Erich Petersen (General)

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Erich Petersen (born August 25, 1889 in Heidelberg , † July 4, 1963 in Allmannshausen ) was a German officer , most recently General of the Air Force Aviators in World War II .

Life

Promotions

Petersen joined the 4th Lorraine Infantry Regiment No. 136 on March 22, 1909 . There he rose until March 1914, first to ensign , then to lieutenant . As such, Petersen was used as a platoon leader . In March 1914, Petersen transferred to the Schleswig-Holstein Infantry Regiment No. 163 .

After the outbreak of World War I , he was employed in this regiment from 1915 onwards on the western front, where he acted as platoon and company leader. In 1917 Petersen transferred to the Reserve Infantry Regiment 31 as a company commander , which he left again in 1918 in order to then be employed in the same position with Reserve Jäger Battalion No. 18 . He stayed here until the end of the war and returned to his main regiment on December 18, 1918 as a platoon leader.

After its demobilization, he transferred to the Reichswehr Infantry Regiment 18 on October 1, 1919 , where he remained until the end of September 1920. He was then a platoon leader in the 6th Infantry Regiment from October 1, 1920 to the end of March 1922 . There he was promoted to company commander on April 1, 1922 and held this post until mid-April 1927. On April 16, 1927, he was appointed regimental adjutant and held this position until the end of 1931. Then Petersen left the regiment and switched to the staff of the 2nd Division in Stettin on January 1, 1932 . There he acted until the end of September 1934. On October 1, 1934 he was appointed commander of the III. Battalion of the 27th Infantry Regiment , which he remained until November 9, 1938. On November 10, 1938, he took over as commander of the Border Infantry Regiment 125 and kept this post even after it was renamed Infantry Regiment 125 .

On September 19, 1941, Petersen was temporarily transferred to the Führerreserve and on October 1, 1941, transferred to the Air Force. Here he took over as commander of the 7th Aviation Division until the end of October 1942 . On November 1, 1942, Petersen was promoted to inspector of the Air Force field units in the Reich Aviation Ministry , which he remained until the end of July 1943. During this time he served from June 20 to the end of July 1943 on the staff of the IV Air Force Field Corps , of which General Petersen was appointed on August 1, 1943. He led this until November 18, 1944. On November 19, 1944, the IV. Air Force Field Corps became part of the LXXXX. Army Corps renamed and incorporated into the Army. Contrary to other publications, Petersen was not taken over by the army as general of the infantry , but continued to lead the corps until the end of the war as an air force officer with the rank of general of the aviators.

On May 8, 1945, Petersen fell into French captivity and was charged with war crimes by a French court , but was later acquitted of the allegations. He was released on January 18, 1950 and returned to Germany.

Awards

literature

  • Karl Friedrich Hildebrandt: The Generals of the Air Force 1935–1945 Volume 3: Odebrecht-Zoch , Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück 1992, ISBN 3-7648-2207-4 , pp. 23–24

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Ranking list of the German Reichsheeres , Ed .: Reichswehrministerium , Mittler & Sohn Verlag , Berlin 1930, p. 135
  2. ↑ Klaus D. Patzwall and Veit Scherzer : Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941–1945, History and Proprietor Volume II , Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall, Norderstedt 2001, ISBN 3-931533-45-X , p. 348
personal data
SURNAME Petersen, Erich
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German officer, most recently General der Flieger in World War II
DATE OF BIRTH August 25, 1889
PLACE OF BIRTH Heidelberg
DATE OF DEATH 4th July 1963
Place of death Allmannshausen