Claus von Stauffenberg was a German army officer who is best known for his failed attempt on 20 July 1944 to assassinate Adolf Hitler at the Wolf's Lair.
Stauffenberg with Albrecht Mertz von Quirnheim in June 1944
Stauffenberg, left, with Hitler (centre) and Wilhelm Keitel, right, in an aborted assassination attempt at Rastenburg on 15 July 1944
Plaque in the Bendlerblock "Here died for Germany on 20 July 1944...Colonel Claus Graf Schenk von Stauffenberg..."
Death certificate (issued in 1951)
The 20 July plot was a failed attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler, the chancellor and leader of Nazi Germany, and subsequently to overthrow the Nazi regime on 20 July 1944. The plotters were part of the German resistance, mainly composed of Wehrmacht officers. The leader of the conspiracy, Claus von Stauffenberg, planned to kill Hitler by detonating an explosive hidden in a briefcase. However, due to the location of the bomb at the time of detonation, the blast only dealt Hitler minor injuries. The planners' subsequent coup attempt also failed and resulted in a purge of the Wehrmacht.
Martin Bormann, Hermann Göring, and Bruno Loerzer surveying the damaged conference room
Battle fronts in Europe as of 15 July 1944
Stauffenberg with Albrecht Mertz von Quirnheim in June 1944
Generaloberst Ludwig Beck
