forth an offer of German surrender to the Western Allies, but not the Soviet Union. Adolf Hitler finally concedes defeat in the Führerbunker after learning that SS-Obergruppenführer Felix Steiner cannot mobilize enough men to launch a counterattack on the Soviet forces which have completely surrounded Berlin. April 23 – WWII: Hermann Göring sends the Göring Telegram to Hitler, seeking confirmation that he should take over leadership of Germany, in accordance with the decree of June 29, 1941. Hitler regards this as treason. The main Flossenbürg concentration camp is liberated by the United States Army. April 24 – Retreating German troops destroy all the bridges over the Adige in Verona, including the historic Ponte di Castelvecchio and Ponte Pietra. April 25 Founding negotiations for the United Nations begin in San Francisco. WWII – Elbe Day: United States and Soviet troops link up at the Elbe River, cutting Germany in two. April 25–26 – WWII: The last major strategic bombing raid by RAF Bomber Command, the destruction of the oil refinery at Tønsberg in southern Norway, is carried out by 107 Avro Lancasters. April 26 – WWII: Battle of Bautzen: The last "successful" German panzer-offensive in Bautzen ends with the city recaptured. The British 3rd Infantry Division, under General Whistler, captures Bremen. Nazi surrenders mean the British and Canadians now control the German border with Switzerland, from Basle to Lake Constance. April 27 The last German formations withdraw from Finland to Norway. The Lapland War and thus, World War II in Finland, comes to an end and the Raising the Flag on the Three-Country Cairn photograph is taken. U.S. Ordnance troops find the coffins of Frederick William I of Prussia, Frederick the Great, Paul von Hindenburg, and his wife, in a salt mine in Germany. April 28 The bodies of Benito Mussolini, his mistress, Clara Petacci, and other followers are hung by their heels at a gas station in the public square of Milan, Piazzale Loreto, following their execution by Italian partisans after an attempt to flee the country. The Canadian First Army captures Emden and Wilhelmshaven. April 29 At the royal palace in Caserta, Lieutenant-Colonel Viktor von Schweinitz (representing General Heinrich von Vietinghoff) and SS-Obersturmbannführer Eugen Wenner (representing Waffen-SS General Karl Wolff) sign an unconditional instrument of surrender for all Axis powers forces in Italy, taking effect on May 2. Italian General Rodolfo Graziani orders the Esercito Nazionale Repubblicano forces under