Wilhelm Wedge House

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Wilhelm Friedrich Keilhaus (born December 11, 1898 in Hohenstein-Ernstthal , † January 11, 1977 in Karlsruhe ) was a German police officer and SS officer , most recently an SS brigade leader and major general of the Waffen SS .

Life

Keilhaus was the son of a master tailor. After attending the Gabelsberger School in Chemnitz, Keilhaus completed an apprenticeship as a cook. He also attended an evening grammar school, which he left with the Abitur. On January 15, 1917, Keilhaus volunteered for Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 99 to take part in the First World War . From January 18, 1917 to October 1918 he took part in the war with the infantry regiment "Lübeck" (3rd Hanseatic) No. 162 as a shock troop leader, in which he became a private on May 25, 1918 and on September 18, 1918 was promoted to NCO . He was also awarded both classes of the Iron Cross and the Wound Badge in black.

After the end of the war, Keilhaus joined the Berlin Security Police on July 7, 1919 , and was promoted to Unterwachtmeister on September 18, 1919 . On October 4, 1920 changed Keilhaus to police in which he successively to sergeant (1 December 1921), sergeant (1 October 1925) and Sergeant Major (1 April 1929) was promoted. Keilhaus married Wilhelmina Nikutta on October 2, 1926 (* February 1, 1899) and adopted her daughter from her first marriage (* 1919). Politically, Keilhaus did not stand out during the Weimar Republic , but on April 1, 1932, he joined the National Socialist Sturmabteilung (SA) and on September 1, 1932 the NSDAP ( membership number 1.399.935).

In 1933, Keilhaus joined the state police: from March 1 to July 17, 1933, he was a member of the signal train of the Wecke police battalion. After the unit was renamed as Landespolizeigruppe Wecke (July 17, 1933) and "Landespolizeigruppe General Göring" (December 17, 1933), he retained this function.

On April 1, 1934, Keilhaus was taken over by the state police with the rank of SS-Sturmführer in the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (cf. rank adjustment ); at the same time he was admitted to the SS with effect from April 1 (membership number 209.060). In the following months he was entrusted with setting up the Leibstandarte's intelligence units.

In the early summer of 1934, Keilhaus was involved in the violent implementation of the Röhm affair . With effect from July 4, 1934, he was promoted to SS-Obersturmführer . The promotion was one of at least nine promotions personally pronounced by Heinrich Himmler in the days after the Röhm Putsch .

In the autumn of 1942, Keilhaus was assigned to the SS headquarters , where he worked as an inspector of the intelligence forces. In July 1943, Keilhaus was appointed inspector for communications in the SS Leadership Office. From August 1944 to 1945 he was head of telecommunications for Reich Minister Himmler.

After the end of the war, Keilhaus was taken prisoner by the British . After spending time in various prisoner-of-war camps, including the Island Farm Special Camp 11, he was released to the Neuengamme civilian internment camp on October 23, 1947, and from there around 1948 to freedom. Afterwards, Keilhaus worked in West Germany as a consultant for telecommunications.

personality

In his SS Fuehrer Personnel File, Keilhaus was assigned qualities such as “mental agility”, “clear goal setting” and “strong will” as well as above-average education. In terms of constitutional psychology, the attributes “schizothym” and “cyclothyma” were ascribed to him for “leptosomem” physique. With a height of 1.69 / 1.70 meters, he was noticeably small by SS standards.

Promotions

Awards

See also

literature

  • Dermot Bradley (ed.), Andreas Schulz , Günter Wegmann: The generals of the Waffen-SS and the police. The military careers of the generals, as well as the doctors, veterinarians, intendants, judges and ministerial officials with the rank of general. Volume 2: Hachtel – Kutschera. Biblio Publishing House. Bissendorf 2005. ISBN 3-7648-2592-8 . Pp. 496-499.
  • Jutta Mühlenberg: The SS helper corps. Training, deployment and denazification of the female members of the Waffen-SS 1942–1949 , Hamburger Edition , HIS, Hamburg 2011, ISBN 978-3-86854-239-4 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Jutta Mühlenberg: The SS helper corps. Training, deployment and denazification of female members of the Waffen-SS 1942–1949 , Hamburg 2011, p. 432
  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. 223.
personal data
SURNAME Wedge House, Wilhelm
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Keilhaus, Wilhelm Friedrich (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German police officer and SS leader
DATE OF BIRTH December 11, 1898
PLACE OF BIRTH Hohenstein-Ernstthal
DATE OF DEATH January 11, 1977
Place of death Karlsruhe