Konrad Scheffold
| Lorenz Neumayr | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Birth date | 18 August 1908 |
| Place of birth | Olzreute near Schussenried,[1] Donaukreis, Kingdom of Württemberg, German Empire |
| Death date | ⚔ 9 July 1944 (aged 35) |
| Place of death | Cavigny near Saint-Lô, French State |
| Allegiance |  National Socialist Germany
|
| Service/branch |  Heer
|
| Rank | Captain |
| Battles/wars | World War II
|
| Awards | Iron Cross German Cross in Gold Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Konrad Scheffold (18 August 1908 – 9 July 1944) was a German officer of the Wehrmacht, finally Captain of the Pioniere and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II.
Contents
Life
World War II
Konrad Scheffold served with the Pionier-Bataillon 24, was promoted Oberleutnant (1st Lieutenant) on 1 November 1941, was severely wounded in late March 1943 at the Eastern Front and was transferred to the Pionier-Ersatz-Bataillon 24 in Riesa in May/June 1943 for further convalescence. After receiving the Knight's Cross in April 1943, he was promoted to Hauptmann (Captain) backdated to 1 March 1943. In early 1944, he was sent west, where he took command of a company with the Army Pioneer School of the 7th Army in Angers.
Knight's Cross
- Following heavy artillery fire from all calibers, the Soviets attacked the sector of the 24. Infanterie-Division between Krassnyj Bor and Ssablino on 19 March 1943. The Soviets were able to succeed in breaking into the German defense to a depth of 800 meters and a width of 1000 meters, however were stopped just short of the German command posts. After throwing in the reserves, the Germans were able to push the Soviets back some 300 meters, but failed to eject them completely. Thereafter followed bitter back and forth battles for the next several days, made all the more difficult by the thick forests. On 28/29 March 1943, the Soviets decided to punch through once and for all and attacked with fresh forces, creating a critical situation by breaking-in at the boundary between the 24. Infanterie-Division and the left neighbor. The 24. Infanterie-Division threw in its last reserve, the 1st Pionier Company of 1st Lieutenant Scheffold, to remedy the situation. Scheffold and his troops fought bitterly and were able to stabilize the front-line, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy. As a result, the Soviets abated their attacks the next day. For preventing an imminent enemy breakthrough during this battle, Scheffold would receive the Knight’s Cross.
Pionier-Bataillon Angers
The Army Pioneer School of the 7th Army was established in February 1941 and was located in the French city of Angers. Its official designation was "Army Pioneer School Angers Army High Command 7" (AOK 7). The school was directly subordinate to the Army Pioneer Commander of AOK 7. Its commander was Lieutenant Colonel Hans Leo Scharfenorth (b. 20 March 1898. in Legnitten; d. 22 January 1954 in Heidelberg). The school consisted of the general pioneer school and a pioneer company commander school. The pioneer school's task was the personnel training as well as providing support in the establishment of new units within the area of command of the 7th Army.
In the event of an Allied invasion of the area covered by the 7th Army (AOK 7), all available forces were to be made available for defense. Therefore, on 17 January 1944, the 7th Army ordered the formation of "Army Blocking Unit 700." This blocking unit was to be formed, in the event of an Allied landing in Normandy, from the staff and signals platoon of the Army Weapons School, the 7th Army Assault Battalion, and the 7th Army Pioneer School. The commander of the Army Weapons School, Army Pioneer Commander of AOK 7 Colonel Karl Adolf von Bodecker, was also to become the commander of Blocking Unit 700. Furthermore, the 7th Army Pioneer School was to be renamed "Angers Pioneer Battalion." The battalion was to consist of four companies (1st to 4th). For this purpose, the school's staff was assigned to serve as the engineer battalion's staff. The commander remained Lieutenant Colonel Hans Scharfenorth.
