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Adolf Strauss (general)
Adolf Kurt Ernst Strauß (6 September 1879 – 20 March 1973) was a German officer who served in the Prussian Army, the Imperial German Army, the Reichswehr, and later as a general in the Heer of Nazi Germany's Wehrmacht during World War II. As commander of the II Army Corps, Strauß participated in the German Invasion of Poland. On 30 May 1940, he was appointed commander of the 9th Army in France. Strauß participated in Operation Barbarossa with Army Group Centre. In January 1942 he was replaced in command of the 9th Army by Walter Model following the initial breakthrough of the Soviet forces during commencement of the Rzhev Battles. He died on 20 March 1973 in Lübeck. As with all German armies on the Eastern Front, Strauß's 9th Army implemented the criminal Commissar Order. Adolf Strauß is mentioned by author Sven Hassel in his work of fiction ''Wheels of Terror''. Decorations * Iron Cross (1914) 1st and 2nd class * Hanseatic Cross, Bremen and Lübeck * Military C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Schermcke
Schermcke is a village and a former municipality in the Börde district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 July 2009, it is part of the town Oschersleben Oschersleben () is a town in the Börde district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The population in 1905 was 13,271, in 2020 about 19,000. History On November 23, 994 Oschersleben was first mentioned in a document by the Emperor Otto III. In 1235 .... Former municipalities in Saxony-Anhalt Oschersleben {{Börde-geo-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hanseatic Cross
The Hanseatic Cross () was a military decoration of the three Hanseatic city-states of Bremen, Hamburg and Lübeck, who were members of the German Empire during World War I. Each republic established its own version of the cross, but the design and award criteria were similar for each. Establishment and criteria The Hanseatic Cross was jointly instituted by agreement of the senates of the three cities, with each senate ratifying the award on different days. The Lübeck version was established first, on 21 August 1915. The Hamburg version followed on 10 September and the Bremen version on 14 September. The cross was awarded for merit in war, and could be awarded to civilians as well as military personnel. When awarded for bravery or combat merit, it was the three cities' equivalent of the Prussian Iron Cross. Description The Hanseatic Cross came in only one class, a cross worn from a ribbon on the left chest. The cross was a red-enameled silver cross pattée which bore th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the insignia of the medieval Teutonic Order and borne by its knights from the 13th century. As well as being a military medal, it has also been used as an emblem by the Prussian Army, the Imperial German Army, and the of the Weimar Republic, while the ''Balkenkreuz'' (bar cross) variant was used by the ''Wehrmacht''. The Iron Cross is now the emblem of the , the modern German armed forces. King Frederick William III of Prussia established the Iron Cross award on 17 March 1813 during the Napoleonic Wars (EK 1813). The award was backdated to the birthday (10 March) of his late wife, Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Queen Louise, who was the first person to receive it (posthumously). The Iron Cross was also awarded during the Franco-Prussian War ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sven Hassel
Sven Hassel was the pen name of the Danish-born Børge Willy Redsted Pedersen (19 April 1917 – 21 September 2012) known for his novels about German soldiers fighting in World War II. In Denmark he used the pen name ''Sven Hazel''. He is one of the bestselling Danish authors, possibly second only to Hans Christian Andersen. Hassel claimed his authorship was based on being a veteran of the German ''Wehrmacht'' who had fought in the Battle of Berlin in 1945 until he surrendered to the Soviets. However, numerous post-war investigations have proved his claims to be false and outright fabrications. In fact Hassel (as Pedersen) was a Danish criminal who did join the German Army but was incarcerated for having lied about his convictions. He was not captured in Berlin because he was in prison in Denmark. In the post-war period he gave a false testament which led to the arrest and imprisonment of innocent people. Biographical details Hassel claimed that at the age of 14 he joined the me ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Commissar Order
The Commissar Order () was an order issued by the German High Command ( OKW) on 6 June 1941 before Operation Barbarossa. Its official name was Guidelines for the Treatment of Political Commissars (''Richtlinien für die Behandlung politischer Kommissare''). It instructed the ''Wehrmacht'' that any Soviet political commissar identified among captured troops be summarily executed as a purported enforcer of the so-called Judeo-Bolshevism ideology in military forces. It is one of a series of criminal orders issued by the Nazi leadership. According to the order, all those prisoners who could be identified as "thoroughly bolshevised or as active representatives of the Bolshevist ideology" should also be killed. History Planning for Operation Barbarossa began in June 1940. In December 1940, Adolf Hitler began vague allusions to the operation to senior generals on how the war was to be conducted, giving him the opportunity to gauge their reaction to such matters as collaboration wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front, also known as the Great Patriotic War (term), Great Patriotic War in the Soviet Union and its successor states, and the German–Soviet War in modern Germany and Ukraine, was a Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the European Axis powers and Allies of World War II, Allies, including the Soviet Union (USSR) and Polish Armed Forces in the East, Poland. It encompassed Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Northern Europe, Northeast Europe (Baltic states, Baltics), and Southeast Europe (Balkans), and lasted from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945. Of the estimated World War II casualties, 70–85 million deaths attributed to World War II, around 30 million occurred on the Eastern Front, including 9 million children. The Eastern Front was decisive in determining the outcome in the European theatre of World War II, European theatre of operations in World War II, eventually serving as the main reason for the defeat of Nazi Germany and the Axis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rzhev Battles
