Carl Szokoll lived as if danger were a part of everyday routine. An Austrian officer in the German army he was in the middle of a regime that was founded upon fear and yet continued to resist.

His initial act of rebellion was on his own behalf. He would not abandon Christl Kukula whose mother was a Jew. In Nazi Germany this might have hurt him severely. Nevertheless he remained.

Then came 1944. There was an attempt to kill Hitler on July 20th. Szokoll was part of the plot. The plot went wrong and a lot of people were executed. He was so good at pretending to be a dedicated soldier that they promoted him.

During the final days of the war Vienna was under threat of destruction. Szokoll covertly negotiated with the Soviets to try to preserve the city. The Nazis discovered. His friend's were murdered. He was targeted. In some way he convinced the German commander to withdraw and Vienna was spared.

They were suspicious of him after the war and not grateful. So he began making movies and telling stories about courage and standing up for what was right. Carl Szokoll was more than a soldier. He was the one who rescued his city and lived.

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