"In addition, inform the air force at Val Port Airport to be ready to take off tomorrow morning. If the negotiations break down, Rotterdam will be bombed. If the negotiations reach a deadlock, they must be rushed into the air to pose a psychological threat to the Dutch troops guarding Rotterdam and force Rotterdam to surrender!" Lin Wei ordered.
On the morning of May 14, Robert C. Crawford led a group of gendarmes and crossed the Rotterdam Bridge with a white flag, demanding the city's surrender. The garrison commander of Rotterdam, due to the heavy casualties in yesterday's defense and the desire to preserve Rotterdam, sent a Dutch officer to negotiate with Robert C. Crawford. The negotiation place between the two parties is in a simple headquarters not far outside Rotterdam!
Seeing that the representative of the Dutch garrison had come over, Robert C. Crawford first went up to shake hands with the other party, maintaining the most basic courtesy and said, "First of all, let me introduce myself. I am the adjutant of the National Leader of the SS. Robert C. Crawford is the SS standard-bearer, equivalent to your rank of colonel!"
The Dutch officer looked at the colonel in black military uniform in surprise and introduced himself, "Adam Alderit, the negotiator of the Rotterdam garrison. I didn't expect that it was the SS who came out to negotiate with us!" Adam Alderit said mockingly.
The disdainful expression on Adam Alderit's face did not escape Robert C. Crawford's eyes, but it did not have any dissatisfaction, because as the aide-de-camp to the SS Reichsführer, Robert C. Lawford could be said to have known almost all the top secrets of the SS. It knows that even if everyone in the outside world continues to belittle the SS, it will not cause even a small disturbance in the SS. Besides, now is not the time to talk about this. Robert C. Crawford looked at the still proud Dutch officer in front of him and said, "Adam Alderit, now I should talk about the garrison of Rotterdam. Where should it be?" Surrender under such conditions!"
"Surrender!" Adam Alderit said arrogantly, "Since you launched the attack yesterday, have there been any substantial results? Rotterdam can still be defended for at least a month!" Adam Alderit was very careful. Understand the principle of paying back the money on the spot if you ask for a high price. First, make the German army worthless, and then surrender in an honorable manner.
But Robert.C. Crawford was not so easy to deceive. He could see what Adam Aldritt was thinking at a glance and said calmly, "What you said will only deceive everyone in the city." Ordinary people who understand the military! We are all soldiers, so it’s better not to say such things! Finally, I want to tell you one thing. My leader is currently in the command post behind me!" Robert C. Grams Lawford pointed behind him and said helplessly, "It hates wasting time. It only gave me one hour to negotiate. The air force at Val Port Airport is now ready. If the negotiation breaks down, it will immediately They will take off and bomb Rotterdam!”
"What, are you going to bomb Rotterdam? No, you can't do that, there are many people in Rotterdam who are ordinary residents!" Adam Alderit said excitedly, and even wanted to come up and argue with Robert C. Crawford, But immediately under the gunpoint of the military police nearby, he wisely gave up this behavior.
"Your Excellency, I'm sorry, I can't stop this behavior!" Robert C. Crawford said apologetically, "My leader believes that as long as victory is achieved, all means can be used! The capital of Poland has This has been proven, so I hope that after you return to the city, you can truthfully tell the Commander of Rotterdam not to engage in unnecessary resistance!"
Looking at the restless Dutch officer, Robert C. Crawford knew that he had successfully defeated the officer's inner defenses, and now it was time to talk about feelings: "Sir, we are all Germans. , you should also know that we, Germany, do not have any deep hatred against you, the Netherlands. During the last war, His Majesty William II was grateful to your Queen for taking care of you. Don’t think that we Germans are not a grateful country, but the thing now is, You Netherlands actually formed an alliance with the damn British! Where are the reinforcements you expected now? They marched deliberately slowly, taking advantage of you and us Germany*, and then reaping the benefits! In the last war, they used the French, this This time, they used more people from the Netherlands! After the British declared war on Germany last year, have you seen the British go to war with Germany over which country? Is it Austria? Czechoslovakia? Or Poland? Your Netherlands is just the next one The British are just allies who can be sacrificed at any time! Your Excellency, we have no enmity with the Netherlands, we are friends. This battle is not to destroy the Netherlands, it is just a way to avenge the British and the French! Like Poland, you bullied the weak ones. Germany? Or are you like Belgium, joining France in invading the Ruhr area? If you don't have any, what reason does Germany have to attack you? In the absence of Germany showing obvious hostility to the Netherlands, you set up a border with Germany Huge fortress complex, why answer me!”
