Fegelein: Hero or Fiend?

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ShinjiMimura
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Fegelein: Hero or Fiend?

#1

Post by ShinjiMimura » 08 Jan 2006, 17:17

I don't know whether this has been debated before, but what do y'all personally feel about Hitler's SS Liasion Officer?

On the one hand, he was extremely assertive that Germany sue for peace with the Allies, and often (although foolishly) went against the Führer's direct orders about a Götterdamerung. It can be said that Fegelein was a true German hero, desperately trying to stop Hitler from taking the shattered remains of Germany with him on his "Funeral Pyre". Ultimately, he died in his attempts.

On the other hand, it can also be said that Fegelein was an arrogant idiot, who spoke out in the most inopportune of places and publicly riled the Fuhrer and his military aides. As a military officer, he looted anything that had a profit and was ready to flee the country with his loot in tow with false identification papers.

The case is open on Fegelein: an hero or a coward?

I'd very much like to hear your views on this matter.

Thanks in advance.

Rob - wssob2
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#2

Post by Rob - wssob2 » 08 Jan 2006, 18:32

On the one hand, he was extremely assertive that Germany sue for peace with the Allies, and often (although foolishly) went against the Fuhrer's direct orders about a Gotterdamerung.
Really? I wasn’t aware of this. What are your sources?
It can be said that Fegelein was a true German hero, desperately trying to stop Hitler from taking the shattered remains of Germany with him on his "Funeral Pyre".
A true German hero? See below.
On the other hand, it can also be said that Fegelein was an arrogant idiot, who spoke out in the most inopportune of places and publicly riled the Fuhrer and his military aides.
I do know of one instance in which Fegelein was graphically describing how the 13th SS division troops mutilate their Partisan enemies when Hitler told him in essence to shut up.


Fegelein had a long pre-war career in the Equestrian-SS and a distinguised combat record as commander of the SS-Calvary Brigade and 8th SS Division. The Gestapo investigated Fegelein for allegations of race defilement and graft in 1940, but Himmler had the proceedings stopped. Fegelein, as the leader of the SS cavalry, was very much a Himmler favorite as he and his mounted troops leant an air of dashing aristocracy to the SS.

As a component of Himmler’s Kommandostab RFSS, Fegelein's Waffen-SS cavalry unit murdered tens of thousands of Jewish civilians in the Pripyet Marshes area of White Russia during the late summer of 1941. Thus Fegelein was a Waffen-SS commander directly implicated in the Holocaust.


Fegelein apparently was a devoted nazi and firm believer in master race/subhuman Jew paradigm. I belive forum member’s AnDie’s recent book on SS commanders gets into these biographical details, but I unfortunately don’t own a copy.


Fegelein was wounded in September 1943 and presumably spent some time convalescing; he married Gretl in June 1944, and got the OKW posting the following July. Fegelein supposedly got his OKW~W-SS posting after Himmler showed Hitler a letter Fegelein wrote which said in part "If the other had not been there, I would so much have liked to tell the Fuhrer how much his soldiers revere and are devoted to him," but ingratiating letters probably paled in importance to being a pseudo-brother-in-law.

SS-Gruppenführer Fegelein served as Himmler's liason to the Führer ("Verb.Offz. der Waffen-SS beim Führer")- in essence the W-SS representative in the OKW - from July 1944 to April 29, 1945.


Fegelein went AWOL from the Führerbunker in the last days of WWII, and was found drunk in civilian clothes hiding out in a Berlin apartment with a red-headed bombshell (a woman, not a munition - and one who is alleged to have been a British spy of Hungarian descent!) Fegelein was dragged back to the Führer to experience one last vitrolic tyrade from Adolf, then shot among the shellholes of the Chancellery garden for desertion. Hitler apparently believed Fegelein either knew of or was directly involved in Himmler’s last ditch attempts to make peace with the Allies, and thus wanted him shot for this reason (and treason!).


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Michael Miller
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#3

Post by Michael Miller » 08 Jan 2006, 19:19

Good points all regarding "Flegelein", Rob. A reading of his biography in "Die Generale der Waffen-SS und Polizei, Band I" shows him to have been a glorified Einsatzgruppe commander during his command of SS-Kavallerie-Brigade / Division, and a poltroon during the last days in Berlin.

