Ribbentrop said. "He is also privy to Phoenix. I don't want to leave him over there for long, however. I need him here."
"Our priority is the success of Operation Phoenix," Bor mann said, somewhat unpleasantly. "Whether or not that is convenient for anyone."
"I was speaking of von Lowzer's value to Phoenix," von
Ribbentrop said. "And once we have a talk with Gradny Sawz, I think we'll probably be able to send him back to
Buenos Aires. Then I can bring von Lowzer back here."
"Why not bring von Wachtstein to Berlin as well?" Donitz asked. "If I read that cable correctly, he was physically present on the beach."
"I thought about that, " Himmler responded. "We don't know how much-or how little-he knows about Phoenix.
But yes, I think it would be a good idea to have von Wacht stein come here."
"I agree," Donitz said.
"If von Wachtstein was on the beach when the two men were killed, he has to know something about what was going on," Canaris said.
"And once we have a chance to talk to him," Himmler said,
"we can decide whether to tell him more or eliminate him."
"You have some reason to suspect him of complicity?"
Canaris asked.
"No," Himmler said. "That's my point, Admiral. We need information. And I have suggested a way to get it."
"I agree with the Reichsfuhrer," Canaris said. "But I have a suggestion of my own. We need an immediate replacement for
Oberst Griiner. In both his military and Sicherheitsdienst roles." The Sicherheitsdienst, SD, were the secret police within the SS.
"That's true," Himmler said. "Who do you have in mind?"
"One of my officers, Korvettenkapitan Boltitz-"
"Karl Boltitz?" Donitz interrupted.
Canaris nodded.
"I know his father very well. And the son's a bright young man," Donitz added.
"More to the point, he's a bright intelligence officer,"
Canaris said. "He's been my liaison officer to von Ribbentrop.
I think he would be useful in Buenos Aires. But before we send to him to Argentina, I think we should have him talk, one sailor to another, so to speak, with Kapitan de
Banderano…"
"With who?" Bormann asked.
"The captain of the Oceano Pacifico," Himmler fur nished. "He was also present at Puerto Magdalena." And then he had a second thought. "He wasn't on von Lutzen berger's list."
"An excellent reason to talk to him, wouldn't you say?"
Canaris said.
Himmler chuckled.
"She should make Cadiz on the eighteenth or nineteenth of
May," Canaris said, which told Himmler that Canaris had been thinking of Captain de Banderano before he came to the meeting. "That would mean Boltitz couldn't go to Buenos
Aires immediately."
"I agree that talking to de Banderano is important,"
Himmler said. "I can send someone with Boltitz to Cadiz, to report to us here after Boltitz talks to de Banderano. Then
Boltitz could leave for Argentina that much sooner."
"That's fine with me," Canaris said, then added: "And
Herr Reichsfuhrer, with all possible respect, I have another suggestion for you."
"Which is?" Himmler asked with a tight smile.
"An army officer would draw less attention in Buenos
Aires than a senior SS officer. And the less attention in a sit uation like this, the better."
"You're suggesting we don't send von Deitzberg?"
"I was wondering how convincingly Oberfiihrer von
Deitzberg could wear the uniform of the Wehrmacht,"
Canaris said.
"I take your point, Admiral," Himmler said. "And I would say that Oberfiihrer von Deitzberg would make a convincing
Wehrmacht general officer. Do you think Keitel would object if I seconded him to the General Staff?"
"I think we can explain the situation to the Generalfeld marschall," Canaris said, smiling.
'Is there anything else?" Himmler asked, looking at each of them in turn.
No one had anything to say.
"If there are no objections, I'll send the necessary cable, and arrange for their passage on the Condor," von Ribben trop said.
"And what do we tell the Fiihrer at this time?" Donitz asked.
"I would suggest that the Fiihrer has enough to occupy his attention without bringing this to his table until we know what we're talking about, and what we are going to do,"
Bormann said.
He looked at each man in turn, and each man, in turn, nodded his agreement.
[THREE]
The Chancellery of the German Reich
Wilhelmstrasse
Berlin
2325 27 April 1943
The first of the official Mercedeses lined up on Wilhelm strasse to transport the senior officers who had attended the conference in the Fiihrer bunker was that of Reichsprotektor
SS Heinrich Himmler. The Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler Regi ment knew on which side their bread was buttered.
As soon as the car had moved away from the curb, Himmler turned to Oberfuhrer Manfred von Deitzberg.
"Manfred, how would you feel about going to Buenos
Aires?" he asked.
"Whatever the Herr Reichsprotektor thinks is necessary," von Deitzberg replied.
"I asked how you would feel about going there."
"From what I've heard, it's a beautiful city," von
Deitzberg said.
"It was decided in there that you should go to Buenos
Aires to find out what happened there," Himmler said.
"Jawohl, Herr Reichsprotektor. May I take Raschner with me?"
Himmler nodded.
"And Canaris suggested that you go in a Wehrmacht uni form… that of a Generalmajor," Himmler said. "He said he thought you would attract less attention that way. How do you feel about that?"
"I think he has a point," von Deitzberg said. "But how could that be done? Wouldn't Keitel object?"
"There will be no objections from Keitel," Himmler said flatly.
"It will be a strange feeling putting on a Wehrmacht uni form again," von Deitzberg thought aloud.
Himmler smiled knowingly at him.
Actually, the thought of putting on a Generalmajor's uni form-and I won't just be putting it on, there will be some kind of official appointment, even if temporary; I will be a
Generalmajor-is rather pleasant.
The von Deitzberg family had provided officers to Germany for centuries, and Manfred had been an Army officer-an
Oberleutnant (first lieutenant) of Cavalry-before he trans ferred to the SS.
In 1911, when Manfred was ten years old, his father- then an Oberstleutnant (lieutenant colonel)-had been assigned to the German garrison in German East Africa.
Manfred had clear memories of the good life in the African highlands, of their large houses, the verdant fields, the black servants.
His father had loved Africa and had invested heavily in
German East African real estate, borrowing against the family's
Westphalian estates to do so. When war came-Manfred was then fourteen-his father had been rapidly promoted to
Generalmajor, and had served until the Armistice as deputy commander of German military forces in German East Africa.
The Armistice had brought with it an immediate reversal of the von Deitzberg family fortunes.
Under the Versailles Treaty of 28 June 1919, Germany lost 25,550 square miles of its land and seven million of its citizens to Poland, France, and Czechoslovakia. Its major
Baltic port, Danzig, became a "free port" administered by
Poland. Most of the Rhineland was occupied by Allied troops. The Saar was given "temporarily" to France; and the
Rhine, Oder, Memel, Danube, and Moselle Rivers were internationalized. Austria was prohibited from any future union with Germany.
All German holdings abroad, including those of private
German citizens, were confiscated. Almost the entire mer chant fleet was expropriated. One hundred forty thousand dairy cows and other livestock were shipped out of Germany as reparations, as well as heavy machinery (including entire factories) and vast amounts of iron ore and coal.
Billions of marks were assessed annually as reparations, and German colonies in Africa and elsewhere were seized by the League of Nations and then mandated to the various