__NOTOC__ Johannes Friessner (22 March 1892 – 26 June 1971) was a German 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 previo ...

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' ...

Biography

Born in Chemnitz, Saxony, Friessner enlisted in the German Army in 1911 and, after seeing extensive duty during

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 ...

, served in 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 ...

following the war. After his promotion to ''Generalmajor'' during

on 1 August 1940, Friessner was assigned to the Eastern Front on 1 May 1942 and placed in command of the 102nd Infantry Division. Shortly after his promotion to ''Generalleutnant'' on 1 October 1942, Friessner served as commander of the XXIII Corps from 19 January to 11 December 1943. On 1 April 1943, he was promoted ''

General der Infanterie General of the Infantry is a military rank of a General officer in the infantry and refers to: * General of the Infantry (Austria) * General of the Infantry (Bulgaria) * General of the Infantry (Germany) ('), a rank of a general in the German Imp ...

'' (General of the Infantry). In February 1944, Friessner was transferred to the Northern Front and assigned command to Sponheimer Group (renamed army detachment "Narva" on 23 February). Promoted to ''Generaloberst'' on 1 July, Friessner briefly held command of

Army Group North Army Group North (german: Heeresgruppe Nord) was a German strategic formation, commanding a grouping of field armies during World War II. The German Army Group was subordinated to the ''Oberkommando des Heeres'' (OKH), the German army high comman ...

until 25 July before being sent to the southern front to command

Army Group South Ukraine __NOTOC__ Army Group South Ukraine (german: Heeresgruppe Südukraine) was a German army group on the Eastern Front during World War II. Army Group South Ukraine was created on 5 April 1944 by renaming Army Group A. This army group saw action dur ...

(later redesignated

Army Group South Army Group South (german: Heeresgruppe Süd) was the name of three German Army Groups during World War II. It was first used in the 1939 September Campaign, along with Army Group North to invade Poland. In the invasion of Poland Army Group So ...

). Unable to halt the four month Soviet offensive by Marshal

Rodion Malinovsky Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky (russian: Родио́н Я́ковлевич Малино́вский, ukr, Родіо́н Я́кович Малино́вський ; – 31 March 1967) was a Soviet military commander. He was Marshal of the Sov ...

's Second Ukrainian Front, Friessner was relieved of his command on 22 December. Holding no further command for the remainder of the war, Friessner lived in retirement in Bayerisch Gmain until his death on 26 June 1971. In September 1951 he was elected the chairman of the ' (Union of German Soldiers, VdS), however he resigned in December 1951. Frießner was no longer tenable as chairman of the VdS after he had justified 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 ...

as a legitimate measure to "protect the ethnic Germans in Poland" at a press conference on 21 September 1951 and he had favourably compared the "decently fighting

Waffen-SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...

" to the officers of the 20 July plot, who, according to him, had chosen a method that was to be rejected "from the military point of view", and namely "political murder". During the early 1950s he was active in advising on the redevelopment of the West German army, the Bundeswehr. In 1956, Friessner wrote ''Verratene Schlachten'' (Betrayed Battles), a memoir of his tour of command of Army Group South Ukraine.

Awards

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) 2nd Class (15 September 1914) & 1st Class (19 September 1916)Thomas 1997, p. 184. *

Clasp to the Iron Cross The Clasp to the Iron Cross (Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz) was a white metal medal clasp displayed on the uniforms of German Wehrmacht personnel who had been awarded the Iron Cross in World War I, and who again qualified for the decoration in World W ...

(1939) 2nd Class (27 July 1942) & 1st Class (21 August 1942) *

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 9 June 1943 as ''

'' and commanding general of the XXXXI. Panzerkorps *

** Knight's Cross on 23 July 1943 as ''General der Infanterie'' and commanding general of the XXIII. Armeekorps ** 445th Oak Leaves 9 April 1944 as ''General der Infanterie'' and leader of the Army Detachment NarwaFellgiebel 2000, p. 81.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Friessner, Johannes 1892 births 1971 deaths Military personnel from Chemnitz German Army generals of World War II Colonel generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht) German Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States People from the Kingdom of Saxony