Bio of Major Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein (1916-1944)

Full name: Heinrich Alexander Ludwig Peter Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn  
Nickname: Heini

Date of Birth: 14.08.1916 - Kopenhagen, Denmark  
Date of Death: 21.01.1944 - near Luebars by Stendal, Germany
Buried at: German War Cemetery Ysselsteyn, Netherlands (Plot TH, Row 1, Grave 2)

Battles and Operations: Battle of France, Battle of Britain, Operation Barbarossa, Defence of the Reich  
No party number (Luftwaffe officer)  
Religion: Protestant (family background)  
Parents: Prince Gustav Alexander zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn (diplomat) and Walburga Baroness von Friesen  
Siblings: two brothers (Ludwig and Alexander)  
Spouse: none (unmarried)  
Children: none  

Promotions:  
01.06.1938 Leutnant  
00.08.1942 Oberleutnant  
00.10.1942 Hauptmann  
01.01.1944 Major  

Career:  
00.00.1916-17.12.1935 various schools in Copenhagen, Switzerland (Lake Geneva, Davos, Montreux), Neubeuern and Freiburg im Breisgau (Abitur at Realgymnasium)  
12.04.1932 joined Hitler Youth (later Kameradschaftsfuehrer and Wehrsportleiter)  
04.1937 joined 17. Kavallerie-Regiment Bamberg after Reichsarbeitsdienst  
Summer 1937 transferred to Luftwaffe  
10.1937 flight training at Fliegerschule Braunschweig  
06.1938 officer commission  
Winter 1938-39 Kampfbeobachter with KG 54  
1940 observer and later pilot with KG 1 Hindenburg (He 111)  
03.1941 combat missions with KG 1 and KG 51 during Operation Barbarossa (150 missions total as bomber crew)  
08.1941 transferred to night fighter force  
01.11.1941 Staffelkapitaen 9./Nachtjagdgeschwader 2  
01.12.1942 Gruppenkommandeur IV./Nachtjagdgeschwader 5 (later redesignated I./NJG 100)  
15.08.1943 Gruppenkommandeur II./Nachtjagdgeschwader 3  
01.12.1943 Gruppenkommandeur II./Nachtjagdgeschwader 2  
01.01.1944 Geschwaderkommodore Nachtjagdgeschwader 2  

Awards and Decorations:  
Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse (05.06.1940)  
Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse (26.06.1940)  
Luftwaffe Ehrenpokal (15.09.1941)  
Deutsches Kreuz in Gold (21.08.1942) as Oberleutnant in 6./NJG 2  
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (02.10.1942) as Hauptmann and Staffelkapitaen 9./Nachtjagdgeschwader 2, after reaching 22 confirmed aerial victories, all at night. He transferred to night fighters in early 1942 after earlier bomber/observer service. His first nocturnal victory came on the night of 6/7 May 1942 (a Bristol Blenheim or similar). He rapidly built his score during operations over the Netherlands and later the Eastern Front, often flying the Junkers Ju 88. By October 1942 he had 22 kills, earning the Ritterkreuz. The award was presented by General Josef Kammhuber (head of the night fighter force). No single “decisive mission” is cited—it was the cumulative result of his early effectiveness in the Nachtjagd.
Front Flying Clasp for Night Fighters in Gold  
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #290 (31.08.1943) as Hauptmann and Kommandeur I./Nachtjagdgeschwader 100, after reaching 54 aerial victories (most sources; one lists 47 at confirmation).
By mid-1943 he was a proven Experte. Notable feats contributing to this total included: An “ace-in-a-day” performance on 20 July 1943 near Oryol (Eastern Front), where he shot down seven Soviet aircraft in one night (six of them within 47 minutes, taking his score to victories 36–41); Additional multi-kill nights in July–August 1943 (e.g., three victories on 1 August and three more on 3 August). The Eichenlaub recognized his leadership as a group commander and his rising score during the intense Eastern Front night fighting and early Defence of the Reich operations. The award was personally presented by Adolf Hitler at the Wolf’s Lair (Führerhauptquartier) in East Prussia on 22 September 1943, alongside other aces (Günther Rall and Walter Nowotny received Swords that day). He also received a congratulatory letter from the 4. Jagd-Division commander.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #44 (23.01.1944) posthumously as Major and Geschwaderkommodore Nachtjagdgeschwader 2, for overall record of 83 victories (including leadership of night fighter wings) and, crucially, his final extraordinary mission on 21 January 1944. On the night of 21 January 1944, flying a Ju 88 R-4 (R4+XM) in a “Zahme Sau” (Tame Boar) free-hunting mission near Berlin, Wittgenstein and his crew (Feldwebel Friedrich Ostheimer as radio operator and Unteroffizier Kurt Matzuleit as mechanic) engaged a large RAF bomber stream. Between approximately 22:00 and 22:40 he claimed five four-engined Lancasters in rapid succession: First at ~22:05 (observed exploding), Second at 22:10–22:15, Third at ~22:30 (exploded), Fourth at 22:40 (hit the ground), Fifth during a final attack (the bomber was already burning when Wittgenstein came under attack). During the fifth engagement, British escort fighters (possibly Mosquitos) hit his Ju 88; the left wing caught fire. He ordered his crew to bail out (they survived). Wittgenstein attempted to nurse the burning aircraft back or bail out himself, but his parachute was found unopened. His body was recovered the next day near the wreckage in a forest near Lübars (Stendal area), with the cause of death listed as a closed fracture of the skull and facial bones (likely from striking the aircraft’s tail fin during egress). At the time of his death he was the Luftwaffe’s leading night fighter ace. The Swords were awarded just two days later in recognition of his total score, command achievements, and this final act of aggression in which he downed five bombers before perishing. These awards reflect the Luftwaffe’s system of honoring night fighter aces for cumulative success in the brutal nocturnal air war over Europe. Wittgenstein remains one of the top three night fighter aces in history (behind only Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer and Helmut Lent). His remains were later reinterred at Ysselsteyn German war cemetery in the Netherlands.

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Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein was born into an aristocratic family in Copenhagen where his father served as a German diplomat. After a peripatetic education across Europe he completed his Abitur in Freiburg and joined the Wehrmacht via the cavalry before transferring to the Luftwaffe. He flew as observer and pilot in bomber units during the campaigns in France and Britain and then over 150 missions in the East with KG 1 and KG 51.  

In August 1941 he volunteered for the night fighter arm and quickly rose to Staffelkapitaen of 9./NJG 2. His first nocturnal victory came on the night of 6/7 May 1942 when he downed a Bristol Blenheim west of Walcheren. By early October 1942 he had reached 22 confirmed night victories, including multiple three-victory nights such as 31 July and 10 September 1942. These achievements, combined with his leadership of the Staffel, earned him the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 2 October 1942. The award recognised not only his personal score but also his aggressive tactics and ability to locate and engage bombers in darkness using early Lichtenstein radar and visual contact.  

Transferred to the Eastern Front as Gruppenkommandeur of IV./NJG 5 (later I./NJG 100) in December 1942, he continued to excel. On the night of 20/21 July 1943 alone he claimed seven Soviet aircraft near Oryol, six of them within 47 minutes, demonstrating exceptional skill in target-rich night conditions. Additional triple victories followed on 1 August and 3 August. By 31 August 1943 his total stood at 54 victories and he received the Eichenlaub (290th award). The Oak Leaves were presented personally by Adolf Hitler at the Wolfsschanze on 22 September 1943 together with other aces. At that time he flew mainly the Ju 88, which he preferred over the Bf 110 for its range and firepower.  

On 1 January 1944 he was appointed Geschwaderkommodore of NJG 2. His score had reached 68 by then. On the night of 20/21 January 1944, during a Zahme Sau intercept mission near Berlin in a Ju 88 (Werknummer 750467), he claimed five four-engined RAF bombers (Lancasters and a Halifax) between 22:00 and 22:40. During the fifth attack his own aircraft was hit by defensive fire from a bomber or possibly a Mosquito escort, setting the wing ablaze. He ordered his radio operator Friedrich Ostheimer and mechanic Kurt Matzuleit to bale out; both survived. Wittgenstein attempted to nurse the burning aircraft back but crashed in a forest near Luebars. His body was found the next day with a fractured skull; the parachute had not opened. At the time of his death his total stood at 83 nocturnal victories (33 on the Eastern Front, 50 on the Western Front). He was mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht and posthumously awarded the Schwerter (44th award) on 23 January 1944 in recognition of his outstanding record and command achievements. He was initially buried at Deelen airfield and re-interred in 1948 at Ysselsteyn German War Cemetery alongside fellow aristocratic night fighter pilot Egmont Prinz zur Lippe-Weißenfeld.  

Unique and interesting facts include that Sayn-Wittgenstein came from one of Germany's oldest princely houses and was a descendant of a Russian field marshal. He possessed an almost intuitive sixth sense for locating enemy aircraft, described by comrades as a personal radar. He was known for strict discipline in the air, once confining a radio operator to quarters for losing contact, yet pardoning him after a successful mission. By 1943 he had grown disillusioned with the regime and reportedly contemplated actions against Hitler, though he continued fighting out of duty and ambition to surpass other aces. He flew over 320 combat missions in total.

Source:  
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinrich_Prinz_zu_Sayn-Wittgenstein  
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/26218/Sayn-Wittgenstein-Prinz-zu--Heinrich.htm  
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Personenregister/S/SaynWittgensteinHPv.htm  
https://grokipedia.com/page/Heinrich_Prinz_zu_Sayn-Wittgenstein  
https://ww2gravestone.com/people/sayn-wittgenstein-heinrich-alexander-ludwig-peter-prinz-zu/  
https://www.ww2.dk/lwoffz.html  
https://aircrewremembered.com/KrackerDatabase/?q=units  
https://forum.axishistory.com/  
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/  
https://www.bundesarchiv.de/en/  
https://www.geni.com/  
https://books.google.com/ (searches on Luftwaffe night fighters)  
Scherzer, Veit. Die Ritterkreuztraeger 1939-1945. Jena 2007.  
Goss, Christopher. Princes of Darkness: The Lives of Luftwaffe Night Fighter Aces Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein and Egmont Prinz zur Lippe-Weißenfeld. 2003.  
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300  
https://www.unithistories.com/units_index/index.php?file=/officers/personsx.html  
https://web.archive.org/web/20091027052912fw_/http://geocities.com/orion47.geo/index2.html

Bio of Hajo Herrmann (1913-2010)

Full name: Hans-Joachim Herrmann
Nickname: Hajo

Date of Birth: 1 August 1913 - Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein (Germany)
Date of Death: 5 November 2010 - Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia (Germany)

Battles and Operations: Spanish Civil War, Polish Campaign, Norwegian Campaign, Western Campaign, Battle of Britain, Mediterranean Campaign, Arctic Convoys (including PQ-17), Defense of the Reich

NSDAP-Number: No information
SS-Number: No information (Luftwaffe officer)
Religion: No information
Parents: No information
Siblings: No information
Spouse: Ingeborg Reichelt (married 1959)
Children: Two sons (Benno and Thilo Martinho)

Promotions:
1 June 1935 Polizei-Leutnant (Hamburg State Police)
1 June 1938 Oberleutnant
1 December 1940 Hauptmann
1 March 1943 Major
1 August 1943 Oberstleutnant
1 December 1943 Oberst

