70 years ago on this
date, April 28, 1945, Hermann Fegelein was shot for desertion. I will post
information about him from Wikipedia and other links.
 |
| Hermann Fegelein |
Nickname(s)
|
"Flegelein"
|
Born
|
30 October 1906
Ansbach, German Empire |
Died
|
28 April 1945 (aged 38)
Berlin, Nazi Germany |
Allegiance
|
|
Service/branch
|
Waffen-SS
|
Years of service
|
1925–45
|
Rank
|
SS-Gruppenführer und Generalleutnant der Waffen-SS
|
Commands held
|
|
Battles/wars
|
World War II
|
Awards
|
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and
Swords
|
Relations
|
|
Hans Georg Otto Hermann Fegelein (30 October 1906 – 28 April
1945) was an SS-Gruppenführer (general) of the Waffen-SS in Nazi
Germany. He was a member of Adolf Hitler's entourage and brother-in-law to Eva
Braun through his marriage to her sister, Gretl. Units under his command on the
Eastern Front were responsible for the deaths of over 17,000 civilians during
the Pripyat swamps punitive operation in the Byelorussian SSR in 1941. Fegelein
was shot for desertion on 28 April 1945, two days before Hitler's suicide.
Historians
William L. Shirer and Ian Kershaw characterise him as cynical and disreputable.
Albert Speer called him "one of the most disgusting people in Hitler's
circle". Fegelein was an opportunist who ingratiated himself with Heinrich
Himmler, who granted him the best assignments and rapid promotions.
 |
|
Hermann Fegelein as
SS-Standartenführer
|
Career
Fegelein
was born in Ansbach,
Bavaria, to
the retired Oberleutnant Hans Fegelein. As a young boy working
at his father's equestrian school in Munich, he became
proficient in riding skills and participated in jumping events. During this
period he met Christian Weber, an original member of
the Nazi
Party. Weber later sponsored Fegelein for entry into the Schutzstaffel (SS).
In
1925, after studying for two terms at Munich University, Fegelein
joined the Reiter-Regiment 17 (Cavalry Regiment 17). On 20 April 1927,
he joined the Bavarian State Police in Munich as an officer cadet. In 1929 he
left the police service when he was caught stealing examination solutions from
a teaching superior's office. The official communication at the time was that
he resigned for "family reasons". Fegelein later stated that he had
left the police on "his own account" to better serve the Nazi Party
and SS. His father had started the "Reitinstitut Fegelein"
(Riding Institute Fegelein) in 1926. Here in Munich Fegelein came into contact
with National
Socialism and the SS. His father had made the institute available to the SS
as a meeting place.
He
joined the Nazi Party (membership number 1,200,158) and the Sturmabteilung
(SA) in 1930. Fegelein transferred to the SS on 10 April 1933, with membership
number 66,680. He became a leader of an SS equestrian group, which included his
brother, Waldemar. He was promoted to the Allgemeine-SS
rank of SS-Untersturmführer that year and to SS-Obersturmführer
on 20 April 1934 and to SS-Hauptsturmführer on 9 November 1934. Beginning
in November 1935, Fegelein oversaw the preparation of the courses and
facilities for the equestrian events of the Berlin Olympic Games. He was promoted to the
rank of SS-Sturmbannführer on 30 January 1936. He
participated in the selection process for the German equestrian team, but was
unable to prevail against the strong competition from the Kavallerieschule Hannover
(cavalry school Hanover),
who went on to win all the equestrian gold medals.
Fegelein
won the Deutsches Spring- und
Dressurderby international tournament in 1937, as did his brother,
Waldemar, in 1939. He was promoted to the rank of SS-Obersturmbannführer on 30 January. On 25 July
1937 Reichsführer-SS Himmler, by special order of the SS-Oberabschnitt Süd, created the Haupt-Reitschule
München (SS Main Riding School) in Munich. The school was started from his
father's stud
farm. Fegelein was named its commander and promoted to SS-Standartenführer the same day. Funding for the
very expensive horses came in part from Brigadeführer
Weber, who supported the school with more than 100,000 Reichsmarks
annually. Fegelein won the "Braunes Band von Deutschland"
(Brown Ribbon of Germany), an annual horse
race which in 1938 was held on the premises of the riding school in Munich.
Fegelein at the time had strong ambitions to participate in the 1940 Summer Olympics. With the help of his
friend Höhere SS- und Polizeiführer (HSSPF; Higher SS and Police Leader) Karl von Eberstein, he arranged the transfer of
all the Bavarian State Police horses to the SS riding school in case of mobilization.
His fear was that the horses would be handed to the Wehrmacht.
