By that measure it was hoped to avoid exerting too much pressure on the Greek market. Greek Government in order to take measures against unemployment wanted to introduce general labor service. That idea seemed to me to be a good one, but the Italians turned it down.
Q. Why did the Italians turn it down?
A. I don't know. I suppose they regarded labor service, which up to a point has certain military customs connected with it, they thought perhaps this was a camouflaged mobilization, and they regarded it as a menace perhaps.
Q. What was the suggestion made by the Greek Government thereupon?
A. The Greek Government then wanted to establish a Free Corps which was to serve in Russia in the fight against Communism. Unless I am very much mistaken, the Greeks participated in the Anti-Communist struggle already in 1919 and 1920, supporting the White armies against the Red armies.
Q. And what did the Italians say about that suggestion by the Greek Government?
A. The Italians stipulated that that Greek Free Corps was to be used only as part of the Italian Army in Russia because an Italian Army was fighting in Russia, but that was expecting too much of the Greeks and they turned that down, and I could understand why. after the events in Albania, they did not want to serve as subordinates to an Italian high command.
Q. General, what measures were taken beyond the matters discussed? I mean you yourself on your own initiative for the benefit of the Greek population during that period of time?
A. I am not very happy about stressing certain things which I did as a perfectly obvious human thing, but as the Prosecution has said that I had terrorized the Greek population and had been partaking in a plan of extermination, I must say something about it.
Late in the autumn of 1941, I together with the German legation established what we called a Sunday of Sacrifice. The Chairman of the committee was Archbishop of Greece, Damaskinos in Athens, who is still in office today. All German soldiers voluntarily contributed from their pay a certain sum of Drachmen which was then put at the disposal of the Greek wounded through Archbishop Damaskinos. In one of the large cinemas of Athens, as part of this Sunday of Sacrifice, a charity concert was held, and I made a speech. I spoke about the sad fate of the Greek wounded. The money collected in that charitable concert was again put at the disposal of Greek wounded through Archbishop Damaskinos.
My special staff in Surion made special relief actions for the small town of Laurion. We built roads, we built huts in order to make it possible for the inhabitants to earn some money. The city of Laurion was supplied with food, and above all with olive oil. That oil I obtained in a devious manner from Crete.
Q. General, would you please stop a moment.
DR. MUELLER-TORGOW: I should like to submit a few affidavits in this connection. The first one is contained in Document Book Felmy Number 2. It is Document Number 48 on page 1, which will become Exhibit Number 9. It is a certificate given by the Mayor of the city of Laurion which the witness has just referred to, and the date is 20th of June 1943. This was at that time given to a member of the staff of General Felmy, a man called Bohtz who has given two affidavits which are contained in the same document book. May I just read this affidavit.
"As a Greek mayor and patriot I deem it my duty, dictated by gratitude, to make this following statement willingly and of my own accord and to testify to the outstanding part as benefactors of the town of Laurion which Mr. Erich Heiden (in a leading capacity) and his subordinates, the engineers Helmut Bohtz and Martin Kolb played during the unhappy years of the occupation of the country (1941 to 1942).
"Guided by a spirit of extreme friendliness towards the Greek and humane ideas the aforementioned gentlemen have, in times of the utmost difficulties concerning the supply of the population with food, done a great deal towards relieving the situation........"
MR. FENSTERMACHER: I object to the admission of this document, it is an unsworn statement, it doesn't comply with Rule 21, and is pure hearsay. We, of course, have no opportunity to cross examine the author.
DR. MUELLER-TORGOW: If the Tribunal, please, the document was drawn up in 1943. The original is available in Greek, and it has been translated into English and German by a member of the Greek Delegation in his official capacity.
PRESIDING JUDGE CARTER: It will be admitted for what it is worth. Overruled.
DR. MUELLER-TORGOW: To continue, I shall start with paragraph 2.
"Guided by a spirit of extreme friendliness towards the Greek and humane ideas the aforementioned gentlemen have, in times of the utmost difficulties concerning the supply of the population with food, done a great deal towards relieving the situation by sending a German motor-ship to Crete in order to bring 30 tons of oil to Laurion; by continuously asking the Italian administration in Athens for the dispatch of allocations of wheat (victuals) and by thoughtfully, and in collaboration with the Greek authorities, having new roads constructed in the vicinity as a W.P.A. measure to help the starving local population.