~ Mike

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#4

Post by Phil Nix » 08 Jan 2006, 20:17

I get the impression that he married Gretl Braun to get near her sister, He was a throughly obnoxious character.
Phil Nix

Marc Rikmenspoel
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#5

Post by Marc Rikmenspoel » 08 Jan 2006, 20:29

As long as we're mentioning Gretl Braun, it is worth noting that this was a marriage of convenience, not love. Gretl had been fooling around with Fritz Darges while he was at FHQ, and when she got pregnant, Darges refused to marry her. He wasn't welcome anymore, and left for the front to rejoin SS-Panzer Reg. 5. Fegelein agreed to marry Gretl, and put a facade of respectability on her pregnancy, but there's no reason to suppose he personally had feelings for her, or her for him.

There's always a chance that the late war events associated with Fegelein were a sham, designed to throw the Allies off his track while he escaped abroad. Glenn Infield investigated this in a chapter of his book Secrets of the SS, and while it ends up as being unlikely, there's no denying that American intelligence services did spend a while looking into the possibility that Hermann Fegelein was still alive, somewhere.

One last item that comes to mind is a personal observation. Once Hermann Fegelein was gone from the SS Kavallerie, there seems to have been less and less of a role for his brother Waldemar. When more commanders were needed, Heer officers such as Karlheinz Keitel were brought in, and Waldemar was basically cast aside. This suggests that Hermann Fegelein's influence played a major role in Waldemar Fegelein's career.

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#6

Post by Helly Angel » 08 Jan 2006, 21:12

Marc Rikmenspoel wrote:As long as we're mentioning Gretl Braun, it is worth noting that this was a marriage of convenience, not love. Gretl had been fooling around with Fritz Darges while he was at FHQ, and when she got pregnant, Darges refused to marry her. He wasn't welcome anymore, and left for the front to rejoin SS-Panzer Reg. 5. Fegelein agreed to marry Gretl, and put a facade of respectability on her pregnancy, but there's no reason to suppose he personally had feelings for her, or her for him...
Can you say sources of this please?

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Michael Miller
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#7

Post by Michael Miller » 08 Jan 2006, 21:20

Marc~

My information has it as follows (the bit about Darges being the father comes as quite a revelation).

Re: Fegelein:
Engaged in 04.1944 to Margarethe (Gretl) Franziska Bertha Braun (born 31.08.1915 in München / died 10.10.1987 in Steingaden; youngest daughter of Fritz and Franziska Braun and sister of Hitler's mistress, Eva Braun). The couple married in a civil wedding at the Salzburg town hall on 03.06.1944; Adolf Hitler and Martin Bormann acted as witnesses. When Hermann Fegelein was shot in the Reichskanzlei, Gretl was pregnant with their only child (a daughter, Eva Barbara Fegelein, born 05.05.1945 / committed suicide 25.04.1971 due to an unhappy love affair). Gretl Braun-Fegelein moved from Garmisch-Partenkirchen to München, where she married the textile distributor Kurt Berlinghoff on 06.02.1954.

Best wishes,
~ Mike

Max Williams
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#8

Post by Max Williams » 08 Jan 2006, 22:17

Here's a post I wrote about 18 months ago:-
Max Williams wrote:During the 1970s I had the privilege of reading some private correspondence from Gertrud Junge concerning life at the Obersalzberg. In it, she made no secret of the fact that Eva had eyes only for Fegelein and the feeling was reciprocated. She suggested that the relationship went further than just flirting, but any talk of such an affair was understood to be strictly forbidden. (It was interesting to note that even 30 years after the event, Frau Junge was still reluctant to be open about the affair.) I also believe that she wrote about Eva's "fling" with Fegelein in a book, but I've searched everywhere for it at home without success.
Max.
Thought I'd mention it here. If Darges was dallying with Gretl and Fegelein was dallying with Eva, it must have been very complicated at the Berghof during the night!
I'd also like to know the source of Marc's information please.
Max.

Marc Rikmenspoel
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#9

Post by Marc Rikmenspoel » 08 Jan 2006, 23:21

I took it from Infield's book that I mentioned above. My copy is in a box somewhere in my garage. I'll try and find it, meanwhile, the book is widely available in libraries, at least in the USA. One way or another, I'll report what it says in more detail asap.

