Hans Krebs (Wehrmacht general)
| Hans Krebs | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Birth name | Hans Otto Wilhelm Eugen Krebs |
| Birth date | 4 March 1898 |
| Place of birth | Helmstedt, Duchy of Brunswick, German Empire |
| Death date | 1 May 1945 (aged 47) |
| Place of death | Berlin, Prussia, German Reich |
| Allegiance |  German Empire Weimar Republic National Socialist Germany
|
| Service/branch |  Imperial German Army.png){kind=small} Reichswehr Heer
|
| Years of service | 1914–1945 |
| Rank | General der Infanterie |
| Commands held | Chief of the Army General Staff (OKH) |
| Battles/wars | World War I
|
| Awards | Iron Cross German Cross in Gold Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves |
| Relations | ∞ 1920 Ilse Wittkop |
Hans Otto Wilhelm Eugen Krebs (4 March 1898 – 1 May 1945) was a German officer of the Imperial German Army, the Reichswehr and the Wehrmacht, finally General of the Infantry and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves in World War II.
Contents
Life
Krebs was born in Helmstedt. From 1907 to 1913, he attended the Gymnasium in Helmstedt and from Easter 1913 the Gymnasium in Goslar. Just 16 years old, he volunteered for service in the Imperial German Army in 1914, was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant in 1915, and to 1st Lieutenant in 1925. Krebs was a career officer, and reached the position of Head of General Staff of various army groups until he became an General of Infantry.
- 3 September 1914 War volunteer with the Hannoversches Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 10 in Goslar
- 27 November 1914 Transferred as officer candidate to the Infanterie-Regiment „Herzog Friedrich Wilhelm von Braunschweig“ (Ostfriesisches) Nr. 78
- 12 December 1914 Commanded to the officer candidate course in Döberitz
- 15 February 1915 Commanded to the Infantry Training Battalion of the X. Army Corps in Munsterlager
- 19 March 1915 Detached to the Infanterie-Regiment „Herzog Friedrich Wilhelm von Braunschweig“ (Ostfriesisches) Nr. 78 at the war front
- 23 March 1915 Transferred to the Machine Gun Company of his regiment
- 2 July 1915 Wounded
- 5 August 1915 Abitur
- Krebs had left school in order to volunteer without graduation exams, but he kept learning and now, while recovering from the wound, he took a war exam which he passed with flying colors.
- 5 August 1915 Transferred to the Replacement Battalion of his regiment
- 21 August 1915 Detached to the Infanterie-Regiment „Herzog Friedrich Wilhelm von Braunschweig“ (Ostfriesisches) Nr. 78 at the war front
- 15 January to 8 February 1916 Commanded to the Ostfriesisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 62
- 9 February 1916 Appointed leader of the Machine Gun Sniper Troop No. 47
- 9 February to 12 March 1916 commanded to the machine gun training camp Sennelager
- 1 November 1916 Appointed commander of the 3rd Company/Machine Gun Sniper Battalion No. 14
- 24 December 1916 Commanded to the Staff/Machine Gun Sniper Battalion No. 14
- 8 to 13 January 1917 Commanded to the Army Gas School
- 6 March 1917 return to the Infanterie-Regiment „Herzog Friedrich Wilhelm von Braunschweig“ (Ostfriesisches) Nr. 78
- 1 June 1917 Appointed company leader
- 6 September 1917 Commanded to the regimental staff
- 1 October 1917 Appointed adjutant of the regiment
- 6 July 1919 Transferred to the Machine Gun Company (under Bodewin Claus Eduard Keitel) of the Reichswehr-Jägerbataillon 10
- 11 October 1919 Newly sworn-in
- 8 September 1920 12th (Machine Gun) Company/17. (Preußisches-Braunschweigisches) Infanterie-Regiment
- 15 September with effect from 1 October 1923 Transferred to the 8. (Preußisches) Reiter-Regiment and commanded to the Military District Command VI
- 27 August with effect from 1 October 1924 Transferred back to the 17. (Preußisches-Braunschweigisches) Infanterie-Regiment
- 18 June to 1 July 1925 Exercises in RWM (T 4)
- 1 July to 20 August 1926 Commanded to the 6. (Preußische) Kraftfahr-Abteilung
- 14 September with effect from 1 October 1926 6. (Preußisches) Artillerie-Regiment
