There were many German war criminals that were executed by firing squad. It’s odd to hear, considering that there were many who were hanged because they were seen as criminals, not soldiers.
Anton Dostler is one of the more infamous examples of war criminals being executed by firing squad. He was responsible for ordering the execution of American POW’s in 1944.
The soldiers surrendered and were unarmed. Furthermore; upon their capture, they were in military uniform and had no civilian clothes that would identify them as spies. Dostler ordered their executions, fully knowing it is against Geneva Protocols. A Wehrmacht firing squad executed them. Their bodies were dumped into an unmarked mass grave and given no military honors or anything that would be given to soldiers.
This was him after the fatal shots were fired. Yes, the execution was filmed…
12 soldiers volunteered for the firing squad and only some received blank rounds. And yes, a shooter will know the difference between a live round and blank round so I don’t know why they even still do this… the shots killed him instantly.
I personally think he should’ve been hanged but the next execution I’m about to show you is somewhat unfair to me, considering he was a kid…
Josef Wende was Polish who was drafted in the Wehrmacht. He was made into a spy. He spied in France but was caught by American troops in 1944, following their liberation.
He was arrested and interrogated, revealed that he was a spy for the Germans. His execution was ordered by firing squad. In November of 1944, he was walked to a farmyard that was set up for executions. He was blindfolded as it was a regulation under protocols. He was shot and immediately fell to the ground.
Stephan Kortas was captured on the same day as Wende. He was also Polish who was drafted into the Wehrmacht. He was told to spy on American advance lines and report with intel but was captured.
He was also sentenced to death. On the same day in November of 1944, he was executed by firing squad like Wende. He was only 26 years old.
Like Wende, he immediately fell to the ground and was dead before he hit it. A medic also checked his wounds and looked for a pulse. He was pronounced dead and was carried away.
Many executions whether firing squad or hanging were filmed and can be watched on YouTube or other 3rd party websites. I just use them for historical purposes.
The images of Wende and Kortas belong to CriticalPast, as you can see the watermark.
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