Career:
May 1933 joined Hamburg State Police
1 August 1935 transferred to Luftwaffe
1936-1937 bomber pilot with Condor Legion in Spanish Civil War (flew He 111 with Kampfgruppe 88)
September 1939 transferred to 7. Staffel/KG 4
20 June 1940 Staffelkapitän 7./KG 4 "General Wever"
October 1940 transferred to KG 30
February 1941 operations in Mediterranean with III./KG 30 (Malta, Greece)
1 September 1941 Gruppenkommandeur III./KG 30 (Norway, Arctic convoys)
July 1942 transferred to Luftwaffenführungsstab (OKL staff)
April 1943 formed Nachtjagdversuchskommando and later Geschwaderkommodore JG 300 "Wilde Sau"
December 1943 Inspector of Night Fighters and later Inspector General of Night Fighters
End of 1944 commander 1. Jagddivision and 9. Fliegerdivision
April 1945 led Sonderkommando Elbe (Rammjäger unit)
11 May 1945 captured by Soviet forces, held in captivity until October 1955
1955 studied law
1965 Rechtsanwalt in Düsseldorf

Awards and Decorations:
Spanienkreuz in Bronze mit Schwertern
Eisernes Kreuz II.Klasse (October 1939)
Eisernes Kreuz I.Klasse (27 May 1940)
Luftwaffe Ehrenpokale für besondere Leistungen im Luftkrieg (28 September 1940)
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (13 October 1940) as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän of the 7./Kampfgeschwader 4 "General Wever". Awarded for distinguished service as a bomber pilot (primarily He 111 and later Ju 88). By this point he had flown numerous combat missions across several campaigns. Specific operations highlighted in the award citation include: Attacks on Polish troop concentrations in the Kutno pocket (September 1939), The attack on Fortress Dröbak during the Norwegian campaign (April 1940), Reconnaissance and anti-submarine sorties in the Skagerrak–Kattegat area, Raids on British landing positions at Namsos and Andalsnes (Norway), Attacks on Dutch airfields at Amsterdam-Schiphol and Bergen op Zoom (May 1940), and Mining operations in the mouth of the Thames. He had already participated in the invasion of Poland (first mission on 1 September 1939 bombing railways), operations over Norway, the Battle of Britain (including the first attack on London on the night of 7/8 September 1940 and 21 missions over the city by mid-October), and earlier Condor Legion service in Spain. By the time of the award he had completed dozens of missions and sunk or damaged significant shipping.
Deutsches Kreuz in Gold #1/61 (5 June 1942)
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #269 (2 August 1943) as Major and Geschwaderkommodore of Jagdgeschwader 300. The award recognised a mix of an earlier spectacular success as a bomber pilot, the creation of a revolutionary night-fighting tactic, and his first personal aerial victories: On the night of 6/7 April 1941 (while operating from Sicily/Greece with KG 4 or KG 30), Herrmann scored a direct hit on the British ammunition ship Clan Fraser in Piraeus harbour (Greece). The resulting explosion destroyed or damaged 11 other ships (total ~41,942 GRT) and closed the port for months. (Note: Some secondary sources incorrectly list the location as Malta; the decisive strike occurred in Piraeus during support of the Greek campaign). Development of “Wilde Sau” single-engined night-fighter tactics. In 1942–43 he recognised the limitations of the rigid Kammhuber Line (“Himmelbett”) system against RAF bomber streams. He proposed using day fighters (Bf 109 and Fw 190) at night, illuminated by the fires of the target cities. After initial rejection, he gained approval in March 1943, formed the experimental Nachtjagdversuchskommando, and established JG 300 in mid-1943. The tactic dramatically improved the defence against night raids. By the award date he had achieved at least 6 (of his eventual 9) nocturnal victories against four-engined bombers while flying Wilde Sau missions himself (he was forced to bail out twice). The combination of the earlier shipping destruction, the new tactic that was already proving effective, and his personal score earned him the Eichenlaub.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #43 (23 January 1944) as Oberst and Inspekteur der Deutschen Luftverteidigung. The award recognised his continued outstanding leadership in the defence of the Reich and the full success of his innovations: He had by then personally claimed a total of 9 aerial victories against RAF four-engined bombers (Lancasters and Halifaxes) while flying Wilde Sau sorties with JG 300 and the 30. Jagd-Division (confirmed claims include victories on 4 July, 26/28/31 July, 3 August, 24 August 1943, and two on 3 January 1944 over Berlin). The “Wilde Sau” tactic (and its further development) had become a key element of German night defence. JG 300 and follow-on units inflicted heavy losses on RAF Bomber Command during the Battle of Berlin and other raids. As Inspector General he oversaw the broader integration of single-engine night fighters and continued to fly operational missions. The award specifically cited the 9 bomber victories plus his “development of innovative fighter tactics.” By this stage he had also flown ~320 bomber missions earlier in the war and was one of the most influential tactical thinkers in the Luftwaffe’s night-fighter arm.
Gemeinsames Flugzeugfuhrer-Beobachter Abzeichen mit Brillianten

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Hans-Joachim Herrmann, often affectionately called Hajo by his comrades, was a highly decorated Luftwaffe bomber and night fighter pilot who flew more than 320 combat missions and later became a key innovator in the defense of the Reich. Starting his career in the Hamburg State Police in 1933, he transferred to the Luftwaffe in 1935 and gained early combat experience in the Spanish Civil War and the early campaigns of World War II. As Staffelkapitän of 7./KG 4 he led daring raids over Poland, Norway, the Low Countries and Britain, sinking or damaging significant shipping and earning rapid recognition for his leadership and precision bombing. 

Transferred to KG 30, Herrmann continued his successes in the Mediterranean, most notably striking the ammunition ship Clan Fraser in Piraeus harbor on 6/7 April 1941, an explosion that destroyed eleven vessels and rendered the port unusable for months. By 1942 he had moved to staff duties but soon proposed revolutionary single-engine night-fighting tactics using day fighters in illuminated skies over German cities. Authorized in 1943, these "Wilde Sau" operations with JG 300 allowed him to claim several victories himself while greatly improving the effectiveness of night defenses against Allied bomber streams. 

Appointed Inspector of Night Fighters and later commander of the 1. Jagddivision, Herrmann oversaw critical phases of the Reich air defense and in the final months of the war directed the experimental Rammjäger unit Sonderkommando Elbe. Captured by Soviet forces in May 1945, he endured ten years of harsh captivity before returning to Germany in 1955. He studied law, qualified as a Rechtsanwalt in Düsseldorf in 1965 and maintained a public profile into his later years. Herrmann is remembered as both a skilled aviator who sank approximately 65,000 tons of Allied shipping and a pioneering tactician whose ideas shaped late-war Luftwaffe night operations.

Source:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hajo_Herrmann
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans-Joachim_Herrmann_(Flieger)
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/34538/Herrmann-Hans-Joachim-Hajo.htm
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300
https://aircrewremembered.com/KrackerDatabase/?q=units
https://www.ww2.dk/lwoffz.html
https://forum.axishistory.com/
Scherzer, Veit. Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939-1945. Jena 2007.
Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945. Friedberg 2000.
Stockert, Franz. Die Ritterkreuzträger der Luftwaffe. Band 3. Bad Friedrichshall 2012.
Bundesarchiv personnel files references.

Bio of General der Panzertruppe Gerhard Graf von Schwerin (1899-1980)

Full name: Gerhard Helmut Detleff Graf von Schwerin
Nickname: Gerd

Date of Birth: 23.06.1899 - Hannover, German Empire
Date of Death: 29.10.1980 - Rottach-Egern, Bavaria, West Germany

Battles and Operations: World War I (Eastern and Western Fronts), Western Campaign (France 1940), North African Campaign (Mechili oasis), Operation Barbarossa, fighting near Mga and Schlüsselburg (approaches to Leningrad), Caucasus Campaign, retreat from the Caucasus, Mius Front, Zaporozhye bridgehead, Normandy Campaign, Battle of Aachen, Italian Campaign 1945

Religion: No information
Parents: Father was a civil official in the Prussian State Government (name unknown)
Siblings: No information
Spouse: Married three times (first to Herta Kannengiesser, second to Julia Zulich, third to Esther Klippel)
Children: Gabrielle (born August 1932), Christian (born January 1939)

Promotions:
10.08.1914 Fähnrich
18.07.1915 Leutnant (Patent: 02.06.1916)
01.07.1923 Leutnant (RDA: 01.03.1918)
01.04.1925 Oberleutnant
01.06.1933 Hauptmann
01.03.1937 Major (RDA: 01.10.1936)
10.11.1938 Major (RDA: 01.04.1936)
01.04.1939 Oberstleutnant (RDA: 01.08.1938)
01.08.1941 Oberst
01.10.1942 Generalmajor (RDA: 01.10.1942)
01.06.1943 Generalleutnant
01.04.1945 General der Panzertruppe

Career:
00.00.1914 entered Prussian Army as Fähnrich in 2. Foot Guards Regiment, later transferred to 2. (1st Pomeranian) Grenadier Regiment
1918 company commander and battalion adjutant on Eastern and Western Fronts (wounded 26.09.1918)
1920 discharged from army
1920-1922 managerial apprenticeship in coffee import firm (Bremen) and petroleum company (Berlin)
01.07.1923 rejoined Reichswehr as Leutnant in Infanterie-Regiment 1
1931 Infanterie-Regiment 18 (Paderborn)
01.06.1933 Hauptmann
1933-1935 General Staff course at Prussian Military Academy Berlin
1935-1937 various General Staff and company command positions (including Chef 13. Kompanie, Infanterie-Regiment 17)
10.11.1938 3. Abteilung, Generalstab des Heeres
01.04.1939 Oberstleutnant
1938-1939 staff officer at Oberkommando des Heeres and attaché duties in London (clandestine contacts with British officials warning of impending war and suggesting anti-Hitler coup support)
09.09.1939 Kommandeur I. Bataillon, Infanterie-Regiment Grossdeutschland
15.12.1940 Kommandeur Infanterie-Regiment 254
17.01.1941 Kommandeur Infanterie-Regiment z.b.V. 200 (5. leichte Division, North Africa)
28.07.1941 Kommandeur Infanterie-Regiment (mot.) 76, 20. Infanterie-Division (mot.)
29.05.1942 Führerreserve OKH
02.07.1942 m.d.F.b. 8. Jäger-Division
27.09.1942 Stab Oberfeldkommandantur 365
05.11.1942 Stab 16. Infanterie-Division (mot.)
13.11.1942 Kommandeur 16. Infanterie-Division (mot.), later 16. Panzergrenadier-Division
01.05.1944 Kommandeur 116. Panzer-Division (Windhund-Division)
20.09.1944 Führerreserve OKH
19.10.1944 Reserve-Lazarett
10.12.1944 Kommandeur 90. Panzergrenadier-Division
03.02.1945 m.d.F.b. LXXVI. Panzerkorps
01.04.1945 Kommandeur LXXVI. Panzerkorps (Italian front)
26.04.1945 captured by British forces
late 1947 released from POW camp
1950 chief advisor on military and security policy to Chancellor Konrad Adenauer and head of Dienststelle Schwerin (Zentrale für Heimatdienst)
1950-1950s advisor on military policy for Free Democratic Party parliamentary group
post-war resident in Rottach-Egern