"Their attitude towards all Greek people was extremely humane and cultivated. This testimony is given in recognition of the services rendered to the Greek authorities by these three gentlemen and for the purpose of testifying to their honorable character. Laurion, 20 June 1943, the Mayor of Laurion (signed)."
The two men mentioned here, Heiden and Bohtz, were members of the LXVIII Corps. Heiden was the quartermaster, in other words, he was responsible for the whole of the supply problems of the Corps; and Bohtz was his assistant.
The next document is on page 2, and is an affidavit given by Erich Heiden who has been mentioned in the previous document. This is Document Felmy number 49 on page 2. It is offered as Exhibit Number 10. It says on page 2 in the fourth paragraph.
"The bad food situation in Greece weighed heavily on his (General Felmy's) mind, especially as he was unable to help as much as he wished to do.
"Although he was not responsible for the feeding of the Greek population, he often asked me, 'Heiden, have you any idea how we could help the Greek population?'
"The following examples show how sincerely Felmy tried to help the Greek population in its plight:
"1. Procurement of ships in 1941 and 1942 for food transports from the Greek Isles. The Greek population was starved and undernourished. Food could not be procured from normal channels. Although it was not he who was responsible, but the Italian Military Government, Felmy provided ships to collect food from the islands for the Greek population of the town of Laurion near to which we had our camp.
(Testimony of the Greek Mayor of the town of Laurion is herewith attached.)
"2. Unorthodox ways of procuring food. Although not necessary for the troops, Felmy ordered the construction of a detour road from Laurion to Sunion in order to provide more food for the Greek population. The workers were paid in food and cash. In this unorthodox way only could food be provided for the starving Greek population.
"3. Social welfare organization. Pregnant women, children, and invalids who were not working on road construction continued to receive their rations," On page 4, it says under paragraph 9:"Calory replacements in cases of requisitioning of food grown in the country.
Felmy ordered that food requisitioned from the land would have to be replaced within the framework of the calory replacements scheme of the International Red Cross. Unofficial requisitioning by the troops was severely punished and requisitioned goods returned."
The next document will be Felmy Document Number 50.
PRESIDING JUDGE CARTER: Before we take up another document, we will recess for the usual noon recess.
(A recess was taken until 1330 hours.)
THE MARSHAL: Persons in the Courtroom will please take their seats.
The Tribunal is again in session.
PRESIDING JUDGE CARTER: You may proceed.
DIRECT-EXAMINATION (Continued) Defendant Helmuth Felmy BY DR MUELLER-TORGOW:
Q. May it please the Tribunal, there are a few affidavits which I would like to offer. First of all, in Document Book II, Document Felmy No. 50 on page 7; this will be offered under Exhibit No. 11. It is an affidavit executed by Carl Helmut Bohtz who was mentioned this morning. To the extend to which his statements refer to the first commitment in Greece, he says mainly the same as had been said in the previous affidavit by Heim. Therefore, I don't want to read from this Document No. 50.
The next document which I am offering is Document Felmy No. 51. This is on page 12 of Felmy Document Book II. It is a second affidavit executed by Bohtz. This will be offered under Exhibit No. 12.
The next one to offer from Document Book Felmy No. III is Document No. 75 on page 24. This will become Exhibit 13. It says in this affidavit that it is executed by one Erich Buchmeier. In the second paragraph it says: In this context only the last paragraph of page 24 is of interest and it says there:
The civilian population itself was poor, peace-loving, and very hospitable. They came to us with their needs and troubles. We helped them wherever we could, and usually the whole family lived off the food of the soldier quartered with them. The Greeks also shared their last with us, and almost all the units cared for the poor population out of the supplies of their field kitchens. Thus, for instance, it can be said, that the then government official SCHWEBKE, now residing in Wehdol No. 21, district Wesermuende, in the dry year of 1942, literally saved the inhabitants of Sunion from death through starvation. As happened in many other cases, he shortened the soldiers' rations and gave these, ready prepared, to the civilians. SCHWEBKE has not been forgotten there to this day, for still in 1944, he visited his friends in Sunion and they visited us also, when we were stationed in Psychikon near Athens. In the quarters Megalla, Pofko, Tripolis, Psychikon, etc.
, also, the poor population daily fetched their food. All this happened not only with the consent of General FELMY but on his express wish.
