After the war , Kesselring was tried for war crimes and sentenced to death for ordering the murder of 335 Italian civilians , and for inciting and commanding his troops to kill civilians in reprisals . The sentence was subsequently commuted to life imprisonment . A political and media campaign resulted in his release in 1952 , ostensibly on health grounds . He was one of only three officers with the rank of '' Generalfeldmarschall '' to publish his memoirs , which were entitled '' Soldat bis zum letzten Tag '' ( " A Soldier to the Last Day " )
murder of 335 Italian civilians
Ardeatine massacre
Albert Kesselring