- 6 September with effect from 1 October 1927 to 15 July 1928 Commanded to the 6. (Preußisches) Pionier-Bataillon
- 11 July 1928 extended until 30 September 1928
- 1 August 1928 13th (Mortar) Company/17. (Preußisches-Braunschweigisches) Infanterie-Regiment
- 25 November with effect from 1 December 1929 Commanded to the Reich Defense Ministry (RWM)
- 12 September with effect from 1 October 1930 Transferred to the 3. (Preußisches) Reiter-Regiment and commanded to the Berlin command for secret general staff training (Führergehilfenausbildung)
- 1 June with effect from 15 June 1931 Commanded to the Reich Defense Ministry (RWM) for service in the Department of Foreign Armies (T 3)
- 15. June 1931 to 30 July 1931 Commanded to the 1. (Preußische) Nachrichten-Abteilung in Königsberg
- 11 August 1931 to 25 September 1931 Commanded to the 2. (Preußisches) Reiter-Regiment in Allenstein
- 29 August with effect from 1 October 1931 Officially transferred to the Abteilung Fremde Heere (T 3)
- Ordered to wear the uniform of the Führerstab (the concealed/secret General Staff of the Army)
- 26 June to 25 July 1932 Commanded to the Russian Army
- 22 March to 20 April 1933 Commanded once again to the Soviet Union
- 1 July 1933 to 1 October 1934 Assistant to the German Military Attache in Moscow
- Krebs spoke fluent Russian; he had passed his interpreter examination in 1933 and the advanced re-examination in 1939 with special praise.
- 2 August 1934 Newly sworn-in
- 1 October 1934 III. Battalion/Infanterie-Regiment Gumbinnen
- 15 October 1935 Chief of Operations (Ia) in the General-Staff of the 24th Infantry Division in Chemnitz
- 28 September to 24 October 1936 Language study trip in Estonia (Reval) and Finland (Helsingfors)
- 12 October 1937 11th Department (Officer Training Department)/General Staff of the Army/Reich War Ministry
- 26 August 1939 Appointed head of the 11th Department (Officer Training Department)
- April 1939 accompanied the Swedish army commander during his stay in Berlin on the occasion of the Führer's birthday (20 April 1939)
- The 8th, 10th and 11th Departments of the Army General Staff in the OKH were dissolved at or shortly after the beginning of the war, the 9th Department became independent in 1941 as Chief of War Maps and Surveying.
- 6 October 1939 Führerreserve (OKH)
- 1939–1942 Chief of General Staff VII Army Corps
- 11 December 1939 Commanded to the VII Army Corps
- 7 December with effect from 15 December 1939 appointed Chief of Staff
- 5 April with effect from 17 March 1941 to 8 May 1941 representation of the military attaché at the German Embassy in Moscow
- 1942–1943 Chief of General Staff German 9th Army, Eastern Front
- 20 January with effect from 14 January 1942 appointed as such
- 31 January with effect from 30 January 1943 Führerreserve (OKH)
- 1943–1944 Chief of General Staff Army Group Center, Eastern Front
- 28 February with effect from 1 March 1943 appointed as such
- 1944–1945 Chief of General Staff Army Group B, Western Front
- 1945 Deputy Chief of the Army General Staff (OKH)
- 1 April to 1 May 1945 Chief of the Army General Staff (OKH)
- entrusted with the deputy management of the business (mit der stellvertretenden Wahrnehmung der Geschäfte beauftragt)
Final battle 1945
Goebbels wrote of him on 30 March 1945:
- "General Krebs, who has long been Chief-of-Staff to Model, is coming [to the Führerbunker] in place of Guderian. Krebs is an outstanding personality. For a time, he was Military Attaché in Moscow, but has not been spoiled by diplomatic activity."[1]
Appointed Chief of the Army General Staff (OKH), Krebs was in the Führerbunker below the Reich Chancellery during the Battle for Berlin. On 28 April 1945, Krebs made his last telephone call from the bunker, to General Wilhelm Keitel at the new Supreme Command Headquarters in Fürstenberg. He told Keitel that, if relief did not arrive within 48 hours, all was lost. Keitel promised to exert the utmost pressure on General Walther Wenck (de) who commanded the German 12th Army and General Theodor Busse who commanded the German 9th Army. On 22 April, German dictator Adolf Hitler had ordered both of these armies to link up and come to the relief of Berlin.
