Walter von Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt

Walter Graf von Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt
Born	13 July 1887 Perleberg, Province of Brandenburg, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire
Died	9 May 1943 (aged 55) Berlin, Free State of Prussia, Nazi Germany
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918)  Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Heer
Years of service	1907–43
Rank	General der Infanterie
Commands held	23. Infanterie-Division XXVIII. Armeekorps II. Armeekorps
Battles/wars	World War I Battle of Verdun World War II Invasion of Poland Battle of France Operation Barbarossa Demyansk Pocket
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Walter Graf von Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt^{[Note 1]} (13 July 1887, Perleberg, Province of Brandenburg – 9 May 1943) was a German general of the Infantry, serving during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves (German: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub). The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Graf von Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt became ill in November 1942 and had to return to Germany. He died in the Reservelazarett 123 in Berlin-Zehlendorf.

Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt himself was a descendant of Danish-Holsteiner nobility, he was the son of Graf Ernst von Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt.^[1]

Awards

• Iron Cross (1914) 2nd and 1st Class
• Wound Badge (1918) in Black
• Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918
• Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th to 1st class
• Sudetenland Medal
• Eastern Front Medal
• Demyansk Shield
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (19 September 1939)^[2]
  • 1st Class (20 October 1939)^[2]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 15 July 1941 as General der Infanterie and commanding general of the II. Armeekorps^[3]
  • 103rd Oak Leaves on 27 June 1942 as General der Infanterie and commanding general of the II. Armeekorps^[4]

Notes

1. Regarding personal names: Graf was a title before 1919, but now is regarded as part of the surname. It is translated as Count. Before the August 1919 abolition of nobility as a legal class, titles preceded the full name when given (Graf Helmuth James von Moltke). Since 1919, these titles, along with any nobiliary prefix (von, zu, etc.), can be used, but are regarded as a dependent part of the surname, and thus come after any given names (Helmuth James Graf von Moltke). Titles and all dependent parts of surnames are ignored in alphabetical sorting. The feminine form is Gräfin.

References

Citations

1. "Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt". roskildehistorie.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 2010-03-29.
2. Thomas 1997, p. 83.
3. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 145.
4. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 60.

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.
• Schaulen, Fritjof (2003). Eichenlaubträger 1940 – 1945 Zeitgeschichte in Farbe I Abraham – Huppertz [Oak Leaves Bearers 1940 – 1945 Contemporary History in Color I Abraham – Huppertz] (in German). Selent, Germany: Pour le Mérite. ISBN 978-3-932381-20-1.
• 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 (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.

External links

• "Lexikon der Wehrmacht". Walter von Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt. Retrieved 13 April 2008.