Franz Mattenklott

Franz Mattenklott (born November 19, 1884 in Grünberg in Silesia , † June 28, 1954 in Braunlage ) was a German infantry general in World War II .

Life

Mattenklott joined the 4th Magdeburg Infantry Regiment No. 67 in 1903 and took part in the First World War. After the end of the First World War he switched to the police service , from which he returned to the army in the course of rearmament and army increase.

In the Wehrmacht he led the border command in Trier from July 1st, 1938, from which the 72nd Infantry Division (newly established in the 2nd wave) from August 26th / 1st. September 1939 was created, which he led as division commander. In the meantime, Mattenklott was in command of the fortress and city of Metz from July 25, 1940.

His division moved from France to Romania in January 1941 . Mattenklott led them from July 1941 as part of the 11th Army through Bessarabia and southern Ukraine in the Crimean campaign, where he distinguished himself several times and received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on November 23, 1941 . From January 1, 1942, Mattenklott became the commanding general of the XXXXII. Army corps as the successor to Lieutenant General Hans Graf von Sponeck , who had been relieved for disobedience, and continued under the command of the 11th Army under General of the Infantry Erich von Manstein. In heavy defensive battles, he managed to keep the barrier front at the foot of the peninsula.

In May 1942 he and his army corps played a key role in the bustle hunt , which led to the reconquest of the Kerch peninsula and which was a decisive prerequisite for the subsequent conquest of the Sevastopol fortress , which was successful by early July 1942. On September 19, 1942, Mattenklott was awarded the German Cross in Gold. After the 11th Army withdrew to Leningrad , Mattenklott and the staff of his army corps also became commander of the entire Crimea with direct subordination to the newly formed Army Group A. This command ended on April 30, 1943, after which he was transferred to the so-called Leader Reserve of the Army . From June 10, 1944, Franz Mattenklott, in place of General Glokke, who had died shortly before, led as so-called Deputy Commanding General and Commander of Münster from Wehrkreis VI (essentially consisting of the northern and central parts of the then Prussian Rhine Province) until the area was occupied by the Western Allies in April 1945.

literature

Wolfgang Keilig : The generals of the army. Podzun-Pallas-Verlag, Friedberg 1983, p. 218.

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b Veit Scherzer : Knight's Cross bearer 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 , p. 530.

personal data
SURNAME	Mattenklott, Franz
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	German infantry general in World War II
DATE OF BIRTH	November 19, 1884
PLACE OF BIRTH	Grünberg in Silesia
DATE OF DEATH	June 28, 1954
Place of death	Braunlage

[Scherzer-1] Veit Scherzer : Knight's Cross bearer 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 , p. 530.