Otto Skorzeny

"The most dangerous man in Europe"

Otto Skorzeny, Hitler's commando leader in World War 2, became kno n to the orld in September !"#$, hen %erman radio broadcasts hailed the pre&iously unkno n Skorzeny as "The most dangerous man in Europe" 'or his key role in the daring airborne raid to rescue the ousted (talian dictator )enito *ussolini+ (t as Skorzeny's !st success as a commando leader+ With the successes that 'ollo ed, allied media also began calling Skorzeny "The most dangerous man in Europe"+ The unusual making o' a commando leader The son o' an ,ustrian ci&il engineer, until World War 2 began Skorzeny -!"./0!"123 li&ed and orked as an engineer in 4ienna, ,ustria+ (n !"$! Skorzeny 5oined the ,ustrian branch o' the 6azi 7arty, and remained a loyal 6azi 'or the rest o' his li'e+ There ere three seemingly unimportant details in Skorzeny's pre0 ar li'e hich became important later8 (n !"$# Skorzeny and his i'e spent their honeymoon in (taly+ On *arch !2, !"$/, hen 6azi %ermany anne9ed ,ustria, Skorzeny demonstrated leadership and cold 5udgement by sa&ing the ,ustrian president Wilhelm *iklas 'rom being murdered by other ,ustrian 6azis+ Ernst :altenbrunner, then the head o' the ,ustrian branch o' the 6azi SS, kne Skorzeny and kne o' his action in sa&ing *iklas+ When World War 2 started in !"$", Skorzeny as immediately recruited, but in the 'irst $ !;2 years o' the ar his military career path sho ed no sign that he ould become a commando leader in the t o years that 'ollo ed+ (nitially assigned to an ,ir <orce technical personnel training class, Skorzeny then passed the admission tests o' the all0&olunteer elite Wa''en SS, the 6azi party's pri&ate army, and as assigned to its basic combat training as technical o''icer candidate+ =uring the in&asion o' <rance in *ay !"#., Skorzeny mostly "chased the ar", as an acting technical o''icer in the hea&y artillery unit o' the !st Wa''en SS =i&ision, in the trail o' the rapidly ad&ancing %erman 'orces+ , year later Skorzeny participated in the %erman in&asion o' >ussia as a technical o''icer in the 2nd Wa''en SS di&ision, =as >eich -The >eich3+ (n >ussia, Skorzeny sa some real combat action+ He as a arded the (ron ?ross medal, and in late !"#! he as in5ured by shrapnel 'rom >ussian artillery rockets+ He re'used to be e&acuated, and continued to 'ight ith =as >eich in >ussia, until the combination o' his super'icially treated head in5ury and disease en'orced his e&acuation to a hospital in 4ienna+ Once out o' hospital, on a medical reco&ery period, Skorzeny as assigned to a non0combat role in a Wa''en SS depot in )erlin+ (t as a boring role and he anted to return to the 'ront, but in the meantime, he had many months in )erlin ith plenty o' spare time to read and to meet ith 'ello Wa''en SS o''icers+ Skorzeny utilized this period to read all the literature that he could 'ind about commando ar'are, and to share his ideas about the sub5ect ith anyone ho ould listen to a 5unior technical o''icer's ideas about commando ar'are+ Skorzeny's main argument, based on his e9perience in the >ussian 'ront, as that the %erman army, hich demonstrated inno&ati&e ar'are early in the ar, gradually deteriorated to an ordinary ar o' attrition+ His proposed solution as to establish units specialized in uncon&entional ar'are that ill include 'ighting behind enemy lines, 'ighting in enemy uni'orm, sabotage attacks, etc+

