Wilhelm Berlin

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Wilhelm Berlin, (far left person with folded hands) next to Hitler during a briefing in March 1945

Wilhelm Otto Julius Berlin (born April 28, 1889 in Cologne , † September 15, 1987 in Hamburg ) was a German officer , most recently general of the artillery in World War II .

Prussian Army

On March 12, 1909, Berlin joined the Baden Foot Artillery Regiment No. 14 as an ensign from the Cadet Corps and was initially used there in the 6th and later in the 1st battery . From October 1, 1910 to January 1914, he was assigned to the artillery and engineering school in Berlin-Charlottenburg . From February 1 to August 1, 1914, Berlin attended the Military Technical Academy , which he had to end prematurely when the First World War broke out.

After the mobilization , Berlin acted as intelligence officer for the fortress of Kaiser Wilhelm II until August 25, 1914. After that, he was assigned to the command of the Strasbourg governorate in the same position . Following this he was from September 2, 1914 at the General Staff of the XV. Reserve Corps . Berlin left the staff service on April 30, 1915 when he took over as leader of the mortar battery 216. After two months he became company commander of the 3rd battery in his main regiment. Its use on the Eastern Front within the regiment lasted from July 17 to September 25, 1915. After that, the regiment was relocated to the Western Front, where it intervened again from mid-February 1916. With effect from June 2, 1916, Berlin became adjutant to General of the Foot Artillery No. 8. The staff was reorganized on February 16, 1917 and set up as Artillery Commander No. 126. From September 10th to 15th, 1917, Berlin completed a course at the Heeresgasschule in Berlin and returned to the front after it was completed. With effect from July 25 to August 1, 1918, Berlin commanded temporarily and from September 4, 1918 until the end of the war, the 2nd Battalion of Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 88. After the Compiègne armistice , Berlin returned home.

Reichswehr and Wehrmacht

Promotions

On December 18, 1918, Berlin left the staff of Artillery Commander No. 126 and was reassigned to his regular regiment. After demobilization , the as formed Freikorps operating severity volunteers battery 1, which acts as the leader of Berlin from 21 March 1919. Shortly afterwards, on April 18, 1919, Berlin was taken over by the Provisional Reichswehr and used as a battery commander in Reichswehr Artillery Regiment 13. He left this again in September 1919 to become leader of the Second Division of the Berlin Battery . This was assigned to the Reichswehr Artillery Regiment 13 . On October 25, 1919, he was transferred to the position of leader of the 2nd battery of the 1st division here. On December 1, 1919 (with effect from October 1, 1919) Berlin was appointed head of the 2nd battery, which was renamed the 5th battery on June 10, 1920 . On September 22, 1920, Berlin transferred to the regimental staff of Artillery Regiment 13, which was renamed the 5th Artillery Regiment on September 27, 1920 only a few days later . In April 1921, Berlin embarked on a several-month training trip through Military District V, which he did not finish until July 19, 1921. He then attended a training course for Rittmeister in the cavalry school in Hanover .

After this he returned to his regiment, where he was again active as chief of the 2nd battery of the 5th artillery regiment. In June 1925, Berlin was instructed to take a shooting course on infantry guns in Senne , and then resume his duties as battery chief. On March 1, 1926, he was transferred to the staff of the 1st Division of the 5th Artillery Regiment. From January to the end of July 1927, Berlin worked as a teacher at the Jüterbog Artillery School. Then he returned to the 5th Artillery Regiment to be used there in the 1st (mounted) battery . In October of the same year, Berlin was assigned as a teacher to Jüterbog and at the same time transferred to the staff of the 1st division of his regiment. From August 22, 1929 to September 30, 1930, Berlin was assigned to the troop office, after which he completed a gas protection course E in Berlin .

With effect from October 1, 1930, Berlin left the 5th Artillery Regiment and was assigned to the Reichswehr Ministry. From October to November 1933, he participated in the training course B for artillery officers in part to from 1 October 1934 commander of the II. Department of the Artillery Regiment Jüteborg to be that later on May 1, 1935 in artillery training regiment renamed has been. On May 1, 1936, Berlin was appointed higher artillery officer in the command of the tank troops , to whose command staff he was transferred on October 6, 1936. In this position, Berlin was entitled to continue to wear the uniform of the 5th Artillery Regiment. On October 12, 1937, Berlin was appointed commander of the 33rd Artillery Regiment , but came to the 96th Artillery Regiment from December 1938 as part of the general mobilization . However, he only held this position until March 22, 1939. He then returned to the 33rd Artillery Regiment .

Second World War

Berlin took part in the attack on Poland with the 33rd Artillery Regiment (→  33rd Infantry Division ) . After its termination, Berlin became Artillery Commander 101 at the Potsdam War School . As a higher artillery commander, Berlin took part in the western campaign , but was transferred to the command reserve of the OKH and assigned to the artillery school before its end . On October 30, 1940, he became the commander of the Artillery School II in Jüterbog . Berlin then held this position until mid-May 1943. This was followed by a renewed transfer to the Führerreserve in order to become commander of the 58th Infantry Division with effect from May 1, 1943 , to act there as a representative of Lieutenant General Karl von Graffen , who was on leave . At that time, the 58th Infantry Division was in the area of Army Group North in the Demyansk area . On August 24, 1943, however, Berlin took up his post as commander of the 227th Infantry Division , which was also located in the northern section of the Eastern Front in the greater Leningrad Front .

In February 1944, the 227th Infantry Division was at Narva . For the recognition of his special achievements in the leadership of his division , which was already mentioned in the Wehrmacht report on February 12, 1944 , as well as for his excellent assessment and tactical skills in the battles for Wolossowo and Jamburg , Berlin was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross awarded. With effect from February 15, 1944, Berlin was entrusted with the deputy leadership of the Narva Army Division , but his function was only for a few months. On May 11, 1944, Berlin became the deputy leadership of the XXVI. Army Corps transferred to M. d. W. d. G. b. of the General of the Artillery to be assigned to the Chief of the General Staff of the Army. On July 10, 1944, however, he was reassigned to the OKH's leader reserve. During this time, the commander in military district III regulated his previous service . With effect from November 25, 1944, Berlin was appointed General of the Artillery in the OKH. In view of the situation on the eastern front, Berlin was given the command of the General Command of the CI with effect from February 27, 1945, while maintaining its previous position . Army Corps (Oder Front) commissioned. He led this command until April 18, 1945. Afterwards he worked again as general of the artillery in the OKH until the end of the war. At the end of the war, Berlin became a prisoner of war in the United States , from which he was released on July 3, 1947.

Awards

literature

  • Dermot Bradley : Die Generale des Heeres 1921–1945 Volume 1: Abberger-Bitthorn, Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück 1993, ISBN 3-7648-2423-9 , pp. 340–342.
  • Manfred Dörr: The Knight's Cross Bearers of the German Wehrmacht , Part III Volume 1, pp. 427–429.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Jürgen Kraus: Handbook of the associations and troops of the German army 1914-1918 Part IX: Field artillery Volume 1 , Verlag Militaria, Vienna 2007, ISBN 978-3-902526-15-1 , p. 100
  2. ↑ a b c d Ranking list of the German Reichsheeres , Ed .: Reichswehrministerium , Mittler & Sohn Verlag , Berlin 1930, p. 130
  3. ↑ 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. 216.
personal data
SURNAME Berlin, Wilhelm
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Berlin, Wilhelm Otto Julius (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German officer, most recently general of the artillery in World War II
DATE OF BIRTH April 28, 1889
PLACE OF BIRTH Cologne
DATE OF DEATH September 15, 1987
Place of death Hamburg