__NOTOC__ Hans Kreysing (17 August 1890 – 14 April 1969) was a German general who commanded the 3rd Mountain Division and the 8th Army. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords.

Life and career

Hans Kreysing was born in

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, t ...

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

on 17 August 1890. He entered the German Army in October 1909, later joining a Jäger battalion. After service in World War I he remained in the army, and at the outbreak of World War II was in command of the 16th Infantry Regiment. From October 1940 to August 1943 he commanded the 3rd Mountain Division, serving in Norway, Lapland and the Eastern Front. Continuing on the Eastern Front, Kreysing led the XVII Army Corps from November 1943 to April 1944, when he took command of the 8th Army, which surrendered to Allied troops in Austria in May 1945. Kreysing ended the war with the rank of General of Mountain Troops ().

Awards

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) II. and I. Class (24 November 1939)Thomas 1997, p. 410. *

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords 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' ...

** Knight's Cross on 29 May 1940 as ''

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)'' and commander of Infanterie-Regiment 16Scherzer 2007, p. 475. ** 183rd Oak Leaves on 20 January 1943 as ''

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 ...

'' and commander of the 3. Gebirgs-Division ** 63rd Swords on 13 April 1944 as ''

General der Gebirgstruppe General der Gebirgstruppe (Literally: General of the Mountain Troops) was a category of German Army three-star, a new example of the traditional German 'General der' rank introduced by the Wehrmacht in 1940, comparable to the NATO grade OF-8. ...

'' and commanding general of the XVII. Armeekorps

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kreysing, Hans 1890 births 1969 deaths People from Göttingen People from the Province of Hanover Generals of Mountain Troops German Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Liberty, 1st Class Reichswehr personnel Prussian Army personnel Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Military personnel from Lower Saxony