,ll that talking e&entually paid o'', hen in ,pril !"#$ Skorzeny as summoned to the Wa''en SS head@uarters and as told that the Wa''en SS as looking 'or "a technically trained o''icer to carry out special duties"+ Skorzeny accepted immediately, and as promoted to ?aptain, as the commander o' a recently established Wa''en SS unit named SS Special Anit <riedenthal, a'ter the location o' its barracks at <riedenthal, near )erlin+ ?omment8 =uring Skorzeny's tenure as commander -!"#$0!"#23, his unit as renamed t ice, 'irst to SS Hunters )attalion 2.2, -the term Hunters denoted a broad range o' %erman light in'antry units, 'rom paratroopers to military police3, and then in 6o&ember !"## to SS ?ombat Anit "?enter", and by then it e9panded 'rom a small unit to 'i&e battalions+ SS Special Anit <riedenthal Antil !"#$, the %erman army did not think that it needed units 'or uncon&entional special ar'are deep behind enemy lines+ %ermany had a mighty army, the best in the orld then, and it as not restrained by political, diplomatic, or moral constraints+ (n those years, ,dol' Hitler did not ha&e to limit himsel' to sending commandos to neighbouring countries+ He simply sent his army to in&ade and occupy them+ <or military action behind enemy lines during those in&asions, t o types o' units ere used, mostly to capture key targets by using the element o' surprise, and then to temporarily hold them until relie&ed by the ad&ancing main %erman in&asion 'orce+ These units ere the 7aratroopers, and the )randenburg >egiment o' the %erman military intelligence, hich utilized soldiers 'luent in 'oreign languages and dressed in enemy uni'orms to achie&e the element o' surprise+ )ut as Skorzeny argued, this as no longer enough 'or %ermany+ The ar as increasingly turning against it, and it could no longer @uickly occupy enemy territories+ This 'inally brought the need 'or a military unit capable o' e9tended acti&ity deep behind enemy lines+ Since such acti&ity as considered a military e9tension o' the espionage and sabotage acti&ities done by spies, the ne unit as going to ork 'or the ,usland0S= -<oreign Security =epartment3, the espionage branch o' the >SH,, the security organization ithin the 6azi SS that included the %EST,7O -secret police3, the S= -internal security3, the ,usland0S= -'oreign espionage3, criminal in&estigations, and the Einsatzgruppen -death s@uads in charge o' the mass murder o' entire population groups in the occupied countries3+ Simply put, Skorzeny's ne unit belonged to the military branch o' the SS, and pro&ided its military0scale sabotage and attack capabilities to the espionage branch o' the SS, here such capabilities, greater than those o' spies, ere re@uired+ (n early !"#$, the SS as looking 'or the right man, among its o''icers, to lead its ne special unit+ They anted a person ith a combination o' leadership, good 5udgement in sensiti&e situations, combat e9perience, technical skills, and 'anatic 6azi loyalty+ Skorzeny's name as apparently suggested by no other than Ernst :altenbrunner, ho by !"#$ as the head o' the >SH,+ :altenbrunner kne Skorzeny 'rom their pre0 ar years in 4ienna, and he must ha&e remembered ho Skorzeny, the 6azi engineer, demonstrated unusually good political 5udgement, and leadership, in sa&ing the ,ustrian president 'rom his trigger0happy SS 'ello s on that night in !"$/+ )y !"#$ Skorzeny as a decorated Wa''en0SS o''icer ith a combat e9perience, a man ho demonstrated courage and dedication, as 'anatically loyal, and also ad&ocated that %ermany needs to establish uncon&entional ar'are units+ :altenbrunner kne that although the $2 years old Skorzeny as 5ust a Bieutenant then, he 'ound the man he as looking 'or+

