Chapter 39 Chapter 6 Beer Hall Uprising (5)

It was daylight, gloomy, damp, and cold.The biting rain and snow are still falling now and then.The faces of the uprising troops were clouded with gloom; the hall of the Bergbrau Tavern was filled with smoke, cloudy and damp.Unshaven and unwashed, the soldiers ate their breakfast inside—coffee, cheese, and bread.The excitement and ecstasy of last night had evaporated.It was announced that the three political giants had publicly condemned the revolution and that the army would not participate in the uprising.Another stepped up to the podium, to the site of this vividly remembered drama, and loudly denounced all traitors—bourgeoisie and generals alike. "March to Berlin!" he shouted.There was sporadic applause in the hall.Hans Frank, Hitler's lawyer, found the proposal "highly romantic and very apolitical".

The leaders of the uprising were all sitting upstairs in a back room.Ludendorff, "without a trace of expression on his face, as stable as a mountain, and frighteningly quiet", sipped red wine and ate breakfast.He still looked imposing in his old duffel shooting jacket.However, his confidence evaporated when he learned that Losov had publicly denounced the new government. "I will never believe the word of the German officer again," he cried, and fell silent. The coup d'état, which seemed so successful in the middle of the night, was in vain in the cold light of day.Hitler's next plan showed how desperate he was.He sent a force from the "Battle League" to seize the police station and rescue Bonner from captivity.Continuing to look hopeful, he sent a stormtrooper to the Jewish-owned Pachas printing house and confiscated piles of freshly printed devalued notes (in Germany, every revolutionary to be paid).The total amounted to 14,605 ​​teramarks, and the Pacus brothers received a receipt, as the Germans did.

By this time, a larger number of uprising troops arrived from other places in trucks.Wet and cold, exhausted and refreshed, they had no idea that the situation had changed.Lanshutte was the most crowded; on the way to Munich, they ran into a carload of policemen and shouted "Hurrah" to each other.Their leader was drug addict Gregor Strasser.He sat in the driver's seat of the lead car and drove down the quiet, busy street.Someone yelled that everyone was working as usual. "This is not a revolution. Something is wrong." "Let's see," Strasser said.Once in the bar, Captain Goering told him that "those guys" had broken their promises to the Führer, but the people still supported the Führer. "We're going to do it all over again." Then a squat, fat man with a shiny head—it was Julius Streicher—suddenly burst into the beer hall, addressing the crowd on Hitler's behalf. Explain the situation.He held a whip, gesticulated, and spoke to the crowd with dirty language and loud voice, trying to cheer everyone up and arouse their enthusiasm.Those without weapons received weapons.So, everyone got on the car again and went to their respective posts.

At this time, the troops belonging to the "Fighting Alliance" who were ordered by Hitler to seize the police station had already driven back to the headquarters building of the military area—the mission was not completed.They argued with police for several minutes before leaving the police station to avoid an exchange of fire.Hitler handed over the task of rescuing Bonner to his loyal bodyguards.Arriving at the police headquarters at 9:30 a.m., the hard-bodied troops immediately set up their machine guns and aimed at the building as if they were about to launch a storm.Still, the rebels didn't want to shed blood.They raced back to the beer hall—mission still unfinished.A few minutes later, they were assigned another, easier task: arresting Marxist city councilors who refused to raise the swastika over City Hall.

They broke a path and entered the old parliament building.Their leader, the pipe-smoking figure, pushed open the door of the council chamber.Arms in hand, he shouted that all Social Democrats and Communists would be arrested.Outside, on Marienplatz, a large crowd, according to him, "welcome the appearance of the deputies with jeers and abuse. In fact, they were protected from the crowd by the protection of us soldiers, otherwise the casualties would have been in the It was inevitable. After a lot of help from us, they were able to get into the car safely." As the trucks headed toward the beer hall, the speaker began addressing the crowd.There were more and more people listening to the lecture, so that the No. 6 tram bound for Sendelin could not run.The main speaker was Streicher.He proved more attractive than the spinning numbers on the Houses of Parliament clock.At this time, there were many swastika flags on the square, and the party flag was also flying in the air above the municipal building.

