By the evening of the 25th there were doubts even at OKW, normally a faithful echo of the Fuehrer’s voice. Colonel Lieutenant Bernard von Lossberg, a young staff officer, buttonholed General Jodl and reminded him of the old German military maxim, Never let up on a defeated enemy. Jodl mildly brushed aside the advice, explaining, “The war is won; all that is left is to finish it. It’s not worth sacrificing a single tank, if we can do it more cheaply by using the Luftwaffe.”

