Franz Beyer (General)

Franz Beyer (born May 27, 1892 in Bautzen , † October 15, 1968 in Bad Wiessee ) was a German infantry general in World War II .

Life

Beyer joined the Imperial Navy as a midshipman on April 1, 1911 . As Leutnant zur See (August 3, 1914), later Oberleutnant zur See , he served in World War I as an officer on watch on several large ships and received both classes of the Iron Cross . On March 31, 1919, his service as a naval officer ended.

Beyer studied law and obtained a doctorate in law. jur. He then entered the police service, where he made it to the police colonel. With the establishment of the Wehrmacht , the need for officers increased sharply, so that many police officers were taken over. Thereupon Beyer joined the army as a lieutenant colonel on April 1, 1935 and became commander of the 2nd battalion in the 66th Infantry Regiment in Magdeburg . The promotion to colonel followed on April 1, 1938 and the appointment as commander of the 131st Infantry Regiment of the new 44th Infantry Division on April 1, 1939. Beyer kept this post over the beginning of the Second World War until December 30, 1941, when he appointed commander of the newly formed 331st Infantry Division and promoted to major general on February 1, 1942 . On September 12, 1941, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross . The division had to move from East Prussia to the central section of the Eastern Front in winter, where it had to face heavy defensive battles. On February 21, 1943, Beyer, who had been Lieutenant General since January 1, 1943 , gave up his division and, after a short leave of absence on March 1, 1943, took over the 44th Reichsgrenadier Division "Hoch- und Deutschmeister", which was being reorganized after the sinking in Stalingrad. , with which he moved from Belgium to Italy at the beginning of August 1943 .

From January 5th to 25th, 1944 Franz Beyer took part in the 1st course for commanding generals of the army and was then deployed to several army corps as deputy of the respective commanding general, for example the XVII., LVII., V. and XXXIX. Army Corps. On June 1, 1944, he was promoted to General of the Infantry and on August 7, 1944, Beyer took over the LXXX. Army corps on the Western Front , which was also involved in the Ardennes offensive . The unit consisted mainly of newly established Volksgrenadier divisions . He commanded until the end of the war.

In 1956 he became the founding editor of the papers for German and international politics . Franz Beyer died on October 15, 1968 and was buried in the Bad Wiessee cemetery.

Individual evidence

↑ Veit Scherzer : The knight's cross bearers 1939-1945. The holders of the Iron Cross of the Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and armed forces allied with Germany according to the documents of the Federal Archives . 2nd Edition. Scherzers Militaer-Verlag, Ranis / Jena 2007, ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2 .
^ Antony Beevor : The Ardennes Offensive 1944. Hitler's last battle. 2nd Edition. Pantheon Verlag, Munich 2018, ISBN 978-3-5705-5374-9 , page X: Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS.
↑ Wolf Keilig : The Generals of the Army 1939-1945. Troop officers, medical officers in the general rank, weapons officers in the general rank, officers d. Motor vehicle park troops in the general rank, engineer officers in the general rank, Wehrmacht judges in the general rank, administrative officers in the general rank, veterinary officers in the general rank. Podzun-Pallas-Verlag, Friedberg 1983, ISBN 3-7909-0202-0 , p. 33 .

personal data
SURNAME	Beyer, Franz
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	German infantry general in World War II
DATE OF BIRTH	May 27, 1892
PLACE OF BIRTH	Bautzen
DATE OF DEATH	15th October 1968
Place of death	Bad Wiessee

[1] Veit Scherzer : The knight's cross bearers 1939-1945. The holders of the Iron Cross of the Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and armed forces allied with Germany according to the documents of the Federal Archives . 2nd Edition. Scherzers Militaer-Verlag, Ranis / Jena 2007, ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2 .

[2] Antony Beevor : The Ardennes Offensive 1944. Hitler's last battle. 2nd Edition. Pantheon Verlag, Munich 2018, ISBN 978-3-5705-5374-9 , page X: Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS.

[3] Wolf Keilig : The Generals of the Army 1939-1945. Troop officers, medical officers in the general rank, weapons officers in the general rank, officers d. Motor vehicle park troops in the general rank, engineer officers in the general rank, Wehrmacht judges in the general rank, administrative officers in the general rank, veterinary officers in the general rank. Podzun-Pallas-Verlag, Friedberg 1983, ISBN 3-7909-0202-0 , p. 33 .