Joachim von Siegroth

Joachim von Siegroth
Born	25 December 1896 Oberlobendau
Died	2 May 1945 (aged 48) Halbe
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918)  Weimar Republic (to 1919)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Heer
Years of service	1914–19 1935–45
Rank	Generalmajor
Commands held	712. Infanterie-Division
Battles/wars	World War I World War II Invasion of Poland Battle of France Operation Barbarossa Battle of Smolensk (1941) Battle of Moscow Battles of Rzhev Battle of Smolensk (1943) Battle of Metz Battle of Halbe
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
Other work	Police officer

Joachim Ferdinand Max von Siegroth (25 December 1896 – 2 May 1945) was a highly decorated Generalmajor in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Joachim von Siegroth was listed as missing in action during the Battle of Halbe in May 1945. He was posthumously awarded the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross on 9 May 1945.

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1914)
  • 2nd Class (9 October 1914)^[1]
• Lübeck Hanseatic Cross
• Wound Badge (1914)
  • in Black
• Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (12 June 1940)^[1]
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 1st Class (22 June 1940)^[1]
• Honour Roll Clasp of the Army (19 December 1941)^[1]
• Eastern Front Medal
• Infantry Assault Badge in Silver
• German Cross in Gold on 19 December 1941 as Oberstleutnant in Infanterie-Regiment 255^[2]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 18 October 1944 as Oberst and commander of a Kampfgruppe of the Fahnenjunker-Schule VI of the infantry Metz^[3]
  • (878th) Oak Leaves on 9 May 1945 as Generalmajor and commander of the 712. Infanterie-Division^{[4][Note 1]}

Notes

1. The Heerespersonalamt (HPA—Army Staff Office) received Joachim von Siegroth's nomination for the Oak Leaves from the commander-in-chief of the 9. Armee Theodor Busse via teleprinter message on 21 April 1945 announcing that a detailed statement with explanations will follow. This nomination went to the chief of the HPA in Berlin and to the Army Group Vistula. Major Joachim Domaschk noted on 28 April: "Waiting for announced statement!". The nomination list of the higher grade of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves notes the entry date of 19 March 1945. This is the date when the nomination was sent. An almost unreadable comment states "Waiting". According to Fellgiebel a note claims "service proposal regarding immediate presentation pending".^[5] Scherzer does not confirm this entry but states that a comment "Waiting for announced statement" is noted instead. No further comments indicate that the nomination was further processed. According to the Association of Knight's Cross Recipients (AKCR) the award was presented in accordance with the Dönitz-decree. This is illegal according to the Deutsche Dienststelle (WASt) and lacks legal justification. The presentation number "876" was assigned by the AKCR. The presentation date was assigned by Fellgiebel.^[6]

References

Citations

1. Thomas 1998, p. 320.
2. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 444.
3. Fellgiebel 2003, p. 325.
4. Fellgiebel 2003, p. 86.
5. Fellgiebel 2003, p. 89.
6. Scherzer 2007, p. 175.

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.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Miltaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
• Thomas, Franz (1998). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 2: L–Z [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 2: L–Z] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2300-9.

External links

• Lexikon der Wehrmacht
• World War 2 Awards.com