Of the man Schwebke mentioned here, I shall later on submit an affidavit.
General, will you now please continue with the description of the measures which were taken in the interest of the Greek population during your first assignment in Greece?
A. The wife of the well known Greek gynecologist Logothetopulos
Q. Will you please spell that name?
A.L-o-g-o-t-h-e-t-o-p-u-l-o-s, -- was in charge of a children's nursery. On several occasions she received subsidies in food from my intendent which was suitable for food for children and infants, such as powdered milk etc. The first aid station in Athens was on the request of Athens doctors given medicines and medical equipment because all these things were lacking there. The Greek workers who were employed in German plants received a supplementary ration which they had to eat on the premises of the plant.
Then on German Memorial Day, it was a matter of course that as a particular honor a wreath was laid down on the tomb of the Green Unknown Soldier and the troops were lined up. Although this good relation with the population was not particularly welcomed by the Italians, we still cultivated this good relation and these few examples which I have given may suffice to show our attitude towards the Greek population and to the ancient culture of that country.
In spring 1942, finally through international agreements, a generous help had been achieved for the Greek population in accordance with the so-called Calory Agreement. The Germans and Italians had to deliver from their own stocks the same number of calories as corresponded to the amount of fresh fruit and fresh vegetables which was taken from the country.
Q. In conclusion of the discussion of your first assignment in Greece, I would like to submit a number of affidavits, the first of which is contained in Document Book Felmy No. II and is Document 52 on page 14.
This will he offered under Exhibit No. 14. This is an affidavit executed by Dr. Herbert Schwoerbel who was for many years, not only during the time of the German occupation, press export of the German embassy in Athens. I am reading from the second paragraph of this affidavit on page 14;
After the occupation of Athens by German troops, a food crisis for Greece could not be avoided. Even in normal times, Greece had to import 300,000 to 500,000 tons of grain yearly. Besides also almost the entire requirements of legumes and staple food. Already during the Greek-Italian war, practically all beasts of burden had been requisitioned from the farmers with the effect that the harvest of 1941 was worse than ever. Due to the destruction of all railway bridges and the removal of all available Greek ships on the occasion of the British withdrawal from Greece the Greek internal waterways system also had broken down so that shipments from the rich Northern areas of the country to the South, and especially to Athens, were impossible. As a consequence of the British blockade against Greece also shipments by sea to Athens had become impossible. The same situation applied to the supply of all kinds of fuel, to quote only one example. The supply of electricity for Athens was entirely dependent upon the import of coal for the operation of the power plant. During the German occupation, such imports were practically impossible and the power plant could only be kept in operation by switching over to the Greek soft coal, which is of poor qualify and which produced enough heat only by the use of a supplement of liquid fuel. For that purpose the German Wehrmacht continuously availed Diesel oil for use at the power plant and, thus, forestalled its complete collapse. Also as far as the supply of food was concerned the Army, and in the first line General FELMY, rendered emergency aid that often was most badly needed. I remember that in the early days of summer 1941, on orders from General FELMY sizable supplies of Zwieback and flour were put at the disposal of Greek disabled soldiers and hospitals.
Court No. V, Case No. VII.
I am now reading from page 16, from the top of the page:
"Soon after the occupation of Athens severe divergencies of opinion became evident among a part of the military and the German Legation as to the treatment of the Greek civilian population. These existed in particular regarding the care for the supply of the Greek population. The military had only military viewpoints, they were interested only in their lines of communications and the safeguarding of the war booty. To them the need of the population was important only insofar as it might develop to a military threat. Here it war particularly General FELMY who, in contrast with many other high officers, showed understanding for the civilian views. At the time when other military spoke of the Legation as "The House of the Unsuspecting", FELMY asked me in July 1941 to see him every week and report to him about the mood, the worries and the distress of the Greek population. During these discussions, I was able to learn that FELMY had a sympathetic heart for the Greeks, quite in contrast to his Chief of Staff. Thus, in the spring of 1942, FELMY gave me the order to make a comprehensive survey about the famine in Greece and its consequences (Increase in fatalities, etc.) in order to obtain statistics with which he could negotiate in Berlin for better provisions for the population. From our weekly discussions I had the impression that FELMY was quite anxious to get along fine with the civilian population. On his suggestion there was a Sunday of Sacrifice in the fall of 1941 when the Greek population was asked to collect for the benefit of their disabled Greek war veterans. The patronage over this collection was shared by General FELMY and the Archbishop of Athens, Damaskinos, who later on became the Greek Regent."
