Wilhelm Burgdorf

Wilhelm Burgdorf
Colonel Burgdorf
Birth date	15 February 1895(1895-02-15)
Place of birth	Fürstenwalde, Province of Brandenburg, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire
Death date	2 May 1945 (aged 50)
Place of death	Berlin, German Reich
Allegiance	German Empire Weimar Republic National Socialist Germany
Service/branch	Imperial German Army Freikorps Reichswehr Heer
Years of service	1914–1945
Rank	General of the Infantry
Battles/wars	World War I World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Relations	∞ 1930 Erika Hahn

Wilhelm Emanuel Burgdorf (15 February 1895 – 2 May 1945) was a German General during World War II who served as a commander and staff officer in the Wehrmacht (German army). In October 1944, he was appointed Chief of the Army Personnel Office and Adjutant to Adolf Hitler. In this capacity, it is said that he played a role in the suicide of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel.

Life

Signature during Operation Barbarossa

Children (birth dates)

Wilhelm, oldest son of General Burgdorf

Wilhelm Burgdorf was the son of the pastor Friedrich Wilhelm Albert Burgdorf and his wife Marie Wilhelmine Frederike, née Blümner (d. 12 January 1931).

Military career

Burgdorf joined the Prussian Army on 3 August 1914 at the outbreak of World War I as an officer cadet of the Imperial German Army and was commissioned as an infantry officer in Grenadier-Regiment „Prinz Karl von Preußen“ (2. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 12 in 1915. After the war he served in the Freikorps (Freiwilligen-Grenadier-Regiment 12), the Reichswehr and was promoted to Captain in 1930. In the Wehrmacht he became an instructor in tactics at the military academy in Dresden with the rank of Major in 1935 and was appointed an Adjutant on the staff of the IX corps in 1937. He was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel in 1938 and served as the commander of the 529th Infantry Regiment from May 1940 to April 1942. In May 1942, he became head of Department 2 of the Army Personnel Office and Deputy Chief in October 1942, when he was promoted to Major-General.

On 12 October 1944, after the death of Rudolf Schmundt, Burgdorf was promoted to head of the Army Personnel Office (Heerespersonalamt; HPA) and Chief Adjutant of the Wehrmacht. At that time, he was further promoted in rank to Lieutenant-General, and one month later (in November 1944) to a full General of the Infantry. Burgdorf retained that rank and position until his death. He had stated that 'Every officer and every judge of the Wehrmacht have to act with strongest measures against doubters in the German final victory'. "An officer who expresses himself disparagingly about the leadership of the National Socialist state should not be tolerated."

Colonel Fritz Goecke created an Heerespersonalamt-Außenstelle (field office; HPA/A). From 21 to 24 April 1945, the field office of the Army Personnel Office branch was split off due to the Battle of Berlin and relocated to Marktschellenberg (district Berchtesgadener Land) in Bavaria. Burgdorf stayed in Berlin, Goecke was appointed Chef HPA/A and was responsible for forwarding the decisions about promotions, appointments and decorations to the units defending the Reich.

Death

Burgdorf and General Hans Krebs committed suicide at the same time in the Führerbunker on, depending on the sources, 1 May or 2 May 1945 at the conclusion of the Battle of Berlin.

Family

On 18 June 1930, Hauptmann Burgdorf married his fiancée Erika Hahn, daughter of the factory owner Eugen Hahn. They had four children:

• Wilhelm (b. 24 April 1931; d. 10 October 2021)
• Erika (b. 9 February 1933; d. 19 May 2010), married Dennler-Oppliger
• Märten (b. 25 May 1934), Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board of WashTec AG (until 2003), Dr. jur., founder of Dr. Burgdorf GmbH (BETA FINANZ GMBH, SWISTTAL) in 2002
• Barbara (b. 25 January 1936; d. 28 January 2020), married Neu

Promotions

• Fahnenjunker (Officer Candidate): 3 August 1914
• Fahnenjunker-Unteroffizier: 24 December 1914
• Fähnrich (Officer Cadet): 31 January 1915
• Offiziers-Stellvertreter (Deputy Officer): 2 April 1915
• Leutnant (2nd Lieutenant): 18 April 1915 (without Patent)
  • 5 April 1917 received Patent as Leutnant with effect from 22 November 1913
  • later received new Rank Seniority (RDA) from 1 September 1915
• Oberleutnant (1st Lieutenant): 1 June 1925
  • later received new Rank Seniority (RDA) from 1 April 1925
• Hauptmann (Captain): 1 February 1930
• Major: 1 November 1935
• Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant Colonel): 1 August 1938
  • later received new Rank Seniority (RDA) from 1 October 1937
• Oberst (Colonel): 14 September 1940 with RDA from 1 September 1940
• Generalmajor: 1 October 1942
• Generalleutnant: 8 October 1943 with RDA from 1 October 1943
• General der Infanterie (General of the Infantry): 9 November 1944

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1914), 2nd and 1st Class
  • EK II on 24 January 1915
  • EK I on 14 August 1916
• Hanseatic Cross of Hamburg (HH)
• House Order of Hohenzollern, Knight's Cross with Swords (HOH3⚔) on 27 August 1917
• Military Merit Cross (Austria-Hungary), 3rd Class with the War Decoration (ÖM3K) on 27 February 1918
• Friedrichs-Orden, Knight's Cross 2nd Class with Swords (WF3b⚔)
• Silesian Eagle Order (Schlesischer Adler-Orden)
• Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (1934) with Swords on 20 December 1934
• Wehrmacht Long Service Award (Wehrmacht-Dienstauszeichnung), 4th to 2nd Class on 2 October 1936
• Repetition Clasp 1939 to the Iron Cross 1914, 2nd and 1st Class
  • Clasp to EK II on 15 June 1940
  • Clasp to EK I on 17 June 1940
• Winter Battle in the East 1941–42 Medal on 12 August 1942
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 29 September 1941 as Colonel and Commander of the Infanterie-Regimentes 529/299. Infanterie-Division