Although often cited as occurring on May 9, historical records and timelines from institutions like the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum confirm he approached American lines on May 7, just as Germany signed its unconditional surrender.

Hermann Göring held a vast array of titles and powers within the Nazi regime:

Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe: Responsible for Germany's air war.

President of the Reichstag: A role he used to consolidate Nazi legislative control.

Head of the Gestapo: He founded the secret state police in 1933.

Prime Minister of Prussia: Governing the largest German state.

Hitler's Successor: Designated as the next leader in 1939, though Hitler stripped him of this title in April 1945 after Göring attempted to assume power via telegram.

Göring chose to surrender to American forces to avoid capture by the Soviet Army, which he feared would torture him. Surrendered near Kitzbühel, Austria, in the Bavarian border region. At the time of his capture, he was struggling with a long-term morphine addiction and possessed a significant cache of pills.

He was initially treated with some courtesy by his captors—including being presented with a steak dinner—before high-level Allied command ordered he be treated strictly as a war criminal. Following his capture, Göring was the highest-ranking Nazi official to face justice at the Nuremberg Trials. Found guilty on four counts, including crimes against humanity and war crimes. On October 15, 1946, hours before his scheduled execution, Göring died by suicide by swallowing a smuggled cyanide capsule.

"Herman Göring, commander in chief of the Luftwaffe, president of the Reichstag, head of the Gestapo, prime minister of Prussia, and Hitler's designated successor is taken prisoner by the U.S. Seventh Army in Bavaria.

Göring was an early member of the Nazi Party and was wounded in the failed Munich Beer Hall Putsch in 1923. That wound would have long-term effects; Göring became increasingly addicted to painkillers. Not long after Hitler's accession to power, Göring was instrumental in creating concentration camps for political enemies.

Ostentatious and self-indulgent, he changed his uniform five times a day and was notorious for flaunting his decorations, jewelry, and stolen artwork. It was Göring who ordered the purging of German Jews from the economy following the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938, initiating an "Aryanization" policy that confiscated Jewish property and businesses.

Göring's failure to win the Battle of Britain and prevent the Allied bombing of Germany led to his loss of stature within the Party, aggravated by the low esteem with which he was always held by fellow officers because of his egocentrism and position as Hitler's right-hand man. As the war progressed, he dropped into depressions and battled drug addiction.

When Göring fell into U.S. hands after Germany's surrender, he had in his possession a rich stash of pills. He was tried at Nuremberg and charged with various crimes against humanity. Despite a vigorous attempt at self acquittal, he was found guilty and sentenced to be hanged, but before he could be executed, he committed suicide by swallowing a cyanide tablet he had hidden from his guards." https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/herman-goering-is-captured-by-the-u-s-seventh-army

NOT MY LINKS

CONTEXT: http://gooring.tripod.com/goo47.html

"In the final phase of his life he (Göring) suffered from profound illusion.

In April 1945 he had been dismissed with ignominy from all his posts, arrested, and bequeathed a curse. But when he heard of Hitler's death, he was, his wife recalled, "close to despair" and exclaimed, "He's dead, Emmy. Now I shall never be able to tell him that I was true to him till the end!" In much the same way as Himmler, he hoped to be accepted by the Allies as a partner in negotiations.

As General Bodenschatz has testified, soon after his capture by the Americans his main concern was the proclamation which he intended to make to the German people as soon as he had reached a satisfactory agreement with Eisenhower. His claim to the leadership of the Reich after Hitler's death was indisputable in his view. Even at Nuremberg he compelled his fellow prisoner the Grand Admiral Doenitz to admit that he owed his own 'nomination as the Fuehrer's successor solely to coincidence'.

And if Göring defended himself before the International Court of Justice with striking skill and some aggressiveness, behind which some of the old elemental force of his personality could be felt, it was because of his conviction that his role as leader placed greater responsibility upon him than upon the other prisoners.

