Bio of Generalleutnant René de l'Homme de Courbière

Generalleutnant René de l'Homme de Courbière
Born: 24 Jan 1887 in Sanskow, District Stolp, Pomerania (Pommern)
Died: 07 May 1946 in Wildeshausen, Oldenburg

Promotions:
Fähnrich (18 Nov 1904); Leutnant (18 Jun 1905); Oberleutnant (05 Jun 1914); Hauptmann (16 Jun 1915); Major (01 Apr 1928); Oberstleutnant (01 Feb 1933); Oberst (01 Mar 1935); Generalmajor (01 Apr 1938); Generalleutnant (01 Jun 1940)

Career:
Entered Army Service (14 Apr 1904)
Fahnenjunker in the 9th Grenadier-Regiment (14 Apr 1904-10 Dec 1915)
Detached to MG-Training-Course (01 Jan 1913-31 Mar 1913)
Company-Leader with the Infantry Replacement Troops in Warsaw (10 Dec 1915-27 Mar 1916)
Company-Leader with the MG-Instruction-Course in Döberitz (27 Mar 1916-24 Oct 1916)
Hauptmann with the Staff of the 9th Grenadier-Regiment (24 Oct 1916-31 Jul 1917)
Staff-Officer with the Staff of the 9th Grenadier-Regiment (31 Jul 1917-14 Jan 1919)
Company-Leader in the 9th Grenadier-Regiment (14 Jan 1919-01 Oct 1919)
Transferred into the 3rd Reichswehr-Infantry-Regiment (01 Oct 1919-01 Oct 1920)
Company-Chief in the 4th Infantry-Regiment (01 Oct 1920-01 Jun 1926)
Hauptmann with the Staff of I. Battalion of the 4th Infantry-Regiment (01 Jun 1926-01 Apr 1927)
Transferred to the Staff of the 2nd Division (01 Apr 1927-01 May 1927)
Transferred to the Staff of the Training-Battalion of the 4th Infantry-Regiment (01 May 1927-01 May 1928)
Company-Chief in the 4th Infantry-Regiment (01 May 1928-01 Oct 1928)
Transferred to the Staff of the 4th Infantry-Regiment (01 Oct 1928-01 Mar 1929)
Transferred to the Staff of the 2nd Division (01 Mar 1929-04 Mar 1932)
Detached to Course for Infantry Arms (28 May 1929-21 Jun 1929)
Commander of the Training-Battalion of the 5th Infantry-Regiment (04 Mar 1932-01 Oct 1934)
Transferred to the Staff of Artillery-Leader I (01 Oct 1934-15 Oct 1935)
Transferred to the Staff of the 1st Division (15 Oct 1935-06 Oct 1936)
Commander of the 96th Infantry-Regiment (06 Oct 1936-10 Nov 1938)
Landwehr-Commander Glogau (10 Nov 1938-26 Aug 1939)
Commander of the 213th Infantry-Division (26 Aug 1939-15 Mar 1940)
Commander of the 213th Security-Division (15 Mar 1940-12 Aug 1942)
Commander of the 153rd Field-Training-Division (15 Jan 1943-08 Jun 1943)
Führer-Reserve OKH (08 Jun 1943-08 Sep 1943)
Delegated with the Temporary Leadership of Division 432 (08 Sep 1943-15 Oct 1943)
Führer-Reserve OKH (15 Oct 1943-01 Nov 1943)
Commander of Landesschützen-Division 410 (01 Nov 1943-20 Dec 1943)
Führer-Reserve OKH (20 Dec 1943-10 Jan 1944)
Commander of the 338th Infantry-Division (10 Jan 1944-18 Sep 1944)
Führer-Reserve OKH (18 Sep 1944-19 Jan 1945)
Commander of the Catch-Staff in Military-District VIII (19 Jan 1945-05 Mar 1945)
Commander of the Catch-Staff with Army High Command 4 (05 Mar 1945-29 Mar 1945)
Taken ill, in Hospital (29 Mar 1945-00 Jan 1946)
In Captivity (00 Jan 1946-24 Feb 1946)
Released (24 Feb 1946)

