On July 25, 1941, German soldiers of the 19th Corps of the army shot 16 local Serbs in Smederevska Palanka, Serbia

On July 25, 1941, German soldiers of the 19th Corps of the army shot 16 local Serbs in Smederevska Palanka, Serbia. The story of German corporal Josef Schulz spread all over the world. According to the story, when his superiors ordered him to fire on the prisoners, he placed his rifle on the ground and walked away. When his comrades opened fire, he stepped out from among the trees and was immediately shot by his own men.

For decades, people believed this story. A monument was even erected for Schulz and the local victims. Historians also identified a photo taken by a German war correspondent as showing the German corporal standing outside the line of soldiers moments before he was shot.

But German Army records state that Josef Schulz was killed in action against Serbian partisans on July 19, 1941, before the massacre took place. A later forensic examination of the famous photograph also found that the soldier in the photo was actually someone else who had walked away from his comrades before they opened fire on the Serbs.

Both sides benefited from the story after the war. Tito's Yugoslavia promoted it as an example of a German soldier who opposed the execution of Serbian civilians. German accounts emphasized the courage and moral attitude of an individual during war.

The story of the man who refused to carry out an order has endured because, in times of war, people look for courage in the face of conflict.