Friedrich Hoßbach

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Friedrich Hoßbach (center), 1934

Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Hoßbach (born November 21, 1894 in Unna , † September 10, 1980 in Göttingen ) was a German officer , most recently a general of the infantry and army commander during the Second World War . In 1937 he wrote the so-called " Hoßbach Minutes ".

Early years

The son of school professor Heinrich Hoßbach and his wife Anna joined by cadets of completed training on 29 October 1913 as an ensign in the Infantry Regiment 82 of the Prussian army in Göttingen one. There he was promoted to lieutenant on June 19, 1914 .

After the beginning of the First World War , Hoßbach was adjutant in the III. Battalion of his regiment and was transferred to Infantry Regiment 419 on September 15, 1916, where he served as a regimental adjutant. From March 2 to November 12, 1918 Hoßbach came as an Ordonnanzoffizier in the General Staff of the XVIII. Army Corps and was promoted to first lieutenant on September 2nd. After the end of the war, he was transferred back to his main regiment on November 12, 1918.

Interwar period

In 1920 he was accepted into the Reichswehr and promoted to captain on March 1, 1927 , then transferred to the Reichswehr Ministry in 1930 .

On August 4, 1934 Hoßbach was - now with the rank of Major - adjutant of the Reichswehr at Adolf Hitler . As Colonel and Adjutant of the Wehrmacht to Hitler, he wrote the so-called " Hoßbach Minutes " in November 1937 , which recorded a lecture by Hitler to the top military, in which he first set out his war plans against Austria and Czechoslovakia. Five days after the speech, Hoßbach noted the content based on his notes.

In the course of the Blomberg-Fritsch crisis , he was transferred to the 82nd Infantry Regiment on January 28, 1938 as a colonel (since March 1, 1937), this time as commander. He fell out of favor with Hitler because he had informed Werner von Fritsch of the allegations made against him.

Second World War

Shortly before the beginning of the Second World War, Hoßbach changed to the General Staff of the XXX on August 26, 1939 . Army Corps as its chief and on September 30, 1939 in the same function as II Army Corps . On December 1, 1939, he again took command of the 82nd Infantry Regiment and led it during the western campaign .

On February 24, 1942, Hoßbach was transferred to the Führerreserve for the first time and promoted to major general on March 1 . He was given command of the 82nd Infantry Division on April 1, and from September 1, 1942 to May 15, 1943 he was again transferred to the Führer Reserve. At the same time being promoted to Lieutenant General , Hoßbach took over the 31st Infantry Division on May 15, 1943, and took over the leadership of the LVI on August 2, 1943 . Panzer Corps commissioned and appointed commanding general of the corps on August 10th . In this position he was promoted to General of the Infantry on November 1, 1943.

Since July 18, 1944, he was Commander-in-Chief of the 4th Army and was personally dismissed by Hitler on January 29, 1945 during the Battle of East Prussia , because he had wanted to order the breakout of the enclosed East Prussia against express orders.

Towards the end of the war, Hoßbach was treated for an ear infection in the Göttingen University Clinic. On April 8, 1945, shortly before the US Army arrived , he was warned that the Gestapo would come for him. When the doorbell actually rang, he took his pistol onto the balcony and engaged in a firefight with the waiting Gestapo officers - a uniformed man and two plainclothes police officers - as well as a member of the SS , until his opponents - in obvious fear of the approaching US Army - fled by car. Less than an hour later, the Americans arrived to take him prisoner. He remained in captivity until 1947 .

Grave site in Göttingen

In the post-war period , Hoßbach dealt with the influence of Immanuel Kant on officers.

Awards

Publications

  • On military responsibility in the period before the Second World War. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 1948, 32 pages.
  • Between the Wehrmacht and Hitler. Wolfenbütteler Verlagsanstalt, Wolfenbüttel 1949, 224 pages.
  • Battle for East Prussia. From the battles of the German 4th Army for East Prussia from July 19, 1944 to January 30, 1945. Dikreiter, Überlingen 1951, 80 pages.
  • Infantry in the Eastern campaign in 1941/42. Giebel & Oehlschlägel, Osterode (Harz) 1951, 247 pages.
  • Scharnhorst. Holzner, Würzburg 1955, 31 pages.

Web links

Commons : Friedrich Hoßbach  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/occ-gy/ch14.htm - specified original sources: Action Report, V Corps, ACofS G-5, Apr 45, 6 May 45, in V Corps, 205-5 and Hqs, 12th AGp, P & -PW, Daily Summary of Intelligence, 13 and 14 Apr 45, in SHAEF G-5, 17.11, Jacket 9 .
  2. ↑ Fr. Hoßbach: Influences Immanuel Kant on the thinking of Prussian-German officers . Circular letter from the Albertus University ( Göttingen working group ), Christmas 1953.
  3. ↑ a b c d Ranking list of the German Reichsheeres , Ed .: Reichswehrministerium , Mittler & Sohn Verlag, Berlin 1930, p. 145.
  4. ↑ Veit Scherzer : 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 , p. 406.
  5. ↑ General of the Infantry Friedrich Hossbach. (No longer available online.) Axis Biographical Research, archived from the original on March 2, 2010 ; Retrieved March 2, 2010 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.geocities.com
personal data
SURNAME Hoßbach, Friedrich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Hoßbach, Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German officer and general of the infantry in World War II
DATE OF BIRTH November 21, 1894
PLACE OF BIRTH Unna
DATE OF DEATH September 10, 1980
Place of death Goettingen