Rob - wssob2
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#10

Post by Rob - wssob2 » 09 Jan 2006, 03:42

wow. sounds like a soap opera... "As the Swastikas Turn"... :P

John P. Moore
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#11

Post by John P. Moore » 09 Jan 2006, 05:11

Despite the negative comments of several persons here towards Hermann Fegelein, I’d like to share an important fact. He is highly regarded by the veterans of the SS Cavalry. Generally, such ignoble officers of the Waffen-SS as some here have described Fegelein are either openly criticized by veterans or never mentioned as if they never existed. That’s not the case with Hermann Fegelein from among the dozens of SS Cavalry veterans ranging in rank from Obersturmbannführer to Unterscharführer that I have known for over 15 years. I also met his brother, Waldemar Fegelein, at a reunion of the SS cavalry in 1995 and did not observe any unfriendly behavior towards him. Further, the children of several former regimental commanders, one of whom lives in California, are on friendly terms with each other and the veterans their fathers served with and they have remarked about the positive feelings towards Hermann Fegelein. It’s also worth noting that the March 1942 recommendation for Fegelein’s Knights Cross was written by an army infantry general and corps commander.

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#12

Post by Marc Rikmenspoel » 09 Jan 2006, 08:58

It is quite possible that he was an obnoxious character in some circumstances, and a good leader and comrade in combat. I had a hard time explaining to folks on a mailing list a few years ago my view that Oskar Dirlewanger was both a very brave man in combat, and a very unstable one in civilian life. Some folks had trouble reconciling this, since they thought that bravery in combat somehow equated with being a person of good character. I haven't studied Hermann Fegelein enough to conclude more than that from late 1941 on, more and more of the SS-Kavallerie Brigade/Division's time was spent in front line combat, and that apparently Hermann Fegelein acquitted himself well in those circumstances.

John, do the veterans and kin say anything about Waldemar Fegelein? If my guess on his situation is wrong, I'd like to know! Part of my thinking on the matter involves the way he was quickly supplanted by Karl Gesele as commander of the 37. SS-FKD Lützow in late February 1945.

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#13

Post by Michael Miller » 09 Jan 2006, 17:47

John Moore wrote:
Despite the negative comments of several persons here towards Hermann Fegelein, I’d like to share an important fact. He is highly regarded by the veterans of the SS Cavalry. Generally, such ignoble officers of the Waffen-SS as some here have described Fegelein are either openly criticized by veterans or never mentioned as if they never existed. That’s not the case with Hermann Fegelein from among the dozens of SS Cavalry veterans ranging in rank from Obersturmbannführer to Unterscharführer that I have known for over 15 years. I also met his brother, Waldemar Fegelein, at a reunion of the SS cavalry in 1995 and did not observe any unfriendly behavior towards him. Further, the children of several former regimental commanders, one of whom lives in California, are on friendly terms with each other and the veterans their fathers served with and they have remarked about the positive feelings towards Hermann Fegelein. It’s also worth noting that the March 1942 recommendation for Fegelein’s Knights Cross was written by an army infantry general and corps commander.
John~

I have the highest respect for all the work, including countless interviews with Waffen-SS veterans, that you've done. And I believe in objectively researching the officers and men of the Waffen-SS rather than continuing to brand them en masse as war criminals. But I don't believe that the "veterans of the SS Cavalry" are the right men to consult as regards the question "Fegelein: Hero or Fiend?". They probably, and justly, speak highly of him because they believe he was a courageous leader who treated his men well. But when many of these now-elderly and kindly men were young members of "Florian Geyer", they participated in actions that can only be described as atrocities. I assume they believed that what they were doing was right, that partisans were scum who did not themselves adhere to any code of civilized conduct, let alone Geneva or Hague. And I imagine many of them, imbued with anti-semitism from their time in the Hitlerjugend and education in the Nazified school system, truly believed that "subhuman Jewry" was in the vanguard of a Soviet campaign of international bolshevization. I doubt they talk about such things at their reunions, but even if they did, I doubt they'd criticize Fegelein on the basis of his directing them to burn villages and execute all their inhabitants. Unfortunately, I can only speculate because I've never attended a Waffen-SS reunion. It seems, though, that they would do their best to sanitize the record and speak highly of their commander, because to not do so might put them in an unpleasant light.
I find it strange that they would not at the very least criticize his conduct in Berlin, where he behaved in a manner that can only be described as cowardly. The man proved himself to be a deserter and a thief at the end, and throughout his wartime career was a mass murderer. He was even a criminal by SS standards, committing at least one act of "Rassenschande" with a Polish woman and "misappropriating" confiscated goods (though his protector, Himmler, had these matter dismissed).

