Erich Lüdke (20 October 1882 – 13 February 1946) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

General of the Infantry who was supreme commander of the German forces in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

from 1 June 1940 to 29 September 1942. Taken into custody by the Soviets after the war, he died in captivity in 1946.

Early career

Lüdke entered the army in 1900 and was promoted to ''

Leutnant () is the lowest Junior officer rank in the armed forces the German-speaking of Germany (Bundeswehr), Austrian Armed Forces, and military of Switzerland. History The German noun (with the meaning "" (in English "deputy") from Middle High Ge ...

'' in 1902 and to '' Oberleutnant'' in 1910. In spring 1914, he was assigned to the General Staff in Berlin. At the outbreak of

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 ...

he was promoted to ''

Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian, and Swiss armies. While in contemporary German means 'main', it also has and originally had the meaning of 'head', i.e. ' literally ...

'' and became a company commander.

World War I

From 1915, Lüdke served in various staff functions. During the war he received the Iron Cross 2nd Class and Knight's Cross of House Order of Hohenzollern.

Interbellum

After World War I, Lüdke moved into the new

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 ...

and initially used in the Reichswehr Ministry. On 1 April 1922, he was then appointed commander of an infantry regiment and gradually achieved level of ''

Oberstleutnant () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Lieutenant colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedi ...

'' due to various position of commander of cavalry and infantry regiments. In June 1935, Lüdke was promoted to ''

Generalleutnant is the Germanic variant of lieutenant general, used in some German speaking countries. Austria Generalleutnant is the second highest general officer rank in the Austrian Armed Forces (''Bundesheer''), roughly equivalent to the NATO rank of ...

'' and took command of the 9th Infantry Division. A year later he took command of 34th Infantry Division. In 1937 he was assigned to the X Army Corps in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

. After the death of the commanding general, Wilhelm Knochenhauer, he was assigned to the leadership of X Army Corps.

World War II

On 1 June 1940, Lüdke was appointed commander of German troops in

where he replaced

Leonhard Kaupisch Leonhard Kaupisch (1 September 1878 – 26 September 1945) was a German general during World War II who served as Supreme Military Commander of occupied Denmark. World War I and interwar period Kaupisch entered the army in 1898; from 1907 to 1909 ...

. On 1 December 1940 he was promoted to General of the Infantry. His time in Denmark was relatively peaceful, and it was only towards the end of his period in command that the Danish resistance movement was becoming increasingly noticeable. After the

Telegram Crisis The Telegram Crisis was a diplomatic crisis between Denmark and Germany in October and November 1942, during the German occupation of Denmark. The crisis was triggered by a telegram from King Christian X of Denmark to Adolf Hitler, acknowledgin ...

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

wanted a harder line implemented in Denmark and Lüdke was deemed unfit. He was released from his post in the fall of 1942 and given the status of reserve officer. On 31 January 1944, he retired from active service. After the war he was arrested by the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

s and taken into captivity. He died in Russia in 1946.

Awards and decorations

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 ...

of 1914, 1st and 2nd class * Knight's Cross of the Royal

House Order of Hohenzollern The House Order of Hohenzollern (german: Hausorden von Hohenzollern or ') was a dynastic order of knighthood of the House of Hohenzollern awarded to military commissioned officers and civilians of comparable status. Associated with the various ...

with Swords * Knight's Cross Second Class of the

Order of the White Falcon Order of the White Falcon (german: Hausorden vom Weißen Falken) is a grand-ducal order of Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, founded by Duke Ernest Augustus on 2 August 1732, and renewed in 1815 by Charles Augustus. Description In the early 2 ...

with swords *

Hanseatic Cross The Hanseatic Cross (German: ''Hanseatenkreuz'') was a military decoration of the three Hanseatic city-states of Bremen, Hamburg and Lübeck, who were members of the German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 188 ...

of Bremen * Knight's Cross Second Class of the Ducal

Saxe-Ernestine House Order The Saxe-Ernestine House Order (german: link=yes, Sachsen-Ernestinischer Hausorden)Hausorden
Herz ...

* Cross of Honour, 3rd class with Swords and Crown (Reuss) * Cross of Honour, 3rd class with Swords (Schwarzburg) * Military Merit Cross, 3rd class with war decoration (Austria-Hungary) *

Ottoman War Medal The Gallipolli Star is a military decoration awarded by the Ottoman Empire. It was known as the Ottoman War Medal ( tr, Harp Madalyası) or the Iron Crescent (from German ''Eiserner Halbmond'', in allusion to the Iron Cross). It was instituted b ...

("Iron Crescent") *

Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 The Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (german: Das Ehrenkreuz des Weltkrieges 1914/1918), commonly, but incorrectly, known as the Hindenburg Cross or the German WWI Service Cross was established by Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, Presiden ...

with Swords *

Wehrmacht Long Service Award The Wehrmacht Long Service Award () was a military service decoration of Nazi Germany issued for satisfactory completion of a number of years in military service. History On 16 March, 1936, Adolf Hitler ordered the institution of a service awar ...

, 4th to 1st class

Footnotes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ludke, Erich 1882 births 1946 deaths People from Naumburg (Saale) People from the Province of Saxony German Army personnel of World War I German Army generals of World War II Generals of Infantry (Wehrmacht) Recipients of the Hanseatic Cross (Bremen) German prisoners of war in World War II held by the Soviet Union German people who died in Soviet detention Major generals of the Reichswehr