Ludwig Beck was born in Biebrich,
Germany, on 29th June, 1880. He joined the German
Army and by 1933 became Adjutant General of the army.
Two years later he was promoted chief of general staff.
Beck opposed attempts by Adolf
Hitler and the Nazi Party to
takeover the army. In 1938 he sent an emissary to London in an attempt
to get Neville Chamberlain to promise
military action if Germany invaded Czechoslovakia.
When Adolf Hitler
discovered that Beck as plotting against the regime and he was removed
from office. Replaced by Franz
Halder, Beck continued to work closely with other opponents
of Hitler including Carl Goerdeler,
Wilhelm Canaris, Hans
Oster and Ulrich Hassell.
In the early months of 1944 Beck approached Erwin
Rommel about joining the July Plot.
Rommel refused, criticizing the tactic of assassination claiming
that it would turn Adolf
Hitler into a martyr. Instead he suggested that he should
be arrested and brought to trial.
Suspected in being involved in the July
Plot, Beck was arrested by on 20th July, 1944. General Erich
Fromm took him into custody and demanded that he commit
suicide. He succeeded only in severely wounding himself and a sergeant
finished the job by shooting him in the back of the neck.
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Last updated: 26th April, 2001
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