April 25, 1937
Vitoria, Basque Country, Northern Spain The Nationalist faction's northern offensive was going smoothly. The first target of the offensive was the Basque Country, located in the eastern part of north-central Spain.
From the start, the Basque people had a conservative disposition and their inclinations were different from the left-wing progressive Republican faction governnt, especially the anarchists who made up the majority.
However, the Basque people had strong regional separatist tendencies and disliked the Nationalist faction, which advocated for one strong Spain, so they sided with the Republican faction after being promised expanded autonomy.
The Nationalist Governnt, led by Franco, took note of this point and began their offensive, promising peaceful treatnt upon surrender, and it worked.
The Basque army, whose disposition was different from the Republican faction governnt to begin with and had been all but abandoned, had low morale, and many fell for the Nationalist Governnt's promise, beginning a continuous retreat.
anwhile, the Condor Legion supported the ground forces' advance while faithfully carrying out 'mistaken bombings' at Franco's request.
Given that the one who requested it was Franco himself, he probably never intended to keep his promise of peaceful treatnt from the start.
In this offensive, Lieutenant Colonel Richthofen, leading the Luftwaffe, rained down incendiary bombs on the cities of Otxandio and Durango, which had virtually no air defenses, and naturally, civilian casualties mounted.
He loved incendiary bombs much, much, seriously more than I knew from modern tis.
He used incendiary bombs in every operation, and he even insisted on piloting a bomber to carry out the bombings himself, despite his rank not requiring it.
If he t Arthur Harris, who bombed Dresden, or Curtis LeMay, who led the Great Tokyo Air Raid, they'd probably die of joy together.
None of them would ever have to et the people on the ground, screaming as they clutched their burned families.
Aside from that, I learned quite a lot about air force operations while following him around and submitted several reports to my superiors.
I deliberately tried to kill my modern sensibility while writing them, so I hope the superiors like it.
But surprisingly, the bombing maniac Richthofen and I got along quite well.
To the point where I wondered if it was okay for soone with mories of a modern person.
Thanks to my rough knowledge of World War II air force doctrine, the topics of conversation with Richthofen never ran dry.
In particular, Richthofen's idea of establishing combined arms cooperation by building ground-to-air communication using dive bombing and radios was a core doctrine of the World War II German Air Force.
When I added comnts about necessary parts or anticipated problems with the doctrine, which had not yet been fully verified in actual combat, he was very satisfied, and as he also taught
Spanish, we had grown quite close over the month we spent together.
"First Lieutenant, do you really have no thoughts of transferring to the Luftwaffe?"
"I'm sorry, but no, Lieutenant Colonel."
"Don't be like that, think about it again.
The Luftwaffe has quite a few personnel from the Army, so it won't be difficult to adapt. You don't have to be a pilot.
There are airborne divisions, and for a person like you with a deep understanding of air force doctrine, I'd strongly recomnd you. Promotions will be faster than in the bloated Army."
How many tis have I refused his half-serious, half-joking suggestions to transfer? It seems he's taken quite a liking to , but regrettably, I have to go to Berlin no matter what, so I was doing my best to get into the War Academy.
Besides, the Luftwaffe, under the influence of its chief Hermann G??ring, was the most pro-Nazi military branch among the three that made up the Wehrmacht: the Army, Navy, and Air Force. For , who was thinking of driving out the Nazis, it was an unacceptable offer.
Even after falling for Bormann's conspiracy at the end of the war and being stripped of all his authority, and even after Hitler died and his drug addiction was treated by the Allied Forces during the War Cris Trial, G??ring remained absolutely loyal to Hitler.
He was also Hitler's official successor and the Nazi Party's second-in-command.
In other words, he was not a person who could be persuaded in the first place.
While we were having our not-quite-a-cody-routine, a ssenger ca and delivered a telegram.
Anyone watching would think I was Lieutenant Colonel Richthofen's adjutant.
No, since I was the interpreter anyway, I was already being used frugally like that about half the ti.