Obstinately and at times not without success, he tried to command them, to influence their statements, and to establish a regime which Speer referred to angrily as "Göring's dictatorship." At last, after so many years, so many blows and humiliations, for a brief and fruitless span he had reached his goal: to be the First Man and "Nazi Number One." as he called himself."

From The Face Of The Third Reich, by Joachim C Fest:

FULL Göring BIO: https://gooring.tripod.com/goo47.html

NOT MY LINKS

VIDEO - Thomas Kysor (2005): on Arresting Goering - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oSTDQDH5ZU

1: Rolf Wartenberg (left) escorts Hermann Goering following his arrest.

2: Detention Report Mugshot

3: Former Reichsmarshall Herman Goring shortly after his arrest by US forces, May 1945.

>"That Rosenberg—he is a man who has his head in the clouds. I have no doubt that he is a man who would not hurt a fly but there is also no doubt that these propagandists were really responsible for paving the way for these terrible anti-Semitic acts ... It is too bad Hitler isn't here. He did so much of all that is discussed here."

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NOTE: Certain historical documents, testimony, quotes & images are presented for the record, as evidence and background pertaining to criminal activities, horrific acts, and other notable evils. The words of murderers, criminals & their lawyers should never be mistaken for fact, as they are often bold-faced lies, nor should they be misconstrued as providing a viable justification for their crimes. Don't believe any of it, beyond the fact they did write & speak this nasty stuff and did purport to believe it. As always, read with an abundant degree of cautious skepticism. -W

IMAGE does not necessarily have any connection to the Question: "Eight Men in Coats with Stars" is a 1944 dark, scratchy ink drawing by Peter Loewenstein, created while he was imprisoned in the Terezin (Theresienstadt) Ghetto. It is widely regarded as one of his most striking works for capturing the profound "fear and sadness" of the Holocaust without using graphic or violent imagery.

Loewenstein produced the drawing in 1944, the same year he was deported to Auschwitz. He likely created it after learning of his impending transport. While Loewenstein worked in Terezin's technical department creating "sanitized" propaganda for the SS, he secretly produced nearly 70 clandestine drawings to document the ghetto's true conditions

Before his deportation, he entrusted his portfolio to his mother; it was later recovered by his sister, Gerda, the family's sole survivor.

The drawing depicts a close-up, nighttime scene of eight men huddling in conversation. Two of the men have clearly visible Jewish stars on their coats, grounding the scene in the reality of the Nazi marking system. The figures avoid eye contact, evoking a sense of isolation, uncertainty, and the gravity of their situation. Unlike his "washy" watercolors of camp infrastructure, this piece uses a "frankly expressionist," dark style to convey foreboding.

1) On What Date Did The Holocaust Begin?

2: Why Do I Say that the Holocaust Began That Day?

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NOTE: Certain historical documents, testimony, quotes & images are presented for the record, as evidence and background pertaining to criminal activities, horrific acts, and other notable evils. The words of murderers, criminals & their lawyers should never be mistaken for fact, as they are often bold-faced lies, nor should they be misconstrued as providing a viable justification for their crimes. Don't believe any of it, beyond the fact they did write & speak this nasty stuff and did purport to believe it. As always, read with an abundant degree of cautious skepticism. -W

IMAGE does not necessarily have any connection to the Question: L’Kadosh Hashem: To the Sanctification of the Name, a painting by Holocaust survivor Jacob Barosin was discovered in Pueblo. It measures about 30 inches wide and 24 3/8 inches high. It is one of several images with a similar theme. https://www.cpr.org/2026/04/22/holocaust-survivor-jacob-barosin-art-pueblo-beulah/

What Exactly Was Hitler's Secretary, Traudl Junge, Doing When She Claimed to have Heard the Shot?