Skorzeny began training his men 'or their intended special missions, repeatedly telling them that in their special type o' ar'are behind enemy lines, not shooting, as much as possible, should be their most important guideline+ He intended to impose 'ollo ing that guideline in 'uture action by "running ahead o' my men, and not 'iring my o n gun"+ Operation Oak to 'ind and rescue *ussolini On Culy 2D, !"#$, Skorzeny and his unit ere 'ully ready 'or action, hen Hitler learned that his political and military ally and 'riend )enito *ussolini, the <ascist dictator o' (taly, as ousted and arrested by his countrymen+ The (talian people got tired o' their 'ailing megalomaniac dictator, ho as much better in ords than in deeds+ (n 'our years o' ar, (taly lost its territories in 6orth ,'rica and in East ,'rica+ Sicily, its large island in the South, as occupied by The ,llies, and an allied in&asion o' (taly's mainland as imminent+ O&erthro ing *ussolini as @uick and bloodless+ The king summoned him to his &illa, told *ussolini that the people hates him and he must go, and hen *ussolini stepped out o' the king's o''ice, he as arrested+ The king appointed 7ietro )adoglio, a 'ormer politician and army ?hie' o' Sta'', as the ne temporary 7rime *inister+ Hitler as terribly 'urious about these ne s+ He as so 'urious not 5ust because his 'ello dictator and 'riend as o&erthro n, but also because there as &ery little he could do about it+ He could not retaliate by in&ading (taly, because (taly as still his ally in the ar, and the ne (talian go&ernment immediately assured him that they remain loyal allies, hich they did, 'or a hile+ (t as clear to both sides that the ne (talian go&ernment as @uietly looking 'or a ay to s itch sides in the ar, to end its long alliance ith 6azi %ermany, and to most likely deli&er the arrested *ussolini to The ,llies as a gesture+ )ut so 'ar (taly kept 'ighting shoulder to shoulder ith the %erman military, hich as already deployed in large numbers in (taly+ ,ll that Hitler could do, as to try to 'ind here the (talians ere hiding *ussolini be'ore they deli&ered him to The ,llies, and only then act to rescue him, in order to put him back in po er by 'orce, this time as a %erman puppet backed by %erman military po er+ So on the day a'ter *ussolini's arrest, Otto Skorzeny and 'i&e other commanders o' %ermany's most elite military units, ere urgently summoned to "Wol'sschanze" -Wol''s Bair3, Hitler's hea&ily guarded command post in the 'orests o' East 7russia+ Once there, the si9 o''icers, o' hich Skorzeny as o' the lo est rank, met ,dol' Hitler+ Hitler did not tell them hy they ere summoned+ (nstead, a'ter each o' them presented himsel', Hitler simply asked each o' them t o @uestions8 ,re you 'amiliar ith (taly E What do you think o' (taly E To the !st @uestion, only Skorzeny ans ered 'Fes', re'erring to his honeymoon in (taly nine years earlier+ To the 2nd @uestion, hile the other 'i&e o''icers ga&e politically correct ans ers about (taly being an ,lly and so on, Skorzeny decided to gamble and ans ered 5ust8 "( am an ,ustrian, <uhrer"+ (t as a short ans er that said a lot+ Skorzeny kne that Hitler, also originally ,ustrian, ill understand that he as thinking o' the traditional hostility bet een ,ustria and (taly, hich increased a'ter World War (+ The gamble paid o''+ Hitler dismissed the other o''icers, and a'ter they le't, he told Skorzeny hat really happened in (taly -%erman ne s media reported that *ussolini resigned 'or poor health3, and told him that he entrusts him ith a mission o' the highest strategic importance, to rescue *ussolini be'ore he ill be deli&ered to The ,llies+ <or both con&enience and secrecy, 'or the duration o' the mission, Skorzeny as placed under the command o' %eneral :urt Student, the commander o' the %erman 7aratroopers ?orps, ho as also sent to (taly that day ith a large 'orce o' elite 7aratroopers, 'or the same reason, but also to prepare to occupy >ome by 'orce i' necessary+ Skorzeny as to pose as %eneral Student's ad5utant+

