Why General Dostler Was Executed By Firing Squad D

On the 1st of December, 1945, a 54-year-old experienced German army general was then out to a firing range where his execution was about to take place. A priest accompanied him to listen to his final words, and the general was then tied tightly to a wooden stake which was placed some distance away from where his firing squad was being gathered.

As the executioners looked down the barrel of their rifles, which were pointed at their target, stood opposite them was a man of greater rank than them who was blindfolded and ready for his life to come to an end. General Anton Dostler had fought in both World Wars, but during the Second World War, he insisted on an illegal order being carried out that led to the executions of 15 American prisoners of war in March 1944.

When the end of the Second World War came around, his crimes were very well known about, and he was tried and condemned for this. But there were many other reasons why specifically Dostler was executed by firing squad and was not, for example, hanged on a gallows. So, why was this? General Anton Dostler was a veteran soldier of the First World War, and during the Second World War, he commanded different forces.

He served as the chief of staff of the 7th Army and then the commander of the 57th Infantry Division and then the 163rd Infantry Division. He was later appointed the commander of the Venetian coast in 1944, and he was, in theory, a rather senior German figure during the occupation of these lands. But Dostler served well, and he was a military traditionalist, and he was someone who was very well versed in following orders which had been passed from a superior.

On the 22nd of March, 1944, 15 soldiers of the American army landed on the Italian coast close to La Spezia. They were behind the established front lines and behind enemy lines, and they were all dressed in field uniform of the United States Army. This point is very important, as later they would be shot as spies and saboteurs, but they were clearly dressed as American soldiers.

If they were dressed in disguise, such as even wearing enemy uniforms or wearing civilian clothes, if captured, then they would, rightfully and could have legally, been shot and viewed as spies following a court-martial. But this was not the case. A few days after they landed, they were captured by a group of German soldiers and Italian fascists.

Their mission had been to blow up an important railway tunnel, which would then disrupt traffic from La Spezia to Genoa. Following their capture, the Americans were transferred to the headquarters of the 135th Fortress Brigade, and the man who was tasked with overseeing these men was a German colonel named Almers.

He knew the situation involving the Americans, and he knew they could not be legally executed, and that they should have been processed as prisoners of war. However, during their interrogations, one officer told them everything, and this information was then sent to General Dostler, including that it was a commando raid.

Dostler spoke to his superior, Field Marshal Albert Kesselring, and he said that the men should all be executed. Dostler then insisted that Colonel Almers have his troops execute the Americans in accordance with the Commando Order of 1942, which stated that any captured enemy commandos or saboteurs should be shot after being taken prisoner by the Wehrmacht in the field with very few questions asked.

Colonel Almers did not feel comfortable with performing this, and he knew it would be a war crime, but General Dostler insisted that this must be done. Almers’ appeals did not work, and because of this, the 15 Americans were all executed, and their bodies were then dumped and buried in a mass grave.

One of Dostler’s own staff had even refused to sign the execution order, and because of this, he was actually fired. Dostler was later brought to trial for his crimes at the end of the Second World War, and a military tribunal found him guilty of war crimes. He tried to defend himself, saying he was only passing the order which Field Marshal Kesselring had given to him, but nevertheless, the judge sentenced him to death.

The whole case rested on the fact that the Americans had not been wearing a disguise, but had been dressed actually in proper American uniform. On the 1st of December, 1945, shortly before 8:00 a.m., General Anton Dostler was led out to a firing range, and he was tied and secured to the wooden stake at the bottom of this.

He was tied tightly and could not move, and also a black hood was placed over his head. He was dressed in army uniform, but then after the priest and military officials all stepped away, the firing squad shot and fired their bullets into a motionless General Dostler, and he was immediately killed.

There was no need for a coup de grace gunshot to his head. His body was then placed onto a stretcher and was then buried in a nearby cemetery. He was one of only two Nazi war criminals executed by the Americans who were shot. So, why specifically was he given a firing squad execution rather than, say, hanging? A firing squad was a traditional method of execution for military officials and also soldiers.

It was seen as rather respectable as a method of death for an officer as opposed to hanging. It was also seen as a formal military punishment rather than a method used to condemn a common criminal. Because Dostler was a general convicted by a military tribunal, execution by firing squad was considered the most appropriate punishment and military sentence.

This was different to the Nuremberg trials, in which the remaining top-ranking Nazis were not condemned by a military court, but were instead tried by what was an international tribunal, and they were all declared criminals. Firing squad would have been the method of execution that Anton Dostler would have actually requested should he have also had the choice.

He was a man who had a long-standing history and tradition with the German military, having served since World War I. This was a sentence associated with military justice, and being executed by a firing squad reflected his status as a general and a uniformed officer rather than an ordinary civilian criminal.

It was also rather common practice at the time for the Allies to execute condemned military officials and soldiers by firing squad. Throughout World War II, a number of American soldiers were shot by their own forces for committing military offenses, so this method was one which was used. It required very little preparation, no specialist equipment needed to be constructed, only a suitable place needed to be found, and a piece of wood sunk into the ground to tie him to and act as a stake.

But why didn’t the Americans choose hanging as a way of punishing him further and also further disgracing him? After all, it was American soldiers that Dostler was responsible for having executed. Sometimes hanging was seen as more dishonorable, but it was ultimately the military nature of the court proceedings and the trial that led to Dostler’s sentence.

The aim was not to make him a symbol of humiliation, but to bring about a fair and just sentence upon a man who had condemned fellow American soldiers. Changing the rules and nature of the time with executions could have shown the Americans in a bad light and could have made them seem more ruthless rather than just.

So, General Anton Dostler was executed by firing squad because he was a military and army general, and he was condemned by what was ultimately a military court. In the immediate period after the end of the Second World War, firing squad was seen as a normal military execution method for officers. Hanging and other methods were reserved for civilian criminals and those who were guilty of criminal punishments rather than a military offense.

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