Bio of Oberstleutnant Werner Ziegler (1916-2001)

Werner Ziegler

Date of Birth: 30.04.1916 - Hausach, Baden (German Empire)
Date of Death: 15.04.2001 - Ofersheim, Baden-Württemberg (Germany)

Promotions:
00.00.1939 Leutnant
08.09.1942 Oberleutnant
00.00.1942 Hauptmann
01.05.1943 Major
01.06.1944 Oberstleutnant

Career:
00.00.1936 Infanterie-Regiment 20
03.10.1939 Adjutant / I.Bataillon / Infanterie-Regiment 186
01.10.1940 Führer 2.Kompanie / Infanterie-Regiment 186
00.00.1942 Kommandeur I.Bataillon / Infanterie-Regiment 186
01.07.1943 Stabsoffizier V. Armeekorps
00.00.1943 Stabsoffizier 19. Panzer-Division
06.03.1944 Führer Grenadier-Regiment 186
01.06.1944 Kommandeur Grenadier-Regiment 186
00.09-10.1944 Kommandeur Grenadier Regiment 1112
00.00.1945 Stabsoffizier V. Armeekorps
00.00.1956 Joined the Bundeswehr and served at the Infantry School in Hammelburg
00.00.1960 Stellvertretender Kommandeur Panzergrenadier-Brigade 35
00.00.1967 Retired as Oberst and Kommandeur Panzergrenadier-Brigade 19

Awards and Decorations:
00.00.193_ Deutsches Reichssportabzeichen in Bronze
00.00.193_ Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 13. März 1938
00.00.1939 Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 1. Oktober 1938
07.07.1940 Eisernes Kreuz II.Klasse
26.04.1941 Eisernes Kreuz I.Klasse
00.00.194_ Infanterie-Sturmabzeichen in Bronze
00.00.194_ Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz
31.12.1941 Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes #766, as Leutnant and Führer 2.Kompanie / I.Bataillon / Infanterie-Regiment 186 / 73.Infanterie-Division. On 14 August 1941, during the rapid advance between the Dniester and Southern Bug rivers in Ukraine (early phases of Operation Barbarossa), Ziegler led his company in a daring coup de main (surprise assault) on the heavily defended town of Petrovskoye on the western bank of the Bug River. They stormed the town, cleared it in bitter house-to-house fighting, and captured over 300 Soviet prisoners while securing the surrounding area.
As part of the 73. Infanterie-Division’s push deep into Soviet territory under 11. Armee, Ziegler’s men advanced through dusty Ukrainian plains under the blistering summer sun. Soviet forces had fortified Petrovskoye with entrenched infantry, machine-gun nests, and anti-tank positions guarding the vital river crossing. Ziegler’s company executed a lightning strike—likely under covering fire from artillery or flanking elements—rushing the outskirts before the defenders could fully react.
What followed was brutal close-quarters combat: German grenadiers kicked in doors, cleared rooms with grenades and bayonets, and fought hand-to-hand through smoke-filled streets and rubble-choked alleys. Bullets ricocheted off walls, screams echoed as Soviets were overwhelmed or surrendered in droves. Ziegler’s calm leadership under fire turned potential stalemate into decisive victory. By day’s end, his company had not only taken the town but mopped up surrounding pockets, denying the Soviets a strongpoint and yielding a massive haul of prisoners. This action exemplified the aggressive, small-unit initiative that defined early Barbarossa successes. The Ritterkreuz recognized this textbook example of infantry audacity.
00.00.1942 Medaille "Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42" (Ostmedaille)
08.09.1942 Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #121, as Oberleutnant and Führer 2.Kompanie / I.Bataillon / Infanterie-Regiment 186 / 73.Infanterie-Division. Awarded for his leadership during the urban fighting in Novorossiysk on 6 September 1942. By summer 1942, the 73. Infanterie-Division had shifted to Heeresgruppe A’s drive into the Caucasus as part of the summer offensive. Novorossiysk, a critical Black Sea port and naval base, was a nightmare of concrete fortifications, dockyards, oil tanks, and multi-story buildings turned into strongpoints by Soviet naval infantry, regular troops, and civilians pressed into service.
On 6 September, as German forces launched a coordinated assault to seize the city, Ziegler’s company spearheaded the push into the urban core. The fighting was savage and intimate: street-by-street, block-by-block advances under constant sniper fire, mortar barrages, and counterattacks. Grenades flew through shattered windows; flamethrowers cleared basements; machine guns chattered from rooftops. Smoke from burning fuel tanks choked the air, mixing with dust and cordite. Ziegler personally directed his men through this hell, maintaining momentum despite heavy casualties, coordinating with neighboring units, and exploiting gaps in Soviet defenses. His company’s decisive contribution helped crack key sectors of the city’s defenses, enabling further German gains (though the port was never fully secured due to Soviet naval resistance and later landings).
After surviving the brutal winter positional fighting at the Mius River (1941/42), this action in the Kuban region showcased Ziegler’s evolution into a proven combat leader. The Eichenlaub were a rare early-war honor for an Oberleutnant, highlighting how his company’s bravery helped the division punch above its weight in one of the most contested urban battles of the Caucasus campaign.
00.00.194_ Krimschild
00.00.194_ Nahkampfspange in Bronze
00.00.194_ Sonderabzeichen für das Niederkämpfen von Panzerkampfwagen durch Einzelkämpfer
00.00.194_ Kubanschilz
23.10.1944 Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #102, as Major and Führer Grenadier-Regiment 186 / 73.Infanterie-Division. Ziegler's Regiment participated in the final battle for Sevastopol in May 1944. On 7 May 1944, during the general Soviet attack against the German V. Armeekorps, his Regiment stood firm in its defensive positions on Windmill Hill, even after it had been surrounded. Ziegler and his men were able to hold their ground successfully until relieved by Kampfgruppen Marienfeld and Faulhaber on the morning of the next day.
By spring 1944, the 73. Infanterie-Division was trapped in the shrinking Crimean pocket as the Red Army’s 4th Ukrainian Front launched its crushing offensive to retake the peninsula. Sevastopol’s defenses—hastily rebuilt from 1941–42 fortifications—faced overwhelming Soviet artillery, air strikes, and infantry waves supported by armor.
Ziegler, now commanding the entire Grenadier-Regiment 186, anchored a critical sector on Windmill Hill, a key height overlooking approaches to the city. On 7 May, during the general Soviet onslaught against V. Armeekorps, massive barrages pounded the German lines. Waves of Soviet infantry surged forward under covering fire, supported by tanks and assault guns. Ziegler’s men—exhausted, low on ammunition, and outnumbered—were cut off as enemy forces enveloped the hill. Trenches filled with the dead and wounded; runners couldn’t get through; radio calls for support grew desperate. Yet under Ziegler’s iron leadership, the grenadiers held: firing from foxholes, launching desperate counterattacks with bayonets and grenades, and using captured weapons when their own ran dry. They repelled assault after assault through the night, turning the hill into a fortress of rubble and resolve.
Only on the morning of 8 May did relief Kampfgruppen break through to link up, allowing an organized withdrawal. The regiment’s stand bought precious time for the collapsing German defense and prevented a total breakthrough in that sector. The division was largely destroyed in the final evacuation chaos, but Ziegler’s actions epitomized the desperate, heroic defense of “Fortress Sevastopol.”
00.00.1968 Bundesverdienstkreuz I.Klasse