Here's a summary of Fegelein's wartime record, much of it derived from Andreas Schulz, et al, Die Generale der Waffen-SS und Polizei, Band I (Biblio-Verlag, 2003). There may be some errors here- Mark Yerger once tried to explain the development of the SS-Kavallerie-Brigade -> Division to me and I may or may not have gotten it right. Much of what I've gathered indicates that units commanded by Fegelein from 1939 to 1943 were employed to do the dirty work for various HSSPF and Himmler's Kommandostab.

Sincerely and respectfully,
~ Mike




15.09.1939 – 15.12.1939 Führer of SS-Totenkopf-Reiterstandarte (garrisoned in Warsaw after the conclusion of the Polish Campaign).

15.12.1939 – 01.12.1940 Führer of 1.SS-Totenkopf-Reiterstandarte. This was his old command given a number. On 15.05.1940 the Standarte was split into two Standarten, with Fegelein retaining command of 1.Standarte and Franz Magill leading 2.Standarte. These units were involved in large-scale operations, under the direction of HSSPF “Ost” (Friedrich-Wilhelm Krüger), against Polish irregular troops in the area of Kammienna-Konsky-Kielce, 1939/1940. On 07.12.1939, Fegelein began to direct the mass shooting of over 1,700 people in the forest of Kampinos near Palmiry, 30 km northwest of Warsaw. Orders for these killings originated with SS-Standartenführer Josef Meisinger, deputy commander of Einsatzgruppe IV in Warsaw.

12.11.1940 – 01.12.1940 Kommandeur of 1.Halb-Standarte ["half regiment"] / 1.SS-Totenkopf-Reiterstandarte. Franz Magill was placed in charge of the 2.Halb-Standarte.

11.12.1940 – 21.03.1941 Kommandeur of SS-Totenkopf-Kavallerie-Regiment. This was the old Standarte retitled as a Kavallerie-Regiment to bring it into line with Waffen-SS procedure.

11.12.1940 – 21.03.1941 Kommandeur of 1.Halbregiment / SS-Totenkopf-Kavallerie-Regiment 11. The Regiment was again divided into two Regiments effective 21.03.1941 with Fegelein commanding the 1st and Magill commanding the 2nd. The “half-regiment” system was abandoned. The two Regiments were to be operational by 01.04.1941.

21.03.1941 – 02.08.1941 Kommandeur of SS-Kavallerie-Regiment 1. Succeeded by Gustav Lombard.

23.04.1941 Nearly court-martialed after he and his regiment had stolen money and luxury goods being transported to München from Warsaw; court-martial quashed by direct order of Heinrich Himmler.

16.05.1941 Brought before an SS court accused of having sexual relations with a Polish woman in Krakow. She became pregnant and was induced to have an abortion. The case was dismissed on Himmler’s orders on 30.06.1941.

17.07.1941 Assigned as tactical and operational subordinate to the HSSPF “Russland-Mitte” (Erich von dem Bach) for the systematic combing of the Pripet Marshes (known as the “Pripjet-Aktion”). After completion of the first stage of this action, Fegelein reported the shooting of 13,788 Jews and “Soldaten in Zivil” (“soldiers in civilian clothes”). From late-08.1941 to 13.09.1941, all Jewish men (a combined total of 3,500) in the Rogatschew region were reported shot.

27.07.1941 Issued Regiments-Befehl (Regimental Order) Nr. 42 to SS-Kavallerie-Regiment. This order included the following statements: “Jews are for the most part to be treated as looters”; “Women and children are to be dispersed”, “Russian soldiers in civilian clothing as well as looters plus armed civilians and saboteurs are to be summarily shot under the direction of an officer”.

02.08.1941 – 01.05.1942 Kommandeur of the SS-Kavallerie-Brigade (officially authorized by Himmler on 02.08.1941, the Brigade became operational with effect from 01.09.1941). First holder of this post. Succeeded by Willi Bittrich. Wounded in action by Soviet snipers, 21.12.1941 and 22.12.1941. His second wound resulted in severe blood loss, and he was hospitalized until 04.1942. He was temporarily succeeded by SS-Hauptsturmführer Karl Liecke, then by Gustav Lombard (from 06.03.1942 – 18.04.1942). The SS-Kavallerie-Brigade was designated “SS-Reiterbrigade Fegelein” during his absence.

