HESSLER: After the capitulation—that is, after the end of the war and then through a British officer.
FLOTTENRICHTER KRANZBÜHLER: How do you explain the fact that of the very few officers who received these instructions from Möhle, none raised the question of the interpretation of this order with Commander, U-boats?
HESSLER: I have only one explanation of this; and that is that these officers thought Korvettenkapitän Möhle’s interpretation completely impossible, and not in agreement with the interpretation of Commander, U-boats.
FLOTTENRICHTER KRANZBÜHLER: Therefore, they did not think that clarification was necessary?
HESSLER: They did not think that clarification was necessary.
FLOTTENRICHTER KRANZBÜHLER: The Prosecution’s charges against Admiral Dönitz are based to a great extent on extracts from the War Diary of the SKL and Commander, U-boats, documents which are in the possession of the British Admiralty. How is it possible that all these data fell into the hands of the British Admiralty—and in toto?
HESSLER: It was the Admiral’s desire that the war diaries of the U-boats and of Commander, U-boats, which formed part of the Navy archives, should be preserved and not be destroyed.
FLOTTENRICHTER KRANZBÜHLER: Did he say anything to you about this?
HESSLER: Yes, in that form, when I told him that our own staff data had been completely destroyed.
FLOTTENRICHTER KRANZBÜHLER: Did he give any reason as to why he did not want the Navy archives destroyed?