MR. FENSTERMACHER: Your Honor, it doesn't appear from the affidavit, so far as I have been able to ascertain exactly who this man is, and how he is competent to testify to the things he does. Perhaps Dr. Mueller-Torgow could make a statement for the record identifying the man.
DR. MUELLER-TORGOW: As I have mentioned, Dr. Herbert Schwegrbel Court No. V, Case No. VII.
was, to the best of my knowledge, during the whole of the German occupation, and prior to that, press expert of the German Embassy in Athens. He is for the moment in Passau, and working there on a newspaper.
The next document I would like to offer is Document Felmy 53. It is the following document in the same document book. It is on page 18. It will be offered under Exhibit 15. This is an affidavit by Wilhelm Krekeler, and I am reading this affidavit.
"General of the Airforce FELMY came practically every weekend from Athens to his Staff at Sunion (during the period from August 41 July 42), and we spent with him on Sunday mornings, particularly in officers training, interesting and instructive hours. At such occasions, we often had the opportunity to find in him an extremely experienced soldier and benevolent superior, who was familiar with all phases of the art of war -- at least so it seemed to us young officers. But we also found in him a fatherly friend and a man who was always ready to help and who, in my opinion, had complete understanding for the great distress of the Greek population. During my time, there was an order prohibiting the troops to buy food inclusive of fruit from the Greek civilian population. Such purchases were severely punished, regardless of whether they were for personal use or for the troops. I can no longer say whether this order was issued by the former General of the Airforce, FELMY, however, I think I have to assume that, since he was Commander in Chief of Southern Greece at the time."
The affiant Krekeler was at the time to be with the Special Staff F. In this capacity he worked on personnel matters of non-commissioned officers and men.
The next document I am going to offer is Document 54, contained on page 19. This will become Exhibit 16. It is an affidavit executed by one Karl Woehrle:
"I was stationed in Greece as a medical man from the beginning to the end of the German occupation there and part of the time under the command of General FELMY, and from my own experience and hearsay I remember Court No. V, Case No. VII.
the following:
"General FELMY was known as being just and thoughtful both toward his own troops as also toward the Greek population and he, therefore, was respected by both sides and loved and esteemed like a father by the troops under his command. Beyond his official duties General FELMY protected the civilian population against unauthorized acts on the part of Italian troops. In order to secure the food supply for the civilian population, he even, at times, put the supply of the German troops on second place by cutting their rations. Offenses against his orders by the German troops were severely punished by German courtsmartial."
The next document which I am going to offer is Document 55 on the next page, page 20. This will become Exhibit 17. This is an affidavit executed by one Peter Landenberger, which I don't want to read here, since in substance it says the same as the affidavit just read by Woehrle.
The next document I am going to offer is an affidavit by Friedrich Bulach. This is Document No. 57 on page 22, and it will receive Exhibit No. 18. It says in this affidavit:
"I was assigned as a non-commissioned officer to the special staff F in Greece (Cape Sunion).
"I myself was never directly a witness to the partisan movement during my stay in Greece. Indirectly all members of the Wehrmacht were affected by it, because as a consequence of the constant surprise attacks of the bands and acts of sabotage on the railway lines (especially also in Serbia) the supply of foodstuffs for the troops in Greece was often very scarce and insufficient. That the German Military Command had no intention to make the civilian population pay for the shortage, can be proved by the fact that all members of the Wehrmacht and its units were strictly forbidden to purchase additional foodstuffs from the civilian population, although in our area comparatively large herds of goats were kept. The black market and its harmful influence upon a just Court No. V, Case No. VII.
distribution of goods was insofar effectively checked, that any kind of barter and any trading by members of the Wehrmacht was severely punished.
"I could gain only the best impression of General FELMY as a man and superior. Personally I met Herr FELMY only rarely. (For instance at inspections.)