18.09.1941 Submitted a summary report concerning pacification by the SS-Kavallerie-Brigade of the Pripet Marshes. The following statistics were presented: Looters shot – 14,178 [remember- per his own order, "looters" = Jews / Mike], Partisans shot – 1001, Red Army shot – 699, Prisoners taken – 830.

24.09.1941 – 26.09.1941 Participant and lecturer in an instructional course on combating partisans offered by General der Infanterie z.V. Max von Schenckendorff (Commander of the Rear Army Area, Central Russian Front), Mogilew. The course was also attended by Erich von dem Bach and Arthur Nebe). In the course of this training, participants observed a demonstration killing of about 30 Jews in the town of Knjashizy by members of Einsatzkommando 8 and Polizei-Bataillon 322 on 25.09.1941.

28.09.1941 After his return from the anti-partisan instructional course, issued SS-Kavallerie-Brigadebefehl (SS Cavalry Brigade Order) Nr. 8. The order stated: “Cooperation with the SD is therefore ordered under all circumstances” and “Where units are quartered within a community for longer periods, Jewish districts or ghettos to be used without exception in case these cannot be cleared [liquidated] immediately. Signed Fegelein”.

06.10.1941 Tried by the Hauptamt SS-Gericht for misappropriation of confiscated
goods (apparently acquitted).

30.05.1942 – 31.12.1944 “Inspekteur des Reit- und Fahrwesens” (Inspector of Cavalry and Transportation) in the SS-Führungshauptamt (with effect from 01.05.1942). This office eventually became Inspektion 3 [In 3], a component of Amtsgruppe Inspektionen [Inspections Department], designated Amtsgruppe C [Inspektionen / Inspectorates] on 26.11.1942. From 24.02.1944, the inspectorate was amalgamated with Fegelein’s Amt VI in the SS-Führungshauptamt. He was succeeded by Carl Reichsritter von Oberkamp.

26.11.1942 – 31.12.1944 Chef of Amt VI (Reit- und Fahrwesen) in the SS-Führungshauptamt. Succeeded by Carl Reichsritter von Oberkamp.

01.12.1942 – 20.04.1943 Führer of SS-Kampfgruppe “Fegelein” on the Don Front under Heeresgruppe B (primary elements: II.Bataillon / SS-Polizei-Schützen-Regiment 3 (mot.) [of the SS-Polizei Division]; various Army Flak and field howitzer units; and, from 00.01.1943, Polizei-Regiment 15 of the Ordnungspolizei). Wounded in action at Golaja, 23.12.1942.

20.04.1943 – 01.11.1943 Kommandeur of SS-Kavallerie-Division (redesignated 8.SS-Kavallerie-Division “Florian Geyer” on 23.10.1943). Although appointed with effect from 20.04.1943, he did not actually report for duty until 14.05.1943. He was Succeeded by August Zehender who had been standing in for the permanent commander, Fritz Freitag (who was ill). Again wounded in action during fighting south of Kharkov on 09.09.1943 and succeeded by Bruno Streckenbach who took official command of the Division on 01.11.1943.

27.05.1943 – 10.06.1943 Directed the SS-Kavallerie-Division in Unternehmen “Weichsel” (Operation“Vistula”) within the wet triangle of the Dnjepr-Pripjet southwest of Gomel. During this operation, Fegelein oversaw the killing of 4,018 persons, the deportation of 18,860 laborers (10,422 of these by the SS-Kavallerie-Division), the confiscation of 21,000 head of cattle, and the destruction of 61 villages.

13.06.1943 – 16.06.1943 Directed the SS-Kavallerie-Division in Unternehmen “Ziethen” west of Retzhiza. During this operation, 63 villages were destroyed. Fegelein was in constant telephone contact with Hitler during Operations “Weichsel” and “Ziethen”. Fegelein’s telephone operator later stated that SS-Kavallerie-Division was ordered to neutralize all partisans within an area of 200 by 120 kilometers).

26.06.1943 – 27.07.1943 Directed the SS-Kavallerie-Division in Unternehmen “Seydlitz” in the area of Owrutsch-Mosyr. SS-Kavallerie-Division destroyed 96 villages and recorded 5,106 persons killed, 606 taken prisoner, 9,166 persons deported, and 19,941 head of cattle confiscated.