Awards and Decorations:
Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse 1914 (World War I)
Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse 1914 (World War I)
Verwundetenabzeichen in Silber 1918 (wounded 26.09.1918)
Ritter des Königlich Preußischen Hausordens von Hohenzollern mit Schwertern (World War I)
Ehrenkreuz für Frontkämpfer
DRL-Sportabzeichen in Bronze (14.03.1930)
DRL-Sportabzeichen in Silber (11.03.1932)
Dienstauszeichnung der Wehrmacht 4. Klasse (4 years)
Dienstauszeichnung der Wehrmacht 3. Klasse (12 years)
Dienstauszeichnung der Wehrmacht 2. Klasse (18 years)
Dienstauszeichnung der Wehrmacht 1. Klasse (25 years)
1939 Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz 2. Klasse (11.05.1940) as Oberstleutnant and Kommandeur I. Bataillon, Infanterie-Regiment Grossdeutschland
1939 Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz 1. Klasse (19.05.1940) as Oberstleutnant and Kommandeur I. Bataillon, Infanterie-Regiment Grossdeutschland
Panzerkampfabzeichen (ohne Zahl) (15.06.1941) as Oberstleutnant and Kommandeur Infanterie-Regiment z.b.V. 200
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes #803 (17.01.1942) as Oberst and Kommandeur Infanterie-Regiment (mot.) 76, 20. Infanterie-Division (mot.). During the fighting near Mga-Cory (on the approaches to Leningrad) from 30 August to 5 September 1941, Schwerin led a Kampfgruppe that became encircled and came under attack from all sides for three days. Despite a direct order from corps headquarters to break out toward Mga, he chose to hold the position with his troops until relief arrived. Through his outstanding leadership and decisive command, the Kampfgruppe held firm, was successfully relieved, and played a key role in the subsequent capture of Schlüsselburg just three days later. This action contributed significantly to German operations in the Leningrad sector during Operation Barbarossa. At the time, his regiment was advancing deep into Soviet territory as part of the broader drive eastward.
Medaille Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42 (22.07.1942)
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #240 (17.05.1943) as Generalmajor and Kommandeur 16. Infanterie-Division (mot.)/ Schwerin demonstrated exceptional leadership during the difficult winter retreat of the division from the Caucasus (1942–43). He successfully extricated the division while it was under constant pressure from pursuing Soviet forces, eventually repositioning it along the Mius front by March 1943. His greatest achievement in this period was the destruction of the Soviet 4th Guards Mechanized Corps during the intense fighting for the Fedorenko gorge (18–23 February 1943). These actions prevented the collapse of the sector and preserved combat effectiveness under extreme conditions. The 16. Infanterie-Division (mot.) had been heavily engaged in the fighting around Stalingrad and the subsequent Soviet counteroffensives before the retreat.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #41 (04.11.1943) as Generalleutnant and Kommandeur 16. Panzergrenadier-Division. The Schwerter recognized Schwerin’s continued outstanding leadership of the division during its retreat from the Mius position in late summer 1943, followed by its successful defensive and offensive achievements in the fighting for the Zaporozhye bridgehead. These operations occurred under relentless Soviet pressure, and his command prevented encirclement while maintaining the division’s fighting capability. Adolf Hitler personally presented the Swords to him at a ceremony in the Berghof upon his return to Germany.
Ärmelband Afrika (17.12.1943)
Medaglia commemorativa della campagna italo-tedesca in Africa
Ordine della Corona d'Italia - Commendatore
Verwundetenabzeichen 1939 in Silber
Mentioned in Wehrmachtbericht (27.10.1943)

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Gerhard Helmut Detleff Graf von Schwerin was born on 23 June 1899 in Hanover in the German Empire into a Prussian aristocratic family whose father served as a civil official in the Prussian State Government. At the age of fifteen he entered the cadet school at Koslin and soon joined the Prussian Army as a Fahnrich in the 2nd Foot Guards Regiment before transferring to the 2nd Pomeranian Grenadier Regiment. During the closing months of the First World War in 1918 he saw combat on both the Eastern and Western Fronts as a company commander and battalion adjutant until he was wounded on 26 September 1918 and hospitalized until the armistice. For his wartime service he received the Iron Cross Second Class and First Class along with the Wound Badge in Silver and the Honour Cross for Front Fighters.

After the war Schwerin was discharged from the army in 1920 and spent several years in civilian occupations including a managerial apprenticeship with a coffee import firm in Bremen and work for a petroleum company in Berlin. In 1923 he rejoined the Reichswehr as a lieutenant in Infantry Regiment 1 and progressed through a series of infantry postings including service in Infantry Regiment 3 and later Infantry Regiment 18 in Paderborn. He was promoted to captain in June 1933 and from 1933 to 1935 attended the General Staff course at the Prussian Military Academy in Berlin. By October 1938 he had reached the rank of major and served on the staff of the Oberkommando des Heeres. In January 1939 while attached to the UK and US intelligence section at the German Embassy in London he made clandestine contact with British officials urging them to abandon the policy of appeasement and instead support a potential military coup within Germany by deploying naval and air forces to pressure Adolf Hitler over the impending invasion of Poland. These overtures which carried the risk of high treason were conveyed to Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain but ultimately rejected.

With the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939 Schwerin took command of the 1st Battalion of the motorized Infantry Regiment Grossdeutschland and led it through the 1940 campaign in France and the Low Countries where elements of his unit were later investigated for the massacre of disarmed French Senegalese Tirailleurs prisoners. He subsequently commanded Rifle Regiment 86 and other formations before transferring in April 1941 to North Africa as commander of Special Purposes Regiment 200 within the Afrika Korps. There he led a joint German-Italian commando raid deep behind British lines capturing the Mechili oasis and taking nearly three thousand prisoners including three generals an action that helped open the way for Erwin Rommel’s early successes. Returning to Europe late in 1941 he assumed command of Infantry Regiment 76 during Operation Barbarossa on the Eastern Front and for his leadership in holding a cut-off Kampfgruppe near Mga and Schlüsselburg he was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 January 1942 as an Oberst.

Brief command of the 254th Infantry Brigade followed in spring 1942 before he took over the 8th Jäger Division on the Eastern Front and was promoted to Generalmajor in October 1942. In November 1942 he was given command of the 16th Infantry Division later redesignated the 16th Panzergrenadier Division which he led through the bitter fighting around Stalingrad and the subsequent retreats from the Caucasus and the Mius River line. For his skill in extricating the division and destroying Soviet mechanized forces during these operations he received the Oak Leaves to the Knight’s Cross on 17 May 1943 as Generalmajor and the Swords on 4 November 1943 as Generalleutnant the latter personally presented by Hitler at the Berghof. The division was transferred to France in March 1944 and upgraded to the 116th Panzer Division known as the Windhund or Greyhound Division with Schwerin assuming command on 1 May 1944.

During the Normandy campaign the 116th Panzer Division crossed the Seine on 20 July 1944 and engaged American forces between Beaucoudray and Percy retaking the former village but failing to secure Mont Robin amid difficult terrain that hampered the Panzer IV and Panther tanks. In Operation Lüttich in early August the division advanced toward Brécey but suffered from delayed commitment flank exposure and Allied bombing that severed supplies contributing to the failure of the counter-offensive and leading to Schwerin’s temporary relief from command. Reappointed he led the battered formation which by September 1944 had been reduced to roughly six hundred men twelve serviceable tanks and no artillery during the early fighting around Aachen. Facing the American advance and concerned for the several thousand unevacuated civilians and the historic status of the ancient Holy Roman Empire capital he made the unilateral decision to withdraw his forces declare the city an open city and leave a communiqué at the post office requesting that American commanders treat the civilian population humanely. When the note fell into SS hands he was relieved of command placed under close arrest and replaced by Gerhard Wilck but after intervention by Gerd von Rundstedt and Walter Model he received only a reprimand rather than harsher punishment.

In December 1944 Schwerin was transferred to the Italian front where he succeeded Traugott Herr as commander of the LXXVI Panzer Corps. He was promoted to General der Panzertruppe on 1 April 1945 and continued defensive operations until he was captured by British forces on 26 April 1945. Released from captivity in late 1947 he returned to civilian life and in May 1950 was appointed chief advisor on military and security policy to Chancellor Konrad Adenauer heading the covert Dienststelle Schwerin to lay the groundwork for West German rearmament under American occupation. He was replaced in October 1950 by Theodor Blank after public statements but later served as a military policy advisor to the parliamentary group of the Free Democratic Party. In the post-war decades he cultivated the image of the saviour of Aachen which earned him a street named Graf-Schwerin-Strasse and civic honours in the 1950s and 1970s though the name was changed in 2008 amid renewed scrutiny of incidents under his command including the execution of two fourteen-year-old looters in September 1944.

Schwerin married three times first to Herta Kannengiesser then to Julia Zulich with whom he had two children and finally to Esther Klippel. He died on 29 October 1980 in Rottach-Egern Bavaria at the age of eighty-one and was buried in the local cemetery. Throughout his long career he had also accumulated additional decorations including the 1939 Clasp to the Iron Cross Second and First Class the Panzer Combat Badge the Eastern Front Medal the Africa Cuff Title the Italian-German African Campaign Medal the Order of the Crown of Italy as Commander and various long-service awards reflecting more than three decades of military and advisory service across two world wars and the early years of the Federal Republic.

Source:
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/
https://en.wikipedia.org/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/
https://grokipedia.com/
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300
https://www.unithistories.com/units_index/index.php?file=/officers/personsx.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20091027052912fw_/http://geocities.com/orion47.geo/index2.html
https://forum.axishistory.com/
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/
Additional sources: Walther-Peer Fellgiebel, Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945 (2000); Veit Scherzer, Ritterkreuzträger 1939-1945 (2007); various unit histories and Wehrmacht documents referenced on the above websites.

Bio of Generalfeldmarschall Günther von Kluge (1882-1944)

Full name: Günther Adolf Ferdinand von Kluge
Nickname: Hans-Günther, Clever Hans

Date of Birth: 30.10.1882 - Posen, Province of Posen (German Empire)
Date of Death: 19.08.1944 - near Metz/Verdun (France)

Battles and Operations: Polish Campaign, Western Campaign, Operation Barbarossa, Battle of Smolensk, Operation Typhoon / Battle of Moscow, Battles of Rzhev, Operation Citadel / Battle of Kursk, Normandy Campaign  

NSDAP-Number: No information  
SS-Number: No information  
Religion: No information  
Parents: Max von Kluge (Generalmajor)  
Siblings: Wolfgang von Kluge (Generalleutnant)  
Spouse: Mathilde von Briesen (married 1907)  
Children: Günther, Ester and Marie Louise  

Promotions:  
- 22.03.1901: Leutnant  
- 16.06.1910: Oberleutnant  
- 00.00.1914: Hauptmann  
- 01.04.1923: Major  
- 01.07.1927: Oberstleutnant  
- 01.02.1930: Oberst  
- 01.02.1933: Generalmajor  
- 01.04.1934: Generalleutnant  
- 01.08.1936: General der Artillerie  
- 01.10.1939: Generaloberst  
- 19.07.1940: Generalfeldmarschall  

Career:  
- 22.03.1901: entered service in Niedersächsisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 46  
- 1910-1918: General Staff officer, served on Eastern and Western Fronts in World War I  
- 1923: transferred to Reichswehrministerium in Berlin  
- 01.03.1930: commander of 2. (Preußisches) Artillerie-Regiment  
- 01.04.1934: commander of 6. Division  
- 01.04.1935: commanding general of VI. Armeekorps  
- 01.12.1938: commander of Heeresgruppen-Kommando 6  
- 26.08.1939: commander of 4. Armee  
- 19.12.1941: Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe Mitte  
- 02.07.1944: Oberbefehlshaber West (OB West) and commander of Heeresgruppe B  
- 17.08.1944: relieved of all commands  