Awards & Decorations:
- Deutsches Kreuz in Gold: am 23.11.1944 als Generalleutnant und Kommandeur der 338. Infanterie-Division
- 1914 EK I
- 1914 EK II
- Kgl. Bayer. Militär-Verdienstorden IV. Klasse mit Schwertern
- Hamburgisches Hanseatenkreuz
- Fürstl. Lippisches Kriegsverdienstkreuz
- Verwundetenabzeichen, 1918 in Schwarz
- Ehrenritter des Kgl. Preuss. Johanniter-Orden
- Ehrenkreuz für Frontkämpfer
- Wehrmacht-Dienstauszeichnung IV. bis I. Klasse
- Spange zum EK II
- Spange zum EK I

Source :
Bundesarchiv B 206 Bild-GD-07
http://www.geocities.ws/orion47.geo/WEHRMACHT/HEER/Generalleutnant/HOMME_RENE.html

 

Luftwaffe Generals at Landesgruppe Ceremony

At the inauguration ceremony of the Landesgruppe, held at Luftschutzschule (Air raid school) in Bad Godesberg, Nordrhein-Westfalen. From left to right: Generalmajor Walther Wecke (Kommandeur Reichsluftschutz-Schule in Berlin-Wannsee), Oberst der Schutzpolizei Georg Jedicke (Inspekteur Ordnungspolizei der Rheinprovinz und des Saarlandes), Generalleutnant Ludwig von Schröder (Vizepräsident Reichsluftschutzbund), Generalleutnant Johannes Lentzsch (Kommandierender General Luftgau-Kommando I Königsberg), and Generalleutnant Karl von Roques (Präsident Reichsluftschutzbund). There is no information about when this picture was taken, only between August 1938 to February 1939.

Source :
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?p=2353259#p2353259

Anti-Tank of 79. Infanterie-Division

Anti-tank crew of 14.Kompanie / Infanterie-Regiment 208 / 79. Infanterie-Division at the Westwall, Saarland, 1939. The gun is a Pak (Panzerabwehrkanone) 3,7 cm 35/36. It was used in the anti-tank / jäger companies of the infantry regiments (14th Company). The 3.7cm anti-tank gun was also represented in the Panzerjägerabteilung's unit with 12 guns per company.

Source :
https://www.forum-der-wehrmacht.de/index.php?thread/54669-79-infanterie-division/&pageNo=1

Bio of General der Artillerie Walter Petzel

 

Archives ECPAD (DAT 3114 L24)

Walter Petzel (1883–1965) was born on 28 December 1883, the son of a landowner, in Oborzysk in the Province of Posen in what is now Poland. He joined the army in 1902 as a Fahnenjunker and, in 1903, was promoted to the rank of second lieutenant in the 1st Posen Field Artillery Regiment Number 20. In 1905, he was posted to the Artillery and Engineer School and, in 1908, became adjutant of the 2nd battalion (Abteilung) of his field artillery regiment. In 1910, he was sent to the Military Riding Institute for 2 years where he was promoted to lieutenant and, shortly thereafter, married Margarete Hauffe on 28 August 1911.

Rejoining his regiment in the post of adjutant in 1913, he was sent to the front at the start of the First World War. In September that year he was badly wounded. In November he was promoted to the rank of captain and, in January 1915, was appointed as adjutant of the 10th Field Artillery Brigade. In December 1916, he returned to his Posen regiment, this time as a battery commander. In August 1917, he was appointed as a battalion commander within his regiment. For his service during the war, he was awarded a Knight's Cross of the House Order of Hohenzollern and both Iron Crosses as well as the Wound Badge.

