10 American soldiers who were captured and handed over to the Germans in Mirdita

Dashnor Kaloçi

Memorie.al publishes archival documents with the correspondence of the Ministry of Interior and the Prefecture of Shkodra for 10 American servicemen who were parachuted into the village of Shebe in the Municipality of Perlat on July 31, 1944 and were taken prisoner by the Albanian gendarmerie who then handed them over German forces….

The signing of the declaration of unconditional capitulation by Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, Minister of Defense of Nazi Germany Hitler on May 8, 1945 in Berlin with British General Bernard Montgomery, and a day later, on May 9, with Marshal Georgy Zhukov , (Hero of the Soviet Union), officially marked the end of World War II which consumed millions of lives, not counting the material damage. From that time until today, these two dates, May 8 and 9, continue to be celebrated with fervor by both the East and the West, as the Day of Victory over Fascism.

Unlike in these countries, until 1990, communist Albania never commemorated these two dates (only May 9, sometimes superficially), but celebrated only November 29, the day of its liberation. The abduction of the communist regime of Enver Hoxha on May 8 and 9, had to do with the concealment and denial that official Tirana made of the contribution of the Anglo-Americans in the liberation of Albania. Who, not only financed that war with weapons, clothing and food, but through their missions that brought to Albania, trained and threw into war both the partisan forces of Enver Hoxha, as well as the nationalist forces of Legality and the National Front? It should even be said that the contribution of Anglo-American forces was crucial in the liberation of Albania.

This is best evidenced by dozens of archival documents found in the Central State Archive in Tirana, where it turns out that from September 1943 until the end of the war in November 1944, the Anglo-American air force, according to the orders of Their General Command for the Mediterranean, (based in Cairo and later in Bari, Italy), have undertaken hundreds of air incursions into Albanian territory, including Albanian areas in Kosovo, Macedonia and Montenegro, bombing German forces. wherever they were. From the documents in question it is known that the Anglo-American planes were raised in aerial incursions and bombed a single car that was traveling in the area of ​​Elbasan, as three German officers were traveling there. The same thing happened on the outskirts of Librazhd, where Allied aviation occasionally bombed a single barracks where several German forces were stationed.

And the deputy prefect of Librazhd, asked his superiors in Tirana to talk and see the possibility of the Germans leaving the city, as that was bringing casualties to the civilian population of Librazhd. There are dozens of such cases and details in this archival fund, but what is of most interest is the fact that in this period of time (September 1943-November 1944, ie for about 14 months, in places, provinces, cities and villages of Albania from south to north, full of 40 fighter jets of Anglo-American allies, which were in combat incursions bombing German forces, crashed. These documents provide detailed information on the names of the pilots, their ranks, place, date and details of the tragic fate of Anglo-American pilots and soldiers, where most of them were burned along with the plane, another part appears to have been parachuted in and almost all have been captured by local gendarmerie forces or the German army.

So, in these documents it is made known about 200 Anglo-American soldiers killed and captured by the Germans. In the following article we are publishing two or three archival documents where it is about 10 American soldiers who at the end of July 1944, were forced to parachute into the mountains of Mirdita, after the plane they were flying was hit by German anti-aircraft artillery.

As a result, they were captured and arrested by the Albanian Gendarmerie forces in that area commanded by Captain Ndue Bajraktari, who then handed them over to German forces. Nothing is known about the further fate of these 10 American servicemen, (as the documents in question do not say anything more), but surely, they have had the tragic fate, like most of their comrades in the US military, who were taken prisoner by the Germans. Along with the archival documents that we are publishing exclusively for Memorie.al, we are also publishing some rare photos of the Anglo-American military in Albania.

ALBANIAN STATE Shkodra on July 31, 1944

ALBANIAN BREASTFEEDING WEAPON

District Command

No.1396 / 1 Prot.

