Nickname: No information
Date of Birth: 21 December 1892 - Brück in der Mark, Province of Brandenburg (German Empire)
Date of Death: 24 September 1984 - Lage, Lippe (West Germany)
Battles and Operations: World War I (Western Front), Eastern Front (Crimea Campaign, Leningrad sector)
NSDAP-Number: No information
SS-Number: No information
Religion: No information
Parents: No information
Siblings: No information
Spouse: Martha Matthes (married 1921, died 1940), Gertrud Murmann (married 1942)
Children: Two sons (from first marriage)
Promotions:
23 August 1916 Leutnant der Reserve
01 April 1936 Leutnant der Reserve
01 March 1938 Oberleutnant der Reserve
01 June 1939 Hauptmann (E)
20 October 1940 Major (E)
01 April 1942 Oberstleutnant
01 January 1943 Oberst
01 August 1944 Generalmajor
Career:
1914-1919 Service in Infanterie-Regiment 27 (WWI)
1919-1939 Volksschullehrer (elementary school teacher) in Saxony and Magdeburg area
1936-1939 Reserve officer training and exercises with Infanterie-Regiment 12
1939 Company chief in supplemental battalions
1940-1941 Commander of Infanterie-Ersatz-Bataillon 467 and staff officer training
1941-1942 Commander I./Infanterie-Regiment 391 of 170. Infanterie-Division
1942-1944 Commander Grenadier-Regiment 399 of 170. Infanterie-Division
15 February 1944 Temporary commander (m.d.F.b.) of 170. Infanterie-Division
1944-1945 Führer-Reserve OKH after wounding
1945-1949 Soviet prisoner of war (released 21 October 1949)
Awards and Decorations:
Iron Cross 2nd Class (1914) 22 December 1914
Iron Cross 1st Class (1914) 23 August 1917
Wound Badge (1914) in Black and Silver
Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 with Swords 12 December 1934
War Merit Cross 2nd Class with Swords 01 September 1941
Repetition Clasp to Iron Cross 2nd Class (1939) 22 October 1941
Repetition Clasp to Iron Cross 1st Class (1939) 20 November 1941
Infantry Assault Badge in Silver 19 December 1941
Wound Badge (1939) in Gold 04 February 1942
Order of the Crown of Romania, Officer's Cross with Swords 06 March 1942
Winter Battle in the East 1941/42 Medal 16 August 1942
Crimea Shield
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 14 March 1942 as Major and commander of I. Bataillon / Infanterie-Regiment 391, 170. Infanterie-Division. At 0600 on 15 January 1942, during the fighting in the Crimea, Infanterie-Regiment 391 began a hasty attack with its I. Bataillon in the lead. The regiment fought its way past Hill 200 and was able to capture Hill 175 despite fierce opposing resistance. The regiment continued its attack on the following day through difficult terrain that was covered in ravines. All throughout this time the regiment’s commander, Major Griesbach, showed great bravery and command abilities, which were invaluable in enabling the regiment (which was practically at battalion strength) to succeed in its goals. His skillful leadership meant that Hill 251.4 was also captured, and his independent decision to retake Hill 175 after it had temporarily fallen was of great importance for the continued combat of the division. His efforts during this time were crucial in ensuring the fall of Feodosia on 18 January 1942.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #242 on 17 May 1943 as Oberst and commander of Grenadier-Regiment 399, 170. Infanterie-Division. Oberst Griesbach’s decisive feat-of-arms was the sealing off of a deep enemy penetration south of Lake Ladoga (near Krasny Bor, depth of approximately two kilometres). Oberst Griesbach launched an assault operation that demonstrated that, although the Soviets may be superior in numbers, they are much more lacking in the realm of actual combat ability. This deliberate counterattack was initiated on the Oberst’s own initiative and conducted with the battle-weary troops of his III. Bataillon. In the combat which followed the commander fought at the spearhead of the foremost Kompanie, crushing one resistance nest after another and directing his shock troops and artillery observer onto appropriate targets. He was also the first to experience the enemy’s blocking fire. After more than half of the penetration area had been recaptured after a five-and-a-half-hour battle he moved to the sector of his I. Bataillon, which was positioned on the Bolsheviks’ right flank. With these men he launched a surprise onslaught against the enemy without any artillery preparation. It was not long before he and his troops succeeded in entering the positions of the Soviets, who now found themselves pushed into an ever more narrow space in-between the two German Bataillone. They suffered extremely heavy casualties as a result, with about 2000 dead Bolsheviks remaining on the battlefield once hostilities had ceased. 