,'ter meeting ith Student in "Wol'sschanze" that night, Skorzeny phoned his deputy, :arl >adl, and told him that they ere gi&en a mission that can not be discussed o&er the phone, and asked him to prepare, by da n, a &ery long list o' e&ery kind o' special e@uipment imaginable, 'rom guns and e9plosi&es to black hair color and monk robes+ >adl as also instructed to select 'orty o' <riedenthal's best men, including all those ho spoke (talian, and also bring ith him ten secret agents 'rom the ,usland0S= head@uarters, and ordered that all ill be dressed as paratroopers+ They all 'le to the %erman military head@uarters outside >ome+ (n the se&en eeks that 'ollo ed, Skorzeny participated in the %erman intelligence gathering group e''ort to locate *ussolini and to plan a rescue operation+ =uring those eeks, the suspicious (talians mo&ed *ussolini to a di''erent location three times, to pre&ent such a rescue attempt+ Three times the %ermans located here *ussolini as held, and three times he as mo&ed be'ore they raided the location+ *ussolini as 'irst trans'erred to the tiny island 7onza, o'' 6aples+ Then he as mo&ed to the tiny island Ba *addalena, near Sardinia, here one o' Skorzeny's (talian speaking commandos reported that he sa *ussolini 'rom a distance in an isolated &illa+ Skorzeny then 'le in a bomber to take aerial photos o' the location+ The bomber as shot do n by allied 'ighters, but Skorzeny and the bomber's cre ere rescued by an (talian destroyer+ *ussolini's ne location as picked by Herbert :appler, the police attache in the %erman embassy in >ome, ho intercepted a seemingly unimportant (talian police radio transmission re'erring to security preparations around %ran Sasso, the highest mountain in the (talian ,pennines+ :appler immediately guessed that *ussolini is held in the ski hotel at the top o' %ran Sasso, that as only accessible by cable car 'rom the &alley belo + <urther intelligence hints con&inced the %ermans that *ussolini might be on %ran Sasso+ The %ermans had to really hurry no , since on September $, !"#$, The ,llies in&aded the (talian mainland, on September /, (taly surrendered, and a day later The ,llies landed 'urther 6orth, at Salerno, near 6aples+ (taly as not yet an enemy o' %ermany, but no longer its ally+ Time as short+ %erman preparations to rescue *ussolini 'rom %ran Sasso ere also minimal because o' hea&y allied air bombardments on the %erman bases near >ome+ Skorzeny 'le again in a bomber, this time o&er %ran Sasso, and took pictures o' it ith a plain handheld camera+ When he returned, an attack plan as @uickly designed by %eneral Student, Harald *ors -one o' Student's paratrooper battalion commanders3, and Skorzeny+ The plan as simple, but not easy8 T el&e =<S 2$. assault gliders, each carrying " troops and a pilot, ill be released 'rom to aircra't o&er %ran Sasso at a rate o' one glider e&ery minute+ Each glider pilot ill then ha&e to struggle against the strong and unpredictable ind conditions abo&e the "2..'t summit in an attempt to land on the tiny patch o' straight soil ne9t to the ski hotel, that as surrounded by steep slopes 'rom all directions+ Once on the ground, the troops ill storm the ski hotel, here it as assumed that *ussolini as held, in an attempt to get to *ussolini be'ore the surprised guards ill ha&e time to shoot him+ Then, the (talian guards ill ha&e to be de'eated and the mountain summit secured+ , secondary 'orce ill simultaneously arri&e by trucks to the lo er cable car station at the base o' the mountain and ill secure it+ *ussolini ill then be 'lo n o'' the %ran Sasso by a Stork light aircra't+ The glider0borne assault 'orce, a total o' !./ troops, as comprised o' /! paratroopers in " gliders, and Skorzeny ith 22 o' his men, and one guest, in $ gliders+ Skorzeny's "guest" as %eneral <ernando Soleti o' the (talian military police, ho as kidnapped by Skorzeny's men and 'orced to board Skorzeny's glider+ The idea as that his presence in the raid could 'urther con'use the surprised (talian guards+ There as no time to arrange maps 'or the pilots, ho arri&ed to (taly 5ust be'ore the raid, so they ere instructed to 5ust 'ollo the lead aircra't, piloted by Student's intelligence o''icer+

