Erich Abraham (27 March 1895 – 7 March 1971) 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 ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

who command the 76th Infantry Division then the LXIII Corps on the Western Front 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 also a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves 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 lower in precedence than the Grand C ...

Biography

Abraham was born in Marienburg, East Prussia in 1895. He volunteered for military service 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 ...

and the following year was commissioned as a ''

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

der Reserve''. He was demobilised in 1920 as an honorary ''

Oberleutnant (English: First Lieutenant) is a senior lieutenant Officer (armed forces), officer rank in the German (language), German-speaking armed forces of Germany (Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the Swiss Armed Forces. In Austria, ''Oberle ...

'', and joined the police. He returned to military service in 1935 in the rank of ''

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

''. He commanded an infantry battalion in the 105th Infantry Regiment in 1936–39, being promoted to ''

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, ...

'' in 1938. In 1939, he was transferred to the 266th Infantry Regiment, again commanding a battalion for a year. In 1940 he was appointed as the commanding officer of the 230th Infantry Regiment, and in 1941 was promoted to ''

Oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German language, German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Colonel. It is currently used by both the Army, ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, a ...

'', continuing in command of that regiment until 1942. During his time in command of the 230th Infantry Regiment, he was awarded 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 ...

. On 17 February 1943, he was appointed to command the 76th Infantry Division which was being rebuilt in France after the original division had been destroyed at

Stalingrad Volgograd,. geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn. (1589–1925) and Stalingrad. (1925–1961), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. The city lies on the western bank of the Volga, covering an area o ...

. He was promoted to ''

Generalmajor is the Germanic languages, Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central Europe, Central and Northern European countries. Austria Belgium Denmark is the second lowest general officer rank in the Royal Danish Army and R ...

'' on 1 June 1943, after which he led the division initially to Italy before being moved to

Army Group South Army Group South () was the name of one of three German Army Groups during World War II. It was first used in the 1939 September Campaign, along with Army Group North to invade Poland. In the invasion of Poland, Army Group South was led by Ge ...

on the Eastern Front during the winter of 1943–44. On 1 January 1944, Abraham was promoted to ''

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 ...

''. He continued to command the division in heavy fighting and during the withdrawal in the face of 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 ...

Dnieper–Carpathian Offensive, and other than for a short time in July–August, commanded the division until October 1944. While commanding the division, he was awarded the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Later that year, he was appointed to command LXIII Corps. In March 1945, he was promoted to '' General der Infanterie''. Captured at the end of the war, he was released in August 1947. After release he lived in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...

, West Germany. He died in 1971.

Awards

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 ...

(1914) 2nd Class (2 September 1915) & 1st Class (27 June 1917)Thomas 1997, p. 1. * Austrian Military Merit Cross 3rd Class with War Decoration (20 March 1917)Thomas & Wegmann 1987, p. 10. * Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (1 December 1934) *

Wehrmacht Long Service Award The Wehrmacht Long Service Award () was a List of military decorations of the Third Reich, military service decoration of Nazi Germany issued for satisfactory completion of a number of years in military service. History On 16 March 1936, Adolf ...

2nd Class (2 October 1936) * Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (10 March 1940) & 1st Class (21 June 1940) * Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown (Romania, 22 June 1942) * Infantry Assault Badge (13 November 1942) *

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 7 March 1942 as ''

'' and commander of Infanterie-Regiment 230Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 10. *

** Knight's Cross on 13 November 1942 as ''Oberst'' and commander of Infanterie-Regiment 230Scherzer 2007, p. 187. ** 516th Oak Leaves on 26 June 1944 as ''

'' and commander of the 76. Infanterie-Division

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Abraham, Erich 1895 births 1971 deaths People from Malbork Military personnel from West Prussia Generals of Infantry (Wehrmacht) German Army generals of World War II 20th-century Freikorps personnel Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class