338 prisoners were taken, while 5 tanks, 24 artillery pieces and 149 mortars/machine-guns were either destroyed or captured. This victory was mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht of 25 March 1943.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #53 on 6 March 1944 as Oberst and commander of Grenadier-Regiment 399, 170. Infanterie-Division. Awarded for his actions near Leningrad in January 1944. On 17 January 1944 his Kampfgruppe destroyed 69 hostile tanks near the village of Pelellja. Later the Kampfgruppe recaptured the heights near Duderhof, which had fallen to the Soviets on 18 January 1944. Griesbach would also distinguish himself on 23 January 1944 when he led his Kampfgruppe to success in a counterthrust at Gatschina. Ultimately his Kampfgruppe managed to prevent a Soviet breakthrough south of Leningrad.
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Franz Friedrich Johann Griesbach was a German officer and general during the Second World War who rose from the rank of reserve lieutenant to generalmajor while serving primarily with the 170th Infantry Division on the Eastern Front. A veteran of the First World War and a civilian elementary school teacher for two decades between the wars, he became one of the few regimental commanders to receive the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords. His leadership in critical defensive and offensive actions in the Crimea and the Leningrad sector earned him these high decorations, and he briefly commanded his division before being severely wounded and later taken prisoner by Soviet forces.
Born on 21 December 1892 in Brück in der Mark, Province of Brandenburg, Kingdom of Prussia, Griesbach entered the Imperial German Army on 1 April 1914 as a one-year volunteer with Infantry Regiment 27, known as Prinz Louis Ferdinand von Preußen, 2nd Magdeburgisches. He served throughout the First World War on the Western Front, rising steadily through the enlisted ranks to become a vice sergeant by May 1916 and receiving his commission as lieutenant of the reserves on 23 August 1916. During the conflict he was awarded the Iron Cross Second Class on 22 December 1914 and the First Class on 23 August 1917, along with the Wound Badge in black on 5 May 1918 and in silver on 25 June 1918. After the armistice he left active service and pursued a teaching career, passing his final teacher examination in 1920. He taught at elementary schools in Saxony and later in the Magdeburg area, including at a Volksschule in Putlitz, Westprignitz, while maintaining his connection to the military through reserve officer training.
In the interwar period Griesbach completed his formal teacher training at the Präparandenanstalt in Genthin from 1907 to 1910 and the Lehrerseminar from 1910 to 1913 before his military call-up. He remained on the reserve list and participated in periodic exercises. Recalled to active duty at the outbreak of the Second World War, he was initially assigned as company chief of the 6th Company, Infantry Regiment 12, in Halberstadt on 1 March 1939. He advanced rapidly in supplementary and replacement units, serving as commander of Infantry Replacement Battalion 467 in 1940 and later as a staff officer undergoing further training at Königsbrück. By late 1940 he had been promoted to major of the supplementary officers on 20 October 1940 and transferred to the active list as a regular major effective 1 December 1941. In September 1941 he took command of the 1st Battalion of Infantry Regiment 391 within the 170th Infantry Division, a formation with which he would remain for the duration of his frontline service.
