Skip to main content

Fritz Bayerlein

Fritz Bayerlein
Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1978-033-02, Fritz Bayerlein.jpg
Born14 January 1899
Died30 January 1970 (aged 71)
Allegiance Nazi Germany
Service/branchArmy (Wehrmacht)
RankGeneralleutnant
Commands held3rd Panzer Division
Panzer Lehr Division
LIII Army Corps
Battles/wars
World War II
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords
Fritz Hermann Michael Bayerlein (14 January 1899 – 30 January 1970) was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germanyduring World War II. He initially served as a staff officer, including with Erwin Rommel in the Afrika Korps. He then commanded the 3rd Panzer Division, the Panzer Lehr Division and LIII Army Corps in the European theatre. Bayerlein was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords.

World War II[edit]

Rommel, Bayerlein (center), and Albert Kesselring.
Bayerlein served as a staff officer of General Heinz Guderian for the invasion of Poland and the Battle of France. In Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union, during June 1941, Bayerlein was assigned to Guderian's Panzer Group 2 staff. After the Battle of Kiev, Bayerlein was transferred to Generaloberst Erwin Rommel's staff. Bayerlein was moved to theFührerreserve in August 1942, then reassigned to the Afrika Korps as Chief of Staff.
He served as a staff officer under the command of Generalmajor Walter Nehring beginning in March 1942 upon Nehring's transfer to Africa. Later, he served under Erwin Rommel and Wilhelm von Thoma. When Rommel left Tunisia in March 1943 after the failed attack during the Battle of Medenine (Operation Capri), Bayerlein was appointed German liaison officer under the new commander, Italian Giovanni Messe. He was sent to Italy before the German troops in Tunisia surrendered on 12 May 1943. Bayerlein was sent to the Eastern Front in October 1943, to lead the 3rd Panzer Division, which was surrounded at Kirovograd. Bayerlein led a breakout through the Soviet encirclement.
He was reassigned to command the Panzer Lehr Division, which moved to Normandy on 7 June. During the Allied Operation Cobra, Allied bombing near Saint-Lô decimated the division. The remnants of the Panzer Lehr Division slipped out of the Falaise pocket and moved east toward Vire in August 1944. The division next took part in the Ardennes Offensive, in December 1944, as part of the XLVII Panzer Corps; Bayerlein was relieved of command following the failed offensive. He took command of the LIII Army Corps in February 1945 and surrendered to the U.S. Army in the Ruhr Pocket on 19 April 1945.

After the war[edit]

Bayerlein was a prisoner of war from April 1945 through April 1947. During this time, he and many other generals in Allied captivity wrote the European battle histories for the U.S. Army Historical Division. Bayerlein was released on in 1947. He wrote about military subjects and continued his work for the Historical Division. He died in 1970.

Awards[edit]

References[edit]

Citations[edit]

  1. ^ Jump up to:a b Thomas 1997, p. 29.
  2. Jump up^ Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 29.
  3. ^ Jump up to:a b c Scherzer 2007, p. 207.

Bibliography[edit]

  • Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II [The German Cross 1941 – 1945 History and Recipients Volume 2] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8.
  • Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
  • Thomas, Franz (1997). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 1: A–K [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 1: A–K] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2299-6.
  • Willmott, H.P. (1984). June 1944. New York, NY: Blandford Press.

External links[edit]

Military offices
Preceded by
General der Panzertruppe Walther Nehring		Acting Commander of Afrika Korps
31 August 1942		Succeeded by
General der Panzertruppe Gustav von Vaerst
Preceded by
Generalleutnant Franz Westhoven		Commander of 3. Panzer-Division
25 October 1943 – 5 January 1944		Succeeded by
Oberst Rudolf Lang
Preceded by
none		Commander of Panzer-Lehr-Division
10 January 1944 – August 1944		Succeeded by
Oberst Rudolf Gerhardt
Preceded by
Oberst Paul Freiherr von Hauser		Commander of Panzer-Lehr-Division
September 1944 – 15 January 1945		Succeeded by
Generalmajor Horst Niemack
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Alfred Newman (composer)

Alfred Newman  (March 17, 1901 – February 17, 1970) [1]  was an American  composer , arranger, and conductor of film music. From his start as a music prodigy, he came to be regarded as a respected figure in the history of film music. He won nine Academy Awards and was nominated forty-three times. In a career spanning more than four decades, Newman composed the scores for over 200 motion pictures. Some of his most famous scores include  Wuthering Heights ,  The Hunchback of Notre Dame ,  The Mark of Zorro ,  How Green Was My Valley ,  The Song of Bernadette ,  Captain from Castile ,  All About Eve ,  Love is a Many Splendored Thing ,  Anastasia ,  The Diary of Anne Frank ,  How The West Was Won ,  The Greatest Story Ever Told , and his final score,  Airport , all of which were nominated for or won Academy Awards. Newman was also highly regarded as a conductor, and arranged and conducted many scores by ot...
Post a Comment
Read more

Bertrand Russell

Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell ,  OM ,  FRS [61]  ( / ˈ r ʌ s əl / ; 18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British philosopher, logician , mathematician, historian, writer,  social critic , political activist and  Nobel laureate . [62] [63]  At various points in his life, Russell considered himself a liberal, a socialist and a  pacifist , but he also admitted that he had "never been any of these things, in any profound sense". [64]  Russell was born in  Monmouthshire  into one of the most prominent aristocratic families in the United Kingdom. [65] In the early 20th century, Russell led the British "revolt against  idealism ". [66]  He is considered one of the founders of  analytic philosophy  along with his predecessor  Gottlob Frege , colleague  G. E. Moore  and protégé  Ludwig Wittgenstein . He is widely held to be one of the 20th century's premier  logicians . [63]...
Post a Comment
Read more