Ludwig Freiherr von Leonrod (17 September 1906 – 26 August 1944) was a German Army

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

who took part in the 20 July plot to kill

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 ...

. He was a descendant of the von Leonrod noble family. Leonrod was born in Munich and joined the

Reichswehr ''Reichswehr'' () was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first years of the Third Reich. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshape ...

on 1 April 1926 in the ''Reiter'' (Cavalry) ''Regiment 17'' in Bamberg next to

Claus von Stauffenberg Colonel Claus Philipp Maria Justinian Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (; 15 November 1907 – 21 July 1944) was a German army officer best known for his failed attempt on 20 July 1944 to assassinate Adolf Hitler at the Wolf's Lair. Despite ...

. In

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 ...

Leonrod was severely wounded in late 1941 on the Eastern Front and remained unfit for front service. In December 1943 Stauffenberg informed Leonrod about the plans for a coup d'état. Leonrod asked chaplain Hermann Josef Wehrle, who was later sentenced to death for his knowledge, about the theological justification of a

tyrannicide Tyrannicide is the killing or assassination of a tyrant or unjust ruler, purportedly for the common good, and usually by one of the tyrant's subjects. Tyrannicide was legally permitted and encouraged in the Classical period. Often, the term tyra ...

. Leonrod was supposed to become a liaison officer in military district VII (Munich). After the plot failed, Leonrod was arrested by the Gestapo on 21 July 1944, sentenced to death by the Volksgerichtshof on 21 August and hanged on 26 August at

Plötzensee Prison Plötzensee Prison (german: Justizvollzugsanstalt Plötzensee, JVA Plötzensee) is a juvenile prison in the Charlottenburg-Nord locality of Berlin with a capacity for 577 prisoners, operated by the State of Berlin judicial administration. The d ...

.Biography
at

German Resistance Memorial Center The German Resistance Memorial Center (german: Gedenkstätte Deutscher Widerstand) is a memorial and museum in Berlin, capital of Germany. History It was opened in 1980 in part of the Bendlerblock, a complex of offices in Stauffenbergstrasse (fo ...

Leonrod was married to Monika née von Twickel since 1943.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leonrod, Ludwig Freiherr Von 1906 births 1944 deaths Military personnel from Munich German Army officers of World War II Executed members of the 20 July plot Barons of Germany People from Bavaria executed at Plötzensee Prison People executed by hanging at Plötzensee Prison Military personnel from the Kingdom of Bavaria Reichswehr personnel Executed military personnel