Awards and Decorations:  
- Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse (1914)  
- Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse (1914)  
- Ritterkreuz des Königlichen Hausordens von Hohenzollern mit Schwertern  
- 1939 Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz 2. Klasse (05.09.1939)  
- 1939 Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz 1. Klasse (17.09.1939)  
- Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (30.09.1939) as General der Artillerie and Kommandeur 4. Armee. Awarded for outstanding leadership during the Polish Campaign (Operation Fall Weiss / Fall Weiß). The 4th Army, advancing from West Pomerania (Pommern), played a central role in the rapid conquest of the Polish Corridor. It crossed the Brda River, sealed off Polish forces (including elements of the 9th and 27th Infantry Divisions and the Pomeranian Cavalry Brigade), advanced through the Tuchola Forest (Tucheler Heide), crossed the Vistula River near Graudenz (Grudziądz), and linked up with Army Group South forces. This contributed to the early encirclement and destruction of Polish units in the north. The XIX Army Corps (under Heinz Guderian) supported operations, capturing Brześć (Brest-Litovsk) on 17 September. Hitler personally praised Kluge as one of his most capable commanders for these swift, coordinated advances with relatively low casualties. This award came shortly after the campaign's conclusion and recognized the army-level operational success that helped secure victory in Poland within weeks.
- Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #181 (18.01.1943) as Generalfeldmarschall and Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe Mitte. Awarded for distinguished leadership and defensive successes during the Eastern Campaign, particularly the harsh winter fighting of 1941/42 and subsequent months. After commanding the 4th Army during Operation Barbarossa (including the Vyazma encirclement and advances toward Moscow in late 1941), Kluge took over Army Group Centre amid the Soviet winter counteroffensive. He stabilized the front through positional warfare and defensive battles against vastly superior Soviet forces in manpower and materiel. His forces repeatedly repelled attacks, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy despite severe challenges like extreme cold, supply shortages, and lack of mobility. This included holding key sectors during the Battles of Rzhev and preventing a collapse of the central front. The award highlighted his skill in managing relentless Soviet pressure while maintaining cohesion in a critical defensive phase. The Eichenlaub recognized his transition from offensive command to masterful defense on the Eastern Front.
- Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwerter #40 (29.10.1943) as Generalfeldmarschall and Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe Mitte. Awarded for exceptional command achievements in the East during summer and autumn 1943, particularly in defensive operations against overwhelming Soviet superiority. Kluge oversaw Army Group Centre during Operation Citadel (the Battle of Kursk, July 1943), where his forces (including the 9th Army) formed the northern pincer. Although he had initially expressed reservations about the offensive due to insufficient strength, he executed the operation and then managed the subsequent Soviet counteroffensives (e.g., Operation Kutuzov). He conducted skillful withdrawals and defensive actions (such as the earlier Operation Büffel in March 1943, which shortened lines by ~370 km), preventing breakthroughs despite massive Soviet numerical and material advantages. His leadership emphasized efficient use of limited resources, timely counterattacks, and preservation of combat effectiveness in a war of attrition. The Swords specifically praised his aptitude for high-intensity defensive warfare under these conditions.  
- Deutsches Kreuz in Gold  
- Ostmedaille  
- Wound Badge in Black (1918)  
- Wehrmacht Long Service Awards (various classes)  
- Several campaign medals  

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Günther Adolf Ferdinand von Kluge was born on October 30, 1882, in Posen, then part of the German Empire and now Poznań in Poland. He came from a Prussian military family—his father was a lieutenant general—and followed the traditional path into the army. In 1901 he received his commission as a second lieutenant in the 46th Field Artillery Regiment. He advanced steadily through the ranks, attending the War Academy and serving on the General Staff before the First World War.

During the Great War, Kluge served primarily in staff roles and as an artillery specialist. He participated in major engagements, including the Battle of Verdun in 1916, where he was seriously wounded. His performance earned him a reputation as an energetic and capable officer. After the armistice he remained in the Reichswehr, the limited army permitted under the Treaty of Versailles. Through the 1920s and 1930s he held various command and staff positions, rising to Major General in 1933, Lieutenant General in 1934, and General of Artillery in 1936. By 1938 he commanded Army Group 6 in Hanover.

Kluge initially viewed the Nazi regime with skepticism. He objected to Hitler's aggressive foreign policy and was disturbed by the regime's anti-Semitic policies. This led to his temporary dismissal from the army in 1938 during the purges that removed several conservative officers. Yet his expertise in mobile warfare and his earlier record soon brought him back into favor. He was recalled to command the newly formed Fourth Army (initially designated as the Sixth Army Group) on the eve of the Second World War.

In September 1939, Kluge led the Fourth Army during the invasion of Poland as part of Army Group North under Fedor von Bock. His forces advanced rapidly, reaching the Vistula before Britain and France declared war. The campaign showcased his ability to coordinate infantry, armor, and artillery effectively. The following year, in the Battle of France, the Fourth Army operated under Army Group A commanded by Gerd von Rundstedt. Kluge's troops pushed through Belgium and northern France, contributing to the encirclement at Dunkirk and the subsequent drive to the Seine and the Atlantic ports. For these successes Hitler promoted him to Generalfeldmarschall on July 19, 1940, one of the dozen field marshals appointed that day.

When Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941, Kluge again commanded the Fourth Army, now part of Army Group Center under von Bock. His army participated in the encirclement battles at Minsk and Smolensk, then advanced toward Moscow. During the Battle for Moscow in late 1941, harsh winter conditions, overstretched supply lines, and fierce Soviet resistance halted the German offensive. Kluge, like many senior commanders, faced criticism, but he retained Hitler's confidence. In December 1941, after von Bock's dismissal following the Soviet counteroffensive, Kluge was appointed commander of Army Group Center. He held this position for nearly two years, through the massive Soviet offensives of 1942 and 1943. He proved adept at defensive operations, stabilizing the front after heavy losses and containing repeated Red Army attacks. In October 1943 he was severely wounded in a car accident and temporarily sidelined for recovery.

By mid-1944 the strategic situation had deteriorated dramatically. The Red Army's Operation Bagration in June destroyed much of Army Group Center in Belarus, while the Allied landings in Normandy on June 6 opened a second front in the west. On July 2, 1944, Hitler dismissed Rundstedt as Commander-in-Chief West and appointed Kluge to replace him, hoping the field marshal's reputation for energy would stabilize the crumbling German defenses in France. Kluge assumed command of all German forces in the west, including the remnants of Army Group B under Erwin Rommel (until Rommel's wounding in mid-July).

The Normandy campaign proved impossible to salvage. Allied air superiority devastated German supply lines and armored movements. Kluge's staff car was strafed by British fighter-bombers in early August, killing his driver and another occupant, though he escaped injury. Hitler overruled Kluge's recommendations for withdrawal and ordered a counterattack at Mortain (Operation Lüttich) in early August. The offensive failed, and Allied forces soon closed the Falaise Pocket, trapping large numbers of German troops. Kluge struggled to extricate surviving units amid overwhelming pressure.

Meanwhile, the failed assassination attempt on Hitler on July 20, 1944—the July Plot—intensified suspicion within the Nazi leadership. Kluge had maintained loose, ambivalent contacts with elements of the military resistance over the years, sharing the old officer corps' antipathy toward Hitler and the Nazi party. He was not an active participant in the plot and had no prior knowledge of the bomb attack, but his name appeared in some incriminating documents uncovered in the aftermath. Hitler grew convinced of his disloyalty, possibly even suspecting secret contacts with the Allies.

On August 17, 1944, Hitler relieved Kluge of command and ordered him to return to Berlin. Aware of the fate awaiting those suspected of treason—arrest, interrogation under torture, and likely execution—Kluge chose not to face it. On August 19, near Metz in eastern France, he swallowed a cyanide capsule and died. In a farewell letter addressed to Hitler he denied betraying Germany but expressed despair over the military collapse and the suffering inflicted on the German people. He wrote that the time had come to end the frightfulness and hoped the Reich would be spared from Bolshevism.

Kluge's career encapsulated the dilemmas faced by many senior Wehrmacht officers: talented professionals who achieved early victories under Hitler, only to become entangled in a regime's catastrophic policies and eventual downfall. His tactical competence earned respect, yet his hesitation and ultimate suicide reflected the moral and strategic impasse of the German high command in the war's final stages.

Source:  
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/  
https://en.wikipedia.org/  
https://www.tracesofwar.com/  
https://grokipedia.com/  
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300  
https://www.unithistories.com/units_index/index.php?file=/officers/personsx.html  
https://web.archive.org/web/20091027052912fw_/http://geocities.com/orion47.geo/index2.html  
https://forum.axishistory.com/  
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/  
https://www.bundesarchiv.de/en/  
Scherzer, Veit. Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939-1945. Jena 2007.  
Additional cross-referenced data from personnel files and Wehrmacht reports.

Bio of SS-Standartenführer August Dieckmann (1912-1943)

Full name: August Hinrich Dieckmann
Nickname: No information

Date of Birth: 29 May 1912 - Cadenberge, Lower Saxony (German Empire)
Date of Death: 10 October 1943 - Kreschtschatik (Fuchsschwanzinsel) on the Dnieper River (Soviet Union)

Battles and Operations:
Polish Campaign 1939, Western Campaign 1940, Operation Barbarossa 1941, Battle of Rostov 1941, Defensive battles north of Samara and Otscheretino 1942, Attack on Rostov 1942, Caucasus offensive including Kuban bridgehead, Laba river, and Maikop area 1942, Battles around Malgobek and oilfields 1942, Seizure of Grischino and Alexandrowka 1943, Defensive battles west of Kharkov 1943, Heavy fighting along the Dnieper 1943

NSDAP-Number: 4.455.713 (1 May 1937)  
SS-Number: 183.917 (4 November 1933)  
Religion: not known  
Parents: not known  
Siblings: not known  
Spouse: not known  
Children: not known

Promotions:  
1 July 1935 SS-Standartenjunker  
25 February 1936 SS-Standartenoberjunker  
20 April 1936 SS-Sturmführer  
2 September 1937 SS-Obersturmführer  
1 September 1939 SS-Hauptsturmführer  
26 December 1941 SS-Sturmbannführer  
21 June 1943 SS-Obersturmbannführer  
15 May 1944 SS-Standartenführer (posthumous, rank date of rank 1 October 1943)

Career:  
4 November 1933 entered the SS with 1. Sturm, SS-Standarte 88  
1934-1935 training at SS-Junkerschule Braunschweig  
1936 service with SS-Standarte 1 Deutschland in various battalions and Zugführer roles  
1937 platoon leader and tactics instructor  
1939 company and battalion leader with SS-Regiment Deutschland during Polish Campaign  
1940 battalion leader during Western Campaign  
1941 transferred to SS-Division Wiking as leader of I. Bataillon, SS-Regiment Germania  
From late 1941 commander of I. Bataillon SS-Regiment Germania and later regimental duties in the East  
1943 commander of SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment Westland, 5. SS-Panzergrenadier-Division Wiking