The uprising was characterized by confusion and indecision on both sides.In some places in the city, the city police were tearing up the slogans and slogans of the insurgents and arresting the rebels; in the inner city, the rebels were arresting the city police and tearing up the government's notice condemning the uprising and announcing the dissolution of the Nazi Party.Hitler's troops occupied most of the bridges over the Isar in the downtown area, including the Ludwig Bridge, which connects to the Peace Tavern in the city center.Near the Museum Bridge, townspeople question young rebels. "You play such a dangerous trick on the street, do your parents agree?" a worker asked loudly. The 10-man team shyly ran back to the beer hall.

At the other end of the Isar bridge, among those from Lanshut, rumors arose that "things are going wrong, someone must have betrayed!" Their fears were not unreasonable: at ten o'clock in the morning, men in green uniforms The soldiers arrived by truck.They were the National Defense Forces, and as soon as they arrived, they set up two heavy machine guns.Since the superior's order was not to fire, the rebel troops did not do anything.The superiors of the Bangjun also ordered them to stay put and stand by.In this way, the two sides will confront each other there. In the beer hall, the leaders of the rebels were arguing.Colonel Hermann Krieber, who had served under Ludendorff, advocated withdrawing troops to Rosenheim on the German-Austrian border, where they might win over local right-wing radicals.Goering agrees with this opinion.Because this was his hometown, he assured, everyone strongly supported Hitler, and they could replenish their troops there and regroup. "The movement cannot end in a ditch in some dark country lane," retorted Ludendorff sarcastically.It was for Hitler to decide.He hesitated for a moment.Since he was a gambler by nature; the prospect of a long-term guerrilla war did not interest him.What he wants is success or failure in one fell swoop.Therefore, he vetoed Kriber's plan.

The situation in the street worsened, but they continued to argue until almost noon.Captain Romm, who was in the military district headquarters, was also surrounded by the army and the police.Facing the overwhelming enemy force, the older members of the "Battle League" were not eager to fire, but Rohm's 150 soldiers were eager to fight. The debate ended when news of the attack on Romm by the government reached the Bergbrau Tavern.It was obvious that if the insurgents did not act immediately, they would have to surrender ignominiously.According to Ludendorff, the idea of ​​sending troops to the inner city of Munich to rescue Rohm was his first thought. "Let's walk!" he said.If the idea came from Ludendorff, then the implementation of the idea was Hitlerian-propaganda-like demonstrations, demonstrations of power, and mobilization of citizens to support the uprising. "The purpose of our entry into the city," Hitler later testified, "was to win the people over to our side, to see how public opinion reacted, and then to see what Karl Lossow and Seisser did to public opinion." After all, these gentlemen are not foolish enough to fire a machine gun at a general uprising of the people.” That was how the decision to march into the city was made.

Ludendorff firmly believed that army soldiers would not hinder the progress of the parade.Not long ago, he had assured a friend: "If the Bavarian Wehrmacht opposes me, it will collapse that day." Hitler also firmly believed that neither the Wehrmacht nor the State Police would open fire on war heroes like Ludendorff—— During the parade, he will lead the crowd in the front row.So Hitler made a decision (“the most desperate and daring decision of my life”) and hastily issued orders to the troops guarding the bridges.At the same time, outside the beer hall, the professional soldier Colonel Kriber began to assemble the procession. At about 11:30, just as Hitler was about to get up and leave the conference room, Eckart walked in from the outside immediately.In the past, they were close friends; now, Hitler "has a bad face and said 'Hello' stiffly." Outside the conference room, the offended writer was greeted politely by Ludendorff. Cold reception.The general only "tilted his hat indifferently" at him.

The procession quickly formed.Since the musicians who reported to the beer hall that morning neither had breakfast nor received their wages, they all left after performing an official performance of the march "Badenweiler" by Hitler's regiment during the war. Therefore, the parade The team has no band to lead the way.The leader was the selected vanguard and eight other soldiers, who carried the swastika flag and the black, white and red tricolor flags.Following the flag bearers are the leaders of the uprising: Hitler in the centre, Schebner Richter on the right and Ludendorff on the left.Next to him were Colonel Krieber, the commander of the Munich Stormtrooper, with his guards Graf and Captain Hermann Göring—he wore a steel helmet with a large white swastika on his head, and a smart black leather jacket, with his chest open and Displaying its "Medal of Honor", it looks both majestic and romantic.He was a little sullen because his proposal to take the captured MP hostage had been rejected.The Führer rejected the ploy; he wanted no martyrs.

