Hans Eberhard Kurt Freiherr von Salmuth (11 November 1888 – 1 January 1962) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

general and war criminal 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 ...

. Salmuth commanded several armies on the Eastern Front, and the Fifteenth Army in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

during the

D-Day invasion The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

. Following the war, he was tried in the High Command Trial, as part of the

Subsequent Nuremberg Trials The subsequent Nuremberg trials were a series of 12 military tribunals for war crimes against members of the leadership of Nazi Germany between December 1946 and April 1949. They followed the first and best-known Nuremberg trial before the Int ...

. He was found guilty of war crimes and

crimes against humanity Crimes against humanity are widespread or systemic acts committed by or on behalf of a ''de facto'' authority, usually a state, that grossly violate human rights. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity do not have to take place within the ...

and sentenced to 20 years. He was released in 1953.

World War II

Hans von Salmuth, son of Oberstleutnant Friedrich Ernst Werner Anton Freiherr von Salmuth (1853–1926), joined the

Prussian Army The Royal Prussian Army (1701–1919, german: Königlich Preußische Armee) served as the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It became vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power. The Prussian Army had its roots in the co ...

in 1907 and served in the

German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...

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 ...

. Salmuth remained in the army and served as

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

of II Corps from 1934 to 1937. He was assigned as chief of staff to the First Army Group Command. In 1938 he was transferred as Chief of Staff to the Second Army. In 1939 he was Chief of Staff for Army Group North, commanded by General

Fedor von Bock Moritz Albrecht Franz Friedrich Fedor von Bock (3 December 1880 – 4 May 1945) was a German who served in the German Army during the Second World War. Bock served as the commander of Army Group North during the Invasion of Poland in ...

, 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 ...

. Salmuth continued as Chief of Staff to Bock, when the latter was given command of

Army Group B Army Group B (German: ') was the title of three German Army Groups that saw action during World War II. Operational history Army Group B first took part in the Battle of France in 1940 in Belgium and the Netherlands. The second formation of ...

for the invasion of Belgium and France, in May 1940. In July 1940 Salmuth 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 1 August 1940, he was promoted to lieutenant-general. In 1941, Salmuth was assigned to the Eastern Front and given command of XXX Corps. He participated 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 ...

and took part in the

Battle of Sevastopol A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

. As all German corps on the Eastern Front, Salmuth's corps implemented the criminal

Commissar Order The Commissar Order (german: Kommissarbefehl) was an order issued by the German High Command (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, OKW) on 6 June 1941 before Operation Barbarossa. Its official name was Guidelines for the Treatment of Political Commissars ...

. In 1942, he was made acting commander of the Seventeenth Army (20 April 1942 to 1 June 1942). For a short time, 6 June 1942 to 15 July 1942, he was assigned to command the Fourth Army, replacing the former commander,

Gotthard Heinrici Gotthard Fedor August Heinrici (25 December 1886 – 10 December 1971) was a German general during World War II. Heinrici is considered as the premier defensive expert of the ''Wehrmacht''. His final command was Army Group Vistula, formed from t ...

, who went on leave. In mid-July 1942 he was given command of the Second Army. In January 1943 Salmuth was promoted to

Generaloberst A ("colonel general") was the second-highest general officer rank in the German ''Reichswehr'' and ''Wehrmacht'', the Austro-Hungarian Common Army, the East Germany, East German National People's Army and in their respective police services. ...

, the second highest German officer rank 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 ...

. At that time, he was faced with the Soviet Voronezh-Kastornensk Operation, in which the Second Army was almost destroyed. On 3 February 1943, he was given command of the Fourth Army until July 1943. In August 1943, Salmuth was reassigned to command the Fifteenth Army stationed at

Pas-de-Calais Pas-de-Calais (, " strait of Calais"; pcd, Pas-Calés; also nl, Nauw van Kales) is a department in northern France named after the French designation of the Strait of Dover, which it borders. It has the most communes of all the departments ...

, France. Salmuth was relieved of his command, in late August 1944, following the disintegration of the German front line, after the Allied breakout from Normandy (

Operation Cobra Operation Cobra was the codename for an Offensive (military), offensive launched by the United States First United States Army, First Army under Lieutenant General Omar Bradley seven weeks after the D-Day landings, during the Invasion of Norman ...

), receiving no further command.

Trial and conviction

Salmuth was tried in the High Command Trial, as part of the

. Salmuth was found guilty of war crimes and

, including murder and mis-treatment of Soviet prisoners of war, and of murder, deportation, and hostage-taking of civilians in occupied countries. He was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment. His sentence was reviewed in 1951, commuted to 12 years and backdated to June 1945. Salmuth was released in July 1953. He died in 1962.

Service record

;Commissions * XXX Corps - 10 May 1941 - 27 December 1941 * Seventeenth Army - 20 April 1942 - 1 June 1942 * Fourth Army - 6 June 1942 - 15 July 1942 * Second Army - 15 July 1942 - 3 February 1943 * Fourth Army - c. June 1943 - 31 July 1943 * Fifteenth Army - 1 August 1943 - 25 August 1944 ;Awards *

on 19 July 1940 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 Chief of the general staff of Heeresgruppe BScherzer 2007, p. 649.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Salmuth, Hans Von 1888 births 1962 deaths Military personnel from Metz People from Alsace-Lorraine German untitled nobility German Army personnel of World War I German Army generals of World War II Colonel generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht) Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class German people convicted of crimes against humanity People convicted by the United States Nuremberg Military Tribunals Reichswehr personnel