Historians
William L. Shirer and Ian Kershaw characterise him as cynical and disreputable;
Albert Speer called him "one of the
most disgusting people in Hitler's circle". Fegelein was an opportunist
who ingratiated himself with Himmler. Himmler in return granted him the best
assignments—mostly related to horses—and rapid promotion through the ranks.
 |
|
Fegelein (right) with Karl Gesele
(1942)
|
World
War II
In
September 1939, after the end of the Polish
Campaign, Fegelein commanded the SS Totenkopf
Reiterstandarte (Deaths-Head Horse Regiment). They were garrisoned in Warsaw until
December. The unit was then split into two Standarten (regiments), with
Fegelein commanding the 1.Standarte. The units were placed under the overall
command of HSSPF "East" Friedrich-Wilhelm Krüger. Fegelein's unit
took part in "anti-partisan" fighting in the area of Kammienna–Konsky–Kielce. On 7
December 1939 Fegelein's unit was involved in the mass shooting of 1,700 people
in the Kampinos Forest. On 23 April 1941, Fegelein faced
court-martial charges after he and his unit in 1940 had been caught stealing
money and luxury goods for transportation back to Germany. The court-martial
ordered for Fegelein was quashed by direct order of Himmler. The allegations
brought forward against Fegelein had included "murder motivated by
greed". Apparently he had ordered arrests and executions in the Gestapo prison in Warsaw. In addition to this,
Fegelein was charged with having had an unlawful sexual relationship with a
Polish woman. The woman had become pregnant and Fegelein forced her to have an
abortion. Reinhard Heydrich attempted
multiple times to investigate the accusations against Fegelein, but each time
the attempt was put down by Himmler.
In May and
June 1940, Fegelein, who had been promoted to SS-Obersturmbannführer of
the Reserves in the Waffen-SS on 1 March 1940, participated in the Battle of
Belgium and France as a member of the SS-Verfügungstruppe. For his service in these
campaigns he was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class on 15 December 1940. In March
1941 the SS Totenkopf Reiterstandarte 1 was renamed to 1st SS Cavalry
Regiment.
War
against the Soviet Union
With
the start of the German invasion of the Soviet Union which
began on 22 June 1941, Fegelein saw active service on the Eastern Front. He received the Iron
Cross 1st Class on 28 June.
On
17 July 1941 Himmler assigned Fegelein's regiment to the general command of
HSSPF Erich von dem Bach for the "systematic
combing" of the Pripyat swamps, an operation
designed to round up and exterminate Jews, partisans, and civilians in that area of Byelorussian SSR. The
two-stage operation began on 19 July 1941. Fegelein reported to von dem Bach
that his men had killed 13,788 Jews and what he claimed were "soldiers
in civilian clothes" during the first stage of the operation. At the
end of the second stage, which ran during the last two weeks of August,
Fegelein reported that all the Jewish men in the Rogatschew region had been
killed—a total of another 3,500 men. On 5 August Himmler had assigned to him
the leadership of the SS Cavalry Brigade, which was formed from the
1st and 2nd SS Cavalry Regiments.
In
October 1941 the Brigade was tasked with securing the territory behind the
front line in Belarus. Fegelein received the Infantry Assault Badge on 2
October. Four days later, he was again brought before a court for peculation of captured goods. Again the
prosecution was halted by Himmler. In the winter of 1941–42, Fegelein and the
SS Cavalry Brigade were held back as an operational reserve in the rearward
area of the 9th Army. There it helped secure the front at Toropets and Rzhev. The brigade
was deployed at the south-eastern sector of the XXIII Army Corps, where it defended
against attacks in the rearward area of the 206th Infantry Division in the Battles
of Rzhev.
On
1 February 1942 he was promoted to SS-Standartenführer in the Waffen-SS
and transferred from the reserve force to active service. Four days later, on 5
February, Fegelein on his own initiative led an attack on a strong enemy group
northwest of Tschertolino. The attack, carried out in difficult weather
conditions, secured an important road junction and the railway station at
Tschertolino. In a nocturnal attack on 9 February, the brigade encircled and
destroyed enemy forces at Tschertolino, killing 1,800 combatants. Jersowo was
captured on 14 February, leading to the annihilation of all enemy forces in the
Rzhev area. For his leadership in these battles, Fegelein was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
on 2 March 1942. Fegelein was then granted home leave and was appointed
Inspector of Cavalry and Transportation (Inspekteur des
Reit- und Fahrwesens)
in the SS-Führungshauptamt on 1 May 1942. In this
position he was awarded the Eastern Front Medal and the War Merit Cross 2nd
Class with Swords, both on 1 September 1942.
Fegelein
was sent to the front line on 1 December 1942 and on the same day promoted to
SS-Oberführer.
He was given command of Kampfgruppe "Fegelein", based in the great
bend of the Don.
