Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist

Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist
Generaloberst Ewald von Kleist in 1940.
Born	8 August 1881 Braunfels an der Lahn, Province of Hesse-Nassau, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire
Died	13 November 1954 (aged 73) Vladimir, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918)  Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Heer
Years of service	1900–38; 1939–44
Rank	Generalfeldmarschall
Commands held	XXII.Armeekorps, Panzergruppe von Kleist, 1st Panzergruppe, 1st Panzer Army, Army Group A
Battles/wars	World War I Battle of Tannenberg World War II Battle of Brody
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords

Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist (8 August 1881 – 13 November 1954) was a German field marshal during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords, which was awarded by Nazi Germany to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Following the war, he was extradited to the Soviet Union and was convicted of war crimes; he died in captivity.

World War II

Kleist was captured by U.S. forces in 1945, and was sent to Yugoslavia to face war crimes charges in 1946. In 1948 he was extradited to the Soviet Union where he was given a 10-year sentence in 1952 for war crimes. He died in the Vladimir Central Prison in 1954, the highest ranked German officer to die in Soviet captivity.^[1] Kleist was charged, among other things, with "alienating, through friendship & generosity, the peoples of the Soviet Union".^[2]

Awards

German

• Iron Cross (1914)
  • 2nd Class (4 October 1914)^[3]
  • 1st Class (27 January 1915)^[3]
• Military Merit Order, 4th class (Bavaria)
• Hanseatic Cross of Hamburg
• Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918
• Wehrmacht Long Service Award, 4th to 1st Class
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (17 September 1939)^[3]
  • 1st Class (27 September 1939)^[3]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords
  • Knight's Cross on 15 May 1940 as General der Kavallerie and commanding general of XXII. Armeekorps (Panzergruppe "von Kleist")^[4][5][6]
  • 72nd Oak Leaves on 17 February 1942 as Generaloberst and Commander-in-chief of Panzergruppe 1^[5][7][8]
  • 60th Swords on 30 March 1944 as Generalfeldmarschall and Commander-in-chief Heeresgruppe A^[5][9][10]
• Eastern Front Medal
• Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht on 10 April 1941; 13 April 1941; 26 August 1941; 27 August 1941; 11 October 1941; 12 October 1941; 22 November 1941; 30 May 1942; 19 August 1943 and on 9 October 1943

References

Citations

1. Parrish 1996, pp. 127–128.
2. "Hitler's Generals" by Samuel W. Mitcham Jr. (2003).
3. Thomas 1997, p. 375.
4. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 259.
5. Scherzer 2007, p. 447.
6. Von Seemen 1976, p. 194.
7. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 58.
8. Von Seemen 1976, p. 28.
9. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 43.
10. Von Seemen 1976, p. 16.

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.
• Kemp, Anthony (1990 reprint). German Commanders of World War II (#124 Men-At-Arms series). Osprey Pub., London. ISBN 0-85045-433-6.
• Parrish, Michael (1996). The Lesser Terror: Soviet State Security, 1939–1953. Praeger Press. ISBN 978-0-275-95113-9.
• Mitcham, Samuel (2003). Hitler's Generals.
• Schaulen, Fritjof (2004). Eichenlaubträger 1940 – 1945 Zeitgeschichte in Farbe II Ihlefeld - Primozic [Oak Leaves Bearers 1940 – 1945 Contemporary History in Color II Ihlefeld - Primozic] (in German). Selent, Germany: Pour le Mérite. ISBN 978-3-932381-21-8.
• 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 (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.