Rudolf von Ribbentrop (11 May 1921 – 20 May 2019) was a German

Waffen-SS The (; ) was the military branch, combat branch of the Nazi Party's paramilitary ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscr ...

officer who served and was decorated in

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 ...

, and later became a wine merchant. His father was Nazi diplomat and

Foreign Minister In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

Joachim von Ribbentrop Ulrich Friedrich-Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop (; 30 April 1893 – 16 October 1946) was a German Nazi politician and diplomat who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs (Germany), Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1945. ...

. His autobiography gave further insight into his father and the last days of

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 ...

Early life

Rudolf von Ribbentrop was born in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...

as one of five children to Joachim von Ribbentrop. His father was appointed as German Ambassador to the United Kingdom in 1936 and was accompanied to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

by Rudolf. Enrolled into

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

, he had to later return to a boarding school in Germany after

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

became aware of his presence.

World War II

On 1 September 1939, when 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 ...

started, Ribbentrop joined as a private soldier in the SS-Infantry Regiment ''Deutschland'', with which he served during the Western Campaign, receiving the Iron Cross second class. During

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, his unit was sent to Finland. In February 1943 he was assigned to a

Panzer {{CatAutoTOC, numerals=no Words and phrases Germanic words and phrases Words and phrases by language la:Categoria:Verba Theodisca ...

regiment the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler division (LSSAH) and sent to

Kharkov Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

in February 1943, where he took part in the

Third Battle of Kharkov The Third Battle of Kharkov was a series of battles on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front of World War II, undertaken by Nazi Germany's Army Group South against the Soviet Red Army, around the city of Kharkov between 19 February ...

. Ribbentrop was awarded 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 ...

on 15 July 1943. On 1 August he was transferred to the newly formed SS Division Hitlerjugend as a training officer and company commander. During battles in

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

, Ribbentrop was awarded the

German Cross The War Order of the German Cross (), normally abbreviated to the German Cross or ''Deutsches Kreuz'', was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 28 September 1941. It was awarded in two divisions: in gold for repeated acts of bravery or military leade ...

in Gold. Following the breakout from Falaise, he saw action during

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive or Unternehmen Die Wacht am Rhein, Wacht am Rhein, was the last major German Offensive (military), offensive Military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western ...

. He surrendered with the division to the U.S. Army on 8 May 1945. Ribbentrop was “taken aback” by the American artillery barrages in Normandy: “The Americans threw everything at us, particularly artillery … it put everything that we had previously undergone into the shade”.

Post-war

Ribbentrop spent over three years in American, British, and French custody. While in custody, he was accused of shooting two Canadian prisoners of war, one of them fatally, during an interrogation in France. However, the charges could not be proven. Ribbentrop was released from Cherche-Midi Prison in July 1948. Afterwards, he became a wine merchant and wrote his memoirs. These gave fresh insight into the career of his father and also into the final days of Adolf Hitler. His work included previously unpublished photographs of his family and Hitler.

Works

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ribbentrop, Rudolf Von 1921 births 2019 deaths German untitled nobility SS-Hauptsturmführer Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Liberty People educated at Westminster School, London German autobiographers German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United Kingdom German prisoners of war in World War II held by France Military personnel from Wiesbaden Nobility in the Nazi Party 20th-century German nobility Panzer commanders Waffen-SS personnel 20th-century German writers 20th-century German businesspeople