"Lieutenant Colonel, it's a request from General Mola. The Republican faction is trying to pass through Guernica to retreat, but a flood of refugees is making their withdrawal difficult. He's asking us to cut off their retreat route by destroying the bridge."
"Oh, it's ti to sortie."
Richthofen said with a grin.
Guernica, Guernica. I've heard that na a lot sowhere.
After a mont's thought, I was able to recall it. Guernica, the city where a great massacre was committed by the Luftwaffe.
It was famous because Picasso depicted its horrific sight in a painting.
"Are you going out yourself again this ti, Lieutenant Colonel?"
"Of course! An air force that doesn't fly planes is a dead air force.
Haha!"
"…Didn't you say I could join the air force without being a pilot?"
"Ahem. That's just an expression, First Lieutenant."
I had beco close enough to Richthofen to exchange jokes.
Honestly, I'm incredibly nervous, but…
One of the most resolute figures in the Luftwaffe at the end of World War II, Adolf Galland, has a history of openly defying the Army's 'Emphasis Order' (an order to participate in genocide), claiming he was in the Air Force and thus would not follow an Army order.
And that sa Adolf Galland, so gentlemanly that he refused to commit not only war cris but also kill confirmation on downed enemies, was said to have missed Richthofen, who had retired due to his health, while clashing with G??ring, who had beco a hopeless case due to severe drug addiction late in the war.
So, although this man was a problematic person who enjoyed burning civilians, there was a high possibility that he was at least not the type of person to interfere with his subordinates' beliefs and tattle to his superiors.
"Since the target is the destruction of the bridge, we won't need incendiary or anti-personnel bombs this ti, Lieutenant Colonel."
Richthofen flinched for a mont, then answered with a broad smile.
"Oh. What's this, First Lieutenant? Should I take this to an you've started to seriously consider a branch transfer?"
"That's not it, but…"
"We'll be using a variety of aerial bombs as usual for this sortie, First Lieutenant. Our mission isn't just to fight, but to ascertain the effectiveness of our weapons on the battlefield and report it to our ho country."
Does this man think that 'effectiveness' includes how effectively civilians are killed, or did the Luftwaffe high command request such data?
"But Lieutenant Colonel, as you were told, there are many civilians, with refugees flooding in to the point that it's hindering the enemy's retreat.
Using anti-personnel bombs on such a battlefield could cause not only the retreating enemy units but also the civilians serious…"
"Damage will occur. But is that a problem, First Lieutenant? From the mont the enemy entered that city, Guernica beca an engagent zone. You wouldn't know since you haven't bombed before, but precision bombing is not easy yet due to technical issues."
Before the developnt of heavy bombers capable of outright carpet bombing during World War II, the issue of bombing precision was famous.
It's also why dive bombing, which was difficult and dangerous but at least guaranteed so precision, beca the trend.
"There's no guarantee we can destroy the bridge precisely, so it's important to drop as many bombs as possible over a wide area. Even if we can't destroy the bridge, it's good if the enemy takes damage, and you said refugees? Then they must be commies fleeing from the Nationalist faction. Se??or Franco will be pleased."
“…”
His words were as rciless as ever, but if he countered with technical issues beyond the moral ones, I had nothing more to say.
"I know what you're trying to say. A Prussian chivalrous attitude is good. But if you're truly loyal to the nation, you should also consider the best path to victory."
Fortunately, Richthofen seed to understand it as a classic soldier's stance, and without any sign of displeasure, he clapped my shoulder and ordered the sortie.
I know a massacre will happen, but I can't stop it. Even knowing the future, at this mont, in a position this low, I couldn't do anything.
I have to climb to a high position. As quickly as possible.
---
The horrific sight of Guernica was featured in huge headlines in the newspapers.
[A Peaceful Pyrenean City Becos Ruins of Death!]
[German Fascists Burn Freedom and Justice]
In the end, Richthofen and the Luftwaffe destroyed Guernica in grand fashion.
The previous 'collateral damage' they had caused, at most the bombing of a religious ceremony 'mistaken for Republican Army forces' that resulted in 250 civilian casualties, could be passed off as a mistake during a military operation.
