German Surrender Negotiation Document Signed by Karl Dönitz Sold for $166,333

A document signed by Reich President Karl Dönitz authorizing the start of surrender negotiations with Allied forces in the final days of World War II sold for $166,333 at RR Auction's Fine Autographs and Artifacts auction.

Dated May 6, 1945, the one-page directive empowered Colonel General Alfred Jodl to "discuss the conditions for concluding an armistice agreement with General Eisenhower's headquarters", marking the first official act in Germany's unconditional surrender. With Adolf Hitler dead by suicide just days earlier, Dönitz, his appointed successor, issued this order as the Third Reich collapsed under the weight of Allied and Soviet advances.

The typed document bears Dönitz's fountain pen signature and the seal of the Nazi Party. The document was retained by Major General Sir Kenneth Strong, Eisenhower's chief of intelligence and translator during the surrender talks, and remained in private hands until this sale.


Other highlights included:

• Alfred Jodl's radiotelegram drafts to Karl Dönitz from the German surrender negotiations in Reims, including the phrase, "I see no alternative - chaos or signature." (sold for $75,000
)
• Dwight D. Eisenhower's signed 'Top Secret' SHAEF victory message of May 7, 1945, announcing the Allied victory in Europe ($41,023
)
• Eisenhower's typed letter on D-Day success (June 13, 1944) foretelling the defeat of Nazi Germany and liberation of Europe ($37,809
)