Hans von Boineburg-Lengsfeld (9 June 1889 – 20 November 1980) was a German general in the '' Wehrmacht'' of Nazi Germany who commanded the

4th Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

and

23rd Panzer Division The 23rd Panzer Division ( en, 23rd Tank Division) was an armoured division in the German Army during World War II. Formed in France in late 1941, the division spent its entire combat history on the Eastern Front. History The 23rd Panzer Divisio ...

s during World War II. He was also a recipient of 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' ...

of Nazi Germany.

Biography

Born in Thuringia, Boineburg-Lengsfeld joined the army of Imperial Germany as an ''Fahnen-junker'' (officer cadet) in 1910. He was commissioned in the light infantry and fought in World War I. In the interwar period, he served in the '' Reichsheer'' and then the '' Wehrmacht''. He led the 1st Rifle Regiment from 1938 to 1939 before being given command of the 4th '' Schützen'' (Rifle) Brigade of the

4th Panzer Division The 4th Panzer Division ( en, 4th Tank Division) was an armored division in the Army of Nazi Germany. In World War II, it participated in the 1939 invasion of Poland, the 1940 invasion of France, and the 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union. It ...

which fought in the Invasion of Poland. He temporarily commanded the division for a few days in May 1940, during the campaign in Holland, and was awarded the

on 19 July 1940. Now an '' oberst'' (colonel), a more substantive period in command of the 4th Panzer Division followed from late July to September 1940. He was then transferred to the 7th Panzer Division, serving occupation duty in France and then in Russia during Operation Barbarossa, as commander of its 7th ''Schützen'' Brigade. When the

was formed in September 1941, Boineburg-Lengsfeld was appointed its commander. 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 ...

'' shortly afterwards. He led the division during the Battle of the Caucasus but was relieved of command during the "Reichel Case", when plans for Case Blue, the codename for the ''Wehrmachts summer offensive in Southern Russia, were lost to the Soviets. However, when his successor as commander, ''Generalmajor''

Erwin Mack Erwin may refer to: People Given name * Erwin Chargaff (1905–2002), Austrian biochemist * Erwin Dold (1919–2012), German concentration camp commandant in World War 2 * Erwin Hauer (1926–2017), Austrian-born American sculptor * Egon Erwin Kisc ...

, was killed in action, he returned as the division's permanent leader. In late December 1942, having received a promotion to '' generalleutnant'' a few weeks earlier, he was injured as a result of an accident with a tank. With several broken bones, he underwent an extended period in hospital. After recovering from his injuries, Boineburg-Lengsfeld was made the commandant of greater Paris. When that city was captured by the Allies in August 1944, he took a post at OB West. His participation in the

20 July plot On 20 July 1944, Claus von Stauffenberg and other conspirators attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler, Führer of Nazi Germany, inside his Wolf's Lair field headquarters near Rastenburg, East Prussia, now Kętrzyn, in present-day Poland. The ...

to assassinate Adolf Hitler went undetected and he ended the war at Bergen, as its area commander. He died on 20 November 1980 in

Felsberg Felsberg (german: rock hill, link=no) may refer to: * Felsberg, Hessen, a town in Schwalm-Eder-Kreis, Hessen, Germany * , a part of Überherrn, Landkreis Saarlouis, Saarland, Germany * Felsberg (Odenwald), a mountain in the Odenwald hills, Landk ...

Notes

Footnotes Citations

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Boineburg-Lengsfeld, Hans Reichsfreiherr Von 1889 births 1980 deaths People from Eisenach Lieutenant generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht) German Army personnel of World War I People from Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States Barons of Germany Military personnel from Thuringia German Army generals of World War II