13.09.1943 – End of 12.1943 Recovering from wounds.

01.11.1943 – 31.12.1943 Assigned to Führerreserve with attachment to the Kommandostabes des Reichsführer-SS.

01.01.1944 – 29.04.1945 Verbindungsoffizier (Liaison Officer) of the Reichsführer-SS (Himmler) to the Führer and Reichskanzler. He served as Himmler’s representative to Hitler’s military conferences. On 20.07.1944, he received a minor wound to his left thigh in the explosion of a bomb which had been placed under the conference table at Führerhauptquartier, Rastenburg by Oberst i.G. Klaus Schenk Graf von Stauffenburg.

23.04.1945 Traveled with Himmler and Prof. Dr. med. Karl Gebhardt to the SS-Lazarett Hohenlychen.

24.04.1945 Visited the headquarters of the SS-Führungshauptamt at Fürstenberg. There he confided to Hans Jüttner that he had no intention of dying in Berlin).

25.04.1945 Returned by air to Berlin.

27.04.1945 Departed from the Führerbunker and went to his apartment at 4 Bleibtreustrasse in Berlin-Charlottenburg. There he changed into civilian clothes and met up with the wife of a Hungarian diplomat, possibly his mistress. His absence was noted by Hitler and members of the Reichssicherheitsdienst [RSD / Hitler’s personal security force] were sent out to search. He was arrested by SS-Obersturmbannführer Peter Högl at his apartment. Found in Fegelein’s possession were 105.725 Reichsmark, 3185 Swiss Francs, and pieces of gold. Taken back to the Führerbunker, he was confronted by Hitler who, after learning of Himmler’s attempts to contact the Allies via the Swedish Red Cross envoy Count Folke Bernadotte, became suspicious of Fegelein’s actions and motives. A court-martial was hastily assembled, during which Wilhelm Mohnke, in charge of the defense of the Reichskanzlei, degraded him to SS-Mann, expelled him from the SS, and ordered him held in an improvised cell. Fegelein was later interrogated by Heinrich Müller, chief of the Gestapo, on 28.04.1945. The next evening, on Hitler’s orders, he was taken into the garden of the Foreign Office and shot by members of the Reichssicherheitsdienst.

