Oskar Munzel

Oskar Munzel
Born	13 March 1899 Grimmen
Died	1 January 1992 (aged 92) Bad Godesberg
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918)  Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany (to 1945)  West Germany
Service/branch	Heer
Years of service	1917–45 1956–62
Rank	Generalmajor (Wehrmacht) Generalmajor (Bundeswehr)
Commands held	14. Panzer-Division 2. Panzer-Division
Battles/wars	World War I World War II Operation Barbarossa Battle of Białystok–Minsk Battle of Smolensk (1941) Battle of Kiev (1941) Battle of Moscow Second Battle of Kharkov Courland Pocket Operation Solstice
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Other work	Military advisor in Egypt and Taiwan

Oskar Munzel (13 March 1899 – 1 January 1992) was a highly decorated Generalmajor in the Wehrmacht during World War II and a General der Kampftruppen in the Bundeswehr who commanded several divisions. 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. Oskar Munzel was captured by Allied troops in 1945 and was released in 1947. For 4 years he served as a military advisor in Egypt, and then he joined the Bundeswehr in 1956 and retired in 1962. Munzel then acted as the Chief Advisor of Ming-teh-Gruppe (German Military Advisory Group) in Taiwan for the Republic of China Armed Forces before returning to Germany.^[1][2]

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1914)
  • 2nd Class
• Wound Badge (1918)
• Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918
• Eastern Front Medal
• Panzer Badge
• War Merit Cross (1939) 2nd Class with Swords
• Clast to the Iron Cross 2nd Class
• Iron Cross (1939) 1st Class
• German Cross in Gold (14 February 1943)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 16 October 1944 as Oberst and commander of 14. Panzer-Division^[3]
• Federal Cross of Merit

References

Citations

1. Hoover Institution 2013.
2. Wang 2007.
3. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 262.

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.
• "Chiang Kai-shek’s Secret Military Advisers Unveiled". Stanford, California: Hoover Institution. 2013.
• Wang, Yue-che (2007). German Military Advisors in Taiwan 1963-1975 (明德專案 : 德國軍事顧問在台工作史實) (in Chinese). Taipei, Taiwan: Transoxania Publishing Corp. ISBN 9789574146543.

External links

• World War 2 Awards.com
• Lexikon der Wehrmacht