List of people killed or wounded in the 20 July plot

Further information: 20 July plot

Hermann Göring and Martin Bormann surveying the shattered conference hut shortly after the explosion. Neither man was present during the conference.

People present at the 20 July conference

Outcome	Victims
Slightly injured	7
Injured	10
Seriously injured	3
Killed	4

On 22 June 1944, the Soviet Armed Forces launched a massive attack against the German forces based in Byelorussia, which were made up of two strategic Wehrmacht army groups known as Army Group Centre. ^[2] By mid July, Army Group Centre had lost no fewer than 250,000 men in less than a month of fighting, making the German position close to hopeless. ^{[3] [4]}

In deciding what to do, a series of military conferences were scheduled at the Wolf's Lair headquarters in East Prussia. ^[5] On 20 July, Adolf Hitler and his top military commanders entered the briefing hut of the headquarters, as the usual bombproof room, with no windows and thick walls of solid concrete, was considered "unbearably hot". ^[5] In attendance was Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, who had been severely wounded in 1943 in Tunisia, losing his left eye, right hand and half of his left hand. ^[6] Undetected by Hitler's ring of bodyguards, Stauffenberg carried a British-made bomb in his briefcase. ^[7] His plan was to get as close as possible to Hitler, leave the briefcase nearby, and then make an excuse to quickly leave the conference by car with his adjutant and fellow conspirator Werner von Haeften. ^[5] This was part of a larger planned coup d'état led by a group of army officers who were appalled by the way Hitler was leading Germany in World War II. ^[8] Everything proceeded according to plan until the bomb exploded, as Stauffenberg walked towards his car, earlier than anticipated. ^[5] When the explosion tore through the hut, Stauffenberg was thoroughly convinced that no one in the room could possibly have survived. ^[5] Unbeknownst to Stauffenberg, Colonel Heinz Brandt had moved the briefcase containing the bomb further away from Hitler, placing it behind a solid wooden table leg, as it was in his way. Hitler survived with only minor injuries, ^[9] as did most of the others present. A stenographer was killed instantly. Three officers, including Brandt, died of their injuries. ^[5]

Although strictly against security doctrines imposed at the Wolf's Lair, Stauffenberg and Haeften were allowed to pass through all three checkpoints and proceed to the airport, succeeding in getting away before clarity could be established back at the now completely demolished briefing hut. ^[5] In the last hours of 20 July, Stauffenberg, Haeften, and several other plotters, were arrested and summarily condemned to death. ^[1] The executions were carried out by soldiers under Major Otto Remer early on the morning of 21 July. ^[1]

Following the assassination attempt Hitler came to believe that the Wehrmacht leadership could not be trusted; he launched a purge of the officer corps and also used the shock of the attack to round up all the surviving members of the old opposition in the Reichstag. ^[1] At the same time, those officers who had been injured or killed by the bomb were awarded the 20 July Wound Badge and hailed as heroes. ^[10] General Günther Korten, General Rudolf Schmundt, Colonel Heinz Brandt and stenographer Heinrich Berger were given a state funeral with a eulogy delivered by Hermann Göring. ^[1]

Participants

Alphabetically listed per their name

Name	Rank	Position	Years of Service	Outcome	Image	Ref.
Adolf Heusinger	19-H Generalleutnant	Chief of the General Staff of the Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH)	1915–1945 and 1955–1964	Slightly injured		[5]
Adolf Hitler	23-W Supreme Commander of the German Armed Forces	Führer und Reichskanzler	1935–1945	Slightly injured		[5]
Alfred Jodl	20-H Generaloberst	Chief of Staff of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW)	1910–1945	Slightly injured		[5]
Ernst John von Freyend	15-H Major	Adjutant to Wilhelm Keitel	—	Injured		[11]
Franz von Sonnleithner	1-H —	Foreign Ministry representative	—	Injured		[12]
Günther Korten	21-H Generalleutnant	Chief of the General Staff of the Oberkommando der Luftwaffe (OKL)	1914–1944	Died two days later from injuries		[5]
Hans-Erich Voss	18-M Konteradmiral	Liaison officer	—	Slightly injured		[13]
Heinrich Borgmann	16-H Oberstleutnant	Adjutant to Adolf Hitler	1932–1945	Seriously injured		[14] [5]
Heinz Assmann	17-M Kapitän zur See	Staff officer	—	Injured		[15]
Heinrich Berger	0-H —	Stenographer	1905–1944	Killed outright, with both legs blown off		[16] [5]
Heinz Brandt	17-H Oberst	Aide-de-camp to Adolf Heusinger	1925–1944	Died one day later from injuries, with one of his legs blown off		[5]
Heinz Buchholz	0-H —	Stenographer	—	Injured		[12]
Heinz Waizenegger	16-H Oberstleutnant	Staff officer	—	Injured		[17]
Herbert Büchs	15-H Major	Adjutant to Alfred Jodl	—	Injured		[12]
Hermann Fegelein	19-W SS-Gruppenführer und Generalleutnant der Waffen-SS	Schutzstaffel (SS) representative	1925–1945	Injured		[18]
Karl Bodenschatz	20-H General der Flieger	Adjutant to Hermann Göring	1910–1945	Seriously injured		[19] [5]
Karl-Jesko von Puttkamer	18-M Konteradmiral	Naval adjutant to Adolf Hitler	1917–1945	Injured		[20] [5]
Nicolaus von Below	17-H Oberst	Luftwaffe adjutant to Adolf Hitler	1929–1945	Injured		[21]
Otto Günsche	15-W Sturmbannführer	Schutzstaffel (SS) adjutant and bodyguard to Adolf Hitler	1933–1945	Slightly injured		[22] [5]
Rudolf Schmundt	20-H General der Infanterie	Chief of the Army Personnel Office	1914–1944	Severely injured, died from complications on 1 October 1944		[23] [5]
Walther Buhle	20-H General der Infanterie	Chief of Army Staff at the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW)	1914–1944	Injured		[24]
Wilhelm Keitel	22-H Feldmarschall	Chief of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW)	1901–1945	Slightly injured		[5]
Walter Scherff	18-H Generalmajor	Führer's Commissioner for the Writing of Military History	—	Seriously injured		[25] [5]
Walter Warlimont	20-H General der Artillerie	Deputy Chief of Staff of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW)	1914–1945	Slightly injured		[5]

