Oberbefehlshaber West
Oberbefehlshaber West (German: Commander-in-Chief West; OB West) was a military high command created after the end of the Western campaign on 25 October 1940 for the troops of the German Wehrmacht in the occupied areas, i.e. in the Netherlands, Belgium and the French State (excluding the areas of Alsace and Lorraine and Luxembourg), which was subordinate to the head of the civil administration. The command of the Commander-in-Chief West initially fell to Army Group A and, since 15 April 1941, to Army Group D.
Contents
OB West
- 10 October 1940 to 1 April 1941 – Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt
- 1 May 1941 to 15 March 1942 – Generalfeldmarschall Erwin von Witzleben
- 15 March 1942 to 2 July 1944 – Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt
- 2 July to 16 August 1944 – Generalfeldmarschall Günther von Kluge
- 16 August to 3 September 1944 – Generalfeldmarschall Walter Model
- 3 September 1944 to 11 March 1945 – Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt
- 11 March to 22 April 1945 – Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring
- former Commander-in-Chief Southwest and Commander-in-Chief of the Army Group C (until 9 March 1945); his successor was Heinrich von Vietinghoff genannt Scheel.
Army Group D
Army Group D was formed in France on 26 October 1940. The staff was formed from parts of the high command of Army Group C. On 15 April 1941, the Army Group Command under Erwin von Witzleben also became Commander-in-Chief West. On 10 September 1944, the staff became only Commander-in-Chief West. From 22 April 1945, the staff was responsible for the entire southern area as Commander-in-Chief South.
Chiefs of the General Staff
- Lieutenant General Carl Hilpert, deployed until 1 April 1942
- Major General Kurt Zeitzler, 1 April 1942 to 24 September 1942
- General of Infantry Günther Blumentritt, 24 September 1942 to 9 September 1944
- General of the Cavalry Siegfried Westphal, 10 September 1944 until renaming
First General Staff Officer (Ia)
- Colonel at Disposal Bodo Zimmermann, from establishment until renaming
Replacement
The Infantry Replacement Battalion 80, later Grenadier Replacement Battalion 80, was responsible for replacing the staff.
Structure in early June 1944
| OB West (Heeresgruppe D) | ||||
| Heeresgruppe B | Panzergruppe West | Armeegruppe G | 1. Fallschirm-Armee | |
| 7. Armee | 15. Armee | I. SS-Panzerkorps | 1. Armee | |
| LXXXIV. Armeekorps | LXXXVIII. Armeekorps | XXXXVII. Panzerkorps | 19. Armee | |
| II. Fallschirmkorps | II. SS-Panzerkorps | |||