Following the leader are three troops in four files, walking shoulder to shoulder with each other.On the left is Hitler's Centurion, wearing steel helmets, holding carbines and grenades; on the right is the "Oberan Union"; in the middle is the battle-tested Munich Stormtrooper regiment.Then came the motley-dressed ranks—some in uniform or worn-out World War uniforms, others in overalls or merchant clothes.The non-commissioned officer cadets of the infantry school are handsome and high-spirited, sandwiched among students, shop assistants, middle-aged businessmen and stern-faced hooligans.The only common emblem of the team is the swastika armband on the left arm.Most were armed with rifles, many with bayonets.Others, especially stormtroopers, carried pistols. Stebner Richter, wearing pince-nez, held on to Rosenberg's hand and said, "Things look very bad," before prophesying darkly to Hitler.This will be the last time they march together.The Führer himself was pale and stern.In the cold, he holds a hood and wears the familiar military overcoat.Ludendorff wears a safari jacket, plus an overcoat.Calm and composed, he sent his servant home so that he would not be injured. At noon, the straggler-style team set off. Fifteen minutes later, the procession of two thousand reached the Ludwig Bridge and was met by a small contingent of police.When the vanguard of the rebel army slowly approached, the commander of the police stepped forward and ordered them to stop or shoot.He turned around and loaded his men.He was talking when a horn sounded over there.Selected soldiers with bayonets surrounded the policemen.Shouted: "Don't shoot your comrades!" The policeman hesitated for a while.In this way, Zhao Yi's troops passed without firing a single shot.After crossing the bridge, they kept going.Zwiebruckenstrasse was lined with crowds; many were cheering and waving swastika flags.Bystanders began to join the procession.The enthusiasm of the people cheered the procession; they couldn't help singing.Although there was no band accompaniment, they sang their favorite "Song of Charge" automatically.Writer Eckart stood among the crowd by the left door as the procession came to Isator.He spotted the stern-faced Hitler marching in the first row.Eyes met, "He was looking at me intently, as if to say, 'Where are you?'" The cold people, breathing white air from their mouths, continued to move forward without any further hindrance. Fifteen minutes later, the crowd poured into Marienplatz.As the mass rally had just finished, many swastika flags were still flying in the square.The Nazi flag still fluttered above the city hall; a large crowd sang patriotic songs.At this point, there was confusion among the parade crowd.Some felt that they should turn back to the beer hall; others felt that they should continue towards the city and save Romm.Colonel Kriber noticed that Ludendorff was leading the procession to the right, into the Weinstrasse, towards Oddhance Square.The colonel felt strange, but he said to himself: "Ludendorff is going that way, of course we will go with him." General Ludendorff hadn't made such a plan. "There are moments in life when people just act on instinct and don't know why ... We just want to go to Roma and get him back." Wearing a dark brown coat, the burly Ludendorff walked to the right out of impulse, but brought the rebel troops to the place where they met the government troops face to face.In less than a few minutes, the parade arrived at one of the most fortified places in Munich - the Parliament Building.Here they were stopped by a line of police.However, the insurgents marched forward, singing "Ah, honor to Germany". Frau Winifred Wagner looked down from the window and was amazed to find her idol Hitler walking side by side with Ludendorff along the narrow Reichstagstrasse.Ahead, on the Place d'Audes, small groups of soldiers in green uniforms were scrambling to get into position and hold back the procession.The street can only accommodate 8 people walking side by side.Hitler took the arm of Schebner Richter, ready to die.Ludendorff stalked alone, confident that no one would dare to shoot him.Straight ahead, the Bundesliga, commanded by Lieutenant Michael Fleicher von Godin, blocked the way.Facing the approaching team, Godin shouted: "Erlian, run, let's go!" The state police jogged forward, but the uprising team did not disperse.They stopped and stopped *?Bayonet or raised pistol.Godin pushed the two bayonets aside with his rifle, and "the raised gun knocked down those behind them".Suddenly there was a gunshot.Godin heard bullets fly over his head, knocking