Eduard Crasemann

Eduard Crasemann
Born	5 March 1891 Hamburg, German Empire
Died	29 April 1950 (aged 59) Werl, North Rhine-Westphalia, West Germany
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918)  Weimar Republic (to 1919)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Heer
Years of service	1910–19 1936–45
Rank	General der Artillerie
Commands held	15. Panzer-Division 26. Panzer-Division XII. SS Armeekorps
Battles/wars	World War I World War II Invasion of Poland Battle of France Western Desert Campaign Siege of Tobruk First Battle of El Alamein Moro River Campaign Battle of Monte Cassino Gothic Line Offensive Ruhr Pocket
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Eduard Crasemann (5 March 1891 – 29 April 1950) was a highly decorated General der Artillerie in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded several divisions. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. General der Artillerie Crasemann was captured by British troops in the Ruhr Pocket. In 1947 he was convicted for war crimes by a British court in Padua, on a charge of complicity with the mass execution of 174 Italian civilians in the Padule di Fucecchio near Florence on 23 August 1944.^[1] Sentenced to 10 years, he spent the rest of his life in prison.

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1914)
  • 2nd Class (13 September 1914)^[2]
  • 1st Class (15 October 1915)^[2]
• Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (30 September 1939)^[2]
  • 1st Class (1 June 1940)^[2]
• German Cross in Gold on 1 November 1943 as Oberst with Panzer-Artillerie-Regiment 116^[3]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 26 December 1941 as Oberstleutnant and commander of Artillerie-Regiment 33^[4]
  • 683rd Oak Leaves on 18 December 1944 as Generalmajor and commander of 26. Panzer-Division^[5]
• Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht (24 November 1944)
• Armband Afrika

References

Citations

1. Samuel Mitcham, Rommel's Lieutenants: the Men who Served the Desert Fox, p. 121 (2007).
2. Thomas 1997, p. 104.
3. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 76.
4. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 132.
5. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 78.

Bibliography

• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [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.
• Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II [The German Cross 1941 – 1945 History and Recipients Volume 2] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8.
• 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 Miltaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
• Thomas, Franz (1997). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 1: A–K [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 1: A–K] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2299-6.

External links

• World War 2 Awards.com
• Lexikon der Wehrmacht
• specialcamp11
• Eduard Crasemann @ Axis Biographical Research at the Wayback Machine (archived November 16, 2010)