Joachim-Friedrich Huth (31 July 1896 – 27 March 1962) was a German general in the 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 opposing ...

and the Air Force of the in

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

. Huth retired from the military service in 1961 holding the rank of .

Biography

Huth was born in 1896 in and entered military service in the Prussian Army shortly before 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 ...

, in July 1914. He was promoted to ' on 4 January 1915 and served as platoon leader and company commander in the ' (58th infantry regiment). He was injured three times. He transferred to the ' in June 1917 to Jasta 14 and claimed his first aerial victory on 28 January 1918. He was severely injured on 23 March 1918, losing his right lower leg.Obermaier 1989, p. 138. Huth was awarded both classes of the

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 es ...

(1914) and the Knight's Cross to the

House Order of Hohenzollern The House Order of Hohenzollern (german: Hausorden von Hohenzollern or ') was a dynastic order of knighthood of the House of Hohenzollern awarded to military commissioned officers and civilians of comparable status. Associated with the various ...

with Swords during the war. Huth left the military service after the war. The

treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...

had imposed severe restrictions on Germany's military strength and had denied Germany an air force. With

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

's rise to power and the remilitarisation of Germany, Huth reentered the military service of the on 1 March 1934, holding the rank of '. He became the ' of the . Huth earned the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 11 September 1940 in this position for the successful leadership of his fighter wing in the Battle of France and

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

. Huth commanded various fighter divisions from 1942 until 1944 before taking command of the ' (1st Fighter Corps) on 26 January 1945. He held this position until the end of the war, when he was taken prisoner by the British forces. He was released in 1946. In 1956, Huth joined the ' after the remilitarisation of the

Federal Republic of Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between ...

, holding the rank of '. He led the Luftwaffe school at and, until his retirement, the ' (Air Force Group South) in . Huth retired on 30 September 1961 with a ' (Grand Tattoo) holding the rank of '. Huth died six months later on 27 March 1962 in .

Awards

(1914) 2nd and 1st Class * Knight's Cross to the

with Swords * Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 11 September 1940 as ' and ' of Fellgiebel 2000, p. 239.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Huth, Joachim-Friedrich 1896 births 1962 deaths Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Luftstreitkräfte personnel Luftwaffe World War II generals Bundeswehr generals German amputees People from the Province of Saxony People from Altmarkkreis Salzwedel German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United Kingdom Prussian Army personnel German Army personnel of World War I Lieutenant generals of the German Air Force Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Lieutenant generals of the Luftwaffe Military personnel from Saxony-Anhalt