Henning von Tresckow3 was a typical Prussian with a strong sense of honor and tradition who had come to despise Hitler early on. He was the first officer at the front to contact the conspirators. When he heard about the Commissar Order, he told General Gersdorf that if they weren’t able to convince Bock to have it canceled, “the German people will be burdened with a guilt the world will not forget in a hundred years.” He said the guilt would fall not only on Hitler and his inner circle, “but on you and me, your wife and mine, your children and mine.” For many generals this was the turning
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