Kurt Chill

Kurt Chill
Born	1 May 1895 Thorn
Died	5 July 1976 (aged 81) Grömitz
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918)  Weimar Republic (to 1920)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Heer
Years of service	1913–20 1935–45
Rank	Generalleutnant
Commands held	122. Infanterie-Division 85. Infanterie-Division LV. Armeekorps
Battles/wars	World War I World War II Invasion of Poland Operation Barbarossa Siege of Leningrad Demyansk Pocket Operation Overlord Operation Market Garden Battle of Aachen East Prussian Offensive Zemland Offensive
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Other work	Police officer

Kurt Chill (1 May 1895 – 5 July 1976) was a highly decorated Generalleutnant in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded the LV. Armeekorps. 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. Kurt Chill was captured by Soviet forces in May 1945, but escaped and was later in the custody of the United Kingdom. He was released in 1947.

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1914)
  • 2nd Class (7 November 1914)
• The Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (1 November 1934)
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (2 October 1939)
  • 1st Class (19 July 1941)
• Eastern Front Medal (28 July 1942)
• German Cross in Gold (1 December 1941)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 25 October 1943 as Generalleutnant and commander of 122. Infanterie-Division^[1]
• Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht (19 December 1943)

Wehrmachtbericht reference

Date	Original German Wehrmachtbericht wording	Direct English translation
19 December 1943	Südlich Newel scheiterten in harten Kämpfen alle Durchbruchsversuche des Feindes. Nordwestlich der Stadt greift er, von starken Panzerverbänden unterstützt, mit zunehmender Heftigkeit an. Unsere zäh kämpfenden Truppen schossen hier 41 Sowjetpanzer ab und fügten dem Feind hohe blutige Verluste bei. In diesen Kämpfen haben sich die norddeutsche 290. Infanteriedivision unter Führung des Generalleutnants Heinrichs und die pommersche 122. Infanteriedivision unter Führung des Generalleutnants Chill besonders bewährt.[2]	All enemy breakthrough attempts south of Newel failed in hard combat. Northwest of the city, he attacked, supported by strong armored units, with increasing intensity. Our tough fighting troops destroyed here 41 Soviet tanks and inflicted on the enemy high bloody losses. In these battles, the North German 290th Infantry Division under the command of Lieutenant General Heinrichs and the Pomeranian 122nd Infantry Division under the command of Lieutenant General Chill particularly proved themselves.

References

Citations

1. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 130.
2. Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 2, p. 629.

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; Wegmann, Günter (1998). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Deutschen Wehrmacht 1939–1945 Teil III: Infanterie Band 4: C–Dow [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the German Wehrmacht 1939–1945 Part III: Infantry Volume 4: C–Dow] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2534-8.
• Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 2, 1. Januar 1942 bis 31. Dezember 1943 [The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 2, 1 January 1942 to 31 December 1943] (in German). München, Germany: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. 1985. ISBN 978-3-423-05944-2.

External links

• World War 2 Awards.com
• Lexikon der Wehrmacht
• Kurt Chill @ Axis Biographical Research at the Wayback Machine (archived January 27, 2011)