__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 German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (), 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. While it was lower in precedence than the Grand C ...

Biography

Born in Chemnitz, Saxony, Friessner enlisted in the

German Army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...

in 1911 and, after seeing extensive duty during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, served in the

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

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). 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 () was the name of three separate army groups of the Wehrmacht during World War II. Its rear area operations were organized by the Army Group North Rear Area. The first Army Group North was deployed during the invasion of Pol ...

until 25 July before being sent to the southern front to command Army Group South Ukraine (later redesignated Army Group South). Unable to halt the four month Soviet offensive by Marshal

Rodion Malinovsky Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky (; ; – 31 March 1967) was a Soviet military commander and Marshal of the Soviet Union. He served as Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union from 1957 to 1967, during which he oversaw the strengthening 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, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...

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 (; ) was the military branch, combat branch of the Nazi Party's paramilitary ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscr ...

" 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 (, , 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 in ...

(1914) 2nd Class (15 September 1914) & 1st Class (19 September 1916)Thomas 1997, p. 184. * Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (27 July 1942) & 1st Class (21 August 1942) *

German Cross The War Order of the German Cross (), 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 repeated acts of bravery or military leade ...

in Gold on 9 June 1943 as '' General der Infanterie'' 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 Military personnel of the Kingdom of Saxony