Awards and Decorations:  
Ehrenwinkel der Alten Kämpfer (1934)  
Julleuchter der SS (1935)  
Ehrendegen des Reichsführers-SS (12 December 1936)  
SS-Ehrenring  
SS-Dienstauszeichnung 4. Stufe (1937)  
Iron Cross 2nd Class (28 September 1939)  
Iron Cross 1st Class (3 June 1940)  
Wound Badge 1939 in Black  
Infantry Assault Badge in Silver  
German Cross in Gold (28 February 1942)  
Eastern Medal (1942)  
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (23 April 1942) as SS-Sturmbannführer and commander of I./SS-Regiment Germania for the defense of Otscheretino. The village of Otscheretino, captured on 16 February 1942 during the advance north of the Samara, held decisive terrain dominance and formed the vital cornerstone of the right wing of Gruppe Sanne. On the afternoon of 19 February 1942 the Russians launched a major attack after intense artillery and mortar preparation, supported by eight heavy tanks. The enemy penetrated the eastern and central parts of the burning village. With the last operational anti-tank gun knocked out and other weapons inoperable, SS-Sturmbannführer Dieckmann personally rushed to a nearby battery gun, took command, and directed close-range fire that destroyed four enemy tanks. He then immediately led a counterthrust with a loud Hurra, personally throwing the superior enemy force out of the village. On 20 February and during the night of 22-23 February his battalion, in coordination with other units, repelled further tank-supported assaults. The enemy suffered over 300 dead, 29 prisoners, and the loss of numerous heavy and light machine guns, anti-tank rifles, and rifles. Dieckmanns personal bravery, initiative, and leadership in the critical moment ensured the village remained in German hands and inflicted heavy losses on the attacker.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #233 (16 April 1943) as SS-Sturmbannführer and commander of I./SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment Germania. After receiving the Ritterkreuz for Otscheretino, SS-Sturmbannführer Dieckmann repeatedly proved himself as an armoured combat group leader. During the attack on Rostov from 21-23 July 1942 he broke through deeply echeloned Soviet defences north and northwest of the city, always at the very spearhead. On 23 July he personally conducted terrain reconnaissance under heavy artillery, mortar, and rifle fire, escorted only by one officer and two messengers; this reconnaissance proved decisive for the assault on the third anti-tank ditch and the village of Leninawan northwest of Rostov. In the subsequent street fighting for the suburbs his personal example kept the attack moving and enabled capture of the southwestern part of the city. On 3 August 1942 during the thrust across the Kuban at Grigoripoliskaja he created and held the bridgehead despite heavy urban combat still raging in the village; he drove through the fighting in his car to the crossing site, oversaw the rubber-boat crossing under fire, and personally reconnoitred bridge-building possibilities, then intervened repeatedly in the defensive fighting. His calm ruthlessness under fire became legendary and inspired his men. In the advance toward the Laba river at Teginskaja and the Chadyshenskaja oilfield his Kampfgruppe secured key points such as Woronzowo-Daschkoff, where he rapidly regrouped forces, personally led a counterthrust, and directed howitzer fire to within 100 metres to repel a regimental-sized Soviet attack and protect the division supply route. In the street fighting for Chadyshenskaja he fought in the foremost line with riflemen and tanks, blocked the Maikop-Tuapse road, and inflicted heavy losses. On 5 October 1942 at the assault on hills west of Malgobek he stormed forward as point man to rally his pinned-down battalion, captured the objective, and repelled the immediate counterattack. The next day at Hill White House, despite fog and heavy losses, he repeatedly charged ahead of 2. Kompanie, enabling the capture of the strongly fortified height and opening the way for neighbouring units. On 7 October he personally counterattacked with his battalion against a tank- and infantry-supported Soviet assault, holding the line through his presence in the foremost positions. On 17 October at Hill 701 he rallied an assault party, fought with machine pistol and hand grenades to eject a Soviet penetration, and held the hill all day, preventing flank attacks on the division. On 12 February 1943 he seized Grischino in a surprise attack, cutting supply lines to Soviet Mobile Group Popov, and then defended it successfully. During the attack on Alexandrowka on 24 February 1943 his battalion, as the lead unit in an enveloping move, faced thousands of defenders with over twenty tanks and strong artillery; when the assault stalled at the edge of the city under heavy fire he personally placed himself at the head of the threatened company, inspired the men forward, and broke into the city. After bitter house-to-house fighting Alexandrowka fell, with the enemy losing over 100 dead plus seven tanks, twelve anti-tank guns, four artillery pieces, and numerous other weapons. Through these repeated personal interventions, fearless leadership at the decisive points, and inspirational example SS-Sturmbannführer Dieckmann contributed decisively to the successes of his battalion and regiment.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #39 (10 October 1943) as SS-Obersturmbannführer and commander of SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 10 Westland. After taking command of Regiment Westland in the 5. SS-Panzergrenadier-Division Wiking, SS-Obersturmbannführer Dieckmann led his unit in continuous defensive battles on the southern sector of the Eastern Front from 5 July 1943 onward. From 11 August 1943 alone his regiment repelled more than 100 enemy attacks west of Kharkov, most of them launched by far superior Soviet forces. In all these actions Dieckmann was the soul of the defence; despite intense enemy fire he was constantly forward among his men, motivating them through his devotion to duty, fearlessness, and prudent leadership. The divisional commander repeatedly highlighted his deeds in daily reports. Even after being wounded several times by shell splinters he remained with his troops, personally reconnoitring penetrations in an armoured car and restoring the situation wherever neighbouring units or his own companies were threatened. On 10 October 1943, while fighting in the foremost line during the heavy defensive battles along the Dnieper at Kreschtschatik, SS-Obersturmbannführer Dieckmann was killed in action. He did not live to learn that the Führer had awarded him the Swords that same day as the 39th soldier of the Wehrmacht. Throughout countless battles in the East Dieckmann had become a legendary figure of heroic troop leadership far beyond the ranks of the Wiking Division and the Waffen-SS. His loss robbed the Waffen-SS of one of its finest regimental commanders and a constant model of soldierly virtues for the Germanic volunteers under his command.

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August Hinrich Dieckmann was born on 29 May 1912 in Cadenberge in Lower Saxony, Germany. He entered the SS on 4 November 1933 as a member of the 1st Sturm of SS-Standarte 88. Between 1 April 1934 and 25 April 1935 he attended the SS-Junkerschule in Braunschweig while serving with the 2nd Sturm of SS-Standarte 2 in Munich. On 1 July 1935 he was promoted to SS-Standartenjunker and on 25 February 1936 to SS-Standartenoberjunker. After completing a Zugführerlehrgang in Dachau he joined the III. Sturmbann of SS-Standarte 1 Deutschland in Ellwangen on 1 April 1936 and received his commission as SS-Sturmführer on 20 April 1936. He continued serving with various battalions of the Deutschland regiment, undertook a Truppen-Pionier-Lehrgang at the Pionier-Schule in Dessau-Roßlau, and was promoted to SS-Obersturmführer on 2 September 1937. He joined the NSDAP on 1 May 1937 and held platoon and company leadership roles within the Deutschland regiment before being attached to the XI. Armeekorps in Hannover in September 1938. By June 1939 he had risen to command the II. Sturmbann of SS-Standarte 1 Deutschland and on 1 September 1939 he was promoted to SS-Hauptsturmführer.

At the outbreak of war Dieckmann led the II. Bataillon of the motorized SS-Regiment Deutschland, which was attached to Panzer-Division Kempf and the 3. Armee during the campaign in Poland in 1939. He earned the Iron Cross Second Class on 28 September 1939 for his actions there. In the spring of 1940 he continued to command the same battalion within the SS-Verfügungsdivision during the campaign in the West and was awarded the Iron Cross First Class on 3 June 1940. After the French campaign he served as a tactics instructor at the SS-Junkerschule in Braunschweig. In early 1941 he transferred to the newly forming SS-Division Wiking and on 10 February 1941 took command of the I. Bataillon of SS-Regiment Germania. He was promoted to SS-Sturmbannführer on 26 December 1941.

With the launch of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941 Dieckmann led his battalion in heavy fighting with Heeresgruppe Süd. His unit participated in the advance toward Rostov and endured the bitter defensive battles around that city in November 1941. On 28 February 1942 he received the German Cross in Gold for his leadership during these engagements. In February 1942 his battalion was committed to reinforce the village of Otscheretino, fifteen kilometers south of Barvenkovo, a key strongpoint on the right wing of Gruppe Sanne. When Soviet forces supported by eight heavy tanks attacked on 19 February after intense artillery preparation, they penetrated the eastern and central parts of the burning village and knocked out the last operational anti-tank gun. In this critical moment Dieckmann personally took charge of a nearby field gun, directed its crew under fire, and destroyed four enemy tanks at close range. He then organized an immediate counterattack, leading his men with a cheer and driving the superior Soviet force out of the village. Over the following days his battalion repelled further tank-supported assaults and inflicted heavy losses on the enemy, including more than three hundred dead and numerous prisoners and weapons. For this decisive leadership and personal bravery he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 23 April 1942 as commander of the I. Battalion of SS-Regiment Germania.

In the summer of 1942 Dieckmann continued to distinguish himself during the German offensive toward the Caucasus. He led an armored battle group of SS-Regiment Germania in the assault on Rostov from 21 to 23 July. Over three days of intense combat his unit broke through multiple layers of Soviet defenses north and northwest of the city. On 23 July he personally conducted terrain reconnaissance under heavy artillery, mortar, and rifle fire, escorted only by one officer and two messengers, which proved vital for the success of the armored group's attack. During the subsequent street fighting in the suburbs of Rostov he remained at the forefront, inspiring his men by example and ensuring the southwestern part of the city was secured. On 3 August 1942 his Kampfgruppe spearheaded the crossing of the Kuban River near Grigoripoliskaja, again demonstrating outstanding initiative and courage that enabled the establishment and retention of a bridgehead. These actions, building on his earlier Knight's Cross, earned him the 233rd Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross on 16 April 1943 while still commanding the I. Battalion of the newly redesignated SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment Germania within the 5. SS-Panzergrenadier-Division Wiking.

By the spring of 1943 Dieckmann had assumed command of SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 10 Westland in the same division. He was promoted to SS-Obersturmbannführer on 21 June 1943. On 10 October 1943, while leading his regiment in defensive fighting along the Dnieper River near Kreschtschatik, also known as Fuchsschwanzinsel, he was killed in action at the age of thirty-one. On the very day of his death he was posthumously awarded the 39th Swords to the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross as commander of SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 10 Westland. The following year, on 15 May 1944, he received a posthumous promotion to SS-Standartenführer with a rank seniority date of 1 October 1943.

Throughout his career Dieckmann accumulated numerous additional decorations that reflected both his early service and frontline achievements. Among them were the SS-Ehrendegen des Reichsführers-SS, the SS-Ehrenring, the Ehrenwinkel der Alten Kämpfer, the Julleuchter der SS, the SA-Sports Badge in Bronze, the DRL Sports Badge in Bronze, the SS Long Service Award 4th Class, the Anschluss Medal, the Sudetenland Medal, the Wound Badge in Black, the Infantry Assault Badge in Silver, the Close Combat Clasp in Bronze, and the Eastern Front Medal. He was buried at the German War Cemetery in Kiev, though the exact grave location remains unknown. Dieckmann exemplified the aggressive leadership and personal courage that characterized many early Waffen-SS officers, rising rapidly through the ranks from junior platoon commander to regimental commander in some of the most demanding campaigns on the Eastern Front. His repeated selection for independent battle-group commands and the exceptional nature of the recommendations for his highest decorations underscored the impact he had on the battlefield until his final action on the Dnieper in October 1943.

