Heinz Hellmich
Heinz Hellmich (9 June 1890 – 17 June 1944) was a German general (Generalleutnant) in the Wehrmacht during World War II and a posthumous recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany.[1]
Heinz Hellmich | |
|---|---|
| Born | 9 June 1890 Karlsruhe, Germany |
| Died | 17 June 1944 (aged 54) Cherbourg, France |
| Allegiance | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} German Empire.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Weimar Republic.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Nazi Germany |
| Service/ | Army |
| Years of service | 1908–44 |
| Rank | Generalleutnant |
| Battles/wars | World War I
World War II |
| Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
On 1 April 1942, Hellmich was appointed commander of the 141st Reserve Division. In 1943, he worked with a Soviet defector, Red Army general Andrey Vlasov, and other volunteers from the Soviet Union as "General of the Eastern Troops" (General der Osttruppen), a position he held until early January 1944.[2]
On 10 January 1944, Hellmich was moved to France and put in a command of the 243rd Infantry Division, a coastal defense division stationed in the Cotentin Peninsula. The division protected the western coast of the Cotentin Peninsula when Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy, began on 6 June 1944. Hellmich was killed by 20-millimeter cannon shells during an Allied air attack on 17 June 1944.[3]
Awards
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 2 September 1944 as Generalleutnant and commander of 243. Infanterie-Division[4]
References
Citations
- Fellgiebel 2000, p. 221.
- Strikt-Strikfeldt 1973, p. 118.
- Citino, Robert M., "Danger Zone," World War II History, July–August 2016, p. 26.
- Scherzer 2007, p. 379.
Bibliography
- Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [First published 1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
- Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
- Strikt-Strikfeldt, Wilfried (1973). Against Stalin and Hitler: Memoirs of the Russian Liberation Movement, 1941–1945. New York, USA: The John Day Company. ISBN 0-381-98185-1.