Friedrich August Schack (27 March 1892 – 24 July 1968) was a German general 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 is best known for his pyrrhic defense of Caen after the allied invasion, September 1944, and for his brief leadership of the LXXXI Army Corps defending Aachen and the

Siegfried Line The Siegfried Line, known in German as the ''Westwall (= western bulwark)'', was a German defensive line built during the late 1930s. Started in 1936, opposite the French Maginot Line, it stretched more than from Kleve on the border with the ...

Career

Schack enlisted in the army, 6 August 1914 and fought 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 ...

. After the war he was retained in the Reichsheer where he served in junior officer roles. In 1934, Schack was appointed tactics teacher in the war college in Dresden. In 1937, he reached the rank of lieutenant colonel. Schack took part in 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 ...

and

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along ...

, the invasion of the Soviet Union. On 1 October 1942 he became commander of the war College in Potsdam. On 7 May 1943 he became commander of the 216th Infantry-Division. On 1 July 1943 Schack was promoted to major general and commander of the 216th Infantry division. Schack led his division in bloody combat in Orel, July 1943, 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 ...

, and suffered heavy losses. Some of the surviving soldiers were sent to Belgium, where they became the 272nd Infantry-Division. On 15 December 1943 Schack was appointed commander of the division. As such he was promoted, 1 January 1944, to lieutenant general. For leading his division during the defense of Caen after

D Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

, Schack was awarded, 21 September 1944, the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. However, Schack had sustained heavy losses during the battle and was suffering severe combat fatigue. On 4 September 1944 Schack became leader of the LXXXI Army corps, five badly mauled divisions, charged with defending Aachen and the

. Schack's superiors became dissatisfied with his performance and replaced him with General

Friedrich Köchling __NOTOC__ Friedrich Köchling (22 June 1893 – 6 June 1970) was a German general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II who held commands at the division and corps levels. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron ...

. Beginning 15 November 1944 Schack led the LXXXV army corps in southern France and the

Ardennes The Ardennes ( ; ; ; ; ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, extending into Germany and France. Geological ...

for one month. On 26 March 1945 Schack was assigned to lead the XXXII Army Corps, on the

Oder The Oder ( ; Czech and ) is a river in Central Europe. It is Poland's second-longest river and third-longest within its borders after the Vistula and its largest tributary the Warta. The Oder rises in the Czech Republic and flows through wes ...

near

Stettin Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the German border, it is a major seaport, the largest city of northwestern Poland, and se ...

. On 20 April 1945 Schack was promoted to General of Infantry and commanding general of the XXXII Army corps. At war's end the Allies imprisoned him. They released him 24 March 1948.

Awards and decorations

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 (22 March 1916) & 1st Class (29 March 1918)Thomas 1998, p. 244. *

Clasp to the Iron Cross Clasp, clasper or CLASP may refer to: * Book clasp, fastener for a book cover * Folding clasp, a device used to close a watch strap * Lobster clasp, fastener for jewellery * Wrist clasp, a dressing accessory * Medal bar, an element in militar ...

(1939) 2nd Class (10 October 1939) & 1st Class (25 June 1940) *

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 ...

** Knight's Cross on 24 July 1941 as ''

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 ...

'' and commander of Infanterie-Regiment 392Scherzer 2007, p. 653. ** Oak Leaves on 21 September 1944 as ''

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 ...

'' and commander of 272. Infanterie-Division

Bibliography

Citations

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schack, Friedrich August 1892 births 1968 deaths Military personnel from the Province of Silesia Generals of Infantry (Wehrmacht) German Army personnel of World War I Prussian Army personnel Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves Reichswehr personnel People from Karkonosze County Recipients of the Order of Military Merit (Bulgaria) German Army generals of World War II