German Generals in the Italian Front

German generals in the Italian Front. From left to right: General der Panzertruppe Heinrich von Vietinghoff (Oberbefehlshaber 10. Armee), Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring (Oberbefehlshaber Südwest und Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe C), General der Panzertruppe Fridolin von Senger und Etterlin (Kommandierender General XIV. Panzerkorps), Generalleutnant Siegfried Westphal (Chef des Generalstabes Oberbefehlshaber Südwest), and Generalleutnant Wilhelm Raapke (Kommandeur 71. Infanterie-Division). The picture was taken in 1943-1944.

Source :
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?p=2496507#p2496507

Albert Kesselring Visiting Fallschirmjäger Unit in the Italian Front

Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring (Oberbefehlshaber Südwest) and Generalmajor Siegfried Westphal (Chef des Generalstabes Oberbefehlshaber Südwest) standing atop a Mercedes-Benz Typ 320 Cabriolet during a visit to unknown Fallschirmjäger unit in the Italian Front, 1943-1944.

Source :
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewforum.php?f=5

Stahlhelm Meeting in 1956

Stahlhelm meeting in Goslar, 1956. From left to right: Albert Kesselring, Siegfried Westphal, and Hans Speidel. In 1952, while still in the hospital, Kesselring accepted the honorary presidency of three veterans' organisations. The first was the Luftwaffenring, consisting of Luftwaffe veterans. The Verband deutsches Afrikakorps, the veterans' association of the Afrika Korps, soon followed. More controversial was the presidency of the right-wing veterans' association, Der Stahlhelm. The leadership of this organisation tarnished his reputation. He attempted to reform the organisation, proposing that the new German flag be flown instead of the old Imperial Flag; that the old Stahlhelm greeting Front heil! be abolished; and that members of the Social Democratic Party of Germany be allowed to join. The response from the organisation was unenthusiastic.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Kesselring

Ludwig Crüwell with Two Staff Officers of Panzerarmee "Afrika"

Three German officers in North Africa, from left to right: Oberstleutnant im Generalstab Siegfried Westphal (Ia Panzerarmee "Afrika"), Major im Generalstab Friedrich-Wilhelm von Mellenthin (Ic Panzerarmee "Afrika"), and General der Panzertruppe Ludwig Crüwell (Kommandierender General Deutsches Afrikakorps). There is no information about when and where this picture was taken, only between December 1941 - May 1942.

Source :
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?p=2025144#p2025144

Erwin Rommel with His Italian Allies

General der Panzertruppe Erwin Rommel (center, Befehlshaber Panzergruppe "Afrika") with his Italian allies. At left with black glasses is his Operations Officer (Ia), Oberstleutnant im Generalstab Siegfried Westphal. There is no information about when and where this picture was taken, but possibly in 1941.

Source :
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?p=2025515#p2025515

Erwin Rommel with His Staff

From left to right: unknown, Oberstleutnant im Generalstab Siegfried Westphal (Ia Panzergruppe "Afrika"), Generalmajor Alfred Gause (Chef des Generalstabes Panzergruppe "Afrika"), General der Panzertruppe Erwin Rommel (Befehlshaber Panzergruppe "Afrika"), and another unknown. There is no information about when and where this picture was taken.

Source :
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?p=2045720#p2045720

Visiting Officials at Wolfsschanze after the Failed 20 July 1944 Bomb Plot

When they heard about the failed assassination attempt on Hitler on 20 July 1944, a large number of party and military officials visited the Führerhauptquartier Wolfsschanze in Rastenburg, East Prussia, in order to express their sympathy and support for the Führer. This photo shows, front row from left to right: two unidentified staff officers, Generalleutnant Hans Krebs (Chef des Generalstabes Heeresgruppe Mitte), Generaloberst Alfred Jodl (Chef Wehrmacht-Führungsamt), and Generalleutnant Siegfried Westphal (Chef des Generalstabes beim Oberbefehlshaber Südwest). In the back row between Krebs and Jodl is General der Infanterie Walter Buhle (Chef vom Heeresstab im Oberkommando der Wehrmacht).

Source :
http://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2011/09/album-foto-plot-20-juli-1944.html

Erwin Rommel and Luftwaffe Officers in Africa

General der Panzertruppe Erwin Rommel (center, Befehlshaber Panzergruppe "Afrika") is chatting with General der Flieger Hans Geisler (Kommandierender General X. Fliegerkorps), while behind Rommel stands Oberstleutnant im Generalstab Siegfried Westphal (Ia Panzergruppe "Afrika"). The picture was taken in Derna, Libya, on 30 September 1941. Note the building walls in the background that have been carefully painted in camouflage!

