Friedrich-Georg Eberhardt (15 January 1892 – 9 September 1964) was a German Generalleutnant who commanded the following divisions during World War II; the 60th Infantry Division, 38th Infantry Division, 174th Reserve Division, and 286th Security Division. He was sent four times to the Führerreserve. From December 1944 on, he was judge at the Reichskriegsgericht under Roland Freisler. He commanded the German forces in one of the opening battles of World War II, the Battle of Westerplatte. Eberhardt received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 31 December 1941 as Generalleutnant and Kommandeur 60. Infanterie-Division.
The following wartime excerpt describes why Eberhardt would be awarded the Ritterkreuz:
"General Eberhardt made the bold decision to not be merely content to follow his orders and provide security against the enemy. Instead he decided to also attack them in order to fully eliminate the threat. He smashed the enemy and hunted down the survivors all the way past Nowo Tscherkask. His reconnaissance subsequently reached the western edge of the city unimpeded. Thus, through his bold initiative and the successful conduct of his actions, General Eberhardt made a phenomenal contribution to the victory near Rostov.”
The following excerpt provides further details as to this action and its significance…
“Generalleutnant Friedrich Georg Eberhardt, an East Prussian, was recently awarded the Knight’s Cross by the Führer. He and his Infanterie-Division had the mission of securing the flank of his Korps, which was meanwhile being used for an attack against a strong Bolshevik position. He dispensed with his security mission and went over to the attack on his own initiative, even though it was known that a much larger enemy force was in front of him. His goal in doing so was to eliminate the flank threat to his Korps once and for all while simultaneously supporting the attack that the remaining Korps’ units were making. His decision was conduct with audacity and swiftness, and it led to a total success. General Eberhardt smashed the enemy and pursued the survivors back. This action made it possible for the remaining units to reach their intended objective.”
The following excerpt provides further details as to this action and its significance…
“Generalleutnant Friedrich Georg Eberhardt, an East Prussian, was recently awarded the Knight’s Cross by the Führer. He and his Infanterie-Division had the mission of securing the flank of his Korps, which was meanwhile being used for an attack against a strong Bolshevik position. He dispensed with his security mission and went over to the attack on his own initiative, even though it was known that a much larger enemy force was in front of him. His goal in doing so was to eliminate the flank threat to his Korps once and for all while simultaneously supporting the attack that the remaining Korps’ units were making. His decision was conduct with audacity and swiftness, and it led to a total success. General Eberhardt smashed the enemy and pursued the survivors back. This action made it possible for the remaining units to reach their intended objective.”
Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friedrich-Georg_Eberhardt
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?p=2050208#p2050208
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/29872/Eberhardt-Friedrich-Georg.htm
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