A surrender order issued by Hitler's successor in the final days of the Second World War that was found on the chief of the Luftwaffe when he was arrested is being auctioned 70 years later for £21,000. The typed dispatch – owned by a US collector – was sent by German president Karl Doenitz on May 8, 1945, telling officers to abandon fighting or face the Allies' wrath. It was seized from Luftwaffe chief Robert von Greim when he was arrested that day. The WWI fighter ace then killed himself rather than be tortured by the Russians. The surrender order that is being auctioned is being auctioned by Bonhams, New York . The typed order sent by German president Karl Doenitz is expected to fetch £21,000 when it goes under the hammer . Grand Admiral Doenitz had been Hitler's choice to replace him as leader of the Nazis, a role he assumed following the dictator's suicide on April 30. But a week later, amid a crumbling and defeated Reich, Doenitz met with Allied commanders to sign the instrument of surrender, bringing an end to war in Europe. The following day Doenitz, who had been commander of the German navy up until Hitler's death, sent a telex message to his commanders in the field informing them of the immediate surrender 'to save as many people as possible for Germany'. Describing the action as 'unavoidable', Doenitz instructed officers to abandon all fighting or face the wrath of the Allies. The note read: 'On 7 May 1945 0241, the Supreme Command of the Wehrmacht signed the unconditional surrender of all armed forces on land, on water, and in the air to the Supreme Command of the Allied Expeditionary Forces as well as the Soviet Supreme Command. 'This was unavoidable in order to prevent the complete destruction of certain parts of the front, which was expected to occur in a short time, and, in doing so, to save as many people as possible for Germany. 'Accordingly, on 9 May 1945 0100 GST every ongoing combat activity must be abandoned. 'All officers of the army, navy and the Luftwaffe, as well as troops of the Wehrmacht divisions and the Waffen SS shall remain in their current positions. 'Effective immediately, no maritime vehicle or aeroplane shall be sunk or destroyed, no military equipment may be damaged in any way.' He finished the message with a stark warning that if his officers 'do not act according to the conditions of surrender, the Command of the Allied Expeditionary Forces and Soviet Command will undertake punitive measures or other steps beyond the conditions of surrender.' Von Greim, 52, a WWI fighter ace, had been put in charge of the Luftwaffe after Hitler turned on Herman Goering accusing him of treason. Railing against his former comrades, Hitler summoned von Greim to Berlin and ordered him to hunt down and kill Gestapo chief Heinrich Himmler who he believed had tried to harbour a peace deal with the Allies. The order was seized from Luftwaffe chief Robert von Greim when he was arrested that day . Von Greim escaped Berlin in a camouflaged plane and his actions thereafter are unknown until he was arrested in Austria by US troops on May 8. On his arrest, Von Greim admitted to his captors: 'I am the head of the Luftwaffe, but I have no Luftwaffe'. He was taken to Salzburg and was due to be handed over to the Soviets but committed suicide by taking a cyanide pill on May 24. The note is one of the only copies of Doenitz's dispatch known to exist today. It is tipped to fetch £21,000 when it goes under the hammer at Bonhams auction house on behalf of a private collector from the US. Tom Lamb, an expert in military history at Bonhams, said: 'The story behind this document is an incredible one. 'Hitler was in his bunker in Berlin a few days prior to his death and he called von Greim, one of his closest and most trusted allies. 'Von Greim was flown in to Berlin amid all the fighting. That evening Hitler launched a rant about how his right hand man Heinrich Himmler had betrayed him. 'Hitler ordered von Greim to go and kill Himmler for treason then take control of the Luftwaffe following the treason of Goering. 'Von Greim left immediately in his camouflaged plane and amazingly managed to escape out of Berlin without being caught. 'He was supposed to go to Plon in northern Germany to track down Himmler but he was arrested on May 8, the same day as the German surrender, by US troops in Austria. 'Hitler had committed suicide a week earlier and Admiral Doenitz had taken charge. On May 7 1945 Doenitz had signed the instrument of surrender and the following day he sent his high command a dispatch informing them. 'Doenitz warned that if the Germans didn't stop fighting they would be killed by the Americans or the Russians. 'He understood the end had come and he was telling his high command to make sure everyone knew that. 'The telegram from Doenitz was found on Von Griem when he was arrested. 'Von Greim was then taken to Salzburg where he was due to be part of a Soviet-US prisoner exchange but fearing torture at the hands of Stalin he took his own life with a cyanide pill. 'Copies of the surrender note from Doenitz are exceptionally rare - many were lost or destroyed but somehow this one survived. 'This document is incredibly important in the history of the 20th century.' The auction will take place in New York on April 29.
Typed dispatch sent by German president Karl Doenitz on May 8, 1945 . Seized from Luftwaffe chief Robert von Greim when he was arrested . Order told officers to stop fighting or face the Allies' wrath . Set to fetch £21,000 when it goes under the hammer at Bonhams, New York .