Later on 28 April, when it was discovered that Heinrich Himmler was trying to negotiate a backdoor surrender to the Allies via Count Folke Bernadotte, Krebs became part of a tribunal set up by Hitler to court-martial associates of Himmler, deemed to be sufficiently close to have known of his intentions, who could be rounded up in Berlin. One person to face this tribunal was Hermann Fegelein, Himmler's ajudant, and Eva Braun's brother-in-law. SS-General Wilhelm Mohnke presided over the tribunal which, in addition to Krebs and Mohnke, included General Johann Rattenhuber and General Wilhelm Burgdorf.
On 29 April, Krebs, Burgdorf, Joseph Goebbels, and Martin Bormann witnessed and signed the last will and testament of Adolf Hitler. Hitler dictated the document to his personal private secretary, Traudl Junge. Bormann was head of the Party Chancellery (Parteikanzlei) and private secretary to Hitler. Late in the evening of 29 April, Krebs contacted General Alfred Jodl (Supreme Army Command) by radio and made the following demands:
- "Request immediate report. Firstly of the whereabouts of Wenck's spearheads. Secondly of time intended to attack. Thirdly of the location of the 9th Army. Fourthly of the precise place in which the 9th Army will break through. Fifthly of the whereabouts of General Rudolf Holste's spearhead."
In the early morning of 30 April, Alfred Jodl replied to Krebs:
- "Firstly, Wenck's spearhead bogged down south of Schwielow Lake. Secondly, 12th Army therefore unable to continue attack on Berlin. Thirdly, bulk of 9th Army surrounded. Fourthly, Holste's Corps on the defensive."
Late on 30 April, the Soviet forces continued to fight their way into the center of Berlin. Hitler then committed suicide. In accordance with Hitler's last will and testament, Joseph Goebbels, the Minister for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, became the new "Head of Government" and Reich Chancellor of Germany (Karl Dönitz was named Reich President).
On 1 May, within hours of Hitler's suicide on 30 April 1945, Goebbels sent Krebs and his Chief of Staff Colonel Theodor von Dufving, under a white flag, to deliver a letter he had written to General Vasily Chuikov. The letter contained surrender terms acceptable to Goebbels. Chuikov, as commander of the Soviet 8th Guards Army, commanded the Red Army in central Berlin. Krebs arrived shortly before 4 a.m. and took Chuikov by surprise. Krebs, a Russian-speaker, informed Chuikov that Adolf and Eva Hitler, his wife, had committed suicide in the Führerbunker.
Chuikov, who was not aware that there was a bunker under the Reich Chancellery, or that Hitler was married, calmly said that he already knew all of this. Chuikov was not, however, prepared to accept the terms in Goebbels' letter or to negotiate with Krebs. The Soviets were unwilling to accept anything other than complete unconditional surrender. Krebs was not authorized by Goebbels to agree to this. The meeting therefore ended with no agreement. According to Traudl Junge, Krebs returned to the bunker looking "worn out, exhausted". The surrender of Berlin was thus impeded as long as Goebbels was alive.
At around 8 p.m. on the evening of 1 May, Goebbels removed this last impediment. Shortly after their children were killed, Goebbels and his wife went up to the garden of the Chancellery. Here, Joseph and Magda Goebbels committed suicide after arranging to have their bodies burned by Goebbels's adjutant, Günther Schwägermann. But, even after the death of Goebbels, Krebs was still in a state of despair. He was now suicidal himself. The responsibility for surrendering the city fell to General of the Artillery Helmuth Weidling (de), the commander of the Berlin Defense Area.
Death
As the Soviets advanced on the Führerbunker, Krebs was last seen by others, including Traudl Junge, in the bunker when they themselves left to attempt to escape. Junge relates how she approached Krebs to say goodbye and how he straightened up and smoothed his uniform before greeting her for the last time. He and at least two other senior officers, including General Wilhelm Burgdorf, stayed behind with the stated intention of committing suicide. This took place at c. 2130 hrs. on 1 May, other sources state in the night from 1 to 2 May 1945. The bodies of Krebs and Burgdorf were found when Soviet personnel entered the bunker.
Family
Hans was born the son of senior teacher (Oberlehrer) Otto Gustav Hugo Krebs (1868–1926) and his wife Adele, née Glaser (b. 1871).
