Nickname: No information
Date of Birth: 02.07.1907 - Allenstein, Ostpreußen (German Empire)
Date of Death: 27.12.1944 - KIA Frauenburg bei Saldus (Latvia)
Buried on: German War Cemetery Frauenburg / Saldus, Plot: U1. Row: 16. Grave: 471.
Battles and Operations: Polenfeldzug, Westfeldzug, Ostfront (Kämpfe südlich des Ladoga-Sees, Abwehrschlachten am Wirtz-See, 3. Kurlandschlacht)
Religion: No information
Parents: No information
Siblings: No information
Spouse: Ursula Gertrud Annemarie Elisabeth Görg
Children: two children (names unknown)
Promotions:
00.00.1926: Einjährig-Freiwilliger
00.00.1923: Fahnenjunker
00.00.1931: Leutnant
00.00.1935: Oberleutnant
00.00.1939: Hauptmann
00.01.1942: Major
01.02.1944: Oberstleutnant
01.08.1944: Oberst
Career:
1926 Joined as one-year volunteer in Infantry Regiment 3;
?: Stab, Infanterie-Regiment 45;
1936: Ausbildungsoffizier, Infanterieschule Döberitz;
? - 1938: Stabsoffiziersausbildung, Kriegsakademie;
?: Stab, X. Armeekorps;
February 18th, 1940: Bataillonskommandeur, Infanterie-Regiment 506;
January 1941: Lehrgangsleiter/Taktikausblider, Infanterieschule;
June 16th, 1942 - August 1942: Kommandant, Infanterie-Bataillon z.b.V. 540;
winter 1942 - July 21st, 1943: Kommandant, Grenadier-Bataillon z.b.V. 540;
December 1943: Kommandeur, Jäger-Regiment 24(L);
November 1944 - 27 december 1944: stellvertretender Führer, 12. Luftwaffen-Feld-Division;
Awards and Decorations:
02.10.1936 Dienstauszeichnung der Wehrmacht 4. Klasse (4 Jahre)
02.10.1936 Dienstauszeichnung der Wehrmacht 3. Klasse (12 Jahre)
02.10.1936 Dienstauszeichnung der Wehrmacht 2. Klasse (18 Jahre)
12.10.1939 Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse
00.06.1940 Verwundetenabzeichen 1939 in Schwarz (WIA 11.06.1940)
23.06.1940 Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse
00.00.194_ Infanterie-Sturmabzeichen in Silber
17.03.1943 Anerkennungsurkunde des Oberbefehlshabers des Heeres
15.05.1943 Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes #1799 as Major and Kommandeur Grenadier-Bataillon 540 z.b.V. In late January and early February 1943, Kretzschmar’s unit was ordered to hold a strategically vital hill that anchored the entire German defensive sector. Under freezing conditions and relentless Soviet pressure, massed enemy infantry and artillery hammered the position day after day. When the Soviets finally punched through at the boundary with the neighboring unit, threatening to roll up the whole line, Kretzschmar personally assembled a scratch force from troops on his right flank. Leading this handful of men himself through blinding snow and enemy fire, he launched a furious counterattack that smashed the penetration, restored the front, and saved the sector.
00.07.1943 Verwundetenabzeichen 1939 in Silber (WIA 11.06.1940 00.08.1942 + 21.07.1943)
Nahkampfspange in Bronze
Nahkampfspange in Silber
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #600 as Oberstleutnant and Kommandeur Jäger-Regiment 24 (L) / 12.Luftwaffen-Feld-Division. Kretzschmar again proved his mettle during the defensive battles at Wirtz Lake in September 1944. The Soviet 1st Shock Army hurled repeated tank-supported assaults against his regiment’s positions. For days his men fought with grim determination, beating back twelve separate armored attacks in close-quarters combat. Only on 15 September 1944, during the thirteenth enemy onslaught at Ergli, did the front finally crack under the overwhelming weight of steel and numbers.
12.01.1945 Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #121 (posthumous) as Oberst and Kommandeur Jäger-Regiment 24 (L) / 12.Luftwaffen-Feld-Division. In the final weeks of his life, during the 3rd Battle of Courland in December 1944, Kretzschmar’s regiment held a sector near Dzukste. The fighting was apocalyptic: wave after wave of Soviet attacks crashed against German lines in blinding snowstorms and sub-zero temperatures. Kretzschmar’s men stood “like a rock in the surf,” absorbing blow after blow while he led from the front, moving between foxholes, directing fire, and inspiring his troops by personal example. On 27 December 1944, still fighting with weapon in hand, Oberst Kretzschmar was killed in action. For his utter devotion to duty and ultimate sacrifice his regiment’s stand was recognized with the Schwerter to the Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub, awarded posthumously.
