Adolf Hamann (3 September 1885 – 30 December 1945) was a German general. He was executed for war crimes.

Early life and inter-war years

Hamann joined the Schwerin 89th Grenadier Regiment on 16 July 1901. In 1914, during the first year of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he was twice awarded the

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...

. In the inter-war years, Hamann served in the

Reichswehr ''Reichswehr'' (; ) was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first two years of Nazi Germany. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshaped ...

and then the

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

World War II

Immediately after the

German invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...

, Hamann was given the command of a frontier defense zone on the Polish border, which he held until 8 January 1940. Afterwards, he commanded a reserve infantry battalion until 25 July 1941. From 4 August until 14 January the following year, he headed a regiment in the 239th Infantry Division. After the division was dissolved, he was transferred to the

Führerreserve The (“Leaders Reserve” or "Reserve for Leaders") was set up in the German Armed Forces during World War II in 1939 as a pool of temporarily unoccupied high-ranking military officers awaiting new assignments. The various military branches ...

, where he remained until 1 April. Then he was posted as the commander of a regiment in the 370th Division, stationed at

Reims Reims ( ; ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French Departments of France, department of Marne (department), Marne, and the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 12th most populous city in Fran ...

, in the French

Zone occupée The Military Administration in France (; ) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zone in areas of northern and western France. This so-called ' was established in June 19 ...

. He was recalled to the reserve on 14 May. On 1 June 1942, he was promoted to major general and sent to serve as the military commander of

Oryol Oryol ( rus, Орёл, , ɐˈrʲɵl, a=ru-Орёл.ogg, links=y, ), also transliterated as Orel or Oriol, is a Classification of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Oryol Oblast, Russia, situated on the Oka Rive ...

, in the German-occupied area of the Soviet Union. During the

Battle of Kursk The Battle of Kursk, also called the Battle of the Kursk Salient, was a major World War II Eastern Front battle between the forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union near Kursk in southwestern Russia during the summer of 1943, resulting in ...

, while still commandant of Oryol, he was the chief of ''Gruppe Hamann'' - a support formation which consisted mainly of the 3rd Brandenburg Regiment and existed from 20 July to 1 August as part of General

Lothar Rendulic Lothar Rendulic (; 23 October 1887 – 17 January 1971)Rudolf Neck, Adam Wandruszka, Isabella Ackerl (ed.) (1980): ''Protokolle des Ministerrates der Ersten Republik, 1918–1938, Abteilung VIII, 20. Mai 1932 bis 25. Juli 1934''. Vienna: Verlag ...

's XXXV Corps. On 4 August, after Oryol's liberation in

Operation Kutuzov Operation Kutuzov was the first of the two counteroffensives launched by the Red Army as part of the Kursk Strategic Offensive Operation. It commenced on 12 July 1943, in the Central Russian Upland, against Army Group Center of the German ''Ger ...

, he was made commandant of

Bryansk Bryansk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Bryansk Oblast, Russia, situated on the Desna (river), Desna River, southwest of Moscow. It has a population of 379,152 at the 2021 census. Bryans ...

. When it was retaken by the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

on 17 September, he became the military commander in

Bobruisk Babruysk (, ) or Bobruysk (, ; , ) is a city in Mogilev Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Babruysk District, though it is administratively separated from the district. It is situated on the Berezina River. Babruysk o ...

, in

Belorussia Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

. On 20 June, he was given command of the 383rd Infantry Division, replacing General

Edmund Hoffmeister Edmund Hoffmeister (4 March 1893 – 20 February 1951) was an officer in the German Army, mainly notable for his service in World War II. Hoffmeister's military service began in 1914 in the Imperial German army. During the 1930s, Hoffmeis ...

, while retaining his position as commandant of what was now the Fortified Area Bobruisk.

Samuel W. Mitcham Samuel W. Mitcham Jr. is an American author and military historian who specializes in the German war effort during World War II and the Confederate war effort during the American Civil War. He is the author of more than 40 books and has collabor ...

: ''German Order of Battle, Volume Two: 291st 999th Infantry Divisions, Named Infantry Divisions, and Special Divisions in WWII''. . Page 85.

Surrender and trial

On 22 June 1944, the Red Army launched

Operation Bagration Operation Bagration () was the codename for the 1944 Soviet Byelorussian strategic offensive operation (), a military campaign fought between 22 June and 19 August 1944 in Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Byelorussia in the Eastern ...

. The Soviet forces soon overwhelmed the German forces stationed near Bobruisk and encircled the city on the 27th. On 28 June 1944, Hamann, along with the rest of the Bobruisk garrison, was taken prisoner. On 17 July, he was paraded through the streets of Moscow with 50,000 other captured German soldiers, in the aftermath of Bagration. On 29 December 1945, a Soviet military tribunal convicted him of war crimes against the civilian populations of Bryansk and Bobruisk.Full transcript of the USSR state report ''Crimes of the Fascist German Invaders in Belorussia, 1941-1945''
Hamann was sentenced to death and hanged the next day.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamann, Adolf 1885 births 1945 deaths People from Ludwigslust-Parchim Military personnel from the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin German Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Lieutenant generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht) German prisoners of war in World War II held by the Soviet Union Executed people from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Nazis executed for war crimes Nazis executed by the Soviet Union by hanging