Lt. Gen. Walter Bedell Smith, SHAEF chief of staff, led the Allied delegation as the representative of General Eisenhower, who had refused to meet with the Germans until the surrender had been accomplished. Other American officers present were Maj. Gen. Harold R. Bull and Gen. Carl Spaatz. British observers were Adm. Sir Harold Burrough, Lt. Gen. Sir Fred Morgan (SHAEF deputy chief of staff), and Air Marshal J. M. Robb. Maj. Gen. Ivan Sousloparov, head of the Soviet mission to France, represented the Soviet High Command; he was accompanied by Lt. Ivan Chermiaev and Senior Lt. Col. Ivan Zenkovitch as interpreters. Representing the French chief of staff (Gen. Alphonse Pierre Juin) was Maj. Gen. Francois Sevez. The more than 44 hours between the signing of the Act of Military Surrender and the cease-fire to take place at 2301 hours, or 11:01 P.M., on May 8 represented a concession to the Germans by SHAEF, one that unintentionally allowed more German troops to be moved westward for surrender to American or British and Commonwealth forces rather than to those of the Soviet Union. Signers of the surrender document were Col. Gen. Alfred Jodl, on behalf of the German High Command; Lt. Gen. Walter Bedell Smith, representing General Eisenhower; Maj. Gen. Ivan Sousloparov, fulfilling the Big Three agreement that a Soviet representative would take part in any ceremony of total surrender; and Maj. Gen. Francois Sevez, signing as a witness for France. It is interesting to note that the signature of the French representative was made in the lower margin of the document. This appears to be the case both on the original, issued to the Supreme Allied Commander, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and on the American, British and Russian national copies. Eisenhower gave his copy to his adjutant from whose estate this extraordinary document was obtained. The National Archives verified this for their records. The American national copy is now preserved in the National Archives.

It has been verbally passed down that the Germans did not consider the French as an equal to the Americans, British and Russians (as they had defeated France)…..and thus insisted that their signature not appear, except in the margin.

… Impressed with this sentiment and at the same time fully convinced that our affairs will take a more favorable turn. The Congress have judged it necessary to dissolve all connection between Great Britain and The American Colonies …

…La guerre est gagnee! Voici la Victoire! C’est la Victoire des Nations Unies et c’est la Victoire de la France! … Honneur pour toujours a nos armees et a leurs chefs! Honneur a notre people que des epreuves terrible n’ont pu reduire, ni flechir! Honneur aux Nations Unies qui ont mele leur sang a notre sang, leurs peines a nos peines, leur Esperance a notre esperance et qui, aujourd’hui triomphent avec nous. Ah! Vive la France!…

The heroic announcement by De Gaulle one day prior to the formal German ratification of the Surrender on May 9 1945, proclaiming victory in characteristically stirring tones and paying tribute to the sacrifices made both by the French and by the Allies.

Marked at head in pencil “texte definitif” and bearing the date 8 May 1945, de Gaulle’s corrections written in blue ink between the lines and in the margin. The instrument of surrender was signed by the Germans at 2:41 a.m. on 7 May 1945, by which all hostilities were to cease at midnight on 8 May. The formal ratification by the German high command was not made until 9 May; de Gaulle however seized the first available opportunity to proclaim the allied victory in Europe.

A more poignant and historic World War 2 relic cannot be imagined. This is the opportunity of a lifetime
to acquire an item of truly incredible magnitude. Feel free to contact us with any questions.

The pistol comes with a custom-made leather zipper case with Elvis’s name tooled on it. Also, the original Firearms investigation report and Registration Paper showing the Serial Number and signature of Elvis A. Presley from the Beverly Hills Police Department are part of the provenance with this pistol.

There are 4 photos of Elvis with the gun. There are numerous articles in several books regarding Elvis giving the pistol to Vice-President Spiro Agnew on December 01, 1970. The pistol has tremendous historical value due to the fact it was given as a gift to Vice-President Spiro Agnew. Vice-President Agnew returned the pistol to Elvis because he was under investigation for wrongful acts. The provenance is as good as it can get. The pistol was later given to the Sheriff of Shelby County, Sheriff Gene Barksdale. The value of this artifact is almost priceless.