Gerhard Engel

Gerhard Michael Engel
Born	13 April 1906
Died	9 December 1976 (aged 70)
Allegiance	Weimar Republic  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Heer
Rank	Generalleutnant
Commands held	12th Infantry Division 56th Infantry Division
Battles/wars	World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Gerhard Engel (13 April 1906 – 9 December 1976) was a German general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II who commanded several divisions after serving as an adjutant to Adolf Hitler. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves.

Gerhard Engel joined the Prussian military in October 1925, in the 5th Prussian Infantry Regiment. From 1933 to 1937, Engel served as an adjutant to the battalion commander of Rostock, where he was promoted to captain. In 1938, while working as commander of the 11th Infantry Regiment, he was transferred and served as adjutant to the Commander-in-Chief of the Army. In 1941, he was promoted to major, and appointed an army adjutant to Hitler. He wrote a secret diary which was published after the war as "At the Heart of the Reich". In 1943, Engel was transferred to the Western Front. He fought in the Battle of Aachen, the Battle of Hürtgen Forest, the Battle of the Bulge, and the Battle of Halbe.

After his release, Engel was manager of a sugar factory in Nörvenich, and then of a machine factory in Düsseldorf. From April 1958 to December 1976, he worked as State Commissioner of the Society for Military Customer in North Rhine-Westphalia. Engel died in 1976.

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (26 February 1944) & 1st Class (23 May 1944)^[1]
• German Cross in Silver on 16 October 1943 as Oberstleutnant in Füsilier-Regiment 27^[2]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 4 July 1944 as Oberstleutnant and commander of Füsilier-Regiment 27^[3]
  • 679th Oak Leaves on 11 December 1944 as Generalmajor and commander of 12. Volksgrenadier-Division^[4]
• Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht (26 November 1944)

References

Citations

1. Thomas 1997, p. 156.
2. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 539.
3. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 145.
4. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 78.

Bibliography

• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
• Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II [The German Cross 1941 – 1945 History and Recipients Volume 2] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8.
• Thomas, Franz (1997). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 1: A–K [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 1: A–K] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2299-6.
• Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 3, 1. Januar 1944 bis 9. Mai 1945 [The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 3, 1 January 1944 to 9 May 1945] (in German). München, Germany: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. 1985. ISBN 978-3-423-05944-2.