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Edgar Feuchtinger
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Edgar Feuchtinger
Edgar Feuchtinger (9 November 1894 – 21 January 1960) was a German General (Generalleutnant) during the Second World War. Feuchtinger was commander of the 21st Panzer Division during the Normandy Invasion. Later in 1944 he was tried and convicted of treason by the Reich court, demoted and sentenced to execution. The sentence was commuted by the intervention of Adolf Hitler. Feuchtinger did not report to his next assignment, and avoided the German military police until he could surrender to the Allies.
Later in life, while a private citizen, Feuchtinger was pressured by the KGB into finding and disclosing secret information on the West German military and transferring this information to the Soviet Union.
In 2008 his conviction by the Reich court in 1944 came up during a German national discussion on the review of war veterans convicted by the Nazi government of treason. His earlier conviction was not overturned.
Feuchtinger joined a cadet school in Karlsruhe in 1907. During the First World War, he fought as lieutenant in Russia and France. While there, he participated in the Battle of Verdun, the Battle of the Somme and the Second Battle of the Aisne.[which?]
After Germany's capitulation, Feuchtinger was selected to continue on as an officer in the much reduced Reichswehr where he served in a variety of staff roles. He transitioned to field command in 1937, and in August 1939, he was appointed to command an artillery regiment of the 227th Infantry Division. Feuchtinger commanded this unit in the western campaign, fighting in Belgium and France. In 1941, the unit was transferred to the Eastern Front, where his division participated in Operation Barbarossa as part of Army Group North.
On November 27, 1942 he commanded Kampfgruppe A during the German occupation of previously free Vichy France. His forces occupied the city of Toulon and attempted to bring the ships of the French fleet stationed there under their control.
In April 1943 Feuchtinger was appointed commander of a "Schnelle Division" (fast division). The fast divisions were a new concept and were intended to be a highly mobile division to allow the few forces in France to rapidly respond to an invasion threat that could suddenly materialise in any one of a number of coast regions in France. Four of these were to be formed and based in central France. Though a good businessman and organiser, Feuchtinger had no experience as a panzer commander, and his appointment is thought to have been due to his connections in the Nazi Party. The division formed was known as Schnell Division West (Fast Division West).
The fast divisions were to be highly motorised, and were intended to have greater transport capacity than was allotted to a panzer division. This concept could not be implemented due to shortfalls in equipment. Germany could not replace its losses in the east, let alone equip new formations in France. To provide his division with equipment Feuchtinger prevailed upon Major Alfred Becker, a friend of his who was a mechanical engineer. Feuchtinger had championed Major Becker's efforts to make use of captured French equipment and convert them to mobilise German guns. Becker had been converting captured and damaged French equipment from 1940 into functioning vehicles that would be effective in the combat of 1943. Becker was given a command in the division, and soon set about equipping the division with modified French light tractors, halftracks and trucks. These he provided with light armour shielding to protect the crews from small arms fire, and many were modified to carry a heavy gun or other weapons. The troops that filled the ranks of the division initially were a mix of soldiers from Germany and volunteers from the occupied territories.
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Edgar Feuchtinger
Edgar Feuchtinger (9 November 1894 – 21 January 1960) was a German General (Generalleutnant) during the Second World War. Feuchtinger was commander of the 21st Panzer Division during the Normandy Invasion. Later in 1944 he was tried and convicted of treason by the Reich court, demoted and sentenced to execution. The sentence was commuted by the intervention of Adolf Hitler. Feuchtinger did not report to his next assignment, and avoided the German military police until he could surrender to the Allies.
Later in life, while a private citizen, Feuchtinger was pressured by the KGB into finding and disclosing secret information on the West German military and transferring this information to the Soviet Union.
In 2008 his conviction by the Reich court in 1944 came up during a German national discussion on the review of war veterans convicted by the Nazi government of treason. His earlier conviction was not overturned.
Feuchtinger joined a cadet school in Karlsruhe in 1907. During the First World War, he fought as lieutenant in Russia and France. While there, he participated in the Battle of Verdun, the Battle of the Somme and the Second Battle of the Aisne.[which?]
After Germany's capitulation, Feuchtinger was selected to continue on as an officer in the much reduced Reichswehr where he served in a variety of staff roles. He transitioned to field command in 1937, and in August 1939, he was appointed to command an artillery regiment of the 227th Infantry Division. Feuchtinger commanded this unit in the western campaign, fighting in Belgium and France. In 1941, the unit was transferred to the Eastern Front, where his division participated in Operation Barbarossa as part of Army Group North.
On November 27, 1942 he commanded Kampfgruppe A during the German occupation of previously free Vichy France. His forces occupied the city of Toulon and attempted to bring the ships of the French fleet stationed there under their control.
In April 1943 Feuchtinger was appointed commander of a "Schnelle Division" (fast division). The fast divisions were a new concept and were intended to be a highly mobile division to allow the few forces in France to rapidly respond to an invasion threat that could suddenly materialise in any one of a number of coast regions in France. Four of these were to be formed and based in central France. Though a good businessman and organiser, Feuchtinger had no experience as a panzer commander, and his appointment is thought to have been due to his connections in the Nazi Party. The division formed was known as Schnell Division West (Fast Division West).
The fast divisions were to be highly motorised, and were intended to have greater transport capacity than was allotted to a panzer division. This concept could not be implemented due to shortfalls in equipment. Germany could not replace its losses in the east, let alone equip new formations in France. To provide his division with equipment Feuchtinger prevailed upon Major Alfred Becker, a friend of his who was a mechanical engineer. Feuchtinger had championed Major Becker's efforts to make use of captured French equipment and convert them to mobilise German guns. Becker had been converting captured and damaged French equipment from 1940 into functioning vehicles that would be effective in the combat of 1943. Becker was given a command in the division, and soon set about equipping the division with modified French light tractors, halftracks and trucks. These he provided with light armour shielding to protect the crews from small arms fire, and many were modified to carry a heavy gun or other weapons. The troops that filled the ranks of the division initially were a mix of soldiers from Germany and volunteers from the occupied territories.
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