__NOTOC__ Karl-Wilhelm Specht (22 May 1894 – 3 December 1953) 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 ...

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 a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. He served on the "Court of Military Honour," a

drumhead court-martial A drumhead court-martial is a court-martial held in the field to hear urgent charges of offences committed in action. The term sometimes has connotations of summary justice. The term is said to originate from the use of a drum as an improvised ...

that expelled many of the officers involved 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 ...

from the army before handing them over to the People's Court. Specht surrendered to the Soviet forces at the end of the war and died in Voikovo prison camp on 3 December 1953. Karl Specht

Awards and decorations

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 (22 January 1915) & 1st Class (28 April 1917)Thomas 1998, p. 333. * Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (21 December 1939) & 1st Class (9 June 1940) * Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves ** Knight's Cross on 8 September 1941 as '' Oberst'' and commander of Infanterie-Regiment 55 ** 60th Oak Leaves on 16 January 1942 as ''Oberst'' and commander of Infanterie-Regiment 55Fellgiebel 2000, p. 52.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Specht, Karl-Wilhelm 1894 births 1953 deaths People from Herdecke German Army generals of World War II Generals of Infantry (Wehrmacht) German Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves People from the Province of Westphalia German prisoners of war in World War II held by the Soviet Union German people who died in Soviet detention Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Reichswehr personnel Military personnel from North Rhine-Westphalia