Source:  
Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945. Friedberg 2000.  
Scherzer, Veit. Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939-1945. Jena 2007.  
Waffen-SS Knights and their Battles (Volumes 2 and 3).  
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_Dieckmann  
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/29014/Dieckmann-August-Hinrich.htm  
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Personenregister/D/DieckmannA.htm  
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300  
https://www.unithistories.com/units_index/index.php?file=/officers/personsx.html  
https://forum.axishistory.com/  
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/  
https://www.bundesarchiv.de/en/
https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-august-dieckmann-1942-48342984.html

Bio of Generaloberst Hermann Hoth (1885-1971)

Full name: Johann Hermann Karl Max Hoth
Nickname: Papa Hoth, Giftzwerg

Date of Birth: 12.04.1885 - Neuruppin, German Empire  
Date of Death: 25.01.1971 - Goslar, West Germany  

Battles and Operations: Polish Campaign, Western Campaign, Operation Barbarossa, Case Blue, Battle of Stalingrad relief operations, Third Battle of Kharkov, Operation Citadel, Battle of the Dnieper  

NSDAP-Number: No information  
SS-Number: No information  
Religion: No information  
Parents: Hermann Hoth (staff officer surgeon) and Margarethe Hoth (née Hübener)  
Siblings: No information  
Spouse: Lola Schubering (married 1918)  
Children: Hans Joachim (born 1913), Hermann (born 1923)  

Promotions:
27.01.1905 Leutnant  
19.06.1912 Oberleutnant  
08.11.1914 Hauptmann  
11.01.1924 Major  
01.02.1929 Oberstleutnant  
01.02.1932 Oberst  
01.10.1934 Generalmajor  
02.10.1936 Generalleutnant  
10.11.1938 General der Infanterie  
19.07.1940 Generaloberst  

Career:
1904 joined the Prussian Army as Fahnenjunker after cadet training  
1905-1914 served with 72. Infanterieregiment  
1914-1918 staff officer on Eastern and Western Fronts during World War I (including Battle of Tannenberg)  
1918-1933 Reichswehr service, including suppression of uprisings  
1932 commander 17. Infanterieregiment  
1934 commander 18. Infanteriedivision  
1938 commander XV. Armeekorps (motorized)  
1939 led XV. Armeekorps in Polish Campaign  
1940 led XV. Armeekorps in Western Campaign  
1941 commander 3. Panzergruppe during Operation Barbarossa  
10.1941 commander 17. Armee  
05.1942 commander 4. Panzerarmee  
1943 led 4. Panzerarmee in Operation Citadel and subsequent defensive battles  
1944-1945 relieved of command, later commander of defensive sectors in central Germany  
07.05.1945 surrendered to U.S. forces  
1945-1954 prisoner, tried in Nuremberg High Command Trial  
1954 released, author and military writer  

Awards and Decorations:
Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse 1914 (20.09.1914)  
Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse 1914 (02.08.1915)  
Hausorden von Hohenzollern Ritterkreuz mit Schwertern (16.08.1918)  
Wound Badge in Black (World War I)  
Various other World War I awards (Turkish War Medal, Austrian Military Merit Cross, etc.)  
1939 Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz 2. Klasse (21.09.1939)  
1939 Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz 1. Klasse (27.09.1939)  
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes #6 (27.10.1939) as General der Infanterie and Kommandierender General XV. Armeekorps for actions in Poland. Hoth’s corps—initially built around the 2nd and 3rd Light Divisions (later converted into the 7th and 8th Panzer Divisions)—was deployed on the right wing of the 10th Army. Its mission was to punch through the Polish defensive line south of Częstochowa (Tschenstochau) and drive deep into the rear areas. Hoth executed the task with textbook Blitzkrieg precision. His motorized columns broke through the Polish front on the first day, advanced rapidly toward the Lysa Gora hills, and played a decisive role in the pocket battle at Radom (9–12 September). There, Polish forces from Army Kraków were encircled and destroyed. Hoth’s personal leadership—constantly at the front, urging his divisions forward while maintaining tight control of his flanks—earned him the citation: “Awarded for his skillful and energetic leadership of the XV. Armee-Korps during the campaign against Poland. Deployed on the right wing of the 10. Armee, he succeeded in breaking through the Polish front south of Tschenstochau and quickly advancing to the Lysa Gora. He also displayed great personal merit during the pocket battle at Radom (September 9–12, 1939).” The award recognized not only operational success but the speed and coordination that would become the hallmark of German panzer operations.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #25 (17.07.1941) as Generaloberst and Befehlshaber 3. Panzergruppe. Panzer Group 3 formed the northern pincer of the great double envelopment aimed at Minsk. In just days Hoth’s tanks covered hundreds of kilometers, linked up with Guderian’s Panzer Group 2 east of Minsk, and trapped roughly 300,000 Soviet soldiers. The advance continued without pause. Vitebsk fell, and Hoth’s spearheads pushed toward Smolensk. On 15 July 1941 the lead elements of Panzer Group 3 reached the Moscow highway west of Yartsevo (Jarzewo), closing the ring around another huge Soviet force in the Smolensk pocket. The official citation highlighted both the immediate tactical achievement and Hoth’s overall leadership since the invasion began: “On 15 July 1941 the spearhead of Hoth’s Panzergruppe reached the highway to Moscow west of Jarzewo, thereby completing the encirclement of a large Russian force near Smolensk. For his unit’s role in this enormous German victory, as well as his leadership of it throughout Operation Barbarossa thus far, Hoth would be awarded the Eichenlaub to his Ritterkreuz.” The award reflected the scale of the victories: two successive cauldron battles that destroyed entire Soviet armies and opened the road to Moscow. Hoth’s Panzer Group had advanced farther and faster than almost any other formation in the opening phase of the campaign.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #35 (15.09.1943) as Generaloberst and Oberbefehlshaber 4. Panzerarmee. The citation cited two distinct achievements: the army’s performance on the southern face of the Kursk salient during Operation Citadel and the subsequent skillful fighting withdrawal to the Dnieper line. After commanding the 17th Army in the winter of 1941–42 and taking over the 4th Panzer Army in May 1942, Hoth had already shown his versatility. In February–March 1943 he led the southern wing of Field Marshal Erich von Manstein’s brilliant counter-offensive, retaking Kharkov and Belgorod in a masterpiece of mobile defense that halted the Soviet winter offensive. Then came Kursk. As the armored spearhead of the southern pincer in Operation Citadel (launched 5 July 1943), Hoth’s 4th Panzer Army—including the elite II SS Panzer Corps—tore through the first Soviet defensive belts and advanced toward Prokhorovka. Although the offensive was eventually called off, Hoth’s formations inflicted enormous casualties and demonstrated extraordinary tactical skill against the deepest defensive system the Red Army had yet built. When the Soviet counter-offensive rolled west in August and September 1943, Hoth conducted one of the most orderly retreats of the entire war. Despite Hitler’s “stand fast” orders, he pulled his battered army back to the Dnieper line on both sides of Kiev, repeatedly launching sharp counter-attacks that bloodied pursuing Soviet forces and prevented encirclement. The citation read: “Awarded for the skillful retreat of his Armee to the Dnieper line along both sides of Kiev, as well as its accomplishments on the southern face of the Kursk salient during Operation Citadel.” These actions—offensive punch at Kursk followed by masterful mobile defense—showed Hoth at the peak of his powers as a panzer commander.
Ehrenkreuz für Frontkämpfer  
Panzerkampfabzeichen in Silver  
Dienstauszeichnung der Wehrmacht 1. Klasse (25 years)  
Medaille Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42 (06.11.1942)  
Ordinul Mihai Viteazul Clasa 3 (06.11.1942)

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Hermann Hoth (12 April 1885 – 25 January 1971) was a German army commander, war criminal, and author. He served as a high-ranking panzer commander in the Wehrmacht during World War II, playing a prominent role in the Battle of France and on the Eastern Front. Contemporaries and later historians consider Hoth one of the most talented armoured warfare commanders of the war. He was a strong believer in Nazism, and units under his command committed several war crimes including the murder of prisoners of war and civilians.

Hoth was born on 12 April 1885 in Neuruppin, Prussia. He grew up in Demmin. His father was a Prussian staff officer and surgeon. He attended the Gymnasium in Demmin from 1894 to 1896, followed by the Cadet Corps at Potsdam, and the Royal Prussian Military Academy from 1900 to 1904. During his training, Hoth developed a strong authority bias that he never fully discarded. The educators instilled monarchism and rejection of social democracy in him. He was commissioned as a Leutnant in the Prussian Army in 1903. His rise was slow. He attended the Prussian Staff College from 1910 to 1913, where he learned Russian, and was promoted to Oberleutnant in 1912 and Hauptmann in 1914. At this point he worked at the German General Staff. His first son, Hans Joachim, was born in 1913.

Hoth spent almost all of World War I as a staff officer on higher headquarters and only four weeks on the front line. Assigned to the 8th Army on the Eastern Front in August 1914 because of his Russian skills, he witnessed the Russian invasion of East Prussia, which he regarded as waged with bestial cruelty. He served under Generalfeldmarschall Paul von Hindenburg, including at the Battle of Tannenberg, and greatly admired him. In June 1916 he was transferred to the Western Front. He held positions at the German General Staff, various armies, and the Luftstreitkräfte. He received both classes of the Iron Cross.

After the German surrender in 1918, Hoth felt greater loyalty to Hindenburg than to the new democratic government. During the German Revolution of 1918–1919 he helped suppress left-wing uprisings at Halle as a Reichswehr officer. This experience hardened his hatred of Communism. He believed the failure of the Kapp Putsch showed that the military must avoid political misuse. He married Lola Schubering in 1918. His second son, Hermann, was born in 1923.

Hoth remained in the Reichswehr during the Weimar Republic, serving in the organization department of the General Staff. He was promoted to Major in 1924. In 1927 he was sent to the Soviet Union as part of secret military cooperation missions. He was promoted to Oberstleutnant in 1929.

In the 1920s Hoth had little interest in the Nazi Party and viewed its activities as disruptive. His attitude changed after the 1930 German federal election. He approved of Hitler's nationalist ambitions and the Nazis' outreach to workers. He was among the officers most favorably disposed toward Hitler's seizure of power, seeing it as an opportunity to advance motorization and armoured warfare. Promoted to Oberst, he clashed with Nazi officials after criticising the murder of Communists and Social Democrats in Braunschweig, leading to his transfer to Lübeck.

Hoth later studied Nazi ideology in depth. He approved of its aims and achievements overall, though he expressed some unease about the elimination of German Jews. He ultimately viewed the fate of the Jews as less important than the destruction of Communism and Germany's restoration as a world power. In October 1932 he was appointed head of the 17th Infantry Regiment and transferred to command the 6th Infantry Regiment in August 1933. Promoted to Generalmajor in 1934, he commanded the 18th Infantry Division after the Wehrmacht's formation in 1935. Regarded as one of the most modern officers, he advocated motorization. He was promoted to Generalleutnant in 1936 and General der Infanterie in 1938. In 1938 he led the 18th Infantry Division during the occupation of the Sudetenland.

Hoth received command of the XV Motorised Corps in 1938 and led it in the invasion of Poland in 1939. The corps included two light divisions of tanks, infantry, and artillery. Hoth believed the war served a higher purpose. His corps advanced rapidly, routing Polish divisions and breaking through toward Kielce. It relentlessly pursued Polish forces. Hoth was described as a hard-charging commander. He received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his achievements. The light divisions were later converted into panzer divisions.

Hoth continued to lead the XV Army Corps (redesignated) during the invasion of France in May 1940. His corps, with the 5th and 7th Panzer Divisions (the latter under Erwin Rommel), spearheaded the advance through the Ardennes. It secured bridgeheads across the Meuse near Dinant on 12–13 May. After breaking out, it captured Cambrai and advanced toward Arras. In the Battle of Dunkirk it broke through the British line at La Bassée Canal. On 6–7 June his divisions achieved a breakthrough at Airaines and Forges-les-Eaux. Soldiers under his command murdered French prisoners of war, mainly black colonial troops. The corps captured Rouen, encircled Allied forces at Saint-Valery-en-Caux (taking about 10,000 British prisoners), crossed the Seine, and advanced into Brittany, Normandy, and toward La Rochelle. Hoth was promoted to Generaloberst in July 1940.

