Max von Hartlieb-Walsporn (20 October 1883 – 25 July 1959) was a German army officer who served as a ''
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 ...
'' general during the
Second World War
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 opposi ...
.
Hartlieb-Walsporn commanded the 5th Panzer Brigade in the early fall of 1939, then took charge of the
5th Panzer Division on 8 October 1939. As commander of this division, he participated in the
Battle of France of 1940, but he came to be seen as a weak leader when the lightly defended French town of
Le Quesnoy
Le Quesnoy (; pcd, L' Kénoé) is a commune and small town in the east of the Nord department of northern France. It was part of the historical province of French Hainaut. It had a keynote industry in shoemaking before the late 1940s, followed ...
was able to resist his armoured forces for some four days. By May 28, he was in reserve; later in 1940, he was given command of the 179th Division, but in January 1942 he was again relegated to reserve or administrative posts and never again commanded front-line troops.
Wounded on 19 May 1942, Hartlieb-Walsporn was hospitalized for almost five months and spent several more months in reserve before accepting other administrative posts over the remainder of the war. After the war ended, he was captured as a prisoner of war and imprisoned for two years.
Military awards
*
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 ...
(1914) 2nd Class & 1st Class
*
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 & 1st Class
References
German Army personnel of World War I
Lieutenant generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht)
German prisoners of war in World War II
People from the Kingdom of Bavaria
1883 births
1959 deaths
Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class
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