Erich Abraham (27 March 1895 – 7 March 1971) was a 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 ...

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 ...

who command the 76th Infantry Division then the LXIII Corps on the Western Front 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 was also 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

Abraham was born in Marienburg, East Prussia in 1895. He volunteered for military service after the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and the following year was commissioned as a ''

Leutnant () is the lowest Junior officer rank in the armed forces the German (language), German-speaking of Germany (Bundeswehr), Austrian Armed Forces, and military of Switzerland. History The German noun (with the meaning "" (in English "deputy") fro ...

der Reserve''. He was demobilised in 1920 as an honorary ''

Oberleutnant () is the highest lieutenant officer rank in the German-speaking armed forces of Germany (Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the Swiss Armed Forces. Austria Germany In the German Army, it dates from the early 19th century. Trans ...

'', and joined the police. He returned to military service in 1935 in the rank of ''

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

''. He commanded an infantry battalion in the 105th Infantry Regiment in 1936–39, being promoted to ''

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

'' in 1938. In 1939, he was transferred to the 266th Infantry Regiment, again commanding a battalion for a year. In 1940 he was appointed as the commanding officer of the 230th Infantry Regiment, and in 1941 was promoted to ''

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 ...

'', continuing in command of that regiment until 1942. During his time in command of the 230th Infantry Regiment, 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' ...

. On 17 February 1943 he was appointed to command the 76th Infantry Division which was being rebuilt in France after the original division had been destroyed at

Stalingrad Volgograd ( rus, Волгогра́д, a=ru-Volgograd.ogg, p=vəɫɡɐˈɡrat), geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn (russian: Цари́цын, Tsarítsyn, label=none; ) (1589–1925), and Stalingrad (russian: Сталингра́д, Stal ...

. He was promoted to ''

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 ...

'' on 1 June 1943, after which he led the division initially to Italy before being moved to

Army Group South Army Group South (german: Heeresgruppe Süd) was the name of three German Army Groups during World War II. It was first used in the 1939 September Campaign, along with Army Group North to invade Poland. In the invasion of Poland Army Group Sou ...

on the Eastern Front during the winter of 1943–44. On 1 January 1944, Abraham was promoted to ''

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 ...

''. He continued to command the division in heavy fighting and during the withdrawal in the face of the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

Dnieper–Carpathian Offensive, and other than for a short time in July–August, commanded the division until October 1944. While commanding the division, he was awarded the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Later that year he was appointed to command LXIII Corps. In March 1945 he was promoted to ''

General der Infanterie General of the Infantry is a military rank of a General officer in the infantry and refers to: * General of the Infantry (Austria) * General of the Infantry (Bulgaria) * General of the Infantry (Germany) ('), a rank of a general in the German Imper ...

''. Captured at the end of the war, he was released in August 1947. After release he lived in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, West Germany. He died in 1971.

Awards

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 (2 September 1915) & 1st Class (27 June 1917)Thomas 1997, p. 1. * Austrian Military Merit Cross 3rd Class with War Decoration (20 March 1917)Thomas & Wegmann 1987, p. 10. *

Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 The Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (german: Das Ehrenkreuz des Weltkrieges 1914/1918), commonly, but incorrectly, known as the Hindenburg Cross or the German WWI Service Cross was established by Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, Presiden ...

(1 December 1934) *

Wehrmacht Long Service Award The Wehrmacht Long Service Award () was a military service decoration of Nazi Germany issued for satisfactory completion of a number of years in military service. History On 16 March, 1936, Adolf Hitler ordered the institution of a service awar ...

2nd Class (2 October 1936) *

Clasp to the Iron Cross The Clasp to the Iron Cross (Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz) was a white metal medal clasp displayed on the uniforms of German Wehrmacht personnel who had been awarded the Iron Cross in World War I, and who again qualified for the decoration in World W ...

(1939) 2nd Class (10 March 1940) & 1st Class (21 June 1940) * Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown (Romania, 22 June 1942) *

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'') ...

(13 November 1942) *

German Cross The War Order of the German Cross (german: Der Kriegsorden Deutsches Kreuz), normally abbreviated to the German Cross or ''Deutsches Kreuz'', was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 28 September 1941. It was awarded in two divisions: in gold for repe ...

in Gold on 7 March 1942 as ''

'' and commander of Infanterie-Regiment 230Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 10. *

** Knight's Cross on 13 November 1942 as ''Oberst'' and commander of Infanterie-Regiment 230Scherzer 2007, p. 187. ** 516th Oak Leaves on 26 June 1944 as ''

'' and commander of the 76. Infanterie-Division

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Abraham, Erich 1895 births 1971 deaths People from Malbork People from West Prussia German Army generals of World War II Generals of Infantry (Wehrmacht) Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class 20th-century Freikorps personnel