=espite serious di''iculties be'ore and a'ter it, the raid, on September !2, !"#$, as a complete success+ , 'e (talians and %ermans ere in5ured, but nobody as killed+ Skorzeny's glider as initially the 2nd in the ro , but the lead to aircra't, ith the only pilot ho kne ho to na&igate to %ran Sasso, had to abandon the lead, and Skorzeny's to pilot suddenly 'ound himsel' leading, but ithout a map+ Skorzeny then used his kni'e to cut a small indo in the glider's bottom, that as enough 'or him to success'ully na&igate to %ran Sasso, based on his memory o' the 'light path 'rom his aerial photo 'light a day earlier, and by passing na&igation instructions to the glider pilot in 'ront o' him, ho relayed them by cable to the to aircra't's pilot+ Once on the ground, a'ter landing near the ski hotel, Skorzeny ran 'or ard, pushing %eneral Soleti in 'ront o' him, looking 'or a door, hen he sa *ussolini looking at him 'rom a 2nd 'loor indo + This as help'ul, since he no kne e9actly here to go+ Skorzeny shouted to *ussolini to get inside, to a&oid being hit by possible shots, and then charged into the hotel+ The surprised (talian guards ere 'urther con'used by %eneral Soleti ho shouted at them to a&oid shooting, and less than a minute later Skorzeny broke into *ussolini's room and disarmed his t o guards, as t o more o' his men came in 'rom the indo a'ter climbing the all+ Once *ussolini as secured in his room, Skorzeny saluted him and declared that he as sent by ,dol' Hitler to release him+ Within a 'e minutes, all the (talian guards in the ski hotel and the upper cable car station ere disarmed ithout a single shot being 'ired+ ,t the same time the %ermans took o&er the lo er cable car station a'ter a short 'ire 'ight, and by the time o' the last glider landing, the one that crashed, *ussolini as already out o' the hotel, aiting 'or the Stork light aircra't that ill 'ly him to sa'ety+ The Stork, a small t o seater light aircra't, as 'lo n by ?aptain Heinrich %erlach, %eneral Student's personal pilot+ ,'ter %erlach landed, the big Skorzeny insisted to also board the tiny t o seater aircra't, and placed himsel' in the small cargo bay behind *ussolini's seat+ Skorzeny later e9plained this action in saying that he as not illing to risk a situation in hich a'ter a success'ul rescue he ill 'ace Hitler only to report that *ussolini as rescued but then crashed on the slopes o' the %ran Sasso+ He pre'erred to die in such a crash too+ ?aptain %erlach, the pilot, had his o n doubts about the chances o' a success'ul takeo'', since in addition to ha&ing an incredibly short and rocky "run ay" that ended in an abyss, that run ay as also cut in the middle by a deep ditch that as not seen in the aerial photos that Skorzeny took a day earlier+ With *ussolini and Skorzeny onboard, %erlach told the paratroopers to hold the small aircra't in place hile he increased the engine's po er to the ma9imum, and then signalled them to let go, and the small aircra't ran 'or ard+ When he reached the ditch, %erlach pulled the stick to raise the aircra't a 'e inches in the air be'ore it descended back to the ground a'ter the ditch, and gained a little more speed be'ore it 'ell do n to the abyss at the end o' the run ay+ With ner&es o' steel, %erlach let the small aircra't di&e do n 5ust o&er the steep mountain slope, and then slo ly pulled the stick to le&el in the &alley belo , keeping the aircra't at tree top le&el to e&ade possible enemy 'ighters+ He didn't tell his t o passengers that the engine as damaged in the bumpy takeo'' and as not 'ully 'unctional+ They landed in a %erman controlled air base near >ome, here *ussolini and Skorzeny immediately trans'erred to a %erman bomber that 'le them to 4ienna, and 'rom there *ussolini as 'lo n to meet Hitler in "Wol'sschanze" that same day+ There ere ell deser&ed honors 'or all the key players+ Skorzeny as promoted to *a5or and as a arded the :nights ?ross, and became 'amous+ :appler, the %erman police attache, as also both promoted and decorated+ ?aptain %erlach, the Stork 7ilot, as a arded the :nights ?ross 'or per'orming one o' the most

