__NOTOC__ Robert Martinek (2 February 1889 – 28 June 1944) was an Austrian general who served 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 previo ...

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 opposing ...

. He was a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves 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' ...

. An artillery officer of the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...

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 ...

, Martinek continued to serve with the Austrian ''

Bundesheer The Austrian Armed Forces (german: Bundesheer, lit=Federal Army) are the combined military forces of the Republic of Austria. The military consists of 22,050 active-duty personnel and 125,600 reservists. The military budget is 0.74% of natio ...

'' during the interwar period.

Biography

Martinek was born on 2 February 1889 in Gratzen (now Nové Hrady,

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

), where his father was a brewer. Enlisting in the army of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

in 1907, he was promoted to ''

Leutnant () is the lowest Junior officer rank in the armed forces the German-speaking of Germany (Bundeswehr), Austrian Armed Forces, and military of Switzerland. History The German noun (with the meaning "" (in English "deputy") from Middle High Ge ...

'' in 1910, '' Oberleutnant'' in 1914, and to ''

Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian, and Swiss armies. While in contemporary German means 'main', it also has and originally had the meaning of 'head', i.e. ' literally ...

'' in 1917 for outstanding bravery. Serving with the ''Bundesheer'' after

, he taught at (and during the 1930s, headed) the Austrian military's Artillery School, reaching the rank of ''

Oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedish ...

'' by the time of the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...

. In Austrian service, he made a number of artillery innovations, including new ranging and firing methods as well as a namesake

sight Visual perception is the ability to interpret the surrounding environment through photopic vision (daytime vision), color vision, scotopic vision (night vision), and mesopic vision (twilight vision), using light in the visible spectrum reflecte ...

adjustment system. During

, he commanded the 267th Infantry Division from 5 November 1941, and the

7th Mountain Division The 7th Mountain Division (german: 7. Gebirgs Division) was formed through the redesignation of 99th Light Infantry Division, which had fought on the southern sector of the Eastern Front until being withdrawn to Germany in October 1941. In 1942 ...

during 1942. He was in command of the heavy concentrations of artillery in the Siege of Sevastopol as the higher artillery reserve commander of the 11th Army, which played a key role in the reduction of the fortifications of the strategic port city. On 1 December 1942 Martinek took command of

XXXIX Panzer Corps The XXXIX Panzer Corps (german: XXXIX.Panzerkorps, also previously designated the ''XXXIX.Armeekorps (mot)'') was a German panzer corps which saw action on the Western and Eastern Fronts during World War II. Operational history The Corps whose ...

, simultaneously being promoted to ''

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 ...

''. He was again promoted to ''

General der Artillerie General der Artillerie ( en: General of the artillery) may mean: 1. A rank of three-star general, comparable to modern armed forces OF-8 grade, in the Imperial German Army and its contingency armies of Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony and Württembe ...

'' on New Year's Day 1943. For leading the corps in the retreat into eastern Belarus, he was awarded the

on 10 February 1944. In June 1944, the XXXIX Panzer Corps was assigned to Army Group Centre in the

Belorussian SSR The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR, or Byelorussian SSR; be, Беларуская Савецкая Сацыялістычная Рэспубліка, Bielaruskaja Savieckaja Sacyjalistyčnaja Respublika; russian: Белор� ...

. Shortly before the Soviet summer offensive,

Operation Bagration Operation Bagration (; russian: Операция Багратио́н, Operatsiya Bagration) was the codename for the 1944 Soviet Byelorussian strategic offensive operation (russian: Белорусская наступательная оп ...

, a battalion commander in the 12th Infantry Division raised concerns about a possible attack with Martinek, who was on a tour of inspection. Martinek agreed but in response cited the proverb "Whom God would destroy, he first strikes blind".Glantz 1995, p. 219. Soviet forces launched the offensive on 23 June; Martinek's corps was rapidly outflanked. Martinek was killed in an air attack on 28 June near Berezino. His notes from

were published as ''Kriegstagebuch eines Batterie-Kommandanten 1914–1918'' in 1976; he was also the subject of a book by

Erich Dethleffsen Erich Dethleffsen (2 August 1904 – 4 July 1980) was a German general from Kiel. He was married to the daughter of Nikolaus von Falkenhorst, who planned the German invasion of Norway and Denmark during World War II. Career Dethleffsen joined ...

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 es ...

(1939) 2nd Class (25 September 1939) & 1st Class (20 May 1940)Thomas 1998, p. 62. *

German Cross The War Order of the German Cross (german: Der Kriegsorden Deutsches Kreuz), normally abbreviated to the German Cross or ''Deutsches Kreuz'', was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 28 September 1941. It was awarded in two divisions: in gold for repe ...

in Gold on 21 March 1943 as commander of XXXIX Panzer Corps *

** Knight's Cross on 26 December 1941 as commander of 267th Infantry Division ** Oak Leaves on 10 February 1944 as commander of XXXIX Panzer CorpsFellgiebel 2000, p. 78.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * Glantz, David. ''When Titans Clashed: How the Red Army Stopped Hitler'', 1995. * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Martinek, Robert 1889 births 1944 deaths People from Nové Hrady People from the Kingdom of Bohemia German Bohemian people Deaths by airstrike during World War II Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I German Army personnel killed in World War II German Army generals of World War II Generals of Artillery (Wehrmacht) Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves Austro-Hungarian Army officers