Karl Allmendinger (3 February 1891 – 2 October 1965) was a general in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

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 ...

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 opposing ...

. He commanded the 5th Infantry Division, V Army Corps then 17th Army on the Eastern Front. He was a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves 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' ...

Career

Allmendinger was appointed to command the 5th Infantry Division as a Generalmajor on 25 October 1940. His division was committed to the

invasion of the Soviet Union Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named afte ...

in June 1941, and he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 July. He 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 ...

'' on 1 August 1942, and was awarded the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross on 13 December 1942. He was relieved of command of the division on 4 January 1943. On 1 July 1943 he was recalled into active service and appointed commanding general of the V Army Corps which operated in the Crimea. Assigned to command the 17th Army in early May 1944, his mission was to evacuate Sevastopol and lead his units back to Romania across the Black Sea. Considerable losses in men and material were suffered. On 25 July 1944, Allmendinger was again relieved from command and transferred to the Führerreserve, where he remained without further assignment until the end of the war. He was arrested by

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

forces in 1945 but released in 1946. Allmendinger was the son of (1863 – 1946), a teacher, poet and writer.

Awards

Clasp to the Iron Cross The Clasp to the Iron Cross (Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz) was a white metal medal clasp displayed on the uniforms of German Wehrmacht personnel who had been awarded the Iron Cross in World War I, and who again qualified for the decoration in World W ...

(1939) 2nd Class (20 September 1939) & 1st Class (21 May 1940) *

** Knight's Cross on 17 July 1941 as '' Generalmajor'' and commander of the 5. Infanterie-Division ** 153rd Oak Leaves on 13 December 1942 as ''

'' and commander of the 5. Jäger-Division

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Allmendinger, Kurt 1891 births 1965 deaths People from Ostalbkreis People from the Kingdom of Württemberg German Army generals of World War II Generals of Infantry (Wehrmacht) German Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Liberty, 1st Class German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States 20th-century Freikorps personnel Military personnel from Baden-Württemberg