Fritz Thiele (14 April 1894 – 4 September 1944) was a member of the German resistance who also served as the communications chief of the

German Army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...

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 ...

Life

Thiele was born in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and joined the Imperial Army in 1914. Working closely with Chief of Army communications

General der Nachrichtentruppe (Literally: General of the Communications Troops) was a General of the branch OF8-rank of German Army, introduced by the Wehrmacht in 1940. The rank was equivalent to the long established ''General der Kavallerie'', ''General der Artillerie' ...

Erich Fellgiebel Fritz Erich Fellgiebel (4 October 1886 – 4 September 1944) was a German Army general of signals and a resistance fighter, participating in both the 1938 September Conspiracy to topple dictator Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party, and the 1944 20 Ju ...

, he was part of the

assassination attempt This is a list of survivors of assassination attempts. For successful assassination attempts, see List of assassinations. Non-heads of state Heads of state and government Gallery File:Arrestation Gregori.jpg, Arrest of Louis Gregori, th ...

against

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

on 20 July 1944. He was responsible as part of the coup attempt in the effort to sever communications between officers loyal to Hitler and armed forces units in the field and from the communications centre at the

Bendlerstrasse The Bendlerblock () is a building complex in the Tiergarten district of Berlin, Germany, located on Stauffenbergstraße (formerly named ''Bendlerstraße''). Erected in 1914 as headquarters of several Imperial German Navy (''Kaiserliche Marine'') ...

in Berlin; he relayed a crucial message from Fellgiebel to General

Friedrich Olbricht Friedrich Olbricht (4 October 1888 – 21 July 1944) was a German general during World War II. He is known for being one of the plotters involved in the 20 July Plot, an attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler in 1944. Olbricht was a senior staff o ...

and the other conspirators that the assassination attempt had failed but the coup attempt should still proceed. There are differing accounts of the time when he provided this report. Thiele himself did not want to proceed with the coup attempt when he knew that the assassination attempt had failed and he left the Bendlerstrasse and visited

Walter Schellenberg Walter Friedrich Schellenberg (16 January 1910 – 31 March 1952) was a German Schutzstaffel, SS functionary during the Nazi era. He rose through the ranks of the SS, becoming one of the highest ranking men in the ''Sicherheitsdienst'' (SD) and ...

at the Reich Central Security Office in an attempt to extricate himself.

Death

Following Fellgiebel's arrest, Thiel was directed to assume his duties before he was himself arrested by the

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...

on 11 August 1944. He was condemned to death on 21 August 1944 by the '' Volksgerichtshof'' and hanged on 4 September 1944 at Plötzensee prison in Berlin.

Sources

Plötzensee Prison

References

1894 births 1944 deaths Executed members of the 20 July plot People from Berlin executed at Plötzensee Prison German Army generals of World War II Executed people from Berlin History of telecommunications in Germany Telecommunications in World War II People executed by hanging at Plötzensee Prison Lieutenant generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht) Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class Recipients of the Hanseatic Cross Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Liberty, 1st Class {{Germany-WWII-stub Executed military leaders

Life

Death

See also

Sources

References