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NOTE: Certain historical documents, testimony, quotes & images are presented for the record, as evidence and background pertaining to criminal activities, horrific acts, and other notable evils. The words of murderers, criminals & their lawyers should never be mistaken for fact, as they are often bold-faced lies, nor should they be misconstrued as providing a viable justification for their crimes. Don't believe any of it, beyond the fact they did write & speak this nasty stuff and did purport to believe it. As always, read with an abundant degree of cautious skepticism. -W

IMAGE does not necessarily have any connection to the Question: This image titled "Love" was created by Brenden Cole, a student at Stebbins High School, and was featured in the Max May Memorial Holocaust Art Exhibition. It was selected for exhibition at the Dayton Art Institute. The artwork aligns with the exhibition's theme, "Eighty years after the Holocaust, the Second Generation shares the history of their families. Never again, Never forget".  The piece emphasizes the importance of art in honoring the stories of survivors and ensuring the legacy of the Holocaust is remembered. 

>'Yes, Hitler had charge of the whole Reich and he didn't like lots of things; he didn't like the Jews, he didn't like democracy and he didn't like diplomacy. As far as politics are concerned, seeing how England and America were grabbing things, I don't blame him for trying to see what he could get away with."

Rules: ONE GUESS ONLY: Answers (found in a past Post to this Group) MUST BE SPECIFIC. If incomplete or otherwise invalidly worded, we regret that you have wasted your Guess. Read ALL the previous Guesses first & then make your Guess in a Comment Box, NOT a Reply Box, & do confine all Comments to the one allowed Guess only. Too much confusion otherwise. The Winner will be acknowledged as Today's Genius! Good Luck to you! -W

NOTE: Certain historical documents, testimony, quotes & images are presented for the record, as evidence and background pertaining to criminal activities, horrific acts, and other notable evils. The words of murderers, criminals & their lawyers should never be mistaken for fact, as they are often bold-faced lies, nor should they be misconstrued as providing a viable justification for their crimes. Don't believe any of it, beyond the fact they did write & speak this nasty stuff and did purport to believe it. As always, read with an abundant degree of cautious skepticism. -W

IMAGE does not necessarily have any connection to the Question: ‘Adam and Eve and The Sweat and the Pain' - This oil on canvas painting by Lithuanian-American artist and Holocaust survivor Samuel Bak belongs to his extensive Adam and Eve series. In this 2009 work, Bak uses biblical allegory to explore a world "after the fall"—not just from Eden, but into the catastrophic history of the 20th century.

Adam is depicted as a weary laborer, while a pregnant Eve appears physically exhausted. This directly references the biblical curses of toil and painful childbirth. They sit beneath a small tree with a trunk snapped in two. Its upper portion levitates, tethered only by a rope to its earthbound roots.

IIn Bak’s visual vocabulary, the pear often replaces the apple as the forbidden fruit. Here, chunks have been bitten from hanging pears. A lush, "bucolic" paradise is visible in the far distance, symbolizing a peace the couple can see but never reach. Bak portrays Adam and Eve as "lone survivors" wandering a world in disrepair. They are metaphors for displaced persons (DPs) struggling to rebuild after the Holocaust.

The levitating, broken tree and fragmented objects represent a shattered world where divine promises feel unfulfilled or out of reach. The "sweat and pain" of the title emphasize the constant, exhausting effort required to organize and recycle the "bits and pieces" of a broken universe.

His paintings invite viewers to "hear the silences" and confront the contradictions between religious spirit and the physical failures of history. https://agbmuseum.org/exhibitions/bak

>"The little faith I used to have has been completely shattered. If God existed, He would have certainly not permitted that human beings be thrown alive into furnaces, and the heads of little toddlers be smashed with butt of guns or be shoved into sacks and gassed to death."