Griesbach first distinguished himself in the Crimea during the winter campaign of 1941-1942. On 15 January 1942, at 0600 hours, Infantry Regiment 391 launched a hasty attack with his 1st Battalion in the lead. Despite fierce Soviet resistance the battalion fought past Hill 200 and captured Hill 175. The following day, advancing through difficult ravine-covered terrain, Griesbach demonstrated exceptional bravery and tactical skill. His leadership enabled the regiment, which was operating at little more than battalion strength, to seize Hill 251.4. When Hill 175 temporarily fell back into enemy hands he independently ordered a counterattack that secured it again, an action vital for the division's continued operations. These efforts contributed directly to the fall of Feodosia on 18 January 1942. For his role in this successful offensive Griesbach was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 14 March 1942 while still a major and battalion commander.
He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 1 April 1942 and shortly afterward assumed command of Infantry Regiment 399, later redesignated Grenadier Regiment 399, still within the 170th Infantry Division. In early 1943 the division faced a deep Soviet penetration south of Lake Ladoga near Krasny Bor that reached a depth of approximately two kilometres. Acting on his own initiative, Colonel Griesbach, now promoted to that rank effective 1 January 1943 with seniority from 1 December 1942, launched a counterattack using the battle-weary troops of his 3rd Battalion. He personally led from the front at the spearhead of the foremost company, overrunning resistance nests one after another, directing shock troops, and guiding artillery observers onto key targets while coming under enemy blocking fire himself. After five and a half hours of intense fighting more than half the penetrated area had been recaptured. Griesbach then shifted to the sector of his 1st Battalion on the Soviet right flank and launched a surprise assault without artillery preparation. The two German battalions squeezed the enemy into an ever-narrowing pocket, inflicting devastating losses. Approximately 2,000 Soviet soldiers were killed, 338 taken prisoner, and large quantities of equipment, including five tanks, 24 artillery pieces, and 149 mortars and machine guns, were destroyed or captured. The victory was highlighted in the Wehrmacht communiqué of 25 March 1943. In recognition of this feat Griesbach received the 242nd Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross on 17 May 1943.
Further promotion to colonel followed, and Griesbach continued to lead his regiment in the Leningrad sector. In January 1944 his battle group destroyed 69 Soviet tanks near the village of Pelellja on 17 January. Two days later the battle group recaptured the heights near Duderhof that had fallen to the enemy. On 23 January he led another successful counterthrust at Gatschina. These actions prevented a major Soviet breakthrough south of Leningrad. For his repeated demonstrations of aggressive leadership and tactical success under extreme pressure Griesbach was awarded the 53rd Swords to the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on 6 March 1944 while still commanding his regiment.
On 15 February 1944 he was given temporary command of the 170th Infantry Division itself, serving as its leader for only one day before being succeeded by Generalleutnant Siegfried Haß on 16 February. Severe wounds sustained in the fighting near Leningrad shortly afterward forced his evacuation to Reserve Hospital Görden, where he remained until April 1945. He was then transferred to the Führer Reserve of the Army High Command. In April 1945 Soviet forces captured him, and he spent more than four years in prisoner-of-war camps before his release on 21 October 1949. During his wartime service he had also earned the 1939 Clasp to the Iron Cross Second Class on 22 October 1941 and First Class on 20 November 1941, the Infantry Assault Badge in silver on 19 December 1941, the 1939 Wound Badge in gold on 4 February 1942, the Order of the Crown of Romania with swords, the Winter Battle in the East Medal, the Crimea Shield, the Romanian Commemorative Medal for the Crusade Against Communism, the Honour Cross of the World War 1914-1918 with swords, and the War Merit Cross Second Class with swords.
After returning to West Germany Griesbach lived quietly in retirement. He had married Martha Matthes in 1921; she died in 1940, and the couple had two sons. In 1942 he married Gertrud Murmann. No further details of his postwar civilian life or any additional family members are recorded. Franz Friedrich Johann Griesbach died on 24 September 1984 in Lage, North Rhine-Westphalia, at the age of 91. His career exemplified the path of many reserve officers who transitioned from civilian professions to high command in the Wehrmacht, achieving extraordinary decorations through personal courage and decisive leadership on the Eastern Front.
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/
https://www.geni.com/
https://books.google.com/
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