Following the end of the war, Petzel transferred to the Reichswehr as a captain and initially commanded batteries within the 5th Reichswehr Artillery and 3rd (Prussian) Artillery Regiments. Over the next few years he served as a staff officer within the HQs of 1st Cavalry Division and 3rd Division of the Reichswehr before being promoted to colonel in 1933 and commanding the horse artillery of the Inspectorate of the Cavalry. In 1935 he was appointed briefly as the CO of 76th Artillery Regiment, but only a month later was promoted to major general and appointed as Artillery Commander 3 (Arko 3), a peacetime post in Frankfurt an der Oder and, later, as commander of the 3rd Infantry (or Motorised) Division there. In 1938, he was promoted to lieutenant general and appointed as Inspector of Artillery.

In 1939, as the Wehrmacht mobilised, Petzel took over the I Army Corps as its commanding general and led it during the Invasion of Poland. In October that year he was promoted to General of Artillery on 1 Oct 1939 and Commander I Army Corps, but was almost immediately given command of two military districts, Wehrkreis III and Wehrkreis XXI with his headquarters in Posen. In 1945 he was commandant of the Prussian fortress town of Posen, now called Poznan, but was retired on 29 January 1945 just before the region was overrun.

Petzel escaped to the west and settled in Hamelin, West Germany, where he died on 1 October 1965.

Awards & Decorations:
01.10.1943 Deutsches Kreuz in Silber as General der Artillerie and Kom. Gen. stellv. XXI. Armee-Korps und Befehlshaber im Wehrkreis XXI (Posen)
00.00.191_ Ritterkreuz des Kgl. Preuss. Hausordens von Hohenzollern mit Schwertern
00.00.191_ 1914 Eisernes Kreuz I. Klasse
00.00.191_ 1914 Eisernes Kreuz II. Klasse
00.00.194_ Kriegsverdienstkreuz I. Klasse mit Schwertern
00.00.194_ Kriegsverdienstkreuz II. Klasse mit Schwertern
ca. 1918 Verwundetenabzeichen, 1918 in Schwarz
ca. 1934 Ehrenkreuz für Frontkämpfer
00.00.193_ Wehrmacht-Dienstauszeichnung IV. bis I. Klasse

Source :
ECPAD Archives
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Petzel
https://www.oocities.org/~orion47/WEHRMACHT/HEER/General2/PETZEL_WALTER.html

Gruppenkommandeur Mölders Describes Dogfight

Hauptmann Werner Mölders (foreground right, facing camera), Gruppenkommandeur III.Gruppe / Jagdgeschwader 53 (JG 53), regales air- and groundcrew of his Gruppenstab with details of his latest encounter with the enemy – possibly that which resulted in his third victory, a No 73 Sqn Hurricane claimed over French territory on 22 December 1939.

Source :
John Weal photo collection
"Jagdgeschwader 53 'Pik'As' Bf 109 Aces of 1940" by Chris Goss & Chris Davey

Victim Aircraft of Werner Mölders

Members of the RAD (Reich Labour Service) prepare to clear the wreckage of what is reported to be Hauptmann Werner Mölders’ second kill during World War II, a Blenheim IV of No 18 Sqn that he brought down over the Moselle on 30 October 1939. The aeroplane, flown by Flg Off Denis Elliot, crashed near Küsserath, nine miles east-northeast of Trier. Its three-man crew was killed.

By the end of 1939 future Luftwaffe ace Werner Mölders had shot down three aircrafts, including III. Gruppe’s first victory in the form of a Blenheim IV of No 18 Sqn on 30 October 1939. Making the most
of a break in the weather, he was at the head of the Gruppenschwarm, leading 12 Emils of 9. Staffel on patrol, when enemy reconnaissance aircraft were reported in the Bitburg-Merzig area.

‘I noticed flak activity near Trier,’ Mölders later recalled. ‘I closed up to within 50 m of the enemy machine undetected and could quite clearly see the British roundels. I opened fire from the shortest range possible. There was no return fire from the rear gunner and the left engine emitted a thick cloud of white smoke, which quickly changed to black. As I pulled up alongside it, the aircraft was completely on fire. I observed a parachute, but it appeared to be smouldering. The Blenheim crashed near Klüsserath, on the River Moselle.’