Ärmelband Kurland
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Wolfgang Hans Kretzschmar was a German Army officer during World War II who rose to the rank of Oberst and became one of the most highly decorated soldiers of the conflict. Born on 2 July 1907 in Allenstein, East Prussia, in the German Empire, he was killed in action on 27 December 1944 near Frauenburg in Latvia while serving on the Eastern Front. Kretzschmar commanded various infantry and grenadier units in some of the war's fiercest defensive battles and was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords, one of Nazi Germany's highest military honors. His career spanned from the interwar period through the invasions of Poland and the West to prolonged and brutal engagements against Soviet forces, where his personal leadership under extreme conditions earned him repeated recognition for bravery and tactical skill.
Kretzschmar entered the Reichswehr in 1926 as a one-year volunteer with Infantry Regiment 3. He advanced steadily through the ranks, receiving his commission as Leutnant in 1931 and promotion to Oberleutnant in 1935. Before the outbreak of war he held instructional and staff positions, serving as a training officer at the Infantry School in Döberitz in 1936 and completing general staff training at the War Academy until 1938. He later joined the staff of the X Army Corps. These early roles prepared him for the demands of modern warfare, emphasizing tactics and leadership that he would later apply with notable success on the battlefield.
With the start of World War II, Kretzschmar took part in the Polish Campaign in 1939 and the Western Campaign in 1940. He was appointed battalion commander in Infantry Regiment 506 on 18 February 1940 and by January 1941 had become a course leader and tactics instructor at the Infantry School. In June 1942 he assumed command of Infantry Battalion z.b.V. 540, a special-purpose probation unit formed in Fulda in December 1941 and composed largely of soldiers seeking redemption through frontline service after disciplinary issues. Redesignated Grenadier Battalion z.b.V. 540 in October 1942, the formation operated as an independent army troop often attached to divisions in high-risk sectors. Under Kretzschmar the battalion earned a reputation for resilience in the harsh terrain of the Eastern Front.
The unit saw its most intense action south of Lake Ladoga in late 1942 and early 1943 as part of the defensive lines near Leningrad. The landscape of frozen swamps, dense forests, and icy trenches turned every Soviet assault into a nightmare of artillery barrages and close-quarters fighting amid snowstorms and sub-zero temperatures. In late January and early February 1943, Kretzschmar's battalion was ordered to hold a strategically vital hill that anchored the entire German sector. When massed Soviet infantry and artillery punched through at the boundary with a neighboring unit, threatening to collapse the line, Kretzschmar personally assembled a scratch force from his right flank. Leading the men himself through blinding snow and enemy fire, he launched a furious counterattack that smashed the penetration, restored the front, and saved the position. For this leadership and bravery he received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 15 May 1943. He was severely wounded during operations in August 1942 and again in July 1943 while still commanding the battalion.
After recovering from his wounds, Kretzschmar returned to frontline duty and by December 1943 had taken command of Jäger Regiment 24 of the 12th Luftwaffe Field Division. In September 1944, during the defensive battles at Wirtz Lake, his regiment faced repeated tank-supported assaults from the Soviet 1st Shock Army. For days the men fought in grim close-quarters combat, repelling twelve separate armored attacks before the line finally buckled on 15 September at Ergli under overwhelming numbers and firepower. The regiment's outstanding performance in holding the sector against such pressure earned Kretzschmar the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross on 30 September 1944. He was promoted to Oberstleutnant in February 1944 and to Oberst in August 1944.
In November 1944 Kretzschmar became deputy commander of the 12th Luftwaffe Field Division. During the apocalyptic fighting of the Third Battle of Courland in December 1944, his forces held a sector near Dzukste against wave after wave of Soviet attacks in blinding snowstorms and freezing conditions. Kretzschmar led from the front, moving between foxholes to direct fire and inspire his troops by personal example as they stood firm like a rock against the onslaught. On 27 December 1944 he was killed in action near Frauenburg while still fighting with weapon in hand. For his regiment's stand and his ultimate sacrifice he was awarded the Swords to the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves posthumously on 12 January 1945. Kretzschmar was married to Ursula Gertrud Annemarie Elisabeth Görg and left behind two children whose names remain unknown. His service exemplified the combination of professional skill and personal courage demanded by the Eastern Front's relentless campaigns.
Source:
Berger, Florian: Mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern. Die höchstdekorierten Soldaten des Zweiten Weltkrieges.
Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer: Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945.
Scherzer, Veit: Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939-1945.
Thomas, Franz: Die Eichenlaubträger 1940-1945.
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/
https://en.wikipedia.org/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/34582/Kretzschmar-Wolfgang-Hans-J%C3%A4ger-Regiment-24.htm
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.geni.com/
https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/Wolfgang_Kretzschmar
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