Eduard Hauser (22 June 1895 – 16 July 1961) was a German general in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

who commanded the

13th Panzer Division The 13th Panzer Division ( en, 13th Armoured Division) was a unit of the German Army during World War II, established in 1940. The division was organized under the code name Infantry Command IV (''Infanterieführer IV'') in October 1934. On O ...

. He was a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. The Knight' ...

Biography

Born in

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

in 1895, Hauser joined the army of

Imperial Germany The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

in 1914 as a ''Fahnen-junker'' (officer cadet) and served in the 17th Bavarian Infantry Regiment during World War I. As an officer in the ''

Heer Heer may refer to: People * Jeet Heer, Canadian author and journalist * Jeffrey Heer (born 1979), American computer scientist and entrepreneur * Kamal Heer (born 1973), Punjabi singer and musician * Oswald Heer (1809–1883), Swiss botanist and ...

'' (Army) branch of the

, he was on the staff of ''

Generalleutnant is the Germanic variant of lieutenant general, used in some German speaking countries. Austria Generalleutnant is the second highest general officer rank in the Austrian Armed Forces (''Bundesheer''), roughly equivalent to the NATO rank of O ...

Heinz Guderian Heinz Wilhelm Guderian (; 17 June 1888 – 14 May 1954) was a German general during World War II who, after the war, became a successful memoirist. An early pioneer and advocate of the " blitzkrieg" approach, he played a central role in t ...

's XIX Corps during the

Invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...

before being given command of the 18th Panzer Regiment in 1940. His new command was part of the newly formed

18th Panzer Division The 18th Panzer Division (german: 18. Panzer-Division) was a German World War II armoured division that fought on the Eastern Front from 1941 until its disbandment in 1943. Formation The 18th Panzer Division was formed on 26 October 1940 at ...

and went on to participate in

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...

the following year and the subsequent battles along the centre of the Eastern Front. In late 1941, Hauser, with the rank of ''

oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedish ...

'' (colonel), was given command of 25th Panzer Regiment, 7th Panzer Division. This too was serving on the Eastern Front but by now the winter had set in. Casualties and mechanical attrition were high across the division; at one stage, Hauser's regiment had only five tanks in operation and most personnel were fighting as infantry. During this period he was awarded the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. The Knight' ...

. In May 1942, the division was withdrawn to France for recuperation and refit. On 1 September 1943, Hauser was appointed to command of the

, taking over from

Hellmut von der Chevallerie Hellmut von der Chevallerie (9 November 1896 – 1 June 1965) was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during the World War II, who commanded the 13th Panzer Division. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. World War ...

who had been wounded. The division had been heavily engaged in fighting in the Ukraine, leading a breakout when it, along with the 336th Infantry Division and the 15th Luftwaffe Field Division, became encircled by Soviet forces. Hauser led the division in further fighting in the sector until being wounded in late December 1943. He had been promoted ''

generalmajor is the Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central and Northern European countries. Austria Belgium Denmark is the second lowest general officer rank in the Royal Danish Army and Royal Danish Air Force. As a two-star ...

'' earlier that month. While recovering from his wounds, Hauser was awarded the

for his service with the 13th Panzer Division. Promoted to ''generalleutnant'', he returned to the Eastern Front as commander of what was designated ''Division. Stab 605 z.b.V.'' (Special Purposes Divisional Staff 605), informally known ''Kampfgruppe'' Hauser, in June 1944. Part of 4th Army, this operated in the East Prussia sector until April 1945. After the war, Hauser returned to Bavaria and settled in the town of

Garmisch Garmisch-Partenkirchen (; Bavarian: ''Garmasch-Partakurch''), nicknamed Ga-Pa, is an Alpine ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the seat of government of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (abbreviated ''GAP''), in the O ...

Awards and decorations

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia est ...

(1914) 2nd Class & 1st Class *

(1939) 2nd Class & 1st Class *

on 4 December 1941 as ''

'' (colonel) and commander of 25th Panzer Regiment *

on 26 January 1944 as ''

'' (major general) and commander of 13th Panzer Division

Notes

Footnotes Citations

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hauser, Eduard 1895 births 1961 deaths People from the Kingdom of Bavaria People from Erlangen German Army personnel of World War I Lieutenant generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht) Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves World War I prisoners of war held by the United Kingdom German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States Military personnel from Bavaria