__NOTOC__ Walter Gericke (23 December 1907 – 19 October 1991) was a German paratroop officer in the

Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

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 ...

and a general in the

Bundeswehr The (, ''Federal Defence'') are the armed forces of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. The is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part consists of the four armed forces: Germ ...

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

. He was a recipient of the

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 ...

. Gericke took part in the

Battle of the Netherlands The German invasion of the Netherlands (), otherwise known as the Battle of the Netherlands (), was a military campaign, part of Battle of France, Case Yellow (), the Nazi German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Neth ...

and the

Battle of Crete The Battle of Crete (, ), codenamed Operation Mercury (), was a major Axis Powers, Axis Airborne forces, airborne and amphibious assault, amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May ...

as a

Fallschirmjäger The () were the airborne forces branch of the Luftwaffe before and during World War II. They were the first paratroopers to be committed in large-scale airborne operations. They were commanded by Kurt Student, the Luftwaffe's second-in-comman ...

battalion commander. He later commanded the Fallschirjäger-Regiment 11 (part of the 4. Fallschirmjäger-Division) and fought in the

Battle of Anzio The Battle of Anzio was a battle of the Italian Campaign (World War II), Italian Campaign of World War II that commenced January 22, 1944. The battle began with the Allies of World War II, Allied amphibious landing known as Operation Shingle, an ...

. Gericke joined the newly formed

after the rearmament of

and as a Generalmajor led the 1. Luftlande-Division from 1962 to 1965. In 1974, Gericke supported the establishment of a

war cemetery A war grave is a burial place for members of the armed forces or civilians who died during military campaigns or operations. Definition The term "war grave" does not only apply to graves: ships sunk during wartime are often considered to b ...

Maleme Maleme () is a small village and civilian airfield to the west of Chania, in north western Crete, Greece. It is located in Platanias municipality, in Chania regional unit. History Bronze Age A Late Minoan tholos tomb has been discovered in the ...

which is the final resting place for 4,465 German soldiers who lost their lives on the island of Crete during World War II.

Awards

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 ...

(1939) 2nd Class (10 April 40) & 1st Class (12 May 1940)Thomas 1997, p. 195. *

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 on 12 December 1943 as ''

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

'' in the II./Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 6Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 135. *

** Knight's Cross on 14 June 1941 as ''

Hauptmann () is an officer rank in the armies of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. It is usually translated as ''captain''. Background While in contemporary German means 'main', it also has, and originally had, the meaning of 'head', i.e. ' literall ...

'' and commander of the IV./Fallschirmjäger-Sturm-RegimentScherzer 2007, p. 332. ** 585th Oak Leaves on 17 September 1944 as ''Major'' and commander of Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 11

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gericke, Walter 1907 births 1991 deaths Fallschirmjäger of World War II Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Major generals of the German Army German Army officers of World War II Military personnel from Lower Saxony