Fegelein
was wounded in action by Soviet snipers on 21 December and 22 December 1942. On
20 April 1943 he was appointed commander of the 8th SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer.
Fegelein and his division were involved in operations against partisans in May
to July 1943 which included Operation Weichsel, Operation Zeithen,
and Operation Seydlitz. On 17 May he
annihilated a partisan group south west of Nowoselki. He personally blew up a
bunker in the attack. A week later, on 24 May, the division attacked another
partisan strongpoint and no prisoners were taken. During Weichsel (27
May – 10 June 1943) he reported the killing of 4,018 persons, the deportation
of 18,860, the confiscation of 21,000 cattle, and the destruction of 61
villages southwest of Gomel.
During Zeithen (13–16 June 1943) he destroyed a further 63 villages, and
under direct orders from Hitler killed all partisans. During Seidlitz
(26 June – 27 July 1943) he accounted for the destruction of 96 additional
villages, killed a further 5,016 people, deported an additional 9,166 persons,
and confiscated 19,941 cattle.
The
division was then deployed in defensive operations against massed Soviet
attacks. From 26 August to 15 September the division repulsed five attacks of
divisional strength and a further 85 attacks of battalion strength. The
heaviest combat occurred on 26 August near Bespalowka and on 28 August, when
the division halted a Soviet breakthrough at Bol-Gomolscha. Fegelein led a
counterattack on 8 September, recapturing the height 199,0 at Werchne-Bischkin.
On 11 September 1943, during these defensive battles, he was awarded the Close Combat Clasp in bronze. Fegelein was
severely wounded on 30 September 1943 and was hospitalized for a few weeks. He
received the German Cross in gold on 1 November 1943. Following his
convalescence he was appointed chief of Amt VI—-Office for Rider and
Driver Training—in the SS Führungshauptamt on 1 January 1944.
At
the same time, Himmler assigned him to Hitler's headquarters staff as his
liaison officer and representative of the SS. He was promoted to the rank of
SS-Gruppenführer und Generalleutnant of the Waffen-SS on
10 June 1944. On 20 July 1944 Fegelein was present at the failed attempt on Hitler's life at the Wolf's
Lair headquarters in Rastenburg, East Prussia, and received a minor wound
to his left thigh from the bomb blast. Fegelein often showed around the
photographs of the hanged men who had been executed as a result of this failed
assassination attempt.
Marriage
Fegelein's
politically motivated marriage to Gretl Braun, Eva Braun's sister, took place on 3 June
1944 in Salzburg. Historians Kershaw and Shirer believe he courted Braun as a
way to advance his career. Hitler, Himmler, and Bormann acted as witnesses at
the ceremony. A two-day celebration was then held at Hitler's and Martin Bormann's Obersalzberg mountain homes and
the Eagle's Nest. Fegelein was a known playboy
and had many extramarital affairs.
Death
After
Himmler tried to negotiate a surrender to the western Allies via Count
Bernadotte in April 1945,
Fegelein left the Reich Chancellery bunker complex and was caught by SS-Obersturmbannführer
Peter Högl in his Berlin apartment on 27
April, wearing civilian clothes and preparing to flee to Sweden or Switzerland.
He was carrying cash—German and foreign—and jewellery, some of which belonged
to Eva Braun. Högl also uncovered a briefcase containing documents with
evidence of Himmler's attempted peace negotiations with the western Allies.
According to most accounts he was intoxicated when arrested and brought back to
the Führerbunker.
Journalist
James P. O'Donnell, who conducted extensive
interviews in the 1970s, provides a detailed description of what happened next.
Waffen-SS General Wilhelm Mohnke, who presided over the court
martial for desertion, told O'Donnell that Hitler ordered him to set up a
tribunal. Mohnke arranged for a court martial panel, which consisted of Wilhelm
Burgdorf, Hans Krebs, Johann Rattenhuber, and himself. Fegelein, still
drunk, refused to accept that he had to answer to Hitler, and stated that he
was responsible only to Himmler. Fegelein was so drunk that he was crying and
vomiting; he was unable to stand up, and even urinated on the floor. Mohnke was
in a quandary, as German military and civilian law both require a defendant to
be of sound mind and to understand the charges against them. Although he was
certain Fegelein was "guilty of flagrant desertion", Mohnke persuaded
his fellow judges to close the proceedings and turned the defendant over to
General Rattenhuber and his security squad. Mohnke never saw Fegelein
again.[b]
Fegelein's
wife was then in the late stages of pregnancy (the baby was born in early May).