The Blenheim IV, flown by Flg Off Denis Elliot, crashed near Küsserath, nine miles east-northeast of Trier. Its three-man crew was killed.

Source :
"Jagdgeschwader 53 'Pik'As' Bf 109 Aces of 1940" by Chris Goss and Chris Davey

JG 53 Aircrafts in September 1939

Although still based at Wiesbaden-Erbenheim when German troops invaded Poland on 1 September 1939, elements of I.Gruppe / Jagdgeschwader 53 (JG 53) dispersed to a meadow away from the airfield as a precautionary measure against possible enemy air attacks.

 

Source :
"Jagdgeschwader 53 'Pik'As' Bf 109 Aces of 1940" by Chris Goss & Chris Davey

Bio of General der Artillerie Eugen Müller

 

 

Eugen Müller in a portrait taken on 3 May 1939, not long after he was promoted to Generalmajor (1 April 1939) and taken the place of the retired General der Infanterie Curt Liebmann as the commander of the Kriegsakademie.

Eugen Müller (19 July 1891 – 24 April 1951) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He is known for having drafted the criminal Commissar order in preparation for Operation Barbarossa, the 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union.

Eugen Müller was born in Metz, Alsace-Lorraine, on 9 July 1891. He joined the German Army straight from school, at nineteen years of age. He began his military career in the Bavarian Army, joining the First Bavarian Artillery Regiment, in 1912. From 1914 to 1918, during the First World War, Müller served as an officer in the Imperial German Army. By the war's end, he had reached the rank of Major. He stayed in the army, now part of the Reichswehr, after the war and was promoted to Oberstleutnant in October 1933, and Oberst in 1935. On 1 April 1939, Müller was promoted to the rank of Generalmajor and took command of the War Academy.

At the eve of World War II, on 1 September 1939, Eugen Müller was assigned to the Headquarters Chief of Staff of the Army, under the command of Generaloberst Franz Halder. Müller was in charge of legal and criminal action relating to the occupied areas in Europe. On 1 August 1940, he was promoted to Generalleutnant. Prior to the attack against the Soviet Union in 1941, Muller had played a leading role in training military staff officers responsible for enforcing military law in occupied territories. On 1 June 1942, Müller was promoted to the rank of General der Artillerie. He remained at the General Staff until the end of the war.

The first draft of the Commissar Order was issued by General Eugen Müller on May 6, 1941 and called for the shooting of all commissars in order to avoid letting any captured commissar reach a POW camp in Germany. The German historian Hans-Adolf Jacobsen wrote:

    "There was never any doubt in the minds of German Army commanders that the order deliberately flouted international law; that is borne out by the unusually small number of written copies of the Kommissarbefehl which were distributed".

The paragraph in which General Müller called for Army commanders to prevent "excesses" was removed on the request of the OKW. Brauchitsch amended the order on May 24, 1941 by attaching Müller's paragraph and calling on the Army to maintain discipline in the enforcement of the order. The final draft of the order was issued by OKW on June 6, 1941 and was restricted only to the most senior commanders, who were instructed to inform their subordinates verbally.

The enforcement of the Commissar Order led to thousands of executions. The German historian Jürgen Förster wrote in 1989 that it was simply not true, as most German Army commanders claimed in their memoirs and some German historians like Ernst Nolte were still claiming, that the Commissar Order was not enforced. On September 23, 1941, after several Wehrmacht commanders had asked for the order to be softened as a way of encouraging the Red Army to surrender, Hitler declined "any modification of the existing orders regarding the treatment of political commissars".

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugen_M%C3%BCller
https://military.wikia.org/wiki/Eugen_M%C3%BCller

A Pack-Mule Unit Takes a Much Needed Respite

The arduous terrain in which the German Gebirgsjäger (mountain troops) advanced into Poland in September 1939 can well be imagined and, as a consequence, sapped the strength from many of the men participating in the long march. In this photograph, a pack-mule unit takes a much needed respite.