"General FELMY never put his person or his position into the lime-light and always dealt with his subordinates as man to man. Today after five years, I cannot recollect any more, what particular events induced me to this impression, but nevertheless I have won from the observations at that time, the firm conviction (perhaps partly also from what I heard from my comrades who often came into contact with General FELMY) that he was a man, who in the execution of his duties, was guided to a large extent by feelings of humanity and common sense and who therefore considered the use of mere force to be an inadequate way for the solution of a problem and who used force only, when he really had no other choice. I always had the impression that General FELMY even intervened to a large degree in the interest of the Greek population and that thanks to his sensible and intelligent attitude, the Greek population had been spared many hardships of the war which were caused by the specially prevailing conditions, or that they had been reduced at least to a minimum."
The next affidavit which I would like to offer in this connection is one contained in Document Book III Felmy. This is executed by. one Dr. Altenburg. It is document 84 on page 52. It will be offered under Exhibit No. 19.
MR. FENSTERMACHER: Your Honor, I object to the admission of this document. I believe the affiant Altenburg is at the present time in the Nurnberg prison and could be readily called for examination.
DR. MUELLER-TORGOW: If it please the Tribunal I submit that the Prosecution call Dr. Alterburg for cross-examination, if they wish to do this, but I would like to read the affidavit first.
MR. FENSTERMACHER: Your Honor, please, there is a previous Court No. V, Case No. VII.
ruling of the Tribunal, I believe, that in the case of any affiant living or residing in Nurnberg, he be called for examination. I believe that would cover this case. The affidavit will not be admitted in evidence, but he must be called for direct-examination.
JUDGE CARTER: I think that is in accordance with the previous ruling of the Tribunal. If a witness is available here in Nurnberg the witness should be called rather than have the affidavit read.
The objection will be sustained.
DR. MUELLER-TORGOW: If it please the Tribunal, that brings me to the end of the discussion of the first assignment of General Felmy in Greece.
Before I come to deal with the second assignment in Greece, I would like to deal with a document, which according to its date, falls between the periods between the first and second assignment in Greece. This document is contained in Document Book IX of the Prosecution, on page 28 of the English text, and page 41 of the German text. The document number is C-81 and the exhibit number is 225. The exhibit number, 225. The document concerned is an order given on the 18th October 1942 by the Fuehrer and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. It is a supplementary order to the so-called Commando Order which has been discussed here frequently. The Commando Order itself, which is NO-498 PS,Exhibit 598, has been submitted as a loose document by the Prosecution after the other document had been introduced.
Q General, did those two orders reach you at the time?
AAt the time when that order was issued I was no longer in Greece. Towards the end of August I was transferred to the Southeast with the Corps Headquarters, and the order did not apply for the East. To the best of my knowledge I did not receive it from any agency whatsoever. In spite of this fact I knew it. How I got to know it, whether I heard of it by way of conversation, I can no longer tell you.
Q In order to clarify this question right now in this connection, was the Commando Order practically applied during your second assignment in Greece?
A Well, I know of two cases where British officers were not treated in accordance with this Commando Order, although they were members of the sabotage unit. Instead they were treated as prisoners of war.
Q And what should have happened to them according to this order?
A They should have been turned over to the SD if they had not been killed in combat. That is what the order contained.
Q As a clue I would like to mention to yon the case of McGregor?
A I remember quite well the case of McGregor, who was a British captain, because this case was reported to me by my Arabic Battalion in the spring of 1944. This man was taken prisoner at that time together with his companion Lt. Capsis. This capture, however, did not occur during combat action. Two officers were confronted one night in the open. Captain McGregor immediately stated that he was a British officer. He wore a British uniform, and only wore a camouflage jacket over his uniform. We reported the incident to higher agencies, and explained that these two officers would not fall into the category of the Commando Order, because they were not captured during a combat action or during a sabotage act. They were just captured. Also they were not attempting to hide the fact that they were officers. Both Army Groups E and F shared our opinion, but the OKW refused this point of view, and ordered that these two officers be turned over to the SD. My 1c, Captain Kleykamp had a good idea. We reported to the OKW that the names of the two officers had, by mistake, been mentioned to the representative of the Swiss Red Cross, who generally took care of the prisoners of war, and thus these prisoners had become known to the International Red Cross. If they disappeared they would cause some excitement necessarily. In actual fact these names had intentionally been made known to the Swiss Red Cross in order to create a pretext not to have to hand them over to the SD. These statements and explanations had to be accepted. by the OKW and this agency therefore ordered that these two officers be treated as prisoners of war, and sent to a camp in Germany. That was done and the Corps Headquarters put up the guards and escorts. I am also convinced that the OKW did not submit the decision of this case to Hitler, but instead in the final analysis accepted all statements and explanations. In this way we managed to circumvent the order.
