Table Of ContentSome of the generals who commanded
Hitler's armies were among the greatest
soldiers in history. Although Manstein,
Guderian, Model, and Kesselring were
probably the greatest of all, men like
Rundstedt, Kluge, and Bock on the eastern
front were commanding armies of up to
three-quarters of a million men, winning the
largest battles which the world had ever
seen. In North Africa Rommel, with an
army only a fraction of this size, built a
reputation with both Germans and Allies
which led him to be chosen as potential
Head of State in the event of Hitler's
assassination. Many other generals would be
famous even today had they fought on the
winning side.
All the World War II armies had their great
captains, but it is in the number of them
that the German Army was supreme — and
the biographies of the top half-dozen or so
have tended to overshadow the achievements
of the rest. This fascinating book portrays
the personalities and careers of 82 of the
Third Reich's greatest Army and Luftwaffe
generals.
These men were soldiers first and Nazis
second — indeed the majority of them were
not Nazis at all. Their battles with the Party,
the Führer, and with each other were often
as dramatic as their battles at Stalingrad,
Kursk, and Alamein, and it is Mr Brett-Smith's
special ability to clarify their relationships,
their desires, and their influences, against
the background of their military
achievements.
The book is illustrated with thirty-six
excellent portraits, and four maps covering
the major campaigns. A useful series of
tables shows the chain of command from
Armed Forces High Command down to
Company level, and the Army and Army
Group commanders of Armed Forces
commands.
HITLER'S GENERALS
By the same author
Berlin '45
The Eleventh Hussars
HITLER'S
G E N E R A LS
Richard Brett-Smith
Osprey
Published in 1976 by
Osprey Publishing Limited
12-14 Long Acre, London WC2E 9LP
Member company of the George Philip Group
© Copyright 1976 Richard Brett-Smith
All rights reserved
ISBN 0 85045 073 X
Photoset, printed and bound in Great Britain by
R. J. Acford Limited, Industrial Estate, Chichester, Sussex
Contents
List of Illustrations
Oak Leaves and Crimson Stripes 1
The Old Guard 15
von Rundstedt • von Brauchitsch • Blaskowitz • von Leeb • List • von Bock
von Kluge • von Küchler • Otto von Stülpnagel • Strauss • Schmidt • Dollmann
The Luftwaffe Generals 105
Goring • Milch • Sperrte • Felmy • Stumpff • Keller • Grauert • Weise • Udet
Greim • Geissler • L'örzer • Christiansen • von Richthofen • Lohr • Bodenschatz
Jeschonnek • Dessloch • Deichmann • Fiebig • Galland • Korten • Kreipe
Student • Schlemm
The Waffen S.S. Generals 150
Hausser • Dietrich • Steiner • von dem Bach-Zelewski • Eicke • Bittrich • Gille
Meyer
The C avalry Generals 164
von Kleist • von Weichs • von Mackensen • Lindemann • Höpner
von Schweppenburg • Stumme • Baade • Westphal • von Saucken
von Boineburg-Lengsfeld
The Nazi Generals 183
von Blomberg • von Reichenau • Keitel • Jodl • Schmundt • Burgdorf • Dietl
Busch • Model • Schörner • Krebs
The Anti-Nazi Generals 206
Beck • von Witzleben • Karl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel • von Falkenhausen
Thomas • von Tresckow • Oster • Speidel
The Chiefs of Staff Officers 215
Halder • Zeitzier
Two Great Commanders 221
von Manstein • Kesselring
The Panzer Leaders 243
Guderian • Rommel • Hoth
Broken Swords and Withered Oak Leaves 278
V
Maps 281
Appendix 1: Armed Forces Chain of Command 288
Appendix 2: Some Armed Forces Commands 1939-45 290
Glossary 295
Bibliography 297
Index 301
vi
Illustrations
1. Field-Marshal von Rundstedt (Radio Times Hulton Picture Library)
2. Hitler with Field-Marshal von Brauchitsch (Imperial War Museum)
3. Colonel-General Blaskowitz (Radio Times Hulton Picture Library)
4. Field-Marshal von Leeb (Imperial War Museum)
5. Field-Marshal List (Radio Times Hulton Picture Library)
6. Field-Marshal von Bock (Radio Times Hulton Picture Library)
7. Field-Marshal von Kluge (Radio Times Hulton Picture Library)
8. Field-Marshal von Küchler (Imperial War Museum)
9. Field-Marshal Goring
10. Field-Marshal Milch (Imperial War Museum)
11. Field-Marshal Sperrle (Imperial War Museum)
12. General Christiansen
13. Lieutenant-General Galland (Imperial War Museum)
14. Colonel-General Student (Imperial War Museum)
15. Field-Marshal von Greim
16. Colonel-General Dietrich
17. General Bach-Zelewski (right) (Imperial War Museum)
18. General Gille (Imperial War Museum)
19. General Steiner (Imperial War Museum)
20. Field-Marshal von Kleist (Imperial War Museum)
21. Field-Marshal von Weichs (Radio Times Hulton Picture Library)
22. Field Marshals von Reichenau and
von Brauchitsch with Hitler (Imperial War Museum)
23. Colonel-Generals von Reichenau and Keitel with Hitler (Imperial
War Museum)
24. Lieutenant-General Dietl
vii
25. Field-Marshal Busch (Imperial War Museum)
26. Field-Marshal Model (Imperial War Museum)
27. Field-Marshal von Reichenau
28. Field-Marshal von Witzleben (Radio Times Hulton Picture Library)
29. General of Infantry Karl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel (left)
30. Colonel-General Haider (Imperial War Museum)
31. Colonel-General Haider with Field-Marshal von Brauchitsch
(Imperial War Museum)
32. Colonel-General Zeitzler (Radio Times Hulton Picture Library)
33. Field-Marshal von Manstein
34. Field-Marshal Kesselring
35. Colonel-General Hoth with Field-Marshal Rommel
(Imperial War Museum)
36. Colonel-General Guderian (Imperial War Museum)
MAPS (page 281)
The Eastern Front
Cyrenaica
Italian Campaign
The Normandy Landings
viii