Source :
"Images of War: Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Gebirgsjäger Cleaning Their Weapons

German Gebirgsjäger (Mountain troops) have occupied a village somewhere in southern Poland in September 1939, and are seen cleaning their weapons. This was known to the soldiers as, ‘Clean and patch hour’, which was a period of time allowed in order to clean weapons and repair clothes before resuming operations.

Source :
"Images of War: Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Gebirgs Motorcyclists Crossing the River

Two motorcyclists, wearing their distinctive rubberised coats, wade across a stream during a Gebirgs units drive through southern Poland, September 1939. A pioneer with a spade has been attempting to erect a temporary crossing for the motorcycles, but without much luck.

Source :
Book "Images of War: Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Gebirgsjäger in a Rubber Boat

German Mountain troops (Gebirgsjäger) are seen paddling across a river in a pneumatic boat during invasion of Poland, 1939. These 18 feet boats could carry a multitude of equipments up to 1.35tons. They were also used to construct pontoon bridges. In this photograph, bicycles can be seen stacked onboard.

Source :
Book "Images of War: Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Civilian Carts of 1. Gebirgs-Division

Two photographs taken in sequence showing local civilian carts pressed into service and being used by Gebirgstruppen of the 1. Gebirgs-Division in September 1939. Local civilians were often hired to drive the wagons and were paid very well for their services. However, it was frequently a dangerous preoccupation with a number of them being killed by enemy fire.

Source :
Book "Images of War: Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Kriegsmarine Crew Training

Kriegsmarine Crew IX/39, meaning the men who joined the German Navy in November 1939, wearing field grey naval infantry uniforms during their initial training. Many of these activities looked rather innocuous, but anybody having gone through the process will know that they sap energy from the body, making difficult to concentrate and to aim guns accurately.

Source :
Book "Wolfpacks At War: The U-Boat Experience In WWII" by Jak Mallmann Showell

Gebirgs Engineer Fixing a Telephone Line

Poland 1939: One of the most important aspects of military synchronization was effective communication. Here, in this photograph, a Gebirgsjäger signalman engineer is seen fixing a telephone line so that the various commands could communicate between themselves.

Source :
Book "Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Gebirgsjäger Medical Stretcher Bearers

Poland 1939: Two Gebirgsjäger medical stretcher bearers are seen moving an injured comrade to one of the hastily erected field hospitals in the rear. An officer overlooks the procedure, possibly wearing the Gebirgs wind jacket.

Source :
Book "Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Gebirgs Pioneer Erecting a Bridge

A Gebirgsjäger pioneer unit are seen erecting a bridge equipment "C" across a river in Poland, 1939. Much of the wood obtained to construct these bridges were commandeered from lumber stocks and followed the advancing column into Poland.

Source :
Book "Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Gebirgs Engineers at Work

Gebirgsjäger engineers have set to work preparing ground, probably for a bridging section across a river in Poland, 1939. Many of the bridges in southern Poland were destroyed by Polish demolition teams which often hindered German movement.

Source :
Book "Hitler's Mountain Troops 1939-1945" by Ian Baxter

Polish Prisoners Marched to a Collection Site

 Polish soldiers, taken as POWS after the German declaration of war on Poland, are marched to a collection site under guard of German soldiers after the Poles were defeated in battle in Walrubien (Warlubie) and surrounding areas in West Prussia. Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia, Schwetz an der Weichsel, Germany (now, Warlubie, Świecie County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland). September 1939.

Source :
http://bag-of-dirt.tumblr.com/post/132582927570/polish-soldiers-taken-as-pows-after-the-german

Gebirgsjäger in the First Day of Invasion of Poland

Two photographs showing a Gebirgstruppen unit crossing the Polish border during the morning of 1 September 1939. There are a variety of vehicles, including support trucks and motorcycle combinations, along with vehicles towing the 3.7cm PaK 35/36 anti-tank gun. Note the returning pack animals moving rearward to collect more supplies.