The Last Prussian

A Biography of Field Marshal Gerd Von Rundstedt

Charles Messenger

• Publisher: Pen & Sword Military
• Year: 2012
• ISBN:
  9781473819467
• Topic: Histoire
• Subtopic: Biographies militaires

The renowned WWII historian's in-depth biography of the Nazi military commander who played a key role in the invasions of Poland, France and Russia. Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt was one of the most important German commanders of the Second World War. He served on both the Western and Eastern Fronts of World War I and rose steadily through the ranks of the German army before retiring in 1938. Then, only a year later, he was recalled to help execute Hitler's invasion of Poland. He played a leading part in this and the subsequent invasion of France. Thereafter he commanded Army Group South in the assault on Russia before being sacked at the end of 1941. Recalled again, Rundstedt was made Commander-in-Chief West and as such faced the 1944 Allied invasion of France, but was removed that July. He resumed his post in September 1944 and had overall responsibility for the December 1944 Ardennes counter-offensive. Captured by the Americans, he gave testimony as a defense witness at Nuremberg. Though he was charged with war crimes, he was spared trial due to his ill health.

Contents

LIST OF MAPS

CHRONOLOGY

Introduction

Introduction to the New Edition

1. Early Life

2. The First World War

3. The Weimar Years

4. Enter Hitler

5. Poland

6. Assault in the West

7. Invasion Talk

8. Russia 1941

9. Return to France

10. Normandy and the Bomb Plot

11. Recalled Once More

12. The Last Battles

13. Prisoner of War

14. War Criminal

15. The Twilight Years

16. The Reckoning

APPENDIX ONE	THE VON RUNDSTEDT FAMILY TREE
APPENDIX TWO	DECORATIONS AWARDED TO GERD VON RUNDSTEDT
SOURCE NOTES
SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX

LIST OF MAPS

MAP 1.	Imperial German Corps Boundaries up until November 1918.
MAP 2.	Battle of the Marne.
MAP 3.	The Eastern Front 1915–1917.
MAP 4.	Wehrkreis Boundaries 1921–1935.
MAP 5.	Wehrkreis Boundaries 1939.
MAP 6.	The Drive to the Channel, May 1940.
MAP 7.	Russia, 1941.
MAP 8.	German Dispositions in the West, 6 June 1944.
MAP 9.	The West, September–December 1944.

Gerd von Rundstedt Chronology

12 December 1875	Born, Aschersleben
1 April 1888	Entered junior cadet college at Oranienstein
Spring 1890	Entered higher cadet college at Lichterfelde
22 March 1892	Appointed Portepee Fähnrich in 83rd Infantry Regiment, Kassel
17 June 1893	Commissioned Lieutenant, 83rd Infantry Regiment
1 October 1896	Adjutant, 3rd Battalion 83rd Infantry Regiment, Arolsen
1 October 1900	Adjutant, 83rd Infantry Regiment, Kassel
1 October 1901	Promoted Senior Lieutenant (Oberleutnant)
22 January 1902	Married Luise (Bila) von Goetz
21 January 1903	Hans Gerd born
1 October 1903	Student Kriegsakademie, Berlin
1 April 1907	Attached Grosse Generalstab, Berlin
24 March 1909	Promoted Captain on the Grosse Generalstab
1 October 1910	HQ XI Corps, Kassel
1 October 1912	Company commander 171st Infantry Regiment, Colmar
30 July 1914	Chief of Operations (1a), HQ 22nd Reserve Division, Western Front
Autumn 1914	Fell sick
28 November 1914	Promoted Major
1 December 1914	Military Government, Antwerp
1 April 1915	Chief of Staff, 86th Infantry Division, Eastern Front
July 1915	Fell sick
5 September 1915	Chief of Administration and Logistics (1b), Military Government, Warsaw
1 November 1916	Chief of Operations HQ XXV Reserve Corps, Eastern Front
1 October 1917	Chief of Staff HQ LIII Corps, Eastern Front
1 August 1918	Chief of Staff XV Corps, Western Front
December 1918	Grosse Generalstab
1 October 1919	HQ Wehrkreis V, Stuttgart
1 May 1920	Chief of Staff HQ 3rd Cavalry Division, Weimar
1 October 1920	Promoted Lieutenant Colonel
1 March 1923	Promoted Colonel
1 October 1923	Chief of Staff Wehrkreis II and HQ 2nd Infantry Division, Stettin
1 May 1925	Commander 18th Infantry Regiment, Paderborn
1 October 1926	Chief of Staff Gruppenkommando 2, Kassel
1 November 1927	Promoted Major General
1 October 1928	Commander 2nd Cavalry Division, Breslau
1 March 1929	Promoted Lieutenant General
1 February 1932	Commander Wehrkreis III, Berlin
1 October 1932	Promoted General of Infantry and Commander-in-Chief Gruppenkommando 1, Berlin
1 March 1938	Promoted Colonel General
1 November 1938	Retired and appointed Colonel 18th Infantry Regiment
May 1939	Appointed to head Arbeitstab von Rundstedt
23 August 1939	Commander-in-Chief Army Group South, Eastern Front
1 October 1939	Commander-in-Chief East
25 October 1939	Commander-in-Chief Army Group A, Western Front
19 July 1940	Promoted General Field Marshal
1 October 1940	Commander-in-Chief West
10 June 1941	Commander-in-Chief Army Group South, Eastern Front
5 December 1941	Führer-Reserve OKH
15 March 1942	Commander-in-Chief West and Army Group D
2 July 1944	Führer-Reserve OKH
5 September 1944	Commander-in-Chief West
9 March 1945	Führer-Reserve OKH
1 May 1945	Captured, Bad Tölz
10 July 1945	To England
15 May–
19 August 1946	Nuremberg
12 January 1948	Death of Hans Gerd
23 July 1948	To Germany
29 August 1948	Formally declared a war criminal and discharged from the Wehrmacht
1 January 1949	Formally presented with detailed war crimes charges
5 May 1949	Declared medically unfit to plead and released from captivity
4 October 1952	Death of Bila
24 February 1953	Died, Hannover