Marriage
On 29 April 1920 in Osnabrück, 2nd Lieutenant Krebs married his fiancée Ilse Marie Agnes Cäcilie Cecilia Wittkop (1898–1986) with whom he would have two daughters:
- Annemarie (b. 12 February 1921 in Osnabrück)
- Liselotte Lillian Ilse (b. 2 March 1925 in Goslar; d. 23 March 2019 in Tampa, Florida, USA); ∞ Grainau 6 April 1952 Walter Engelbert Strobl
Promotions
- 3 September 1914 Kriegsfreiwilliger (War Volunteer)
- 27 November 1914 Fahnenjunker (Officer Candidate)
- 11 December 1914 Fahnenjunker-Gefreiter (Officer Candidate with Lance Corporal rank)
- 5 January 1915 Fahnenjunker-Unteroffizier (Officer Candidate with Corporal/NCO/Junior Sergeant rank)
- 22 March 1915 Fähnrich (Officer Cadet)
- 18 June 1915 Leutnant (2nd Lieutenant) without Patent
- 17 September 1917 received Patent from 19 December 1915 and Rank Seniority (RDA) from 1 October 1915
- 31 July 1925 Oberleutnant (1st Lieutenant) with effect from 1 April 1925
- 1 October 1931 Hauptmann (Captain)
- 18 January 1936 Major i. G. with effect and RDA from 1 January 1936
- 30 January 1939 Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant Colonel) with effect from 1 February 1939
- 20 March 1939 received RDA from 1 February 1938
- 14 August 1940 received new RDA from 1 October 1937
- 14 September 1940 Oberst i. G. (Colonel in General Staff) with effect from 1 October 1940
- 24 January 1942 Generalmajor (Major General) with effect from 1 February 1942
- 15 August 1942 received RDA from 1 September 1942
- 20 April 1943 Generalleutnant (Lieutenant General) with effect and RDA from 1 April 1943
- 1 August 1944 General der Infanterie (General of the Infantry)
Awards and decorations (excerpt)
- Iron Cross (1914), 2nd Class and 1st Class
- 2nd Class on 22 August 1915
- 1st Class on 6 February 1917
- War Merit Cross (Brunswick), 2nd and 1st Class
- 2nd Class (BrKr2/BrK2) on the ribbon for combatants on 17 January 1916
- Achievement Clasp (Bewährungsabzeichen) to the 2nd Class Cross (BrKr2a/BrK2a) on 8 July 1918
- 1st Class (BrKr1/BrK1) on 25 June 1918
- 2nd Class (BrKr2/BrK2) on the ribbon for combatants on 17 January 1916
- House Order of Hohenzollern, Knight's Cross with Swords (HOH3⚔) on 26 April 1918
- Wound Badge (1918) in Black on 11 May 1918
- Oldenburg Friedrich August Cross (Friedrich-August-Kreuz), 2nd and 1st Class (OFA1/OK1)
- 2nd Class on 4 June 1918 with the clasp "Vor dem Feinde" (In the Face of the Enemy)
- 1st Class on 24 June 1918
- Swedish Royal Order of the Sword, Knight's Cross 1st Class on 29 November 1934
- Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 with Swords on 18 January 1935
- Wehrmacht Long Service Award (Wehrmacht-Dienstauszeichnung), 4th to 1st Class
- 2nd Class on 2 October 1936
- Swedish Royal Order of Vasa, Commander (II. Class) on 25 October 1939
- permission to accept and wear on 17 January 1940
- Repetition Clasp 1939 to the Iron Cross 1914, 2nd and 1st Class
- 2nd Class on 14 May 1940
- 1st Class on 18 May 1940
- Eastern Front Medal on 15 July 1942
- German Cross in Gold on 26 January 1942 as Oberst im Generalstab in the VII Army Corps
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
- Knight's Cross on 26 March 1944 as Generalleutnant and Chief of General Staff of Army Group Center
- 749th Oak Leaves on 20 February 1945 as General der Infanterie and Chief of Staff of Army Group B
Further reading
- Junge, Traudl, Until The Final Hour, edited by Melissa Muller, English-language edition, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London, 2002, numerous mentions - see index. ISBN: 0-297-84720-1.
References
- ↑ Trevor-Roper, Professor Hugh, editor, The Goebbels Diaries - The Last Days, BCA, London, 1978, p.276, ISBN: 0-436-17966-0.
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- 1898 births
- 1945 deaths
- Fathers
- German military officers
- German military personnel of World War I
- Reichswehr personnel
- Wehrmacht generals
- Recipients of the Iron Cross
- Recipients of the War Merit Cross (Brunswick)
- Recipients of the House Order of Hohenzollern
- Recipients of the Cross of Honor
- Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross
- Recipients of the Gold German Cross
- Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
- German military personnel killed in World War II