From left to right: Generalmajor Stefan Fröhlich (Fliegerführer Afrika), General der Flieger Hans Geisler (Kommandierender General X. Fliegerkorps), General der Panzertruppe Erwin Rommel (Befehlshaber Panzergruppe "Afrika"), Oberstleutnant im Generalstab Siegfried Westphal (hidden, Ia Panzergruppe "Afrika"), and Generalmajor Alfred Gause (Chef des Generalstabes Panzergruppe "Afrika"). The picture was taken in Derna, Libya, on 30 September 1941.

Source :
http://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2012/03/album-foto-erwin-rommel-sebagai_1308.html

Erwin Rommel Eating Snacks with His Staff and Italian Allies

General der Panzertruppe Erwin Rommel (Kommandierender General Panzergruppe "Afrika") eating some snacks accompanied by his trusted staff, Oberstleutnant im Generalstab Siegfried Westphal (Ia Erster Generalstabsoffizier Panzergruppe "Afrika"), and his Italian allies. Westphal later received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 29 November 1942 as Chef des Generalstabes of deutsch-italienische Panzer-Armee, and ended the war with the rank of General der Kavallerie. In the background we can see a AEC Dorchester 4x4 "Mammut", captured from the British. The vehicles were nicknamed “Mammut” (Mammoth) by the Germans because of their tall height. This photo was taken by Kriegsberichter Ernst Alexander Zwilling on 14 September 1941.

Source :
NARA photo archive (courtesy of Thomas E. Nutter)
http://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2012/03/album-foto-erwin-rommel-sebagai_1308.html

Visit of Albert Kesselring at the HQ of Heeresgruppe B

The Wehrmacht high ranking commanders for the Western theatre of war at Heeresgruppe B headquarters in Neuenkleusheim, Olpe, in March 1945. From left to right: Generalfeldmarschall Walter Model (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B); Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring (Oberbefehlshaber West); and General der Kavallerie Siegfried Westphal (Chef des Generalstabes Oberbefehlshaber West). Since winter is still transitioning to spring, Model and Kesselring wore ledermantels, while Westphal wore offiziermantel.

Source :
http://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2012/02/album-foto-terbaik-walter-model.html

Planning for the Ardennes Offensive

German generals during the planning for Unternehmen "Wacht am Rhein" (Watch on the Rhein) a.k.a. the Ardennes Offensive or Battle of the Bulge. This picture was taken on 1 December 1944, two weeks before the start of the operation. From left to right: Generalfeldmarschall Walter Model (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B), Generalleutnant Siegfried Westphal (Chef des Generalstabes Oberbefehlshaber West), Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt (Oberbefehlshaber West), and General der Infanterie Hans Krebs (Chef des Generalstabes Heeresgruppe B).

German generals during the planning for Unternehmen "Wacht am Rhein" (Watch on the Rhein) a.k.a. the Ardennes Offensive or Battle of the Bulge. This picture was taken on 1 December 1944, two weeks before the start of the operation. From left to right: Generalfeldmarschall Walter Model (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B), General der Infanterie Hans Krebs (Chef des Generalstabes Heeresgruppe B), Generalleutnant Siegfried Westphal (Chef des Generalstabes Oberbefehlshaber West), and Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt (Oberbefehlshaber West).

Source :
Süddeutsche Zeitung photo archive
Markus Bertram photo collection
http://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2011/11/album-foto-unternehmen-wacht-am-rhein.html
https://www.mbertram.de/en/search?search=walter%20model

Wehrmacht War Manoeuvre in the Rhine

This photo was taken by Hugo Jaeger and it shows Wehrmacht war manoeuvre in the Rhine region, early May 1940. This training was held just a few days before the start of Germany's colossal invasion of the West (France and Benelux, Netherlands Belgium Luxembourg). From left to right: Generaloberst Georg von Küchler (Oberbefehlshaber 18. Armee), General der Artillerie Albert Wodrig (Kommandierender General XXVI. Armeekorps), Major im Generalstab Hanns-Horst von Necker (Ia Erster Generalstabsoffizier 9. Panzer-Division), Major im Generalstab Siegfried Westphal (Ia Erster Generalstabsoffizier XXVI. Armeekorps), unknown, and Generalleutnant Dr.jur. Alfred Ritter von Hubicki (Kommandeur 9. Panzer-Division).

