Paul Nikolaus von Falkenhorst (17 January 1885 – 18 June 1968) was a German general and

war criminal A war crime is a violation of the laws of war that gives rise to individual criminal responsibility for actions by combatants in action, such as intentionally killing civilians or intentionally killing prisoners of war, torture, taking hostage ...

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 planned and commanded the German invasion of Denmark and Norway in 1940, and was commander of German troops during the occupation of Norway from 1940 to 1944. After the war, Falkenhorst was tried by a joint British-Norwegian military tribunal for war crimes. He was convicted and sentenced to death in 1946. The sentence was later commuted to twenty years' imprisonment. Falkenhorst was released in 1953 and died in 1968.

Career

Falkenhorst was born in Breslau (now

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

, Poland). He joined the army in 1903 and served in

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 regimental and staff roles, including a stint in Finland. In 1919, after the end of the war, he joined the paramilitary group

Freikorps (, "Free Corps" or "Volunteer Corps") were irregular German and other European paramilitary volunteer units that existed from the 18th to the early 20th centuries. They effectively fought as mercenaries or private military companies, rega ...

, and later 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 ...

''. On 1 July 1935, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the 3rd Army. In 1939, he commanded the

XXI Army Corps 21 (twenty-one) is the natural number following 20 and preceding 22. The current century is the 21st century AD, under the Gregorian calendar. Mathematics Twenty-one is the fifth distinct semiprime, and the second of the form 3 \times q whe ...

during the

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 ...

. On 20 February 1940, Hitler informed Falkenhorst that he would be ground commander for the invasion of Norway ''

Operation Weserübung Operation Weserübung ( , , 9 April – 10 June 1940) was the invasion of Denmark and Norway by Nazi Germany during World War II. It was the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign. In the early morning of 9 April 1940 (, "Weser Day"), Ge ...

'', and gave him until 5 p.m. the same day to come up with a basic plan. With no time to consult military charts or maps, Falkenhorst picked up a Baedeker tourist guidebook of Norway at a stationery store on his way to his hotel room, where he planned the operation from maps he found in it. Hitler approved his plan. The invasion was a success, aside from heavy losses inflicted upon the ''

Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official military branch, branche ...

'' (navy).

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

forces tried to counter the German move, but Falkenhorst's troops drove them out of the country. For his part in the success, he was promoted to ''Generaloberst'' (Colonel General). Between December 1940 and December 1944, von Falkenhorst remained commander of all German forces in Norway (''

Wehrmachtbefehlshaber The () was the German chief military position in countries occupied by the Wehrmacht which were headed by a civilian administration. The main responsibilities of this position were military security in the area and command of the defense in cas ...

Norwegen''). Falkenhorst was dismissed from his command on 18 December 1944 and 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 ...

. He did not receive a further assignment.

Trial and conviction

After the war, Falkenhorst was tried by a joint British-Norwegian military tribunal for violating the rules of war. He had passed on the ''Führerbefehl'' known as the "

Commando Order The Commando Order () was issued by the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, OKW, the high command of the Wehrmacht, German Armed Forces, on 18 October 1942. This order stated that all Allies of World War II, Allied commandos captured in Europe and Africa ...

" which required captured

commando A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations force, specially trained for carrying out raids and operating in small teams behind enemy lines. Originally, "a commando" was a type of combat unit, as oppo ...

s to be shot. The evidence at trial included Falkenhorst's order that commandos, if kept alive for interrogation, should not "survive for more than twenty-four hours". He distributed the order in 1942, then reminded his subordinates about it in 1943, insisting that the captured commandos be handed over to the SD, the intelligence service of the SS, for execution. The defense argued that Falkenhorst was acting under

superior orders Superior orders, also known as just following orders or the Nuremberg defense, is a plea in a court of law that a person, whether civilian, military or police, should not be considered guilty of committing crimes ordered by a Officer (armed forces ...

. He was convicted and sentenced to death in 1946. The sentence was commuted to 20 years in prison, after a successful appeal by

Sven Hedin Sven Anders Hedin, KNO1kl RVO,Wennerholm, Eric (1978) ''Sven Hedin – En biografi'', Bonniers, Stockholm (19 February 1865 – 26 November 1952) was a Swedish geographer, topographer, explorer, photographer, travel writer and illustrator ...

. Hedin said Falkenhorst deserved mercy since he had successfully lobbied Hitler to spare the lives of 10 Norwegian resistance members who had been condemned to death for sabotage. Falkenhorst was released from

Werl Prison Werl Prison has about 900 inmates, and is one of the largest prisons in Germany. It is located in the town of Werl in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, east of Dortmund. In April 1945, the 95th Infantry Division (United States) "Victory" divis ...

on 23 July 1953, due to health issues. In 1968, following a heart attack, he died at

Holzminden Holzminden (; ) is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden (district), Holzminden. It is located on the river Weser, which at this point forms the border with the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. ...

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

, where his family had settled after fleeing from

Lower Silesia Lower Silesia ( ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ) is a historical and geographical region mostly located in Poland with small portions in the Czech Republic and Germany. It is the western part of the region of Silesia. Its largest city is Wrocław. The first ...

.Milestones
Time Magazine, 5 July 1968. He is buried in the Holzminden Cemetery.

Awards

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 ...

(30 April 1940) * Grand Cross with Swords of the

Order of the White Rose of Finland The Order of the White Rose of Finland (; ) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders. The ...

(12 September 1941)

References

* * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Falkenhorst, Nikolaus Von 1885 births 1968 deaths Military personnel from Wrocław Military personnel from the Province of Silesia 20th-century Freikorps personnel Reichswehr personnel German Army personnel of World War I German Army generals of World War II Colonel generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht) Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Recipients of the Hanseatic Cross (Bremen) Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Liberty, 2nd Class Recipients of the Order of the Yugoslav Crown Commanders of the Order of the Star of Romania German people convicted of war crimes German prisoners sentenced to death Prisoners sentenced to death by the British military Prussian Army personnel