything, and we half-took the Nazis seriously instead of saying "to hell with you and your stupid nonsense". I misled my soldiers into believing this rubbish. I feel utterly ashamed of myself. Perhaps we bear even more guilt than these uneducated animals.”
Dietrich von Choltitz (1894–1966) said by 1966 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source