di''icult takeo''s in the history o' a&iation+ Others among the pilots, paratroopers, intelligence personnel, and Skorzeny's deputy, ere either promoted or decorated+ The most complete and 'ully detailed report o' Operation Oak, including a 'ull background, can be 'ound in %reg ,nnussek's book "Hitler's >aid To Sa&e *ussolini" -=a ?apo 7ress, 2..23, hich reads almost like a Tom ?lancy 'iction book, but is entirely documentary+ Skorzeny in !"## <ollo ing their success in rescuing *ussolini, Skorzeny and his commandos returned to their base and continued training+ Skorzeny no e9panded his unit, and also gradually recei&ed control o&er other %erman special units, including the 6a&y's under ater sabotage di&ers and midget submarine units, and since *ay !"## also o' the ,ir <orce's suicide ground attack unit, the %erman e@ui&alent o' the Capanese :amikaze, called the Beonidas s@uadron+ The Beonidas S@uadron as made o' &olunteer suicide pilots, supposed to 'ly a manned &ersion o' the 40! cruise missile that ill be carried to the target area by bombers o' :% 2.., the Bu't a''e's special missions air ing+ On Culy 2., !"##, hen a group o' senior %erman army o''icers attempted to o&erthro the 6azi regime in )erlin 'ollo ing their 'ailed attempt to assassinate Hitler at "Wol'sschanze", Skorzeny played a role in sa&ing the 6azi regime+ Once in'ormed o' the rebellion, he hurried, as instructed, to the S= head@uarters in )erlin+ He calmed the panic there, called a company o' his men to secure the building, and then ent to the ,rmor ?orps head@uarters, hich controlled the most po er'ul unit in )erlin, the tank training school, hich had tanks+ The school's tanks already rolled into )erlin's streets in response to orders gi&en by the rebel o''icers, but ere already ordered to a&oid 'ighting and beha&e as in ordinary training, making them useless to the rebels+ ,'ter supporting the ,rmor ?orps duty o''icer's decision to obey only orders 'rom his normal chain o' command, Skorzeny ent to %eneral Student's home in )erlin, here the t o o''icers called %oering 'or 'urther instrcutions+ Skorzeny then returned to the S= head@uarters, and ith a group o' armed S= agents he ent to the rebels' head@uarters in the >eser&e ,rmy head@uarters building, here the rebel leaders here already arrested and some already e9ecuted+ Skorzeny took control there, stopped the e9ecutions, trans'erred the remaining arrested rebels to a %EST,7O prison, and then remained in the >eser&e ,rmy head@uarters as acting commander 'or the ne9t $D hours until relie&ed+ Since then, Hitler trusted and appreciated Skorzeny e&en more+ Three months later, the army's )randenburg >egiment as dismantled, and most o' its men, 'oreign language speakers specialized in 'ighting behind enemy lines disguised as enemy soldiers, ere trans'erred to Skorzeny's e9panding unit, here they played a key role in its last special operation+ (n October !"##, hen *iklos Horthy, the Hungarian dictator and Hitler's ally, as secretly negotiating a surrender to >ussia, Hitler sent Skorzeny's unit to 'orce Horthy to stop+ Skorzeny's men kidnapped Horthy's son and trans'erred him by plane to %ermany+ When that 'ailed to con&ince Horthy to stop, Skorzeny's men ent to the guarded citadel here Horthy as, and ith a combination o' ords and gun'ire, Skorzeny took o&er the citadel, and replaced Horthy ith a ne pro0%erman prime minister+ Operation %rei' -%ri''in3 )ack 'rom Hungary, Hitler promoted Skorzeny to Bieutenant ?olonel and ga&e him a ne mission+ ,s part o' the planned %erman o''ensi&e in the ,rdennes in the last days o' !"