Karl Liecke

Karl Liecke
Born	8 May 1910 Austria
Died	8 September 1976 (aged 66)
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Waffen-SS
Years of service	1939–45
Rank	Obersturmbannführer (Lieutenant Colonel)
Unit	13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian)
Battles/wars	World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Karl Liecke (8 May 1910 – 8 September 1976) was an Obersturmbannführer (Lieutenant Colonel) in the Waffen-SS during World War II. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, which was awarded to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership by Nazi Germany during World War II.

Obersturmbannführer Karl Liecke was the commander of the II.Battalion, 3rd SS Schützen Regiment before taking over command of the 27th Waffen Gebirgsjäger Regiment, 13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian) in January 1945. He was awarded the Knight's Cross while in command of the 27th Waffen Gebirgsjager Regiment near the end of the war on the 3 May 1945.^[1][2]

Awards

• War Merit Cross 2nd Class with Swords (27 April 1940)^[3]
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (24 December 1942)^[4]
  • 1st Class (20 January 1943)^[4]
• Eastern Front Medal (1 September 1943)^[3]
• Infantry Assault Badge in Silver (25 February 1943)^[3]
• Close Combat Clasp
  • in Bronze (18 December 1944)^[3]
• German Cross in Gold (28 February 1945)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 3 May 1945 as SS-Obersturmbannführer and Oberstleutnant of the Schupo, and commander of Waffen-Grenadier-Regiment 27 der SS^{[5][Note 1]}

Notes

1. No evidence of the award can be found in the German Federal Archives. Presumably the Knight's Cross was awarded on the same day as Desiderius Hampel's and Hans Hanke's, as stated in a letter from Krätschmer to von Seemen dated 7 August 1980. According to von Seemen the award was presented by General Maximilian de Angelis.^[6] Fellgiebel accepted Karl Liecke as Knight's Cross recipient but noted in his book: "A justification for the presentation was not given".^[7] Liecke was a member of the Association of Knight's Cross Recipients (AKCR).^[8]

References

Citations

1. "frontkjemper".
2. "axis.history.factbook".
3. Thomas & Wegmann 1994, p. 50.
4. Thomas & Wegmann 1994, p. 49.
5. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 291.
6. Von Seemen 1976, p. 223.
7. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 27.
8. Scherzer 2007, pp. 153–154.

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.
• Henschler, Henri; Fey, Willi (2003). Armor Battles of the Waffen-SS, 1943–45. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-2905-5.
• Mitcham, Samuel W (2007). Retreat to the Reich : the German defeat in France, 1944. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-3384-7.
• Mitcham, Samuel W (2007). The German Defeat in the East, 1944–45. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-3371-7.
• Reynolds, Michael (1997). Steel Inferno: I SS Panzer Corps in Normandy. Spellmount. ISBN 1-873376-90-1.
• 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; Wegmann, Günter (1994). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Deutschen Wehrmacht 1939–1945 Teil VI: Die Gebirgstruppe Band 2: L–Z [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the German Wehrmacht 1939–1945 Part VI: The Mountain Troops Volume 2: L–Z] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2430-3.
• 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.