Fritz Bayerlein

Fritz Bayerlein
Fritz Bayerlein
Born	14 January 1899 Würzburg, Kingdom of Bavaria, German Empire
Died	30 January 1970 (aged 71) Würzburg, Bavaria, West Germany
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918)  Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Army
Years of service	1917–45
Rank	Generalleutnant
Commands held	3rd Panzer Division Panzer Lehr Division LIII. Army Corps
Battles/wars	World War I World War II Invasion of Poland Battle of Alam Halfa Ardennes Offensive
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords

Fritz Hermann Michael Bayerlein (14 January 1899 – 30 January 1970) was an officer in the German Army during the Second World War. He initially served as a staff officer, including with Erwin Rommel in the Afrika Korps. He then commanded the 3rd Panzer Division, the Panzer Lehr Division and LIII Army Corps in the European theatre. Bayerlein was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords (German: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern). The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves and Swords was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Awards

• Iron Cross (1914)
  • 2nd Class (30 August 1918)^[1]
• Wound Badge
  • in black - 1918
  • in silver - from Normandy Invasion, 1944
• Panzer Badge in Silver^[2]
• "Afrika" Cuffband^[2]
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (13 September 1939)^[1]
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 1st Class (27 September 1939)^[1]
• German Cross in Gold on 23 October 1942 as Oberst in the General Staff in the Deutsches Afrika-Korps^[3]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords
  • Knight's cross on 26 December 1941 as Oberstleutnant in the General Staff and Chief of the General Staff of the DAK^[4][5][6]
  • 258th Oak leaves on 6 July 1943 as Generalmajor and German chief of staff of the 1st Italian Army^[4][7][8]
  • 81st Swords on 20 July 1944 as Generalleutnant and commander of the Panzer-Lehr-Division^[4][9][10]
• Mentioned twice in the Wehrmachtbericht on 11 January 1944 and 26 June 1944.
• Italian decorations from African Campaign:
  • Silver Medal of Military Valor(page 274, "Bayerlein: From Afrikakorps to Panzer Lehr...)
  • Knight's Cross of the Military Order of Savoy
• Wehrmacht Long Service Award IV to class II
• Honour Roll Clasp of the Army (5 March 1945)

Wehrmachtbericht references

The daily Wehrmachtbericht (Wehrmacht propaganda report) noted the following:

Date	Original German Wehrmachtbericht wording	Direct English translation
11 January 1944	Bei den Kämpfen im Raum von Kirowograd hat sich die brandenburgische 3. Panzerdivision unter Führung des Generalmajors Bayerlein besonders bewährt.[11]	The third Brandenburg Panzer Division, led by Major General Bayerlein, has proven themselves remarkable in the battles in the vicinity of Kirovohrad.
26 June 1944	Im Kampf gegen drei der besten englischen Divisionen hat sich die Panzerlehrdivision unter der Führung von Generalleutnant Bayerlein hervorragend bewährt.[12]	In the fight against three of the best British divisions, the Panzer Lehr Division, led by Lieutenant General Bayerlein, has proven themselves excellent.

Notes

References

Citations

1. Thomas 1997, p. 29.
2. Berger 1999, p. 28.
3. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 29.
4. Scherzer 2007, p. 207.
5. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 125.
6. Von Seemen 1976, p. 79.
7. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 70.
8. Von Seemen 1976, p. 36.
9. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 44.
10. Von Seemen 1976, p. 17.
11. Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 3, p. 8.
12. Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 3, p. 138.

Bibliography

• Alman, Karl (1998). Ritterkreuzträger des Afrikakorps [Knight's Cross Bearers of the Afrika Korps] (in German). Rastatt, Germany: VPM Verlagsunion Pabel Moewig. ISBN 978-3-8118-1457-8.
• Berger, Florian (1999). Mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern. Die höchstdekorierten Soldaten des Zweiten Weltkrieges [With Oak Leaves and Swords. The Highest Decorated Soldiers of the Second World War] (in German). Vienna, Austria: Selbstverlag Florian Berger. ISBN 978-3-9501307-0-6.
• 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.
• Kemp, Anthony (1990 reprint). German Commanders of World War II (#124 Men-At-Arms series). Osprey Pub., London. ISBN 0-85045-433-6.
• 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.
• Rigg, Bryan Mark; Nicolai, Karl (2003). Hitlers "jüdische Soldaten" [Hitler's "Jewish Soldiers"] (in German). Paderborn, Germany: Schöningh. ISBN 978-3-506-70115-2.
• 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.
• Spayd, P.A., ISBN 0-7643-1866-7, "Bayerlein: From Afrikakorps to Panzer Lehr, The Life of Rommel's Chief-of-Staff, Generalleutnant Fritz Bayerlein", Schiffer Publishing, Atglen, PA, USA, 2003.
• Spayd, P.A. & Gary Wilkins, ISBN 0-7643-2342-3, "Bayerlein: After Action Reports of the Panzer Lehr Commander from D-Day to the Ruhr", Schiffer Publishing, Atglen, PA, USA, 2005.
• Spayd, P.A. & Fritz Dittmar-Bayerlein, ISBN 0-7643-2065-3, "The Private Afrikakorps Photograph Collection of Rommel's Chief-of-Staff, Generalleutnant Fritz Bayerlein", Schiffer Publishing, Atglen, PA, USA, 2004.
• Spayd, P.A. & Nicole Insanally, ISBN 978-0-7643-3954-7, "Bayerlein: The Denazification Trial of Rommel's Chief-of-Staff and the Panzer Lehr Division Commander, Generalleutnant Fritz Bayerlein", Schiffer Publishing, Atglen, PA, USA, 2011.
• 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.
• Von Seemen, Gerhard (1976). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 : die Ritterkreuzträger sämtlicher Wehrmachtteile, Brillanten-, Schwerter- und Eichenlaubträger in der Reihenfolge der Verleihung : Anhang mit Verleihungsbestimmungen und weiteren Angaben [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 : The Knight's Cross Bearers of All the Armed Services, Diamonds, Swords and Oak Leaves Bearers in the Order of Presentation: Appendix with Further Information and Presentation Requirements] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7909-0051-4.
• Willmott, H.P. (1984). June 1944. New York, NY: Blandford Press.
• Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 3, 1. Januar 1944 bis 9. Mai 1945 [The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 3, 1 January 1944 to 9 May 1945] (in German). München, Germany: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. 1985. ISBN 978-3-423-05944-2.

External links

• Fritz Bayerlein in the German National Library catalogue