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THE COVENANTER
hardly add that the days of mobile phones happy to discuss issues about the allegations
lay in the distant future! he faced at his trial. By that time he had
Later, I learned from Tim O’Reilly that he been subjected to so many interviews and
still was encountering difficulties about examinations both by the U.S. and British
security. While sleeping accommodation interrogators, that probably he was past
had been arranged on the night train, he caring about being guarded. He was charged
found that Kesselring’s sleeping berth was with firstly, having ordered the execution of
located in the ‘public’ part of the train, and Italians in Rome (the episode is still known
as soon as he and his party were boarded, in Italy as The Ardeatine Cave Murders
word spread about our prisoner. The result (335 Italian citizens shot) as a reprisal to a
was a long queue of U.S. soldiers seeking bombing by resistance fighters in the city
Kesselring‘s autograph, a request O’Reilly that killed many German Soldiers, and
felt unable refuse because of the open nature secondly, ordering reprisal shootings against
of the sleeping berth, and in the interests the local population in any place Resistance
of allied goodwill. After all he was heavily Partisans caused the death of German troops
outnumbered, on a U.S. train, our cover had or disrupted German communications (l,087
been well and truly blown, and Kesselring Italians shot).
seemed to be quite happy to oblige. His response to these charges is dealt with
On arrival in Strasbourg, through contacting at length in Kesselring’s Memoirs. Briefly,
the Transport Officer, I was able to locate he denied that he was responsible, citing
Tim O’Reilly and the rest of the party. Once his duty of obedience to orders as a soldier,
more in the absence of any provision for and alleging that decision making about
accommodation, ad hoc arrangements had the level of reprisals rested with others. I
been made for himself and Kesselring to recall him asking me what measures I, as
spend the day at the house of an American an officer on the spot, might have taken
civilian, while the sergeant and private to maintain order and protect his tenuous
remained on guard it was there that I located lines of communication over the Alps? It is
them. Kesselring refers to the handover at at this point that I regret failing to keep a
Frankfurt and this interlude in his Memoirs full diary note of our conversations. I refused
... ‘Colonel Potter and another Colonel escorted to enter into a theoretical discussion, but I
me to Frankfurt, and there handed me over to must admit from the German point of view,
two very pleasant English officers.’ it is arguable that extreme countermeasures
As a symptom of the confusion of the times would have seemed to be necessary.
(incorrectly he refers to the location as However even almost two years after the
‘Salzburg’) ‘these last and myself were guests cessation of hostilities, Kesselring still
for one day of a private American resident, only considered himself very much of Field
to spend the same night in bunks in what had Marshal status and a professional soldier.
formerly been stables’....
5
I suspect he used the He felt very strongly about several occasions
word ‘confusion’ with sardonic reference to when in the custody of both U.S. and British
the preceding shambles! By mistaking the troops, he deemed there was a failure to give
city, it is fairly clear by that stage his mind it due regard.
also must have been in something of whirl! We stayed overnight en route at Villach in
Once back under the auspices of British Austria, guarding him in the same manner.
transport control, and our journey to Rimini Still it is matter of some surprise to me that
began, the following day’s events took a Kesselring was prepared to discuss these
more sedate but much more interesting issues with a junior officer. I can only say
turn. that I found no difficulty in conversation
O’Reilly and I took it in four hour shifts to after all, it would have been extremely hard
remain in a separate compartment with to remain totally silent hour after hour,
Kesselring, while the other rested. After a face to face in an otherwise empty railway
short time it became apparent that my carriage compartment, and also in a bare
German and Kesselring’s English were barrack room. In some respects, I warmed
inadequate to conduct a meaningful to him as a person and a man of high
conversation, but we found that each of us principles, however mistaken these might
spoke enough French to serve the purpose. have been. He was willing, when asked,
He was never anything other than pleasant, to express opinions about Allied Generals.
and quite prepared to talk about his time as Alexander was rated ahead of Montgomery,
a German Field Marshal and the War as purely on the grounds of flexibility. I recall
a whole. Surprisingly, I found him quite him using with hand illustration, the
18
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