Since the beginning of the Allied invasion on 6 June 1944, the 352nd Infantry Division suffered very heavy losses of soldiers and equipment within the first few days. Therefore, on 8 June 1944, the 7th Army (AOK 7) ordered the reinforcement of the division by the "Army Blocking Unit 700." Due to the heavy fighting of the 7th Army's assault battalion near St. Mère-Église, it could not be withdrawn from the front. Thus, only the 7th Army Pioneer School, designated "Angers Pioneer Battalion," was transferred to the front along with Kampfgruppe Heintz (I. and II. Battalions/Grenadier Regiment 984 and Fusilier Battalion 275) and placed under the command of the 352nd Infantry Division. The Angers Pioneer Battalion itself was subordinated to Kampfgruppe Heintz. On 10 June 1944, the Angers Pioneer Battalion was temporarily detached from the 352nd Infantry Division and transferred from St. Lô to the area southwest of Carentan. This was necessary because the front line in this area needed reinforcement due to the fuel delay of the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division "Götz von Berlichingen," "in order to support the defensive line at this point against the enemy pressing westward from Neuilly on the west bank of the Vire River." Kampfgruppe Heintz was brought up shortly afterward. After the arrival of the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division "Götz von Berlichingen," the Angers Pioneer Battalion remained in the area southwest of Carentan, but continued to be tactically subordinate to the 352nd Infantry Division.
Kampfgruppe Heintz was deployed by the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division "Götz von Berlichingen" north of St. Lô as the right flank of the 352nd Infantry Division. The Angers Pioneer Battalion itself was deployed by the 352nd Infantry Division as the left flank, securing the Vire Canal and located north of Montmartin. The mission of both units was to defend the main line of resistance and prevent enemy advances across the St. Pellerin-Carentan line along the railway. On 22 June 1944, the Angers Pioneer Battalion was likely subordinated to the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division "Götz von Berlichingen," as the division's daily orders indicated that its new right flank extended to the Vire River, thus encompassing the area previously covered by the Pioneer Battalion. A clear change in the subordination relationship of the Angers Pioneer Battalion to the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division "Götz von Berlichingen" between 22 and 28 June 1944, cannot be definitively established, as even in the order of battle of the 7th Army, the Pioneer Battalion is listed once as Blocking Unit 700 with the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division "Götz von Berlichingen" and once as the Angers Pioneer Battalion with the 352nd Infantry Division. By 28 June 1944, the Angers Pioneer Battalion was already heavily battered, as the daily order of the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division "Götz von Berlichingen" refers to it only as remnants. On the night of 28 to 29 June 1944, Kampfgruppe Heintz was deployed to seal off a breakthrough at the I. Battalion/SS Panzergrenadier Regiment 38 west of Graignes, while the Angers Pioneer Battalion remained at the Vire Canal near St. Fromond for security. From mid-July 1944, the small remnants of the Angers Pioneer Battalion were detached from the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division "Götz von Berlichingen" and placed directly under the command of the LXXXIV Army Corps. The Angers Pioneer School was likely disbanded by the 7th Army in mid- or late July 1944, as no replacements were provided due to combat losses. In November 1944, the "Army Pioneer School AOK 7" was officially dissolved.
Death
Konrad Scheffold, killed in action by shrapnel in the chest, rests at the German war cemetery (Deutsche Kriegsgräberstätte) in Marigny (France).[2] During the reburial work at his original burial site, a war grave in the field, he could not be definitively identified, so he was buried as an "unknown soldier" in the Marigny cemetery.
Awards and decorations
- Iron Cross (1939), 2nd and 1st Class
- 2nd Class on 19 June 1940
- 1st Class on 16 September 1941
- General Assault Badge
- Winter Battle in the East 1941–42 Medal
- Crimea Shield (Krimschild)
- Wound Badge (1939) in Black
- German Cross in Gold on 3 or 6 February 1943
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 18 April 1943 as 1st Lieutenant and Leader (Führer) of the 1st Company/Pionier-Bataillon 24/24. Infanterie-Division/56. Armeekorps/18. Armee/Heeresgruppe Nord
Gallery
Sources
- German Federal Archives: BArch PERS 6/62672
References
- ↑ In 1908, Olzreute belonged to the administrative district Oberamt Saulgau or Oberamt Waldsee, depending on the source.
- ↑ The German war cemetery in the commune of La Chapelle-en-Juger in the French department of Manche, twelve kilometers west of Saint-Lô, bears the name of the commune of Marigny, located two kilometers to the southwest. The cemetery, inaugurated on 20 September 1961, contains the graves of 11,169 German soldiers who were reinterred there.