Robert C. Crawford's words hit Adam Alderit's heart like a bomb. Lies are not terrible. What is terrible is that when lies are based on facts, they are enough to mess up people's basic needs. The ability to judge. Unfortunately, Robert C. Crawford's words were based on facts. Germany had reason to take action against Poland and Belgium. The former bullied the weak Germany, while the latter helped them invade the Ruhr area. There are reasons to fight against France, it is nothing more than revenge, but for the actions of the Netherlands, Robert C. Crawford gave the example of the fortress group deployed by the Netherlands, forcing Germany to take action. With the two front stations of Belgium and Poland Robert C. Crawford confidently accused the Netherlands of hostile behavior, believing that it was a provocation to Germany and forced Germany to deal with the Netherlands. In a word, Germany did not want to be hostile to the Netherlands, but the Netherlands first targeted Germany.
Robert C. Crawford watched Adam Aldritt, who came out to negotiate, return to Rotterdam. After tidying up his clothes, he returned to the headquarters to find Lin Wei to resume his duties.
When Adam Alderit returned to the city of Rotterdam and the Dutch army in Rotterdam was arguing fiercely about this, the German Air Force at the Valport Airport received Lin Wei's order and hung up heavy bombs, one after another. Taking off from Valport Airport, a huge flight formation was dispatched in the sky and pounced neatly on Rotterdam.
Hundreds of planes are constantly circling over Rotterdam, forming a huge dark cloud that envelopes the hearts of the city's residents. Outside the city, the tank troops have been prepared and ready to attack at any time. With the support of the air force, everyone believes that this time Rotterdam, the second largest city in the Netherlands, can be captured in one fell swoop.
"Look, they are really preparing to bomb Rotterdam!" Adam Alderit, standing by the window on a five-story building, shouted to the people who were still discussing, "Now their air force is flying low. Flying, I can almost see the bomb in the belly of the plane now. The Germans are serious, but you are still talking here. The duty of the military is to protect its own people. Now we can’t protect them. We If you cannot withstand the attack of the German army and expect to be captured after resistance, it is better to surrender honorably, which can save the residents from suffering losses!"
At this time, voices persuading surrender came from outside the city, "People in the city, I am the national leader of the SS, Lampard & Krupp. I hereby guarantee that if Rotterdam is willing to peacefully hand over to the German army In our hands, we can ensure the safety of the residents in the city! Protect the property of ordinary people from being robbed! The Dutch army will enjoy the treatment of prisoners of war! They will not be mistreated! You will receive a solemn guarantee! The Germans will not continue to treat My dear friend, the Dutch told clumsy and despicable lies. I guarantee on my own behalf that what I said above is all valid!"
"Gentlemen, gentlemen! What are you waiting for?" Adam Alderit said loudly, "Now is such a good opportunity! The Germans can guarantee people's lives and the honor of the soldiers, and let us surrender honorably! Is it possible? Do we still want to die together?" Adam Alderit, like most Dutch people, can understand both German and English at the same time, and completely understood what Lin Wei meant.
"Okay, we agree to surrender!" one said.
"I agree too!" another person said.
Everyone looked at their commander, the garrison commander of Rotterdam. After a long time, the garrison commander said, "Then let's surrender honorably. This is also for the residents of Rotterdam!"
Under intense pressure from German dive bomber attacks and the imminent attack of German tanks, the city of Rotterdam announced that it had surrendered, thus saving the city from destruction.
After General von Küchler surrendered in Rotterdam, he immediately ordered the army to enter the city, and the large force crossed Rotterdam and advanced towards Amsterdam.
The surrender of Rotterdam symbolized that the Dutch fortress system, which was specifically designed to defend the Netherlands from Germany, had been destroyed. The Netherlands now has no power to resist the German army. The destruction of the Dutch Fortress had a huge impact on the Dutch defense posture. When the German Sixth Army blocked the main force of the British and French coalition in Belgium, the Netherlands had to face the threat of the German Eighteenth Army on its own.
General H.G. Winkelmann, commander-in-chief of the Dutch Armed Forces in Amsterdam, immediately entered the Royal Palace of the Netherlands and paid a visit to Queen Wilhelmina. Telling the truth to Queen Wilhelmina, "Your Majesty, I'm sorry, we can no longer stop the German army's attack. The news just came here this morning that Rotterdam has surrendered and the Dutch fortress has been destroyed! The German armored forces We are rushing here and we will arrive here in the evening!”