But Guernica, by the official request of General Emilio Mola, the Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Offensive, was bombed for a full four hours, designated as an official military target while being full of refugees and residents.
The most advanced German air force doctrine by Interwar Period standards—building airfields near the front line and bombing in rotations—proved its power by turning the small city into complete ruins, with a result of at least a thousand deaths.
And because it was proven so well, the Condor Legion's participation in the Spanish Civil War, which had been kept quiet, could no longer be hidden.
Everyone now knew it was the German Air Force that had burned Guernica.
The French public opinion, already friendly to the Republican faction, went into chaos, but they wouldn't be able to do anything for now anyway, because Britain was tied down by the lobbying of Spanish capitalists who were afraid of the commies.
France would try to go to war with Germany several tis during the Interwar Period, but in the end, it would be dragged along by Britain until the Munich Agreent happened and the Invasion of Poland began.
The fact that the bombing of Guernica was known to the world as a German military atrocity was interpreted in a fascist-like way by Franco's Nationalist faction governnt and the Nazi high command.
Italy had lost face by suffering a crushing defeat at Guadalajara despite deploying a large military force, but Germany had proven the superiority of the Luftwaffe with only a small number of volunteer units.
Lieutenant Colonel Richthofen was summoned to Burgos, the temporary capital of the Nationalist faction, to receive a dal from Franco, and thanks to that, I, who was serving as an interpreter and army advisor (read: stand-in adjutant), was off-duty.
"What chaos…"
I was off-duty, eating at a village restaurant and reading the newspaper, but soone reacted to the German I muttered to myself.
"What's chaos?"
Is he around my age? He looked to be in his early to mid-twenties.
"Who are you?"
"Ah, my apologies. I'm Willy Brandt, a special correspondent from Norway."
The man spoke, showing his passport while feigning a friendly smile, but the mont I heard his na, I imdiately recalled sothing.
"Willy Brandt?"
"Yes, that's the na for now. Is there a problem…?"
Brandt seed to be cautiously observing , but he didn't seem to think I knew his true identity.
Of course, neither the fact that Willy Brandt is a pseudonym, nor he himself, are very well known right now. But I know!
He is a figure who acted as a leader for the German Social Democrats who fled abroad during World War II.
And what's more famous is the incident where, as Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany that would be established after the war, he knelt before the Warsaw Ghetto morial.
He was the person who first began the de-Nazification in the social atmosphere of post-war Germany, which was not much different from 21st-century Japan, and must be seen as the one who initiated modern Germany's status as a leader of the European Union.
"Ah, no. I'm Dietrich Schacht, here as a volunteer soldier."
"Schacht, you say…"
It was an interesting situation.
Even though he was pretending to be a Norwegian reporter, this man was one of the core mbers of the German Social Democrats.
Naturally, he couldn't possibly like or be unaware of my father, Hjalmar Schacht, a staunch supporter of the free market economy and a representative of the wealthy class.
Just by hearing my surna, this person seed to have figured out who my father was.
And I also knew that he wasn't just a Norwegian reporter, but a clear German and a key figure in the social democratic anti-Nazi movent.
For such a person to be brazenly wandering around in Nationalist-occupied territory. Then again, hadn't he once infiltrated Berlin disguised as a Norwegian student?
"You seem to be a volunteer soldier from Germany, could I conduct a brief interview?"
"Haha, I'm just a re volunteer soldier. I'm not in a position to be interviewed."
As soone who was sowhat favorable to social democracy and knew that he would remain a great figure in modern Germany, eting Willy Brandt was quite a heart-pounding situation, but…
Still, the professional ethics of reporters aren't very trustworthy for
to run my mouth carelessly.
It's like that even in the 21st century, so is there even a need to ntion it now?
"The interview isn't anything grand, so you can think of it lightly. I'd like to ask what you, as a German, think about the recent Guernica air raid."
This guy said it wasn't anything grand, but look at him throwing a straight ball?
After this, where's the guarantee that so bizarre incident won't break out, with my thoughtless words being sensationalized as the words of the son of the Minister of Finance of Nazi Germany?