DR. MUELLER-TORGOW: Following up these statements I would like to present the affidavit of Captain Kleykamp, the just mentioned Ic of the XVIII Corps.
This is Document Felmy 59, in Document Book Felmy II. It will he offered under Exhibit 19. On page 40 in the Document Book II we find this affidavit. Here is one chapter of this affidavit, under Roman Numeral VI "British Liaison officers with Elas." In this chapter the incident just described is mentioned by Kleykamp, and therefore I do not want to read this particular part.
MR. FENSTERMACHER: Your Honor, may I object to this document for the smile reason as the preceding one offered? The affiant here is, I believe, still in the Nurnberg prison, and the affidavit mentions, of course, that the person executed it in Nurnberg.
DR. MUELLER-TORGOW: If it please the Tribunal, I just assumed that Captain Kleykamp was no longer present in Nurnberg, and I don't believe he is still here. I believe he is by now back in the British zone. Should he still be here I shall, of course, call him as a witness.
MR. FENSTERMACHER: I withdraw my objection, Your Honor, until I can ascertain definitely whether or not the man is still in the Numbers prison, with the provision I be permitted to have it stricken if that should be true.
JUDGE CARTER: Is that agreeable to defense counsel?
DR. MUELLER-TORGOW: Yes, Your Honor. As I said, I didn't want to read this Chapter VI, which says the same as has been described just now by General Felmy.
The next document which will be submitted is contained in Document Book III for Felmy, and this is Document 74 on page 28. It will be offered under Exhibit 20. This is an affidavit executed by one Franz Borstorff. This affidavit I should like to read Court No. V, Case No. VII.
"From December 1943 until 17 December 1944 I was interpreter for the English language at the General Staff of the LXVIII Army Corps which had been stationed in Greece during most of this time. I. a. it was one my tasks there to interrogate British prisoners-of-war. They often were prisoners-of-war who had taken part in operations and battles on the Greek islands, therefore not falling within the area of the LXVIII Corps. They were, however, brought to the Corps Headquarters, and the Corps Ic (this was Kleykamp) was ordered by the Army Group to interrogate them immediately and find out from them important facts, before the prisoners were transported to another place.
"On two occasions I interrogated British prisoners, who should have been treated according to the so-called command-order of HITLER. I do not know the exact contents of the order, but I know that members of Commando groups and sabotage details, as well as liaison officers with the bands had to be turned over to the SD, which had to shoot them.
"This order was not carried out by the LXVIII Army Corps. In reference to this I can make the following statement:
"1.) In the spring of 1944, in the course of an operation carried out by troops of the LXVIII Corps against ELAS partisans in the western Attika-Boeotia, two British officers, Captain McGREGOR and Lt. CAPSIS were taken prisoner. They were brought to the staff of the Corps at Athens and were interrogated by the Ic of the Corps and by me. The interrogations disclosed that Captain McGREGOR and Lt. CAPSIS were British Liaison Officers with an ELAS unit."
MR. FENSTERMACHER: May it please Your Honor, I have just noticed that this affiant is a resident of Erlangen, which is no more than 10 kilometers from here. I think the Court's ruling should apply in this case just as the same as if he lived in Nurnberg proper.
JUDGE CARTER: The difficulty is we have to have some kind of a measuring stick to handle this sort of thing. I think the reason we Court No. V, Case No. VII.
limited to Nurnberg is most of them are here in the prison and if not, they are where they could be immediately called. It Seems to me if we include Erlangen in that group, we might as well start including those which are further away. The objection will be over-ruled.
DR. MUELLER-TORGOW: If I may add something to this, Your Honor, I am principally prepared to call this witness here.
JUDGE CARTER: Well, of course you can do as you see fit about that, but the objection of the Prosecution is over-ruled.
BY DR. MUELLER-TORGOW:
Q I may continue with the affidavit:
"Captain McGREGOR had been dropped by parachute some time ago and had carried out the order to blow up an important bridge in Central Greece. In compliance with his orders he then established liaison with the ELAS. As British Liaison officer, among other duties, he had to supervise the distribution of the supplies dropped by airplanes (weapons, ammunition, explosives, money, etc.). His relations to the bands were no longer sufficiently good of late. Lt. CAPSIS cooperated with Captain McGREGOR; he was the interpreter. He had, by the way, been "on leave" in Athens in January 1944. and had stayed there in civilian attire for a considerable period of time. Both British officers should have been handed over to the SD after the interrogation. This, however,did not happen.