Source :
https://artsandculture.google.com/search?q=hugo%20jaeger&hl=en
http://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2012/05/album-foto-9-panzer-division.html

Erwin Rommel during the Funeral in Africa

A Wehrmacht Kriegspfarrer (War Chaplain) presides over the Protestant burial ceremony for Rittmeister Ulrich Otto Hoesch (born 21 April 1899), who was killed in combat during the Battle of Gazala on 7 October 1941. Standing behind him are high-ranking officers of the Panzergruppe "Afrika", from left to right: General der Panzertruppe Erwin Rommel (Befehlshaber Panzergruppe "Afrika"), Generalmajor Alfred Gause (Chef des Generalstabes Panzergruppe "Afrika"), and Oberstleutnant im Generalstab Siegfried Westphal (Ia Erster Generalstabsoffizier Panzergruppe "Afrika"). Everyone in this photo is wearing a tropenhelm (tropical helmet) which was usually used by German troops on the battlefields with tropical or hot climates such as North Africa and the Mediterranean.

Source :
http://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2012/03/album-foto-erwin-rommel-sebagai_1308.html
https://www.volksbund.de/en/erinnern-gedenken/gravesearch-online/detail/627aad983b9b8c6886125eeb8a9b7584

The Surrender of Albert Kesselring

The day after his official surrender, German Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring (center, Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe Süd) poses with American Major-General Maxwell D. Taylor (right, Commander of 101st Airborne Division) and Brigadier-General Gerald J. Higgins (left, Assistant Commander 101st Airborne Division) at Berchtesgaden, Germany, May 10, 1945. Kesselring surrendered to an American major at Saalfelden, near Salzburg, in Austria on 9 May 1945. He was taken to see Major General Taylor, who treated him courteously, allowing him to keep his weapons and field marshal's baton, and to visit the Eastern Front headquarters of Heeresgruppe Mitte and Süd at Zeltweg and Graz unescorted! Taylor then arranged for Kesselring and his staff to move into a hotel at Berchtesgaden. Photographs of Taylor and Kesselring drinking tea together created a stir in the United States. Kesselring then met with Lieutenant General Jacob L. Devers, commander of the Sixth United States Army Group, and gave interviews to Allied newspaper reporters.

Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring (Oberbefehlshaber West) walks with Major-General Maxwell D. Taylor (Commanding General of the U.S. 101st Airborne Division). They were photographed at Berchtesgaden, Germany, the day after Kesselring's 9 May 1945 surrender.



Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring (left), the last Commander in Chief of the German Western Front, went into American captivity on 9 May 1945. This picture shows Kesselring with General Jacob L. Devers (right, Commanding General of the 6th U.S. Army Group) in the "Große Empfangshalle" (Large Entry Hall) of "Berchtesgadener Hof" in Berchtesgaden, 10 May 1945. With him is his Chief of Staff, General der Kavallerie Siegfried Westphal, while the Heer officer facing the camera is Generalmajor Franz Haas (Chef des Generalstabes des Bevollmächtigten Generals der Deutschen Wehrmacht in Italien).

Source :
https://www.alexautographs.com/auction-lot/albert-kesselring_E58455698E
https://www.bridgemanimages.com/en/sammlung-megele/kesselring-after-his-capture-in-berchtesgaden/photograph/asset/5169608
https://www.thirdreichruins.com/bgadenerhof.htm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6A9giR4dcBU
http://ww2colorfarbe.blogspot.com/2015/02/albert-kesselring-and-maxwell-taylor-at.html

Treffen der Afrika-Kämpfer in Düseldorf

"Treffen der Afrika-Kämpfer" in Düseldorf: Lucie Rommel, the widow of the "desert fox" Erwin Rommel, drawing a ticket for the raffle - the first prize was a Volkswagen. Standing in the background are, from left to right: retired British General John Hackett, retired General der Kavallerie Siegfried Westphal, and retired General der Panzertruppe Ludwig Crüwell. Around 500 former member of DAK (Deutsches Afrikakorps) gathered on Sunday morning, September 30, 1956, for a field service at Gefallenen-Ehrenmal (Memorial to the Fallen) in Düsseldorf. After a sermon by clergy from both denominations, Lucie Rommel, Siegfried Westphal and delegations from the traditional associations laid wreaths at the memorial. The picture was taken by Fritz Fischer.



"Treffen der Afrika-Kämpfer" in Düseldorf: The British General John Hackett during his speech on September 30, 1956 in the football stadium in Düsseldorf, in the background are, from left to right: retired General der Kavallerie Siegfried Westphal, retired General der Panzertruppe Ludwig Crüwell, and Lucie Rommel, the widow of Erwin Rommel. The focus of the Afrika Kops meeting in Düsseldorf on Sunday afternoon (September 30, 1956) was a football game between a team from the British 7th Division, the "Desert Rats", and a selection of eleven former Afrikakorps from Rommel's army, the "Desert Foxes". The game was started with introduction speeches by John Hackett, Ludwig Crüwell and Lucie Rommel. The picture was taken by Fritz Fischer.