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NOTE: Certain historical documents, testimony, quotes & images are presented for the record, as evidence and background pertaining to criminal activities, horrific acts, and other notable evils. The words of murderers, criminals & their lawyers should never be mistaken for fact, as they are often bold-faced lies, nor should they be misconstrued as providing a viable justification for their crimes. Don't believe any of it, beyond the fact they did write & speak this nasty stuff and did purport to believe it. As always, read with an abundant degree of cautious skepticism. -W

IMAGE does not necessarily have any connection to the Question: "The late Jewish artist, David Olere, was born in 1902 in Warsaw. ... “David Olere is the only prisoner of Sonderkommando who transferred his traumatic experiences from the shadow of the crematorium chimneys on paper and canvas,” museum director Piotr Cywinski said in the statement.

The powerful, emotive paintings “show both the everyday life of Sonderkommando’s work, the strength of the trauma but also the will of life of the person who went through the darkest of the camp experiences.” LOTS MORE----> https://www.timesofisrael.com/poland-acquires-gas-chamber-paintings-by-late-holocaust-survivor/

>"You just have to look at that worm Streicher on the stand and see the kind of man that Hitler protected to the very end!—Ugh! That man Hitler had no conception of decency and honor and dignity."

Rules: ONE GUESS ONLY: Answers (found in a past Post to this Group) MUST BE SPECIFIC. If incomplete or otherwise invalidly worded, we regret that you have wasted your Guess. Read ALL the previous Guesses first & then make your Guess in a Comment Box, NOT a Reply Box, & do confine all Comments to the one allowed Guess only. Too much confusion otherwise. The Winner will be acknowledged as Today's Genius! Good Luck to you! -W

NOTE: Certain historical documents, testimony, quotes & images are presented for the record, as evidence and background pertaining to criminal activities, horrific acts, and other notable evils. The words of murderers, criminals & their lawyers should never be mistaken for fact, as they are often bold-faced lies, nor should they be misconstrued as providing a viable justification for their crimes. Don't believe any of it, beyond the fact they did write & speak this nasty stuff and did purport to believe it. As always, read with an abundant degree of cautious skepticism. -W

IMAGE does not necessarily have any connection to the Question: A painting titled Blind man in Belsen by Australian war artist Alan Moore. The painting depicts a scene within the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp shortly after its liberation by British troops on April 15, 1945. Alan Moore was an official Australian war artist who accompanied the Welsh Guards into the camp to document the atrocities for historical record. The painting shows a blind inmate with a bandaged head walking through the camp, surrounded by corpses and other survivors. Moore initially sketched the horrific scenes in pencil and charcoal before painting this oil canvas upon his return to Australia to help make sense of the incomprehensible situation. 

>"Like many people who have a smattering of reading in many fields, he (Adolf Hitler) thought he was an expert in all fields. ... he accepted everything he read as authoritative. Such self-taught people have an unholy awe for what they see in print. Unlike scientists, they don't understand that authorities become revised in time and science progresses and the printed word is far from absolute. But he considered his opinion absolutely authoritative on all subjects because he too had once read a book."

Rules: ONE GUESS ONLY: Answers (found in a past Post to this Group) MUST BE SPECIFIC. If incomplete or otherwise invalidly worded, we regret that you have wasted your Guess. Read ALL the previous Guesses first & then make your Guess in a Comment Box, NOT a Reply Box, & do confine all Comments to the one allowed Guess only. Too much confusion otherwise. The Winner will be acknowledged as Today's Genius! Good Luck to you! -W

NOTE: Certain historical documents, testimony, quotes & images are presented for the record, as evidence and background pertaining to criminal activities, horrific acts, and other notable evils. The words of murderers, criminals & their lawyers should never be mistaken for fact, as they are often bold-faced lies, nor should they be misconstrued as providing a viable justification for their crimes. Don't believe any of it, beyond the fact they did write & speak this nasty stuff and did purport to believe it. As always, read with an abundant degree of cautious skepticism. -W

IMAGE does not necessarily have any connection to the Question: Holocaust Crowd Scene II, Peter Howson (b.1958), Ben Uri Gallery & Museum. NOTE that the swastika hate symbols have been defaced. -W