__NOTOC__ Gustav Heistermann von Ziehlberg (10 December 1898 – 2 February 1945) was a war criminal and 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 ...

. Convicted in connection with the

20 July plot The 20 July plot, sometimes referred to as Operation Valkyrie, was a failed attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler, the chancellor and leader of Nazi Germany, and overthrow the Nazi regime on 20 July 1944. The plotters were part of the German r ...

, he was sentenced to death and

executed by firing squad Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French , rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are usually re ...

. Von Ziehlberg was married to Anneliese von Tschischewitz, with whom he had four daughters and two sons. Whilst commanding the 65th Infantry Division in Italy, von Ziehlberg ordered the illegal executions of four SAS men: Captain Patrick Dudgeon, Sergeant William Foster, Corporal James Shortall, and Gunner Bernard Brunt, between September and October 1943. He took 34 Italian civilians hostage and requested permission to execute them in reprisal for suspected partisan attacks. The request was denied by

Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (; 15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as The Desert Fox (, ), was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal) during World War II. He served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of ...

. Von Ziehlberg fought on the Eastern Front in 1944. Denkzeichen 3 Murellenberg Berlin

On 20 July 1944, von Ziehlberg was ordered to arrest his ''Ia'' staff officer Major Joachim Kuhn for his involvement in the

. Kuhn together with his friend Lieutenant Albrecht von Hagen had arranged for the explosive delivered by Helmuth Stieff to

Claus von Stauffenberg Claus Philipp Maria Justinian Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (; 15 November 1907 – 21 July 1944) was a German army officer who is best known for his failed attempt on 20 July 1944 to assassinate Adolf Hitler at the Wolf's Lair, part of Op ...

. On 21 July he had accompanied General

Henning von Tresckow Henning Hermann Karl Robert von Tresckow (; 10 January 1901 – 21 July 1944) was a German military officer with the rank of major general in the German Army who helped organize German resistance against Adolf Hitler. He attempted to assassin ...

to the front near Królowy Most, where Tresckow committed suicide. Confronted with the warrant, Kuhn denied any entanglement. Instead of arresting him, von Ziehlberg told Kuhn to transfer his official duties and proceed to Berlin in order to clear things up. Kuhn used that opportunity to flee towards the forces of the Soviet

2nd Belorussian Front The 2nd Belorussian Front (, ''Vtoroi Belorusskiy front'', also romanized "Byelorussian SSR, Byelorussian"), was a Front (military formation), major formation of the Soviet Army during World War II, being equivalent to a Western army group. I ...

. He was taken prisoner and interrogated by the

SMERSH SMERSH () was an umbrella organization for three independent counter-intelligence agencies in the Red Army formed in late 1942 or even earlier, but officially announced only on 14 April 1943. The name SMERSH was coined by Joseph Stalin. The form ...

counter-intelligence agency. Von Ziehlberg was charged with negligent disobedience. In September 1944, he was sentenced to nine months in prison by the ''

Reichskriegsgericht The Reichskriegsgericht (, RKG; ) was the highest German military law, military court in Germany between 1900 and 1945. Legal basics and responsibilities After the Kingdom of Prussia, Prussian-led Unification of Germany, the German Empire with e ...

'', but was pardoned for his previous service. He returned to his division, but was again summoned to Berlin on 30 October. Hitler, suspecting him of

collaboration Collaboration (from Latin ''com-'' "with" + ''laborare'' "to labor", "to work") is the process of two or more people, entities or organizations working together to complete a task or achieve a goal. Collaboration is similar to cooperation. The ...

with ''

Generaloberst A ("colonel general") was the second-highest general officer rank in the German '' Reichswehr'' and ''Wehrmacht'', the Austro-Hungarian Common Army, the East German National People's Army and in their respective police services. The rank w ...

Ludwig Beck Ludwig August Theodor Beck (; 29 June 1880 – 20 July 1944) was a German general who served as Chief of the German General Staff from 1933 to 1938. Beck was one of the main conspirators of the 20 July plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler. ...

, revoked his sentence and had von Ziehlberg re-arrested to face another trial. On 21 November he was sentenced to death by the ''Reichskriegsgericht'', dishonourably discharged, and stripped of all honors, ranks and titles. The judges openly stated that they had to follow the

Führer ( , spelled ''Fuehrer'' when the umlaut is unavailable) is a German word meaning "leader" or " guide". As a political title, it is strongly associated with Adolf Hitler, the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. Hitler officially cal ...

's instructions. Ziehlberg was executed on 2 February 1945 by a Wehrmacht firing squad at a proving ground near

Olympic Stadium ''Olympic Stadium'' is the name usually given to the main stadium of an Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports ...

in the

Charlottenburg Charlottenburg () is a Boroughs and localities of Berlin, locality of Berlin within the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf. Established as a German town law, town in 1705 and named after Sophia Charlotte of Hanover, Queen consort of Kingdom ...

(present-day Westend) district of Berlin.

Awards

on 27 July 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 28. Jäger-DivisionFellgiebel 2000, p. 185.

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* *

External links

Gustav Heistermann von Ziehlberg @ Ostdeutsche-Biographie.de
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ziehlberg, Gustav Heistermann von 1898 births 1945 deaths Lieutenant generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht) People from Inowrocław Military personnel from the Province of Posen German Army personnel of World War I German Army generals of World War II German military personnel who were court-martialed 20th-century German murderers Prussian Army personnel Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Executed military leaders Reichswehr personnel Executed members of the 20 July plot People executed by Nazi Germany by firing squad Nazi war crimes in Italy Nazi war criminals