ABBREVIATION: On the burning of an airplane and the landing of 10 crew members

Command of P. of Brotherhood

(Office I)

T i r a n ë

We submit that on the 28th of this month, at 11:30, in a place called Guri i Zi in the village of Shebe, in the municipality of Perlati, N / Prefecture of Mirdita, an American four-engine plane was shot down and completely burned, and its crew consisted of 10 All American citizens have descended by parachute, of which 4 have ramun in Shebe village and 6 in Perlat village, at this moment they are visible from the Mirdita Brotherhood Force under the command of Captain Ndue Bajraktari, who immediately in the measures taken , arrested the mentioned crew, 4 of whom he found in the house of Mark Doçi in the village of Shebe, and 6 others in the house of Frrok Gjeto in the village of Perlat, of which 9 people accompanied them to this Command, and one of They were injured and were not able to travel, he assured them and left them at Mark Doçi’s house in Shebe village.

The plane is said to have been bombed in Romania and after it had landed, in return it was destroyed or wounded by German anti-aircraft guns and thus could not have traveled longer and was burned at the place indicated above.

Also, in their body was not found any private item on top or ammunition only, the clothes they have. The crew members are:

1) -Ist.LT. Havog B. Million Matrix 0-755484

2) -Sgt. Earl A. Sehrot Zbergar ………………….36858330

3) -Lt. Rose Yl. Iamoson ……………………………0718351

4) -Lv. Shomas L. Harris ……………………………07702042

5) -Sgt. Edvord L. Vansilike ……………………… 37494449

6) -S.Sgt. Fohu Neupannne ………………….32 .32606685

7) -Lt. Elande L.Postit …………………………… 0-705415

8) -SCO. Bensand Uinbengen …………………3121283

9) -Sgt. Ceyrue D.Reed ……………………………19060885

10) -S / Set. Albert Bradedok ………………I plagosun.

Njitun and a piece of paper (bustule) written in different languages ​​that was found on them, together with those mentioned were handed over to Kom. Germany.

District Brotherhood Commander

Llesh Marashi

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Prefecture

Police Commissariat

Here

Submitted for information

Gendarmerie District Commander

M A J O R

Llesh Marashi

……………………………………………………………………………………………………

ALBANIAN STATE

K O M I S E R I J A E P O L I C I S E S. B. SH K O D E R

Shkodër on 31/7/1944

LANDA: I N F O R M A T A

State Prefecture Here

e.p.d. Director of Police T i r a n ë

We have the honor to inform you that 10 American Aviators, while returning to their bases from a bombardment carried out on the East side, due to the destruction of their air, were forced to launch parachutes in the province of Perlat – Mirdita.

These were abducted by the people of the country and handed over to the Brotherhood Weapon that was brought to them in this city.

One of them is still in the landing place.

Police Commissioner

(Mato Murati)

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

SH T E T I SH Q I P T A R K O N C E P T

PREFECTURE OF SHKODRA Shkodra on 9.81944

P.T.

MINISTRY OF P. INTERIOR

(Correspondence Directorate)

TIRANA

abbreviations

On the burning of an airplane and the landing of 10 crew members

Following our wire No.6 / 93 dated 2.8.1944

The District Command informs us that an American four-engine plane crashed and burned completely in the village of Shebe in the Municipality of Perlat. The crew, consisting of 10 people, all American citizens, descended by parachute, of which 4 were ramun in the village of Shebe and 6 in Perlat, were immediately arrested by the Mirdita Brotherhood under the command of Captain Ndue Bajraktari.

The crew members are:

1) -Ist.LT. Havog B. Million

2) -Sgt. Earl A. Sehrot Zbergar

3) -Lt. Rose Yl. Iamoson

4) -Lv. Shomas L. Harris

5) -Sgt. Edvord L. Vansilike

6) -S.Sgt. Fohu Neupannne

7) -Lt. Elande L.Postit

8) -SCO. Bensand Uinbengen

9) -Sgt. Ceyrue D.Reed

10) -S / Set. Albert Braddock

The latter remained unharmed and was assured they were left at Mark Doçi’s house in the village of Shebe, while the other 9 were handed over to the German Command.

GENERAL INSPECTOR OF THE PRIME MINISTER WITH FUNCTIONS

prefect

Javer Hurshiti

Memorie.al