The Battles of Rzhev () were a series of Red Army offensives against the Wehrmacht between 8 January 1942 and 31 March 1943, on the Eastern Front of World War II. The battles took place in the northeast of Smolensk Oblast and the south of Tver Oblast, in and around the salient surrounding Rzhev. Due to the high losses suffered by the Red Army, the campaign became known by veterans and historians as the "Rzhev Meat Grinder" (). Overview The major operations that were executed in this area of the front were: #Rzhev–Vyazma strategic offensive operation (8 January20 April 1942) of the Kalinin Front, Western Front, Bryansk Front, and Northwestern Front #*Sychyovka–Vyazma offensive operation (8 January20 April 1942) of the Kalinin Front #* Mozhaysk–Vyazma offensive operation (Operation Jupiter) (10 January28 February 1942) of the Western Front #* Toropets–Kholm offensive operation (9 January6 February 1942) of the Northwestern Front and reassigned to the Kalinin Front from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walter Model
Otto Moritz Walter Model (; 24 January 1891 – 21 April 1945) was a German during World War II. Although he was a hard-driving, aggressive panzer commander early in the war, Model became best known as a practitioner of defensive warfare. His relative success as commander of the 9th Army (Wehrmacht), Ninth Army in the battles of 1941–1942 determined his future career path. Model first came to Hitler's, Hitler's attention before World War II, but their relationship did not become especially close until 1942. His tenacious style of fighting and loyalty to the Nazi regime won him plaudits from Hitler, who considered him one of his best field commanders and repeatedly sent him to salvage apparently desperate situations on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front as commander of Army Group North, Army Group North Ukraine and Army Group Centre. In August 1944 Model was sent to the Western Front (World War II), Western Front as commander of OB West and Army Group B. His r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Army Group Centre
Army Group Centre () was the name of two distinct strategic German Army Groups that fought on the Eastern Front in World War II. The first Army Group Centre was created during the planning of Operation Barbarossa, Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union, as one of the three German Army formations assigned to the invasion. After Army Group North was trapped in the Courland Pocket in mid-1944, it was renamed to Army Group Courland and the first Army Group Centre was renamed "Army Group North". The second iteration of Army Group Centre was formed by the redesignation of Army Group A as the replacement for the first Army Group Centre. Formation and Command The army group was officially created by Adolf Hitler when he issued Führer Directive 21 on 18 December 1940, ordering German forces to prepare for an attack on Soviet Russia in 1941. The first commanding officer of Army Group Centre was Field Marshal Fedor von Bock, who would lead it until he was relieved on 18 December 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
II Army Corps (Wehrmacht)
II Army Corps (II. Armeekorps) was a corps in the German Army during World War II. Organisation Organisation of the corps at different times included; 1939 (September) * Corps Staff and Headquarters **402nd Corps Signals Unit **42nd Corps Propaganda Battalion ** 402nd Corps Supply Troops ** 402nd Field Gendarmerie Troop * 3rd Infantry Division * 32nd Infantry Division * 2nd Artillery Command 1940 (May) * Corps Headquarters ** 42nd Corps Signal Battalion ** 402nd Corps Mapping Platoon ** 402nd Courier Platoon ** 402nd Field Post Platoon ** 402nd Supply Battalion ** 402nd Military Police Platoon ** 1st Heavy Reconnaissance Flight, 11th Reconnaissance Squadron (attached from Luftwaffe) ** 3rd Heavy Reconnaissance Flight, 21st Reconnaissance Squadron (attached from Luftwaffe) ** 1st Battalion, 13th Anti-Aircraft Regiment (attached from Luftwaffe) ** 86th Light Anti-Aircraft Battalion (attached from Luftwaffe) * 7th Panzer Division * 12th Infantry Division * 32nd Infantr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previously used term (''Reich Defence'') and was the manifestation of the Nazi regime's efforts to German rearmament, rearm Germany to a greater extent than the Treaty of Versailles permitted. After the Adolf Hitler's rise to power, Nazi rise to power in 1933, one of Adolf Hitler's most overt and bellicose moves was to establish the ''Wehrmacht'', a modern offensively-capable armed force, fulfilling the Nazi regime's long-term goals of regaining lost territory as well as gaining new territory and dominating its neighbours. This required the reinstatement of conscription and massive investment and Military budget, defence spending on the arms industry. The ''Wehrmacht'' formed the heart of Germany's politico-military po ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
