Rudolf Bamler (6 May 1896 – 13 March 1972) 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 ...

. Although Bamler was a member of the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...

he would later serve as a leading member of the

East German East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...

security forces.

Early life

Bamler was born in

Osterburg (Altmark) Osterburg (; ) is a town in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, situated approximately northwest of Stendal. Geography The town Osterburg consists of the following 11 ''Ortschaften'' or municipal divisions:

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...

, the son of Protestant clergyman Johannes Bamler (born 1864) and his wife Anna Garlipp (1873-1932).Rüdiger Wenzke, "Rudolf Bamler – Karrierebruch in der KVP" on Hans Ehlert, Armin Wagner (eds.), ''Genosse General! Die Militärelite der DDR in biografischen Skizzen'', Ch. Links Verlag, Berlin 2003, p. 33 He enlisted in the Prussian Army and served in the

First World War 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 ...

with the 15th Division.

Abwehr

Bamler was attached to the

Abwehr The (German language, German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', though the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context) ) was the German military intelligence , military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the ...

as the head of section III ( counterespionage) and here he helped to encourage closer co-operation with 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 ...

and

Sicherheitsdienst ' (, "Security Service"), full title ' ("Security Service of the ''Reichsführer-SS''"), or SD, was the intelligence agency of the Schutzstaffel, SS and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany. Established in 1931, the SD was the first Nazi intelligence ...

(SD). This role also meant that Bamler maintained a network of informers across German society rivalled only by that of the SD. Although he had a difficult personal relationship with his superior

Wilhelm Canaris Wilhelm Franz Canaris (1 January 1887 – 9 April 1945) was a admiral (Germany), German admiral and the chief of the ''Abwehr'' (the German military intelligence, military-intelligence service) from 1935 to 1944. Initially a supporter of Ad ...

the two co-operated closely in supporting Canaris' friend

Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (born Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco Bahamonde; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general and dictator who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces i ...

during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

World War II

Following the outbreak of the

Second World War 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 ...

Bamler was appointed Chief of Staff of

Wehrkreis The military districts, also known in some English-language publications by their German name as Wehrkreise (singular: ''Wehrkreis''), were administrative territorial units in Nazi Germany before and during World War II. The task of military dist ...

VII (

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

) before a transfer to the same role in XX ( Danzig). Samuel W. Mitcham, ''The German Defeat in the East, 1944-45'', Stackpole Books, 2007, p. 39 Bamler was then made Chief of Staff to the XXXXVII Panzer Corps in 1940. From 1942 to 1944 he was Chief of Staff to the German Army in Norway under Generaloberst

Nikolaus von Falkenhorst Paul Nikolaus von Falkenhorst (17 January 1885 – 18 June 1968) was a German general and war criminal during World War II. He planned and commanded the German invasion of Denmark and Norway in 1940, and was commander of German troops during th ...

, having risen to the rank of lieutenant general. Bamler was then moved to the Eastern Front and from 1 to 27 June he was commander of the 121st Infantry Division, before being replaced by Helmuth Prieß. He was simultaneously commander of the 12th Infantry Division, with Gerhard Engel his replacement. Bamler's commands ended as he had surrendered to 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 ...

on 27 June 1944 after commanding the 12th Infantry Division defending the town of

Mogilev Mogilev (; , ), also transliterated as Mahilyow (, ), is a city in eastern Belarus. It is located on the Dnieper, Dnieper River, about from the Belarus–Russia border, border with Russia's Smolensk Oblast and from Bryansk Oblast. As of 2024, ...

which had recently been surrounded during

Operation Bagration Operation Bagration () was the codename for the 1944 Soviet Byelorussian strategic offensive operation (), a military campaign fought between 22 June and 19 August 1944 in Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Byelorussia in the Eastern ...

. The German troops in Mogilev were eventually defeated by the Soviet onslaught with the last radio message from the town coming from General Bamler requesting that "Captain Opke of Artillery Regiment 12 receive the Oak Leaves to the Knights Cross for repeated outstanding military exploits". This message was sent at 10 o'clock in the evening and received an hour and 14 minutes later, this would be the last message from Mogilev. Following his capture by Soviet troops he later defected to the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

Later years

Bamler settled in

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

and worked as a

Stasi The Ministry for State Security (, ; abbreviated MfS), commonly known as the (, an abbreviation of ), was the Intelligence agency, state security service and secret police of East Germany from 1950 to 1990. It was one of the most repressive pol ...

police officer there from 1946 until his retirement in 1962. He also held the rank of major general in the

Kasernierte Volkspolizei The Kasernierte Volkspolizei () (KVP) was the precursor to the National People's Army (NVA) in East Germany. Their original headquarters was in Adlershof Boroughs and neighborhoods of Berlin, locality in East Berlin, and from 1954 in Strausber ...

. He died in

Groß Glienicke Groß Glienicke is a village located both in Berlin and Potsdam, the capital of the German state of Brandenburg. Until 2003, when it was merged into Potsdam, the Brandenburg—and main—side, was an autonomous municipality. The Berlin side is p ...

aged 77.Wenzke, p. 52

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bamler, Rudolf 1896 births 1972 deaths People from Osterburg (Altmark) Military personnel from the Province of Saxony Nazi Party members National Democratic Party of Germany (East Germany) politicians Socialist Unity Party of Germany members Lieutenant generals of the German Army (Wehrmacht) Major generals of the National People's Army (Ground Forces) German Army personnel of World War I Reichswehr personnel Stasi officers German prisoners of war in World War II held by the Soviet Union National Committee for a Free Germany members Recipients of the Iron Cross, 1st class Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit in silver Military personnel from Saxony-Anhalt