On May 3, 1945 the German High Command came to hear and discuss the terms of surrender. Here facing Field Marshal Viscount Montgomery of Alamein are Admiral Hans-Georg von Friedeburg, Commander in Chief and on the extreme left Rear Admiral Gerhard Wagner. The British soldier in the centre is a translator provided by Montgomery in case translation was needed.

The Personal Assistant to Montgomery, LCol Trumbull Warren of the 48th Highlanders had fetched the Germans to Montgomery’s caravan on May 3rd to hear Monty’s terms, and on May 4th to sign the surrender, ending more than five years of hostilities. It provided an indelible memory for the Canadian Lieutenant-Colonel, a Hamilton businessman after the war.

Warren later described the events in Monty, the three-volume biography of Montgomery by British author Nigel Hamilton. The senior officer was General Admiral Hans Georg von Friedeburg, Commander-in- Chief. General Eberhard Kinzel, Chief of Staff of the German army was “a magnificent looking officer about 6’5″ … complete with monocle – a real professional Prussian,” Warren noted. Next was Rear Admiral Gerhard Wagner, flag officer to the admiral of the fleet. And Major Hans Jochen Friedel, who had “the cruelest face of any man I have ever seen.” A fifth officer – a Colonel Fritz Theodor Wilhelm Hans Poleck joined the group for the signing.  Warren continued his description: “The German delegation went across to the tent, watched by groups of soldiers, war correspondents, photographers, and others – all very excited. They knew it was the end of the war.” “I had the surrender document all ready. The arrangements in the tent were very simple – a trestle table covered with an army blanket, an inkpot, an ordinary army pen that you could buy in a shop for two pence. There were two BBC microphones on the table.” More surrenders followed on May 7th, prior to Victory-in-Europe (VE Day) on May 8th.