Operation Greif, the German deception operation associated with the Battle of the Bulge, sent 3,500 men disguised as American soldiers across Allied lines. In the novel, its significance lies both in the confusion it briefly caused and in the more durable legend built around its commander, Otto Skorzeny: the supposed plot to kill Dwight D. Eisenhower was a rumor, not the operation’s documented objective, yet it helped make Skorzeny a symbol of infiltration and danger.

Operation and Objective

As the fourth anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge approaches, Manuel Arroyo recalls that Skorzeny led the operation personally. The novel presents it as a plan designed by Adolf Hitler: disguised German troops crossed behind enemy lines shortly before the offensive, and their actions were meant to misdirect Allied forces. For several hours, the deception unsettled the Allies, but their command recognized that some officers were sending troops the wrong way and reacted in time.

The Assassination Rumor

The men in American uniforms were identified, arrested, and shot. Before their deaths, some said that they had been tasked with killing Eisenhower. The account separates that claim from the operation’s actual orders: the men did not know what their mission was, and a rumor circulating among the troops supplied an explanation that seemed to fit Skorzeny’s fame. Eisenhower was not in that sector, and the novel states that Skorzeny had no order to assassinate him. The story thus shows how uncertainty about a covert operation allowed a sensational allegation to grow into part of its public mythology.

Trial, Reputation, and Afterlife

Skorzeny’s ability to infiltrate Allied lines nevertheless enraged the Americans and placed him at the top of their list of most-wanted Nazis. At his Nuremberg trial, his lawyer secured testimony from a British squadron leader who had also infiltrated enemy lines in German uniform in an operation that Hitler had used as a model. That testimony undermined the case against Skorzeny, and he was acquitted. The verdict did not dispel the image of him as exceptionally dangerous: Allied propaganda continued to preserve his notoriety, even as the assassination story remained unsupported.

Meaning in the Later Plot

Years later, in Madrid, Arroyo considers whether Skorzeny—then living under the name Rolf Steinbauer—could be lured into revealing himself. Arroyo imagines exploiting Skorzeny’s vanity by approaching him as an admiring comrade and invoking his reputation. He concludes that the scheme might work, but does not put it into practice. The episode’s reputation has outlived its military context: for Arroyo, it is both a possible route to arresting a fugitive and a reminder that the public image of Skorzeny is partly made from rumor, propaganda, and a real capacity for deception.