Hitler considered releasing him without punishment or assigning him to Mohnke's
troops. Hitler's secretary, Traudl Junge – an eye-witness to bunker events –
stated that Braun pleaded with Hitler to spare her brother-in-law and tried to
justify Fegelein's actions. However, he was taken to the garden of the Reich
Chancellery on 28 April, and was "shot like a dog". Rochus
Misch, who was the last survivor from the Führerbunker, disputed
aspects of this account in a 2007 interview with Der Spiegel. According
to Misch, Hitler did not order Fegelein's execution, only his demotion. Misch
claimed to know the identity of Fegelein's killer, but refused to reveal his
name.
Legacy
Fegelein's
parents and his brother Waldemar survived the war. Gretl, who inherited some of
Eva's valuable jewellery, also survived the war. She gave birth to a daughter
(named Eva Barbara Fegelein, after her late aunt) on 5 May 1945. Eva Fegelein
committed suicide on 25 April 1971 after her boyfriend was killed in an auto
accident.
Gretl Braun-Fegelein moved to Munich and remarried in 1954. She died in 1987,
aged 72.
Awards
and decorations
- Olympic Games Decoration (1st Class)
- German Equestrian Badge (gold)
- German Sports Badge (bronze)
- SA Sports Badge (bronze)
- Nazi Party Long Service Award (bronze)
- General Assault Badge (silver)
- Infantry Assault Badge (silver)
- Close Combat Clasp (silver)
- Wound Badge (silver)
- Wound Badge of 20 July 1944 (silver)
- Iron Cross (1939)
- 2nd Class (15 December 1940)
- 1st Class (28 June 1941)
- German Cross in Gold on 1 November 1943 as SS-Brigadeführer and Generalmajor of the Waffen-SS in the SS-Kavallerie-Division
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords
- Knight's Cross on 2 March 1942 as SS-Standartenführer and commander of the SS-Kavallerie-Brigade
- 157th Oak Leaves on 22 December 1942 as SS-Oberführer and commander of a Kampfgruppe [c]
- 83rd Swords on 30 July 1944 as SS-Gruppenführer and Generalleutnant of the Waffen-SS and commander of the 8. SS-Freiwilligen-Kavallerie-Division Florian Geyer
Dates
of rank
Fegelein
held various ranks in both the Allgemeine-SS and Waffen-SS. The
following table shows that progression was not synchronous.
Date
|
Allgemeine-SS
|
Waffen-SS
|
12 June
1933:
|
—
|
|
20 April
1934:
|
—
|
|
9 November
1934:
|
—
|
|
30 January
1936:
|
—
|
|
30 January
1937:
|
—
|
|
25 July
1937:
|
—
|
|
1 March
1940:
|
—
|
SS-Obersturmbannführer of the Reserves
|
1 February
1942:
|
—
|
SS-Standartenführer
|
1 May 1943:
|
—
|
SS-Brigadeführer
and Generalmajor of the Waffen-SS
|
21 June
1944:
|
—
|
SS-Gruppenführer
and Generalleutnant of the Waffen-SS
|
Notes
and references
Explanatory
notes
1.
Those close to Fegelein had nicknamed him
"Flegelein" (O'Donnell
1978, p. 186). In German, one refers to someone as a Flegel
(lout or brat) for lack of manners and appropriate behaviour. Flegelein
is the hypocoristic
form of a Flegel.
The NKVD wrote a dossier on Hitler in 1948/49 for Joseph
Stalin which was based on the interrogation reports of Otto
Günsche, Hitler's personal adjutant, and Heinz Linge,
Hitler's valet. This dossier differs in part from the accounts given by Mohnke
(see O'Donnell
1978, pp. 182, 183) and Rattenhuber (see Vinogradov
2005, pp. 191, 192). Fegelein, intoxicated by alcohol, was arrested at
his apartment on 27 April and Hitler at first ordered Fegelein to be
transferred to Kampfgruppe "Mohnke" to prove his loyalty in combat.
Günsche and Bormann expressed their concern to Hitler that Fegelein would
desert again. Hitler then ordered Fegelein to be demoted and court-martialed by
a court led by Mohnke (Eberle
& Uhl 2011, pp. 430–431). At this point the accounts differ, as
the NKVD dossier states that Fegelein was court-martialed on the evening of 28
April by a court headed by Mohnke, SS-Obersturmbannführer Alfred Krause,
and SS-Sturmbannführer Herbert Kaschula. Mohnke and his fellow officers
sentenced Fegelein to death. That same evening, Fegelein was shot from behind
by a member of the Sicherheitsdienst (Eberle
& Uhl 2011, p. 436). Based on this stated chain of events, author
Veit Scherzer concluded that Fegelein, according to the German law, was
deprived of all honours and honorary signs and must therefore be considered a de facto
but not de
jure recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Scherzer
2007, pp. 115–116, 128).
According to
Krätschmer, 157th Oak Leaves as commander of Kampfgruppe "Fegelein" (Krätschmer
1999, p. 265).
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