Stefan Fröhlich (7 October 1889 – 2 October 1978) was an Austrian general 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 opposin ...

. He was a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 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' ...

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 ...

Life

Fröhlich at age 15 enlisted in the Austro-Hungarian army in the pioneer cadet school. At the onset of the First World War, he was a 1st Lieutenant and served predominantly on the Italian Front. Following the end of hostilities, Fröhlich remained in the Austrian army, eventually serving in the Vienna Federal Ministry for the Army as a clerk for engineering. In 1933 he took part in a pilot training course and was subsequently transferred to the "air raid command". In December 1937, he became the commandant of the newly established flying school regiment at the

Zeltweg Air Base Zeltweg Air Base, now known as Fliegerhorst Hinterstoisser, is a military airfield in Styria, Austria near Zeltweg. It is the main airfield of the Austrian Air Force. It was also used as a motor racing circuit in the 1960s. History Since 199 ...

. After the annexation of Austria, he transferred over to the

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

. During the Second World War, he served on all major fronts and eventually retired on April 30, 1945, eight days prior to the end of hostilities.

Awards and decorations

on 4 July 1940 as ''

Generalmajor is the Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central and Northern European countries. Austria Belgium Denmark is the second lowest general officer rank in the Royal Danish Army and Royal Danish Air Force. As a two-star ...

'' and commander of Kampfgeschwader 76

References

Citations

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Froehlich, Stefan 1889 births 1978 deaths Austro-Hungarian Army officers Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Banat Swabians Generals of Aviators Luftwaffe World War II generals People from Orșova Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 2nd class Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Recipients of the Silver Medal of Military Valor