out a corporal. "My company was stunned and stood still. Then, before I could give the order, my men opened fire and a barrage of bullets swept across." The insurgents immediately fought back.Then, the parade and bystanders scattered and fled, and the order was in chaos.The first to fall was Schebner Richter - shot in the lung.The other fell was Graf - he jumped up to Hitler before he was shot and blocked half a dozen bullets that were aimed at him.As he fell, Graf also grabbed Hitler and yanked him to the ground, dislocating his left arm.On the other side, Schebner Richter also did his best to help pull Hitler onto the sidewalk.Ludendorff's faithful servant, who had been sent home, was lying bleeding on the asphalt.His friend Egner, servant of the dying Schebner Richter, crawls towards him.He has died.Someone stepped over him—it was General Ludendorff.With one hand in his pocket, he stalked towards the line of fire (*most reports describe Ludendorff as a fearless warrior standing up, while Hitler was a coward because he fell to the ground —even if his dislocated arm would have shown that he had been pulled to the ground. There is no doubt that Hitler could have been on the ground because he was a seasoned soldier. Robert Murphy testified, "Ruden The actions of Dolf and Hitler were exactly the same, like well-tested soldiers. They both lay down at the same time, avoiding the rain of bullets." Another witness, a night watchman, said that he also saw Ludendorff lying on the ground , "with a dead or wounded soldier" as cover. Another night watchman confirmed that no one was standing after a volley of shots were fired). Hitler lay on the ground, thinking he had been shot in the left arm.Comrades came to cover him one after another. Eighteen people were shot and killed on the street, among them, 14 were followers of Hitler and 4 were policemen.These eighteen, incidentally, all sympathized with National Socialism to varying degrees.Only those in the front row knew what was going on.The people crowded in the back only heard the sound of firecrackers in front.Rumors then spread that both Hitler and Ludendorff had been shot.The insurgents scrambled to escape. Ludendorff strode across the blockade and came face to face with a lieutenant.The lieutenant arrested him and took him to the commander's office.Once inside the building, Ludendorff, who a moment ago looked like the hero of a novel, is now a spoiled child.When a colonel asked if he could inform the general's family that he was safe, he violently refused and forbade people to call him "Your Excellency."Thereafter he was "Mr. Ludendorff," and he would never wear military uniform again as long as the officer who offended him remained in uniform. Hitler struggled painfully, holding his injured left arm.Enduring the pain, he slowly left the battlefield.He was pale, and his hair fell over his face.Accompanying him was Walter Schulz, a doctor of the Medical Corps of the Munich Stormtroopers, a tall young man.On the sidewalk, they came upon a young boy, bleeding profusely.Hitler wanted to carry him away; Schulz quickly called his wife's cousin (a botany student named Schuster) and asked him to carry the child away.At Max Josefplatz they finally found Hitler's old "Self" - a car full of medical instruments and medicines.An elderly paramedic, Lin Ranker, sat in the front with the driver, while Hitler and the doctor sat in the back.Schuster stood on the steps holding the wounded child.He asked the driver to drive the car to the Bergbrough Tavern, because he wanted to see what was going on there.At Marienplatz they encountered a dense network of machine gun fire and had to change direction several times.The Ludwig Bridge was also blocked and they had to turn back.At this time, the child had come to his senses, and Schuster got out of the car quickly in order to send the child home.The car continued towards Sendlinger Torplatz.Here, they were shot again near Southern Cemetery.Unable to get to the beer hall, they headed south, towards Salzburg. The "badge of honor" shown by Goering did not save him.He was shot in the thigh and was lying on the sidewalk.People carried him to the yard at No. 25 Shuaifu Street.A rebel rang the doorbell.They asked the owner of the house, Robert Ballin, if he would take in the wounded. "Of course, we are willing to rescue and take in the wounded, but please note that the people living here are Jews." So Goering was carried upstairs.After being rescued, Goering was allowed to stay until his friends came and moved him to safety.The Jews took pity on him, and he was able to escape from the prison.