Hoth commanded the 3rd Panzer Group during Operation Barbarossa starting in June 1941. The formation included four panzer divisions, three motorized divisions, and four infantry divisions, with 626 tanks. Hoth expressed no opposition to the invasion. He viewed Russia as overtaken by Jewish Bolshevism, an expansionist Asiatic despotism on a collision course with Germany. He had strategic misgivings and urged greater flexibility to strike deeper, but was overruled by superiors including Fedor von Bock.

The 3rd Panzer Group broke through Soviet border defenses easily. Released from the 9th Army, it cooperated with Guderian's 2nd Panzer Group to encircle Minsk, trapping 300,000 Soviet troops and destroying or capturing 2,500 tanks. Hoth pushed toward Smolensk, splitting his forces to secure Daugava river crossings and capturing Vitebsk. The breakthrough enabled the encirclement of three Soviet armies. He ordered limited examinations of suspected Red Army soldiers in civilian clothes, with execution if confirmed, and fully implemented the Commissar Order. Subordinate reports indicated widespread execution of commissars.

In mid-July the group was briefly subordinated to Army Group North for an attempt on Velikie Luki but was driven back. In August it faced setbacks at Bryansk and against the Soviet 19th Army. By September it had only about 250 tanks left. During Operation Typhoon in October it advanced toward Vyazma, sealing pockets with Guderian's group despite delays from fuel shortages and counterattacks. Redirected north to Rzhev and Kalinin, it was effectively removed from the direct drive on Moscow.

On 5 October 1941 Hoth was appointed commander of the 17th Army in Ukraine, replacing Carl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel. He advanced against Lozova and split forces toward Izium and Stalino. Bad weather and resistance slowed operations. Hoth supported the war of annihilation. He ordered harsh punishment of Jewry and cooperated closely with Einsatzgruppen death squads, providing more support than his predecessor. In November 1941, following Walter von Reichenau's Severity Order, Hoth issued his own order of the day:

Every sign of active or passive resistance or any sort of machinations on the part of Jewish-Bolshevik agitators are to be immediately and pitilessly exterminated ... These circles are the intellectual supports of Bolshevism, the bearers of its murderous organisation, the helpmates of the partisans. It is the same Jewish class of beings who have done so much damage to our own Fatherland by virtue of their activities against the nation and civilisation, and who promote anti-German tendencies throughout the world, and who will be the harbingers of revenge. Their extermination is a dictate of our own survival.

He also ordered the shooting of suspected partisans and civilians in woods, mass requisitioning of food, and cultivation of hatred among troops. Massacres by Sonderkommando 4b and Einsatzkommando 6 occurred in the army's rear areas. In early 1942 he briefly acted as commander of Army Group South during the Soviet Barvenkovo–Lozovaya offensive.

Hoth took command of the 4th Panzer Army on 31 May 1942. During Case Blue he demonstrated great operational skill. His forces broke through Soviet lines on 28 June, reached the Don River, and assaulted Voronezh. Despite Soviet counterattacks he repulsed them and continued advancing. The army participated in the drive toward Stalingrad. When the 6th Army was encircled in November 1942, Hoth's force led an unsuccessful relief attempt from the south. He remained in command during the Third Battle of Kharkov in March 1943 (recapturing the city) and the Battle of Kursk in July 1943, where his units suffered heavy losses at Prokhorovka. After Kursk his army defended during the Soviet Dnieper offensive. He was relieved of command on 26 November 1943 following the surprise Soviet reconquest of Kiev.

For the remainder of the war Hoth held mostly powerless positions.

Hoth was arrested by American forces in May 1945. He stood trial in the High Command Trial (Case 11) at Nuremberg. He was convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity for implementing the Commissar Order, mistreatment of Soviet prisoners of war, and crimes against civilians (including Jews and Slavs). On 27 October 1948 he was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment and served time in Landsberg am Lech prison.

He was released on parole in 1954. His sentence was reduced to time served in 1957. Hoth lived quietly in West Germany. He became an author, publishing Panzer-Operationen in 1956 (later translated into English as Panzer Operations: Germany's Panzer Group 3 During the Invasion of Russia, 1941). He wrote articles for the Wehrkunde journal and collaborated on books such as Unternehmen Barbarossa (1963). His writings supported the myth of the clean Wehrmacht. He died on 25 January 1971 in Goslar, West Germany, at age 85.

Source:
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/  
https://en.wikipedia.org/  
https://www.tracesofwar.com/  
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300  
https://www.unithistories.com/units_index/index.php?file=/officers/personsx.html  
https://forum.axishistory.com/  
https://www.bundesarchiv.de/en/  
https://www.geni.com/  
https://books.google.com/ (various searches on Hoth biography and awards)  
Hoth, Hermann - Panzer-Operationen (Heidelberg, 1956)  
Various Wehrmacht command histories and Knight's Cross recipient compilations cross-referenced from the above websites.

Bio of Major Günther Rall (1918-2009)

Full name: Günther Rall
Nickname: No information

Date of Birth: 10.03.1918 - Gaggenau, German Empire
Date of Death: 04.10.2009 - Bad Reichenhall, Germany

Battles and Operations: Western Campaign, Battle of Britain, Balkans Campaign and Battle of Crete, Operation Barbarossa, air defence of Romania, Battle of Kiev, First Battle of Kharkov, Crimean Campaign, Battle of the Caucasus, Kuban Bridgehead, retreat from Stalingrad, Operation Citadel and Battle of Kursk, air battles over Central and Southern Ukraine, Crimean Offensive, Reichsverteidigung

NSDAP-Number: No information
SS-Number: No information
Religion: No information
Parents: Rudolf Rall (merchant and member of Stahlhelm and DNVP) and Minna Rall (née Heinzelmann)
Siblings: one sister Lotte (four years older)
Spouse: Hertha Schön (married 1943)
Children: four (first child Monika born and died November 1943, second child Alex born 1945 and died young, Franziska born 28.09.1950, Felizitas born 17.03.1955)

Promotions:
04.12.1936 Offiziersanwärter (Heer)
01.07.1938 Oberfähnrich (Luftwaffe)
00.00.1939 Leutnant
01.08.1940 Oberleutnant
00.00.1943 Hauptmann
01.11.1943 Major
01.01.1956 Major (Bundeswehr)
00.00.1964 Oberst (Bundeswehr)
00.00.1967 Brigadegeneral (Bundeswehr)
15.11.1967 Generalmajor (Bundeswehr)
00.00.1970 Generalleutnant (Bundeswehr)

Career:
00.00.1922 family moved to Stuttgart
00.00.1928 joined Christian Boy Scouts (later Deutsches Jungvolk)
00.00.1935 Abitur at Napola Backnang
04.12.1936 entered Heer as Offiziersanwärter, Infanterieregiment 13
01.07.1938 transferred to Luftwaffe as Oberfähnrich
07.1939-09.1939 fighter pilot training at Jagdfliegerschule Werneuchen
16.09.1939 posted to 4. Staffel/JG 52 as Rottenführer
25.07.1940 Staffelkapitän 8./JG 52
05.07.1943 (acting earlier) Gruppenkommandeur III./JG 52
19.04.1944 Gruppenkommandeur II./JG 11
20.02.1945-08.05.1945 Geschwaderkommodore JG 300
08.05.1945-08.1945 prisoner of war
07.1947-05.1948 salesman Siemens & Halske
01.01.1956 rejoined Bundeswehr as Major
09.1956-03.1957 flight refresher training on T-6 and T-33
late 1958 first German F-104 Starfighter pilot licence
00.00.1964-31.03.1966 Kommodore Jagdbombergeschwader 34
1966/67 Inspizient Fliegende Verbände der Luftwaffe
1967/68 Kommandeur 3. Luftwaffendivision
1968/69 Kommandeur 1. Luftwaffendivision
1969/70 Chef des Stabes 4. Allied Tactical Air Force
01.10.1970-31.12.1970 Kommandierender General Luftwaffenführungskommando
01.01.1971-31.03.1974 Inspekteur der Luftwaffe
1974-1975 Deutscher Militärischer Bevollmächtigter im NATO-Militärausschuss, Brüssel
01.10.1975 retired
00.00.1975-1989 consultant in aerospace industry (General Electric, MTU Aero Engines)

Awards and Decorations:
Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse (23.05.1940)
Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse (07.1940)
Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe (17.11.1941)
Deutsches Kreuz in Gold (15.12.1941)
Ärmelband Kreta
Verwundetenabzeichen 1939 in Gold
Gemeinsames Flugzeugführer- und Beobachterabzeichen
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (03.09.1942) as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän 8./JG 52, on the occasion of his 65th aerial victory. Rall had already claimed 36 victories by November 1941 (when he was shot down, badly wounded, and grounded for nearly a year). He returned to combat in August 1942 during the Battle of the Caucasus. In a remarkable four-week span (2–30 August), he scored 26 victories (raising his total from 37 to 62), including four in a single day on 6 August. His unit operated in intense air battles supporting German ground advances deep in southern Russia. A notable episode involved defending German pontoon bridges over the Terek River near Grozny: Soviet forces repeatedly attacked the crossings, but Rall’s III. Gruppe (with pilots like Adolf Dickfeld and Alfred Grislawski) inflicted heavy losses on the Soviet 4th Air Army (which lost 149 aircraft in September 1942 alone). Rall’s 61st victory was scored near Grozny. His 65th victory—a LaGG-3 fighter—was claimed on 2 September 1942 at 15:50 southeast of Kalinowskaja (grid reference PQ 54611). This rapid scoring run in support of the Caucasus offensive earned him the Ritterkreuz the next day.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #134 (26.10.1942) as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän 8./JG 52, on the occasion of his 100th aerial victory (achieved 22 October 1942). He was the 28th Luftwaffe pilot to reach the “century mark.”. Following the Ritterkreuz, Rall continued flying with JG 52 on the Eastern Front. He reached exactly 100 victories on 22 October 1942 at 14:36 by shooting down another LaGG-3 west of Werchne Atschakuli. This came during ongoing operations in the Caucasus and southern Russia, just before the major Soviet counter-offensive at Stalingrad. The award recognised his consistent performance and leadership as a Staffelkapitän. After the presentation he was granted leave and married his fiancée Hertha Schön shortly afterwards. He returned to the front as the German armies began retreating following the disaster at Stalingrad.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #34 (12.09.1943) as Hauptmann and Gruppenkommandeur III./JG 52, on the occasion of his 200th aerial victory (achieved 29 August 1943). He became only the third fighter pilot (after Hermann Graf and Hans Philipp) to reach the double-century mark. In summer 1943, Rall flew during and after the Battle of Kursk and the subsequent German withdrawal in Ukraine. In August 1943 alone he claimed 33 victories while his Gruppe operated over Central Ukraine. On 29 August he shot down two LaGG-3 fighters in the vicinity of Kuybyshev (present-day Samara area); the second of these was his 200th victory (claimed at 08:21 near Sinjewka, grid PQ 34 Ost 88364, 25 km south-southeast of Jalisawehino). This achievement was highlighted in the official Wehrmachtbericht (armed forces communiqué) the same day. By the end of 1943 he had passed 250 victories (second pilot after Walter Nowotny to do so), but the Swords were specifically tied to the 200th. The award recognised not only the raw score but his leadership of III. Gruppe during intense defensive fighting against growing Soviet air superiority.
Frontflugspange für Jäger in Gold mit Anhänger 600
Mentioned in Wehrmachtbericht (29.08.1943 and 30.11.1943)
Großes Verdienstkreuz des Verdienstordens der Bundesrepublik Deutschland (1973)
Großes Verdienstkreuz mit Stern des Verdienstordens der Bundesrepublik Deutschland

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Günther Rall (10 March 1918 – 4 October 2009) was a highly decorated German military aviator, officer and General, whose military career spanned nearly forty years. Rall was the third most successful fighter pilot in aviation history, behind Gerhard Barkhorn, who is second, and Erich Hartmann, who is first. 

