Richard Schimpf

Dipl.-Ing. Richard Schimpf
Born	16 May 1897 Eggenfelden
Died	30 December 1972 (aged 75) Düsseldorf
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918) Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany (to 1945)  West Germany
Service/branch	Deutsches Heer (1915–18) Reichswehr (1918–33) Heer (1933–35) Luftwaffe (1935–45) Luftwaffe (1957–62)
Years of service	1915–29 1930–45 1957–62
Rank	Generalleutnant (Wehrmacht) Generalmajor (Bundeswehr)
Commands held	21. Luftwaffen-Feld-Division 3. Fallschirmjäger Division
Battles/wars	World War I World War II Battle of France Operation Barbarossa Demyansk Pocket Siege of Leningrad Invasion of Normandy Falaise pocket Battle of the Bulge Operation Lumberjack
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Dipl.-Ing. Richard Schimpf^{[Notes 1]} (16 May 1897 – 30 December 1972) was a highly decorated Generalleutnant in the Fallschirmjäger during World War II and a Generalmajor in the Bundeswehr. 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. In March 1945 Richard Schimpf surrendered to American troops at Bad Godesberg, handing the city over without a shot being fired. He was transferred to British custody until December 1947. He joined the post war Luftwaffe in 1957 and retired in 1962 as a Generalmajor.

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1914)
  • 2nd Class
  • 1st Class
• Wound Badge (1914)
  • in Black
• Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (5 August 1940)^[1]
  • 1st Class (17 February 1941)^[1]
• Eastern Front Medal
• German Cross in Gold (26 August 1944)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 6 October 1944 as Generalleutnant and commander of 3. Fallschirmjäger Division ^[2]
• Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany

Notes

1. In German an engineer's degree is called Diplom-Ingenieur (abbreviated Dipl.-Ing.)

References

Citations

1. Thomas & Wegmann 1986, p. 254.
2. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 307.

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.
• Kurowski, Franz (1995). Knights of the Wehrmacht Knight's Cross Holders of the Fallschirmjäger. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Military. ISBN 978-0-88740-749-9.
• 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 (1986). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Deutschen Wehrmacht 1939–1945 Teil II: Fallschirmjäger [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the German Wehrmacht 1939–1945 Part II: Paratroopers] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-1461-8.

External links

• World War 2 Awards.com
• Lexikon der Wehrmacht
• Richard Schimpf @ Axis Biographical Research at the Wayback Machine (archived November 17, 2010)
• specialcamp 11