"Treffen der Afrika-Kämpfer" in Düseldorf: Veterans of the war in Africa (World War I and World War II) gathered during the field service at the Gefallenen-Ehrenmal (Memorial to the Fallen) in Düsseldorf, behind the wreath is Lucie Rommel, widow of the "Desert Fox" Erwin Rommel, and retired General der Kavallerie Siegfried Westphal. Around 500 former member of DAK (Deutsches Afrikakorps) gathered on Sunday morning, September 30, 1956, for a field service at the Fallen Memorial. After a sermon by clergy from both denominations, Lucie Rommel, Siegfried Westphal and delegations from the traditional associations laid wreaths at the memorial. The picture was taken by Bernard Frye.

Source :
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewforum.php?f=5

Erwin Rommel and Siegfried Westphal at Agedabia

General der Panzertruppe Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Panzerarmee "Afrika") and his Operations Officer (Ia), Oberstleutnant Siegfried Westphal (foreground). The picture was taken at Agedabia in January 1942. On 21 January 1942, Rommel's Afrika Korps begins a surprise counter-offensive at El Agheila. His troops, with new reinforcements and tanks, capture Agedabia, then push the British north to Beda Fomm.

Source :
Bayerische Staatsbibliothek photo archive (Image-No.: 50073460)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_World_War_II_(1942)

Albert Kesselring and Rodolfo Graziani

Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring (center, Oberbefehlshaber Süd) and Marshal Rodolfo Graziani (right, Minister of National Defence of Italian Social Republic) at a meeting held in Rome, 5 October 1943. At Kesselring's right is Generalmajor Siegfried Westphal (Chef des Generalstabes Oberbefehlshaber Süd). The picture was taken by Kriegsberichter Vinzenz Engel.

Source :
Bayerische Staatsbibliothek photo archive (Image-No.: 30018661)

Albert Kesselring and Heinrich von Vietinghoff

Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring (second from right, Oberbefehlshaber Südwest und Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe C) during a conversation with General der Panzertruppe Heinrich von Vietinghoff (left, Oberbefehlshaber 10. Armee) on the Italian front, June 1944. German officers visible in the background is, from left to right: Generalleutnant Siegfried Westphal (Chef des Generalstabes Oberbefehlshaber Südwest) and Generalleutnant Hans Röttiger (Chef des Generalstabes Heeresgruppe C). The picture was taken by Kriegsberichter Otfried Schmidt.

Source :
https://audiovis.nac.gov.pl/obraz/1489/d2e1fcca963bdb3f7e62cbb40fceb17c/

Unveiling of Rommel's Memorial

In a few years after World War II, monuments were erected and commemorations were held throughout Germany in memory of the victims of the war. The veterans of Afrikakorps also erected a memorial to honor "The Desert Fox" Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel in Heidenheim. The monument was unveiled on 15 November 1961, which marks 70 years since Rommel was born in Heidenheim. In the photo we can see Lucie Maria Rommel, the widow, and the President of the organization of veterans of the Afrika Korps, the ex-General der Kavallerie Siegfried Westphal.

Source :
https://beeldbankwo2.nl/nl/beelden/detail/7615f2c8-025a-11e7-904b-d89d6717b464/media/073992b4-d92b-217e-b042-17e7bcb22140?mode=detail&view=horizontal&q=westphal&rows=1&page=3

Albert Kesselring and Siegfried Westphal during Inspection Tour

From left to right: Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring (Oberbefehlshaber Süd), Generalmajor Siegfried Westphal (Chef des Generalstabes Oberbefehlshaber Süd), Oberst im Generalstab Fritz Wentzell (Chef des Generalstabes 10. Armee), and Generalmajor Gustav Heisterman von Ziehlberg (Kommandeur 65. Infanterie-Division). The picture was taken by Kriegsberichter Dreesen during Kesselring's inspection tour around Monte Casino, Italian Front, October-November 1943. On 27 November 1943 Generalmajor Heisterman von Ziehlberg severely wounded in battle and lost his left arm.

Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring (left, Oberbefehlshaber Süd) and Generalmajor Siegfried Westphal (Chef des Generalstabes Oberbefehlshaber Süd) ready to depart their Headquarters at Monte Soratte to do an inspection tour to frontline units in the Italian Front, October-November 1943.

Source :
"General der Kavallerie Siegfried Westphal: Generalstabchef dreier Feldmarschälle Rommel, Kesselring und von Rundstedt" by Franz Kurowski
https://audiovis.nac.gov.pl/obraz/1484/