Rall was born on 10 March 1918 in Gaggenau, at the time in the Grand Duchy of Baden of the German Empire during World War I. He was the second child of merchant Rudolf Rall and his wife Minna, née Heinzelmann. His sister Lotte was four years older than Rall. Rall stated that his father was a member of Der Stahlhelm, Bund der Frontsoldaten (The Steel helmet, League of front-line Soldiers) and had an affiliation with the German National People's Party.

In 1922, the Rall family moved to Stuttgart. There, in 1928, Rall joined the Christian Boy Scouts. In 1934, the Gleichschaltung converted the Christian Boy Scouts into the Deutsches Jungvolk as part of the Hitler Youth. He attended the Volksschule in Stuttgart. For his secondary education, he first attended the humanities-oriented Karls-Gymnasium in Stuttgart. Then in 1935 he transferred to the National Political Institutes of Education (Nationalpolitische Erziehungsanstalt—Napola) in Backnang, a secondary boarding school founded under the recently established Nazi state. The goal of the Napola schools was to raise a new generation for the political, military and administrative leadership of Nazi Germany. There he received his Abitur (university entry qualification). Following graduation, Rall volunteered for military service in December 1936.

On 4 December 1936, Rall joined the 13. (Württembergisches) Infanterie-Regiment of the Army in Ludwigsburg as a Fahnenjunker (junior officer candidate). From 1 January to 31 June 1938, he attended the Kriegsschule, a military school in Dresden. In the summer of 1938, Rall requested to be transferred to the Luftwaffe. Now an Oberfähnrich, he was trained as a pilot at Unterbiberg airfield. On 1 September 1938, he was promoted to Leutnant (second lieutenant). Rall then attended the Jagdfliegerschule Werneuchen (fighter pilot school) from 15 July to 15 September 1939. He was then posted to 4. Staffel (4th squadron) of Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52—52nd Fighter Wing) on 16 September where he served as a Rottenführer (flight leader of a Rotte).

World War II in Europe began on 1 September 1939 when German forces invaded Poland. JG 52 did not support the invasion. It was posted to western Germany, protecting the German border during the "Phoney War" and Rall did not see combat. On 7 March 1940, he was transferred to 8. Staffel when JG 52 was augmented by the newly created III. Gruppe (3rd group). On 10 May 1940 Fall Gelb began, and JG 52 supported German forces in the invasion of Belgium and Battle of France. On the third day of the campaign, 12 May 1940, Rall achieved his first victory. Three French Curtiss H75-C1 fighters were attacking a German reconnaissance aircraft at a height of 26,000 feet (7,900 meters). Rall attacked them and shot down one, stating: "I was lucky in my first dogfight, but it did give me a hell of a lot of self-confidence ... and a scaring, because I was also hit by many bullets." The victory was his only success on the Western Front.

JG 52 was later moved to Peuplingues and Coquelles on the French Channel coast where it fought in the Battle of Britain. Due to heavy losses, he was given command as a Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) of 8. Staffel JG 52 on 25 July 1940. He was promoted to Oberleutnant (first lieutenant) a week later, on 1 August 1940. Rall replaced Oberleutnant Lothar Ehrlich, who was killed in action with No. 610 Squadron RAF the previous day during the convoy battles. Ehrlich was one of three pilots killed that day. Rall said of the battle, "probably no one even had time to shout a warning. Suddenly a flock of Spitfires were on us like hawks on a bunch of chickens." Rall placed the blame for losses on faulty tactics such as flying the Bf 109s in close escort roles for the slow Junkers Ju 87 Stuka dive-bombers. On the day he was appointed Oberleutnant, JG 52 lost another four pilots, including two Staffelkapitäns. Rall's Staffel lost one pilot missing in action with No. 65 Squadron RAF over Dover in the early afternoon. Rall and his unit achieved little. Several of the highest claiming pilots of JG 52, including Gerhard Barkhorn, Alfred Grislawski, Adolf Dickfeld, were not successful over England.

The rise of General Ion Antonescu in Romania in 1940 led to a reorganization of his country's armed forces. In this task, he was supported by a military mission from Germany, the Luftwaffenmission Rumänien (Luftwaffe Mission Romania) under the command of Generalleutnant (equivalent to major general) Wilhelm Speidel. III. Gruppe JG 52 was transferred to Bucharest in mid-October and temporarily renamed I. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 28 (JG 28—28th Fighter Wing) until 4 January 1941. Its primary task was to train Romanian Air Force personnel. Rall arrived at Pipera Airfield on 15 October, where 8. Staffel stayed until 18 November when they moved to Leipzig-Mockau Airfield. Three days later, 8. Staffel moved to Parndorf in Austria. On 30 November, the Staffel began relocating back to Pipera Airfield where they arrived on 2 December, staying there until 27 May 1941.

Rall's unit was then transferred to Greece and participated in the final phase of the Balkans Campaign. On 27 May, Rall flew to Plovdiv, Saloniki, Tatoi Airfield north of Athens and then to Molaoi where he stayed until 10 June. Based at Molaoi, he flew combat missions in support of the airborne invasion and subsequent Battle of Crete. JG 52 was transferred back to Romania to help defend their recently acquired allies' Ploiești oil fields.

On 21 June 1941, III. Gruppe was ordered to Mizil in preparation for Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union. Its primary objective was to provide fighter protection for the oil fields and refineries at Ploiești. The invasion of the Soviet Union began on 22 June. The next day, the Gruppe moved to Mamaia, the northern district of Constanța on the Black Sea coast. On 22 June, the Axis forces launched the war on the Eastern Front. The majority of JG 52 were supporting Army Group South and the invasion of the Ukrainian SSR.

Rall's contingent remained in eastern Romania. The Red Air Force (VVS) immediately began a campaign to destroy the Romanian oil fields. Major General Pavel Zhigarev, commanding the VVS ChF (Air Command Crimea), committed the 63 BAP (63rd Bomber Aviation Regiment) and 40 SBAP (40th High Speed Bomber Aviation Regiment). The attacks met with some success, although heavy losses forced the switch to night bombing from mid-July. Rall scored his second, third and fourth victories intercepting Soviet bombers. During a five-day period, III. Gruppe JG 52 claimed between 45 and 50 Soviet aircraft. Rall remarked the reason for the success was the Soviets did not provide fighter escort for their bombers.

The Gruppe moved to Belaya Tserkov on 1 August during the Battle of Kiev and also used an airfield at Yampil from 6 to 8 August. Rall claimed his fifth victory on 4 August thus becoming an "ace". While providing escort for Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 (StG 77—77th Dive Bomber Wing) on 13 August 1941, with Jagdgeschwader 3 (JG 3—3rd Fighter Wing), Rall claimed a Polikarpov I-16 as did JG 3's Günther Lützow. The Soviet pilots were from the 88 IAP Fighter Regiment and identified as Lieutenants Yakov Kozlov and Ivan Novikov. III. Gruppe JG 52 supported the encirclement of Kiev in August.

Rall claimed 12 victories in October 1941 as III. Gruppe JG 52 fought for air superiority during the First Battle of Kharkov; an autumn offensive to seize the industrialized regions of Eastern Ukraine. On 14 October there was heavy air fighting. Rall claimed an Ilyushin Il-2 over his group's Poltava airfield after being scrambled in the midst of a Soviet air attack. The Germans had failed in the race for the Ukrainian industrial heartland. After the capture of Kharkov and Stalino the Germans found 54 medium and 223 large factories; all empty. Some 1.5 million wagonloads had been evacuated.

On 23 October, III. Gruppe JG 52 moved to Chaplynka in the Crimea. With II. Gruppe JG 3 and JG 77, it was ordered to clear the skies. The Crimean Campaign lasted into the following year. The German fighter units claimed 140 aircraft from 18 to 24 October over Perekop. Rall had reached 28 victories by this date. At the time, his regular wingman was Obergefreiter Friedrich Wachowiak.

The Gruppe then moved to an airfield at Taganrog on 2 November where they stayed until 1 January 1942. In November the Red Army regrouped and conducted a well-orchestrated recapture of Rostov. The victory denied the Germans access to the Caucasus. Rall received the Honour Goblet of the Luftwaffe (Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe) on 17 November. On 28 November 1941, Rall claimed his 36th victory near the contested city, but as he watched the burning I-16 fall in the fading light, Rall relaxed his vigilance and was shot down. He tried to fly back to German lines with a damaged engine, but crash landed and was knocked unconscious. A German tank crew rescued him from the wreck. His Bf 109 came down hard, breaking his back. Rall was hospitalized for nearly a year and was invalided from flying duties.

Rall returned to combat operations in August 1942. He quickly regained his form and on 3 September 1942 was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross after reaching 65 victories. By 22 October 1942 he claimed his 100th victory and received the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross. Rall participated in the intense air battles over the Eastern Front, including operations supporting the advance toward the Caucasus and later defensive actions. In 1943 he suffered another injury in a hard landing that broke his back again. While recovering he married Hertha Schön, the doctor who treated him. By late August 1943 he reached 200 victories. On 12 September 1943 he was awarded the Swords to the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves after surpassing 250 victories by the end of the year. Rall commanded elements of JG 52 during major operations such as the Battle of Kursk and subsequent retreats.

In April 1944 Rall was transferred from the Eastern Front to command II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 11 on the Western Front for the Defense of the Reich. There he was wounded for the third time when his left thumb was shot off during combat with a Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. In November 1944 he served as an instructor, test-flying captured Allied fighters including American and British types to prepare tactical notes for Luftwaffe pilots. His final wartime assignment was command of Jagdgeschwader 300 near Salzburg, Austria. He surrendered to American forces in May 1945.

After the war Rall was held briefly as a prisoner before release. In 1956 he joined the newly reconstituted West German Air Force, the Bundesluftwaffe, as one of its founding officers. He trained in the United States on jet aircraft such as the F-84 Thunderjet and later the F-104 Starfighter. Rall rose steadily through the ranks, commanding various fighter wings and groups during the Cold War era. He served in key leadership roles, including staff positions at the Ministry of Defence. From 1970 to 1974 he held the position of Inspector of the Air Force (Inspekteur der Luftwaffe), the highest command role in the German air arm. He then served as the German military representative to the NATO Military Committee in Brussels until his retirement in 1975 at the rank of Generalleutnant. For his contributions to rebuilding Germany's air force and strengthening NATO ties, he received the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Following retirement Rall worked as a consultant for aviation and defence companies. He remained involved in historical and veterans' organisations, frequently speaking about his wartime experiences and the evolution of air power. He authored memoirs detailing his career and maintained contacts with former comrades and Allied pilots. Rall lived quietly in southern Germany and continued to advocate for professional military standards.

Rall died on 4 October 2009 in Bad Reichenhall, Germany, at the age of 91.

Source:
https://en.wikipedia.org/
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300
https://www.unithistories.com/units_index/index.php?file=/officers/personsx.html
https://forum.axishistory.com/
https://www.bundesarchiv.de/en/
https://books.google.com/
https://www.ww2.dk/lwoffz.html
https://aircrewremembered.com/KrackerDatabase/?q=units
Günther Rall: Mein Flugbuch. Erinnerungen 1938-2004 (2004)
Christopher Shores, Clive Williams: Aces High. A Tribute to the Most Notable Fighter Pilots of the British and Commonwealth Forces in WWII (1994)
Mike Spick: Luftwaffe Fighter Aces. The Luftwaffe's Greatest Pilots (1996)