"Hmm.
Before I answer, may I ask you one thing, Mr. Brandt?"
"Ah, of course.
What are you curious about?"
He has a good-natured laugh, but co to think of it, this great German Chancellor's private life is not very good. There's no guarantee that soone with a bad private life has a good personality, right?
"As a social democrat, do you really think the current Republican faction are representatives of the Spanish populace? Or are they just puppets of the Soviet Union, Herr Frahm?"
I acted out of extre spite.
Willy Brandt, his face pale, tried to shoot up from his seat, but I grabbed his arm and sat him back down.
"H-How did you know that?"
"Shhh.
You're not naively thinking there are no Gestapo (Nazi Germany's Secret State Police) here, are you?"
Frahm is Willy Brandt's real na. I don't rember his full na, but I rember the surna because his political enemies, who sneered at Willy Brandt for being an illegitimate child during a German election, used slogans like 'Absolutely no to Frahm'.
Whether it was because he was still young, or because he was faced with an impossible situation, that Willy Brandt was completely shaken by my Gestapo bluff.
The fact that I'm not just so German grunt but the son of a high-ranking Nazi official must be clouding his judgnt even more.
"I, I'm not, what on earth…"
"Haha, relax. You are Mr. Willy Brandt, a Norwegian reporter. Only I know for now, so don't worry too much."
I tried to speak with a friendly smile—mimicking the one Brandt had just shown—but his face grew even paler.
Damn, it backfired.
The truth is, I'm a person who is sowhat sympathetic to social democracy, so aside from his chaotic private life, I actually had a fairly good impression of Willy Brandt…
In the end, I sighed and opened my mouth.
"It's chaos. Total chaos.
If things continue like this, both Germany and the world will all burn, Mr. Brandt.
Spain is finished anyway. The so-called 'Free World' has no intention of helping the Republican faction achieve the diplomatic victory they desire."
As if he was already convinced that I was a mber of the Gestapo, Willy Brandt said nothing, his face bewildered even at my words.
Since making a good impression is already a lost cause, I'll drive the nail in the coffin.
"The politicians of democratic countries are interested in the lobbying of Spanish capitalists, not how many people will die.
Especially not for a Republican faction where the Soviet Union's influence is growing stronger. On top of that, your German citizenship will be revoked next year.
You'd better think about getting your Norwegian citizenship in advance."
Willy Brandt's expression beca more and more of a spectacle, but this kind of stuff can't be thrown to the press even as a tabloid story anyway.
Let alone by an exile who fled from Nazi Germany.
"Soon, Austria will be annexed by Germany, and a problem will arise with the German region of Czechoslovakia, the Sudetenland. So, stop wasting your ti here, abandoned by the world, and go gather the social democrats."
Right now, he's probably thinking, what is this crazy talk? In fact, Willy Brandt's face was that of soone looking at a madman.
Ignoring him, I started to finish my al, and in the brief silence where only my chewing sounds could be heard, Willy Brandt stood up and left as if possessed by a ghost.
Will he do as I said? I don't know for sure, but he will get out of Spain.
If nothing else, from the mont so guy, whether he's Gestapo or not, has identified his status as a target of Nazi purges here in Spain, he cannot stay here.
Still, he will continue to be in a position to lead the social democrats who fled Germany, and I, who recited a history he could never have known now, might seem like a madman at the mont, but when those events actually happen, I will be clearly imprinted on him.
It was sothing I did half on impulse, but this has certainly cleared up my thoughts.
It's not just because I'm a first lieutenant; as long as Nazi Germany exists, World War II will eventually happen.
It will unfold in the most tragic form, most cruelly, and end with the most devastating result for the culprits who started it.
When so many of the Wehrmacht's field marshals are being dismissed simply for falling out of favor with Hitler, and purged under the pretext of having committed treason against the Führer and Germany, rank is not the issue.
Therefore, to prevent Germany from being ruined as a nation of war criminals and to change the future, to survive as a human being in this age of madness, I must act now.
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