Decorations & Awards:
30.07.1944 Schwertern zum Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (Nr. 83), as SS-
Gruppenführer und Generalleutnant der Waffen-SS, for service as Kommandeur of SS- Kavallerie-Division, Eastern Front (award recommendation submitted by Kommandierender General XLII.Armee-Korps supported by Generaloberst Eberhard von Mackensen [1.Panzer-Armee] and General der Panzertruppe Werner Kempf [8.Armee])
25.12.1942 Eichenlaub zum Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (Nr. 157), as SS-Oberführer and Führer Kampfgruppe “Fegelein” in area of Heeresgruppe Mitte, Eastern Front (immediate award; for capture of a Soviet corps staff at Kantemiranka on 20.12.1942)
02.03.1942 Ritterkreuz des Eisernes Kreuzes, as SS-Standartenführer d. R. and
Kommandeur SS-Kavallerie-Brigade / Generalkommando XXIII.Armee-Korps / Armeeoberkommando 9 / Heeresgruppe Mitte, Eastern Front (for bravery and leadership in preventing the advance of strong enemy forces which had breached the gap west of Rshev towards the south against the rear of 206.Infanterie-Division in late-01. / early-02.1942; award recommendation made by General der Infanterie Albrecht Schubert, Kommandierender General of XXIII.Armee-Korps, who praised “... [Fegelein’s] personal unshakability, exemplary bravery, and confident desire to attack...”)
01.11.1943 Deutsches Kreuz in Gold, as SS-Brigadeführer und Generalmajor der Waffen-SS and Kommandeur SS-Kavallerie-Division, Eastern Front (award recommendation dated 07.10.1943 and signed by Bruno Streckenbach; approved by General der Panzertruppe Friedrich Kirchner, Kommandierender General of LVII.Armee-Korps)
28.06.1941 1939 Eisernes Kreuz I.Klasse
15.12.1940 1939 Eisernes Kreuz II.Klasse
01.09.1942 Kriegsverdienstkreuz II.Klasse mit Schwertern
05.12.1943 Nahkampfspange II.Stufe (Silber)(for 56 days of close combat completed 05.10.1943)
11.09.1943 Nahkampfspange I.Stufe (Bronze)
00.00.194_ Mentioned in daily The daily Wehrmachtbericht
00.00.194_ Allgemeine-Sturmabzeichen
02.10.1941 Infanterie-Sturmabzeichen in Silber
20.08.1944 Verwundeten-Abzeichen 20 Juli 1944 in Silber (for wounds received in the 20.07.1944 bombing of Hitler’s conference room at Rastenburg)
00.00.1943 Verwundetenabzeichen, 1939 in Silber (for wounds received south of Kharkov, 09.09.1943 and 13.09.1943)
00.00.194_ Verwundetenabzeichen, 1939 in Schwarz
01.09.1942 Medaille “Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42”
00.00.19__ Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 1. Oktober 1938
00.00.19__ Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 13. März 1938
[01.12.1937] Deutsches Reichssportabzeichen in Bronze
[01.12.1937] SA-Sportabzeichen in Bronze
00.00.19__ Deutsches Reitersportabzeichen in Gold
00.00.19__ Deutsches Reitersportabzeichen in Silber
00.00.19__ Deutsches Reitersportabzeichen in Bronze
00.00.194_ Dienstauszeichnung der NSDAP in Bronze
00.00.19__ Ehrenzeichen für Deutsche Volkspflege 2.Stufe
00.00.19__ Ehrenzeichen für Deutsche Volkspflege 3.Stufe
00.00.1936 Deutsche Olympia-Ehrenzeichen I.Klasse
00.00.194_ SS-Dienstauszeichnungen
[01.12.1937] Ehrendegen des Reichsführers-SS
[01.12.1937] Totenkopfring der SS
00.00.19__ SS-Zivilabzeichen Nr. 24 180
16.12.1935 Julleuchter der SS
00.00.193_ Ehrenwinkel für alte Kämpfer
ca. 1942 Silver Medal for Bravery (Italy)
00.00.19__ Decoration for Cultural Merit Second Class (for sport)(Romania)

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Dieter Zinke
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Location: Koblenz / germany

#14

Post by Dieter Zinke » 09 Jan 2006, 19:59

Thank you Mike for clearing up the involvement of Fegelein in genozide and war-crimes.

But for supplement our (Andreas Schulz and myself) statement in "Die Generale der Waffen-SS und der Polizei", vol. 1):

27.07.1941 Befehl Fegeleins:
“Juden sind zum großen Teil als Plünderer zu behandeln“, “Weiber und Kinder sind wegzutreiben“, “Soldaten der russischen Armee in Zivil und Plünderer sowie bewaffnete und sabotagetreibende Zivilisten sind standrechtlich unter dem Befehl eines Offz. zu erschießen“; (SS-Kav.Rgt. 1, Regiments-Befehl Nr. 42) Amtsgruppe A des SS-Führungshauptamtes

13.08.1941 Fegelein meldet von dem Bach (erster Teil der “Pripjet-Aktion“) 13.788 erschossene Juden und “Soldaten in Zivil“. Ende August bis 13.09.1941 werden alle jüdischen Männer, insgesamt 3.500 im Raum Rogatschew erschossen
24.09.1941 - 26.09.1941 Teilnehmer und Vortragender bei einem Lehrgang zur Partisanenbekämpfung “...Wo der Partisan ist, ist der Jude, und wo der Jude ist, ist der Partisan“ des Befehlshabers des rückwärtigen Heeresgebietes Mitte, General der Infanterie z.V. Max von Schenckendorff, in Mogilew. Am 25.09.1941 werden zu Demonstrationszwecken im Rahmen einer “Lehrübung“ vor den Augen der Lehrgangsteilnehmer 30 Juden und mehrere “Verdächtige“ im Dorf Knjashizy erschossen
28.09.1941 nach Rückkehr zu seiner Einheit:
“Es wird deshalb angeordnet, unter allen Umständen mit dem SD zusam-menzuarbeiten“ und “Falls eine Einheit längere Zeit in einem Orte liegt, sind unmittelbar Judenviertel bzw. Ghettos anzulegen, falls sie nicht sofort ausgerottet werden können. gez. Fegelein“ (Brigadebefehl Nr. 8 )