Approximate positions of participants when bomb exploded

Approximate positions of the attendees at the meeting in relation to the briefcase bomb when it exploded: 1 Adolf Hitler; 2 Adolf Heusinger; 3 Günther Korten; 4 Heinz Brandt; 5 Karl Bodenschatz; 6 Heinz Waizenegger; 7 Rudolf Schmundt; 8 Heinrich Borgmann; 9 Walther Buhle; 10 Karl-Jesko von Puttkamer; 11 Heinrich Berger; 12 Heinz Assmann; 13 Ernst John von Freyend; 14 Walter Scherff; 15 Hans-Erich Voss; 16 Otto Günsche; 17 Nicolaus von Below; 18 Hermann Fegelein; 19 Heinz Buchholz; 20 Herbert Büchs; 21 Franz von Sonnleithner; 22 Walter Warlimont; 23 Alfred Jodl; 24 Wilhelm Keitel.

See also

• Operation Valkyrie
• List of members of the 20 July plot

References

1. Isbouts & Schwartz 2008.
2. Zaloga 1996, p. 7.
3. Zaloga 1996, pp. 6–9.
4. Housden 2013, p. 513.
5. Martin & Newark 2009.
6. Housden 2013, pp. 113.
7. Housden 2013, pp. 115–117.
8. Moorhouse 2010, p. 281.
9. Shirer 1960, p. 29.
10. Williamson 2002a, p. 40.
11. Hoffmann 1996, p. 663.
12. BBC News 2004.
13. Short & Dennis 2013, p. 32.
14. Hamilton 1984, p. 144.
15. Short & Dennis 2013, p. 55.
16. Short & Dennis 2013, p. 74.
17. Domarus 2004, p. 2918.
18. Miller 2006, p. 316.
19. Eberle & Uhl 2009, p. 223.
20. Kershaw 2008, p. 925.
21. Hoffmann 1996, p. 677.
22. Hamilton 1984, p. 148.
23. Weinberg 2013, p. 324.
24. Zeimke 2014, p. 419.
25. Williamson 2002b, p. 43.

Sources

Printed

• Domarus, Max (2004). Speeches and Proclamations, 1932–1945. University of Virginia. ISBN   978-0865162310.
• Eberle, Henrik; Uhl, Matthias (2009). The Hitler Book: The Secret Dossier Prepared for Stalin. PublicAffairs. ISBN   978-0786734917.
• Hamilton, Charles (1984). Leaders & Personalities of the Third Reich. R. James Bender Publishing. ISBN   0-912138-27-0.
• Hoffmann, Peter (1996). History of the German Resistance, 1933–1945. McGill-Queen's Press. ISBN   978-0773566408.
• Housden, Martyn (2013). Resistance and Conformity in the Third Reich. Routledge. ISBN   978-1134808465.
• Kershaw, Ian (2008). Hitler: A Biography. W. W. Norton & Company. ISBN   978-0-393-06757-6.
• Miller, Michael (2006). Leaders of the SS and German Police. R. James Bender Publishing. ISBN   978-93-297-0037-2.
• Moorhouse, Roger (2010). Berlin at War. Basic Books. ISBN   978-0465022755.
• Short, Neil; Dennis, Peter (2013). Kill Hitler – Operation Valkyrie 1944. Osprey Publishing. ISBN   978-1780962603.
• Shirer, William (1960). The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich . Simon & Schuster. ISBN   978-0-671-62420-0.
• Weinberg, Gerhard (2013). Hitler's Foreign Policy 1933–1939: The Road to World War II. Enigma Books. ISBN   978-1936274840.
• Williamson, Gordon (2002a). World War II German Battle Insignia. Osprey Publishing. ISBN   978-1841763521.
• Williamson, Gordon (2002b). German Army Elite. Osprey Publishing. ISBN   978-1841764054.
• Zaloga, Steven (1996). Bagration 1944: The Destruction of Army Group Centre. Osprey Publishing. ISBN   978-1-85532-478-7.
• Zeimke, Earl (2014). From Stalingrad to Berlin. Pen & Sword. ISBN   978-1473848085.

Online

• Jean-Pierre Isbouts (writer, director) William A. Schwartz (creator, producer) (2008). Operation Valkyrie - Stauffenberg's Plot to Kill Hitler (television documentary). Koch Entertainment . Retrieved 19 June 2015.
• Jonathan Martin (writer) Tim Newark (historical advisor) (2009). Attempts to Kill Hitler at the Wolf's Lair (television documentary). World Media Rights. Retrieved 8 April 2015.^{[ permanent dead link ]}
• "Hitler Plot "Heroes" Commemorated". BBC News. 2004. Retrieved 9 April 2015.