## -"The )attle o' the )ulge"3, Hitler suggested that Skorzeny's English speaking men ill in'iltrate behind ,llied lines dressed and e@uipped as ,merican soldiers, in order to create mass con'usion in The ,llies side in support o' the %erman attack+ (n addition to captured allied Ceeps, the %ermans used 7anther tanks and other %erman &ehicles repainted and modi'ied to look like ,llied &ehicles+ <or the duration o' that operation, Skorzeny as gi&en command o' a makeshi't unit named the !2.th SS 7anzer )rigade+

Hitler's idea as success'ul+ (n addition to the direct damage caused by the actions o' Skorzeny's phony ,merican soldiers, hich posed mostly as ,merican military policemen, the ne s and rumors o' their acti&ity spread rapidly among ,llied units and caused a reaction that as much more damaging+ Tra''ic o' ,llied o''icers o' all ranks and o' rein'orcements and supplies, as seriously slo ed do n by the sudden need to repeatedly stop at checkpoint a'ter checkpoint and identi'y as genuine ,mericans, and not 5ust by presenting identi'ication papers but also by ha&ing to ans er ,merican Tri&ia @uestions, because o' the ob&ious suspicion that the disguised %ermans also carry phony ,merican papers+ When some o' Skorzeny's soldiers ere captured, they told their interrogators that their mission as to reach 7aris and assassinate the ,llied supreme commander, %eneral Eisenho er+ This as a lie, but they also said that their commander as Skorzeny, hich as true, and since Skorzeny's record ith regard to 'oreign leaders as ell kno n, it as immediately belie&ed that Skorzeny as trying to get to Eisenho er, and as a result Eisenho er as con'ined to his o''ice 'or a long time, massi&ely guarded+ Skorzeny considered Operation %rei' a 'ailure+ )ecause o' delays, only a small number o' his men actually in'iltrated behind the ,llied lines, and the rest, most o' his unit, had to 'ight as regular soldiers+ The end o' the ar (n <ebruary !"#2, Otto Skorzeny demonstrated his command skills 'or the last time, success'ully holding a %erman de'ense line on the Oder ri&er, 2.mi East o' )erlin, 'or a critical period+ Hitler summoned Skorzeny again, a arded him the :nights ?ross ith oak lea&es, and sent him to an inspection tour along the rapidly collapsing %erman East 'ront+ T o days be'ore Hitler committed suicide in his bunker in )erlin, Skorzeny as gi&en his last mission, to go to )a&aria in southern %ermany and command the %erman 'orces there in a last battle to the bitter end, as part o' hat as called "The ,lpine <ortress", but hen he got there, there as nothing le't to command+ Ten days later the ar ended, and Skorzeny, "The most dangerous man in Europe", surrendered+ His commando unit, separately sent to "The ,lpine <ortress", surrendered in Binz, Hitler's home to n in ,ustria+ (n the post0 ar 6uremberg Trials, Skorzeny as accused o' ar crimes 'or Operation %rei', but as ac@uitted a'ter a senior )ritish special operations o''icer testi'ied that ,llied special 'orces had also sometimes 'ought in enemy uni'orm+ ,'ter his release 'rom 7OW camp as delayed 'or a long time, Skorzeny escaped, and reached the <ascist Spain+ He then mo&ed to ,rgentina, here he as employed as security ad&isor and bodyguard+ He also ad&ised 6asser, the dictator o' Egypt+ E&entually Otto Skorzeny returned to his pre0 ar occupation as a ci&il engineer and established a success'ul construction company in Spain that made him a multi0millionaire+ He died in !"12+