Wartime anniversaries are coming thick and fast, yet one that deserves mention because there is a Tasmanian tie seems to have been overlooked by other local news media.
May 4 was the 70th anniversary of the top German officers surrender in Europe – and the man in charge of accepting their submission was Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, as Commander of the 21st Army Group who signed on behalf of the Allied Supreme Commander, General Dwight D. Eisenhower.
It happened at a place called Luneburg Heath, east of Hamburg, and saw the unconditional surrender of the German forces in the Netherlands, Denmark, and all German naval ships in the area, a signing that preceded the end of World War Two in Europe.
The setting was significant – a barren, artificially forested heath that had served as the training ground and birthplace for German armies.
The historic surrender was filmed by British Pathe news and if you Google Field Marshal Montgomery and German officers surrender you can view this fascinating footage, plus many still photo images of the event. Monty, the epitomy of a military commander, was running the show with martial efficiency.
And the Tasmanian connection?
Although he wasn’t born here, he did come out as a boy, for his father was Bishop Henry Hutchinson Montgomery, the fourth Anglican Bishop of Tasmania. Back in 2009, writing for Tasmaniantimes, Percy from the Pews highlighted the Montgomery connection when the Anglican Diocese sold Montgomery Park at Coningham. That decision also saw the loss of the youth training facility at the park, Mission Afloat.
Percy noted that in the large accommodation block on this campus there was an impressive painting of Monty accepting the German officers’ surrender. I wonder where it is now?
Two of the main signatories were Admiral Hans-George van Friedburg, Commander in Chief of the German Navy, and General Eberhard Kinzel, Chief of Staff for north-east Germany. On May 23, 1945, both committed suicide.