Introduction

If there was one man who appeared to personify the traditional Prussian image, it was General Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt. During the Second World War, the Western Allies widely regarded him as the most outstanding of the German generals, while those Germans who strove to remove Hitler and all he stood for, but did not know von Rundstedt well, looked to him to provide the lead in any military action which might be taken against the régime. They viewed him as the personification of all that was good about the Prussian Junker class, but never forgave him for not taking an active part in resistance to Hitler, an attitude which exists in Germany to this day.

It is, however, surprising that no one has examined von Rundstedt in any depth until now. True, there have been two biographies of him. One was by his erstwhile Chief of Staff, Günther Blumentritt, but this, as will be seen, was written for a particular purpose, and begged more questions than it answered. The second, by that distinguished military historian John Keegan, was a slim volume, part of a large paperback series on the Second World War, which allowed the author neither the time nor the scope to explore his subject in any depth. Von Rundstedt, too, has had numerous entries, ranging from a few lines to complete chapters, in various biographical dictionaries and essay collections. Some have been grossly inaccurate, relying largely on Allied wartime propaganda for their facts, but the general verdict has been that he was an enigmatic character and it has been left at that.

As with my earlier biography of Sepp Dietrich, Hitler’s Gladiator, this has not been an easy biography to write. Von Rundstedt kept no diary and wrote no autobiography. Nevertheless, the discovery of some of his letters to his wife and of the majority of the annual efficiency reports made on him have gone some way towards helping to establish his inner character. Even so, typical of his class, he was never one to reveal his innermost thoughts willingly and it has often only been possible to surmise the rationale behind some of his actions. What, however, has made this study especially rewarding for me has been the opportunity to examine events which were often comparatively well known from a fresh perspective. In some cases, this has caused me to alter my views on them. In order to get the significance of Gerd von Rundstedt’s life story and military career into perspective, I have perforce had to set it against the broad canvas of the whole course of German history since the turn of the century, with special emphasis being placed upon the tempestuous years of the Hitler era. Across the face of that canvas, von Rundstedt’s own contribution runs like a thread (more visible at some times than at others) through the coarser weave of his country’s story.

As is inevitable with a book like this, it could not have been written without the help of numerous individuals and institutions. With regard to the latter, I would like to express my sincere thanks to the assistance given by the follow-ing – Berlin Document Centre; Bundesarchiv, Koblenz; Bundesarchiv-Militdmrchiv, Freiburg am Breisgau; Deutsche Adelsarchiv, Marburg; Deutsche Dienstelle (WASt), Berlin; Imperial War Museum, London (Departments of Documents, Printed Books and Photographs); Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives, King’s College, London; Institut fir Zeitgeschichte, Munich; The London Library; National Archives, Washington DC (Military Archives and Textual Reference Divisions); Public Record Office, London; Wandsworth Public Library, London (Battersea and West Hill branches).

In terms of individuals, my most grateful thanks go to the following: Antony Beevor, Klaus Benseler, Tom Bower, Stephen W Bumball, Miss R Campbell (Librarian, St Antony’s College, Oxford), Peter Calvocoressi, Lieutenant Colonel Charles Clements MC, Elizabeth Crookenden, Philip J Davies, the Editors of the Eastern Daily Press, Glamorgan Gazette and Westmorlazd Gazette for publishing my letters, Jean Feather, R M Forrester (Honorary Secretary The Ambleside Oral History Group), Helmut Guetler, Professor Nigel Hamilton, P J Holt-Wilson, Joseph Hutchinson, J lorweth Davies (Assistant Director of Education, Mid Glamorgan County Council), Dr Tom Jefferson, Colonel Vincent M Lockhart USAR (Retd), Charles A Lusby Sr, David Littlejohn, my elder daughter Emma Messenger, R A Nightingale, the late ‘Bunny’ Pantcheff, Jonathan Prickett of The History Bookshop, London, Ernie Ridgway, Professor Doktor Jurgen Rohwer of the Bibliothek für Zeitgeschickte, Stuttgart, Ian Sayer, The Rt Hon Lord Shawcross GBE PC, Matthew...