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15 April 1945 Eisenhower’s Order to Halt at the Elbe |
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The rapid conquest of Germany in April led to a new
disagreement in the Allied ranks. British commanders, especially Montgomery, argued that there
was now nothing to stop the Allies from sweeping into Berlin, thus seizing the German capital before
the advancing Soviet army could get there. Eisenhower, however, had other ideas. On March 28 he
sent a message to the Soviet dictator, Josef Stalin, informing him that the U.S.-British advance
would focus on western Germany, and on April 15 he issued a new set of orders forbidding Allied
commanders from crossing the Elbe River. Instead the British were to concentrate on taking the
port cities of northern Germany, while U.S. forces were to head south toward the Danube.
Eisenhower’s decision was motivated by two factors. First, he knew that Stalin intended for his own troops to have the honor of capturing the German capital, and Eisenhower was unwilling to risk offending the Soviet leader. Second, he had received word from Allied intelligence that Hitler was planning on making a final stand in the Alps, and therefore wanted to concentrate his forces in the south. In any case, Montgomery was appalled, and to this day Eisenhower’s refusal to take Berlin remains one of the most controversial military decisions of the war. History: Campaign Map: Personal Accounts: Photographs: |
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