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Werner Ziegler joined the 20th Infantry Regiment in 1936, where he was promoted to Leutnant in 1939.

On October 3, 1939 he became adjutant in the 1st Battalion of the 186th Infantry Regiment. After the western campaign in 1940, he took over the leadership of the 2nd Company of the 186th Infantry Regiment on October 1, 1940. He led this during the Balkan campaign and at the beginning of the campaign "Barbarossa". In the battles on the Crimean peninsula, he distinguished himself with special bravery. For his achievements he was awarded the Knight's Cross on December 31, 1941. He was known for using innovative warfare tactics and was a feared expert in night raids.

After the difficult positional battles on the Mius in the winter of 1941/42, he distinguished himself again in the summer of 1942 in the Kuban region. He and his company played a decisive role in the capture of Novorossiysk, for which he was awarded the oak leaf as an Oberleutnant on September 8, 1942.

On the night of September 10, 1942, the day when the 1st Battalion of Grenadier Regiment 186 of the 73rd Infantry Division under Eichenlaubträger Oberleutnant Werner Ziegler set out for the final assault on the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, the small flotilla of the “Brandenburg ' - the inflatable boats towed by the assault boats - in a wide arc around Novorossiysk to the south-east. The 122 kilometers between Tuapse and Novorossiysk, over which the access road led, were to be interrupted about 30 kilometers south-east of Novorossiysk. Explosives and weapons were stowed in the inflatable boats. When Oberleutnant Ziegler and his grenadiers from the 73rd Infantry Division entered the city, fought down house after house and fought his way to the harbor to knock out the anti-aircraft batteries there, the time had come for the “Brandenburgers”. The next target was called Tuapse, and this key point in the narrow coastal plain was crucial. In order to reach it and take it by surprise, the road had to be closed to the retreating Soviet troops from Novorossiysk, lest they reinforce the garrison of Tuapse. Ziegler's successes would not have been possible without the deployment of the "Brandenburgers", and this applied to many companies during the Second World War.

Shortly thereafter, Ziegler was promoted to Hauptmann and commander of the 1st Battalion. On May 1, 1943, he was promoted to major in the Novorossiysk area. On July 1, 1943 he had to give up his battalion in order to be transferred to the staff of the V Army Corps and then to the staff of the 19th Panzer Division. On March 6, 1944, he returned to his old 186th Grenadier Regiment as a leader. After the loss of the Crimea and the evacuation to Hungary, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel on June 1, 1944 and commanded the 186th Grenadier Regiment.

In autumn 1944 he was then commander of the Grenadier Regiment 1112 and on October 23, 1944 he was awarded the swords as a lieutenant colonel. Seriously wounded, he had to give up his command. After his recovery, he was then commissioned to the staff of the V Army Corps. At the end of the war he was taken prisoner by the Western Allies, from which he was released in 1946 and was able to return to his wife. He then worked for ten years in the private industry before joining the Bundeswehr. In 1956 he served at the Infantry School in Hammelburg under Brigadegeneral Hellmuth Mäder. In 1960 Ziegler served deputy commander of the Panzergrenadierbrigade 35. Seven years later he retired as Oberst and commander of the Panzergrenadierbrigade 19 in Ahlen.

Adolf Hitler welcomes Heer officers Werner Ziegler (foreground) and Gerhard Hein at the Werwolf headquarters on the occasion of the presentation of the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz.

Werner Ziegler (left) in 1960 as commander of Panzergrenadierbrigade 35 of the Bundeswehr.

Source :
Jim Haley photo collection
https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/Werner_Ziegler_(soldier)
https://de.metapedia.org/wiki/Ziegler,_Werner
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/34554/Ziegler-Werner.htm
https://www.warrelics.eu/forum/german-photographs-postcards/show-your-signed-photos-284539-104/