__NOTOC__ August Wittmann (20 July 1895 – 29 March 1977) was a general in 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 ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (), 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. While it was order of precedence, lower in preceden ...

Life and career

August Wittmann was born in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

on 20 July 1895. He entered the

Bavarian Army The Bavarian Army () was the army of the Electorate of Bavaria, Electorate (1682–1806) and then Kingdom of Bavaria, Kingdom (1806–1918) of Bavaria. It existed from 1682 as the standing army of Bavaria until the merger of the military sovereig ...

as a volunteer shortly after the outbreak 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 ...

in August 1914, joining a Bavarian Field Artillery Regiment. Commissioned lieutenant in 1917, he left the army in December 1918. He then served with the

Bavarian State Police The Bavarian Police () is the state police force of the German state of Bavaria under the umbrella of the Bavarian Ministry of the Interior. It has approximately 33,500 armed officers and roughly 8,500 other civilian employees. Organization Th ...

until 1935. In October 1935 Wittmann rejoined the army and was given command of a ''Gebirgs'' (mountain) artillery battalion, rising to lead an artillery regiment three years later. In June 1941, during the

battle of Crete The Battle of Crete (, ), codenamed Operation Mercury (), was a major Axis Powers, Axis Airborne forces, airborne and amphibious assault, amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May ...

, he was awarded the

for his leadership of a mountain artillery regiment. Becoming a divisional commander from February 1943, he commanded the 390th Field Training Division and then the 3rd Mountain Division on the Eastern Front, followed by the

117th Jäger Division 117th Jäger Division was a German infantry division of World War II. The division was formed in April 1943 by the reorganization and redesignation of the 717th Infantry Division. The 717th Division had been formed in April 1941. It was transfe ...

and the 1st Mountain Division in the Balkans and Austria. He surrendered with his unit in May 1945. Wittmann ended the war as a ''

Generalleutnant () is the German-language 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 ...

'', after promotion to this rank in April 1944.

Awards and decorations

* Mentioned in the '' Wehrmachtbericht'' (Armed Forces Report) of 11 June 1941 as ''

Oberstleutnant () (English: Lieutenant Colonel) 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, ...

'' and commander of ''Gebirgs-Artillerie-Regiment 95'' (95th Mountain Artillery Regiment) during the

. *

on 21 June 1941 as ''Oberstleutnant'' and commander of the 95th Mountain Artillery Regiment during the battle of Crete. *

German Cross The War Order of the German Cross (), normally abbreviated to the German Cross or ''Deutsches Kreuz'', was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 28 September 1941. It was awarded in two divisions: in gold for repeated acts of bravery or military leade ...

in Gold on 25 August 1944 as ''

'' and commander of the ''3 Gebirgs-Division'' (3rd Mountain Division) on the Eastern Front.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wittmann, August 1895 births 1977 deaths Lieutenant generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht) Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Battle of Crete German Army personnel of World War I Military personnel from Munich Gebirgsjäger of World War II