Hermann Ritter von Speck

Hermann Ritter von Speck
Born	8 August 1888 Munich
Died	15 June 1940 (aged 51) Pont-sur-Yonne, France
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918)  Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Heer
Years of service	1907–40
Rank	General der Artillerie
Commands held	33. Infanterie-Division XXXXIII. Armeekorps XVIII. Armeekorps
Battles/wars	World War I World War II Battle of France
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Hermann Ritter von Speck^[a] (8 August 1888 – 15 June 1940) was a highly decorated General der Artillerie in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Hermann Ritter von Speck was killed on 15 June 1940 in Pont-sur-Yonne, France. He was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 October 1940.

In 2010, Jay Nordlinger spoke with von Speck's daughter, who claimed that the general deliberately sought death in battle:^[1]

According to his daughter, he wanted to die, and arranged to die. He felt he could not break his oath to the army — he could not desert. And his Catholic faith prevented him from committing suicide — suicide straight out, you might say. So, he put himself in the line of fire.

In his dying words, he did not say, “Give my love to my family,” or anything like that. He said, “It had to be this way.”

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1914)
  • 2nd Class
  • 1st Class
• Wound Badge (1918)
  • in Black
• Hanseatic Cross of Hamburg
• Military Order of Max Joseph (which carried admission to the nobility)
• Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class
  • 1st Class
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 October 1940 as Generalleutnant and commander of XVIII. Armeekorps^[2]
• Military Service Order (Militaer-Verdienstorden) 4th Class with Crown & Swords Bavaria

Footnotes

• ^a Regarding personal names: Ritter is a title, translated approximately as Sir (denoting a Knight), not a first or middle name. There is no equivalent female form.

References

Citations

1. Jay Nordlinger, "Salzburg Souvenirs, Part IV", National Review Online, 30 August 2010
2. Fellgiebel 2000, p. .

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.
• 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.

External links

• Lexikon der Wehrmacht
• Axis Biographical Research