July 20 1944 – 29 Tammuz 5704
The most serious attempt on Adolf Hitler’s life, and the only internal plot that potentially threatened his regime, failed. During 1944, a group of senior Nazi officers and civilians hatched a plan to kill Hitler and quickly seize power in Berlin. Code-named Operation Valkyrie, it was disguised as a plan to mobilize reserve troops in Berlin in the event of a popular uprising. The leader of the “Officers’ Plot,” as it was also known, was Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, a war hero and highly respected commander. He arrived at Hitler’s “Wolf’s Lair” headquarters on the appointed day for a routine meeting, with a time bomb hidden inside a briefcase. He managed to arm the bomb and leave it under the table in the meeting room, near the point where Hitler was standing, before exiting. He saw the explosion on his way through the headquarters’ road-blocks, and certain that Hitler was dead, ordered Operation Valkyrie to go ahead. Forces receiving his message started taking over strategic centers of command in Berlin, but then Hitler, who’d only been wounded, personally broadcast the failure of the attempted coup on national radio. Von Stauffenberg was caught and tortured to reveal his fellow conspirators, all of whom were executed.
Among numerous films and documentaries based on the plot, Hollywood melodrama Valkyrie, starring Tom Cruise, was released in 2008.
Trailer for Valkyrie