Ernst Barkmann (25 August 1919 – 27 June 2009) was a German tank commander in the

Waffen-SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

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 ...

. He is known for the actions undertaken at “Barkmann’s Corner", in which it is claimed he halted a major U.S. Army armoured advance in Normandy on 27 July 1944, for which he received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.

SS career

Barkmann joined the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that crea ...

on 1 September 1938 and served in the

Reich Labour Service The Reich Labour Service (''Reichsarbeitsdienst''; RAD) was a major organisation established in Nazi Germany as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the German economy, militarise the workforce and indoctrinate it with Naz ...

from November 1938 to March 1939. After this he joined the SS on 1 April 1939, and served during the occupation of Poland. He was posted for a time as an instructor of SS volunteers in the Netherlands. In winter 1942/43 he was posted to the SS Division Das Reich on the Eastern Front, with which he took part in the

Third Battle of Kharkov The Third Battle of Kharkov was a series of battles on the Eastern Front of World War II, undertaken by Army Group South of Nazi Germany against the Soviet Red Army, around the city of Kharkov between 19 February and 15 March 1943. Known to ...

. In February 1944, ''Das Reich'' was ordered to France to form a part of the 5th Panzer Army, the armoured reserve for the expected Allied invasion. Following

Operation Overlord Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allies of World War II, Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Front (World War II), Western Europe during World War II. The operat ...

, the Allied invasion of June 1944, the division reached the front in early July and fought against the American forces near

Saint-Lô Saint-Lô (, ; br, Sant Lo) is a commune in northwest France, the capital of the Manche department in the region of Normandy.

. Barkmann 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' ...

. Barkmann participated in the

Ardennes Offensive The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted from 16 December 1944 to 28 January 1945, towards the end of the war in ...

in December 1944 and the fighting on the Eastern Front in the spring of 1945. Barkmann and his crew were credited with the destruction of at least 82 Soviet, British and US tanks, 136 miscellaneous armoured fighting vehicles and 43 anti-tank guns, but Barkmann's reputed actions in Normandy were challenged by the military historian Steven Zaloga, who asserts that he analysed the Allied war records, and was unable to locate the losses claimed by Barkmann. He attributed the narrative of Barkmann's Corner to the "propaganda efforts of the Waffen-SS".

Awards and decorations

*1939

Wound Badge The Wound Badge (german: Verwundetenabzeichen) was a German military decoration first promulgated by Wilhelm II, German Emperor on 3 March 1918, which was first awarded to soldiers of the German Army who were wounded during World War I. Between th ...

in Black, 1939 *1939

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 ...

2nd Class, 14 July 1941 *

Infantry Assault Badge The Infantry Assault Badge () was a German military decoration awarded to Waffen-SS and ''Wehrmacht Heer'' soldiers during the Second World War. This decoration was instituted on 20 December 1939 by the Commander-in-Chief (''Oberbefehlshaber'') ...

in Silver, 18 February 1942 *1939

1st Class, 1 August 1944 *

, 27 August 1944 as Panzer commander in the 4./SS-Panzer-Regiment 2 "Das Reich" *1939

in Silver and Gold *

Panzer Badge The Panzer Badge () was a World War II military decoration of Nazi Germany awarded to troops in armoured divisions. Before 1 June 1940 it was known as the ''Panzerkampfwagenabzeichen''. Creation and eligibility Introduced on 20 December 1939, t ...

Second Type and Third Type

Notes

References

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Barkmann, Ernst 1919 births 2009 deaths People from Segeberg SS non-commissioned officers People from the Province of Schleswig-Holstein Panzer commanders Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Waffen-SS personnel Reich Labour Service members Military personnel from Schleswig-Holstein

SS career

Awards and decorations

See also

Notes

References