"On the contrary, the Corps held the opinion against the Army Group that the British officers had to be treated as prisoners-of-war and that they had to be taken to a prisoner-of-war camp. I am not informed about details in this matter; however, I know that this lasted several weeks. One day I received the order from the Ic, to give Captain McGREGOR's name to the Swiss Red Cross; Lt. CAPSIS' name had been registered already some time before that. Such reports were frequently made in the case of British prisoners--of-war, in order to have the Red Cross take care of them (notification of next of kin, supply with additional food and cigarettes). The Swiss Red Cross then actually took Court No. V, Case No. VII.
care of Lt. CAPSIS and Captain McGREGOR and repeatedly inquired at the Corps when they would be transferred to a prisoner-of-war camp.
"Under guard of men of the LXVIII Army Corps Headquarters, Captain McGREGOR and Lt. CAPSIS were taken to the Prisoner-of-War Camp of Moosburg near Munich at about the beginning of July 1944. They were recognized as prisoners of war.
"Concerning the treatment of both officers by the LXVIII Army Corps Headquarters, I can in addition state the following:
"Captain McGREGOR had asked to be permitted to buy cigarettes with the Greek money in his possession. By order of the Corps Ic I thereupon bought cigarettes for him and gave them to him. As cigarettes could only be obtained on the Black Market I took Lt. CAPSIS along for this purchase so that he might check on the high prices. On this occasion I complied with the wish of Lt. CAPSIS to see the Akropolis and besides that I took him by car 20 km outside of Athens to see his Greek girlfriend. At that time Lt. CAPSIS wore his British uniform and I wore the German uniform.
"All this happened with General FELMY's approval.
"Lt. CAPSIS wrote his Cairo address into my note-book and invited me to visit him at his home after the war. His address was and then the address follows."
I have repeatedly tried to get an affidavit from this Lt. Capsis in Cairo, but unfortunately I did not receive any reply from him. The affiant then goes on to describe a further incident under paragraph 2:
"First Lieutenant John LODWICK had landed on Crete as the leader of a Commando group. His order was to blow up a great gasoline depot on the island. He stayed there for some time, waiting for an opportunity. About 200,000 gallons of gasoline were destroyed by the blast. After the blowing-up he and a Technical Sergeant were taken prisoner, taken to the Greek mainland and turned over to the LXVIII Army Corps Headquarters. He had done great damage to the German Wehrmacht.
"Apart from the operation on the Isle of Crete he had carried Court No. V, Case No. VII.
out successfully several Kommando operations in the Dodekanese area. Besides that he told us that he repeatedly had made parachute landings behind the German lines on the coast of the English Channel and had carried out sabotage operations even there. Although these facts were known, LODWICK otherwise was treated as a prisoner-of-war and was turned over to a German prisoner-of-war camp, via Saloniki."
I would like to add here that at a later time I shall submit an affidavit here by John Lodwick, which was sent to me from northern France, where he is at the present time. He would like to come to Nurnber, as he said to me, but neither the American Defense Center nor the British delegation managed to decide the currency question so that he could come here.
Later on I shall also submit an affidavit by McGregor, which also arrived here. McGregor is at the moment in Northern Rhodesia, South Africa.
Furthermore I want to submit from document book Felmy 5 a document which is No. 96 on page 29. This will be offered under exhibit No. 21. This is a draft of a secret order concerning new information concerning commando and sabotage squads.
I don't want to read this document, but I would like to point out generally that this document also shows that here in the area of the 1st Panzer Division, members of commando squads were treated as prisoners of war. This brings me to the end of my discussion of the so-called commando order.
General, when and with what commission did you arrive in Greece for the second time?
A Since the intention of the OKW was to commit the corps headquarters in Tunis and since this intention had been rendered invalid through the course of the events in May of 1943 I was for the second time transferred to Greece. The corps headquarters was put in charge of the 1st Panzer Division and the 117th Rifle Division and later one or two Italian divisions. The corps headquarters in turn was subordinated Court No. V, Case No. VII.