27.05.1943 - 10.06.1943 beim UNTERNEHMEN “WEICHSEL“ im Nassen Dreieck Dnjepr-Pripjet SW Gomel mit insgesamt 4.018 Todesopfern, der Depor-tation von 18.860 Arbeitskräften (davon allein 10.422 durch die SS-Kavallerie-Division) und der Beute von etwa 21.000 Stück Vieh ist Fegelein führend beteilgt! Die SS-KD zerstört dabei nach eigenen Angaben 61 Dörfer. Beteiligt sind die Einsatzgrup-pe D unter SS-Oberführer und Oberst der Polizei Dr. jur. Walter Bierkamp, die 454. Sicherungs-Division unter Generalleutnant Hellmuth Koch u.a.
12.06.1943 Nennung im Wehrmachtbericht (ohne namentliche Erwähnung):
Bei der Bekämpfung von Banden im rückwärtigen Gebiet des mittleren Frontabschnitts haben SS- und Polizeikräfte in tagelangen, harten Kämpfen, die durch fast undurchdringliches Wald- und Sumpfgelände besonders er-schwert waren, weite Gebietsteile gesäubert. 118 befestigte Dörfer und Waldlager wurden gegen zähen Widerstand genommen, 162 Bunker gesprengt. Neben zahlreichen Toten verloren die Banden große Mengen an Waffen und Material.
13.06.1943 - 16.06.1943 auch beim UNTERNEHMEN “ZIETHEN“ westlich Retschitza werden noch einmal 63 Dörfer zerstört
Hitler steht während der beiden Unternehmungen in ständigem Telefonkontakt mit Fegelein, was die Wichtigkeit unterstreicht. Der Telefonist der SS-KD bezeugt später, dass auf einer Fläche von 200 x 120 km alle Partisanen ausgeschaltet werden sollten!

I think these examples do not need any commentary.

Best regards
Andreas Schulz & Dieter Zinke

Marc Rikmenspoel
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Joined: 12 Sep 2004, 07:44
Location: Denver, Colorado USA

#15

Post by Marc Rikmenspoel » 09 Jan 2006, 20:44

Now for something more lightweight and less consequential. On page 152 of Infield's Secrets of the SS (Stein & Day, New York, 1982), we can read,

"...Hitler was determined to find a husband for Gretl for two reasons. First, he wanted her to find a well-placed officer who could support her and provide the luxuries she coveted. Now those were often provided out of Party funds or Hitler's personal funds. Second, if Gretl were married, it would make Eva socially acceptable in public as the sister of the wife of one of his staff officers. As his mistress Hitler kept Eva behind the scenes except in the privacy of the Berghof or her villa in Munich.
As a matchmaker the Führer had his problems, however. He set his sights on Walter Hewel, Foreign Minister Ribbentrop's liaison man at headquarters, but Hewel wasn't interested in Gretl. When Hitler continued to pressure him, Hewel promptly married Elisabeth Blanda, a wealthy playgirl who frequented parties held by the top-ranking Nazis. SS Colonel Fritz Darges was another good prospect. Darges, a military adjutant at Hitler's headquarters, spent a lot of his free time with Gretl, so much that Hitler and Eva thought it only a matter of time until the pair announced their plans to marry. When Gretl became pregnant, however, Darges took off for the Eastern Front. He apparently deemed it better to face the Russians than the rest of his life with Gretl Braun. Another man who had been enjoying the favors of Gretl was Fegelein, just as he had also been squiring Elisabeth Blanda around the Berghof and the nightclubs of Berlin before she married Hewel. Now it was his turn to come under pressure from Hitler to marry the pregnant Gretl. Fegelein saw the situation in a completely different light than Darges. He saw many advantages in legally marrying the sister of Hitler's mistress, not the least of which was his hope that he and the Führer would become much closer, bettering his own position within the Nazi hierarchy. That was considerably better than being shipped off to combat."

The commonly given story of Darges' departure from Hitler's headquarters is that a bee was flying around Hitler's head, persistently distrcting him. Darges found the situation amusing, laughed out loud, and was therefore banished. I suspect this is just a cover story that is less embarrassing than the truth of Darges fooling around with Gretl Braun. Infield's main source for information on Fegelein seems to be Bormann's diaries. I haven't seen these, so I can't vouch for how well he made use of them.

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