Engel, Gerhard Michael.

Engel, Gerhard Michael, born 13-04-1906 in Guban, son of Gerhard Fritz Julius Engel and Karin Anna Elisabeth Franck, entered the Army Service on 05-10-1925, 19 years old, as a rifleman in the 5^th Infantry Regiment. He didn’t had a smooth career as his promotions show. Gefreiter 01-07-1927, Fahnenjunker 01-10-1927, Fähnrich 01-08-1928, Oberfährich 01-08-1929, Leutnant 01-09-1930, Hauptmann 01-03-1937, Major 01-01-1940, Obersleutnant 01-01-1943, Oberst 20-08-1944, Generalmajor 09-11-1944 and Generalleutnant 01-04-1945. On 27-03-1938 he was detached to course of Company Chiefs of Infantry Gun Companies at the Infantry School in Döberitz,   until 22-01-1938. Engel became the adjutant of the Wehrmacht with the Führer and Reichs Chancellor as a Hauptmann, on 27-03-1938 until 01-02-1944 and was all day for years in Hitler’s intimate neighborhood.

  Out of grace with Adolf Hitler (did you know) he was assigned as commander of the 27^th Fusiliers Regiment, on 01-02-1944 until 19-07-1944. He then was commander of the 1097^th Grenadier Regiment to 22-07-1944. 22-07-1944 delegated with the leadership of the 12^th Infantry Division  he succeeded Generalleutnant der Infanterie, Commander of the 12^th Infantry Division Rudolf Bamler,  who died age 75, 13-03-1972, in Gross Glienicke,  to 13-04-1945 and following commander of the Infantry Division “Ulrich von Hutten” to 08-05-1945. Ulrich von Hutten   was a German scholar, poet and reformer. He was an outspoken critic of the Roman Catholic Church and a bridge between the humanists and the Lutheran Reformation. He was a leader of the Imperial Knights of the Holy Roman Empire. He lived from 21-04-1488  to 29-08-1523 and died age 25. On 08-05-1945 he is in US captivity until December 1947. Gerhard Engel wrote in his diary that in 1941, Hitler declared, “I am now as before a Catholic and will always remain so. Despite public disapproval from Protestants, Armament Minister, Albert Speer 

   later wrote that Hitler “would remain a member of the Catholic Church and in fact, he remained in the Church until his suicide.”  During his years with Hitler, Engel kept the diary in the form of six notebooks. With the unconditional surrender of Germany, he was held in American captivity and released in December 1947. After the war, he added material to shed further light on certain events, military and political decisions and Hitler’s attitude to particular problems. His diary covers the decision-making process behind crucial military actions, including the annexation of Austria, the invasion of Czechoslovakia, and the war against Russia. Hitler had many different adjutants for a variety of different functions. His chief adjutant was SA Obergruppenfuhrer, Wilhelm Brückner, here in 1926   died age 69, on 18-08-1954, in Herbsdorf and who held this title from around 1922-1940. He was dismissed over a very petty incident involving another adjutant, Max Wünsche.

Brückner was replaced by Hitler’s other main adjutants SS Obergruppenfuhrer, Julius Schaub.   Schaub acted as Hitler Factotum in just about every aspect of his private life, he burnt Hitler’s privat administration in Berchtesgaden. All adjutant technically were under his control  although that was not always the case. SS Ordenance Officers and SS Adjutants were, Ludwig Bahls,   1938-39, Max Wünsche 1939-40, Hans Pfeiffer 1941-1942, Richard Schulze-Kossens  1942-44. SS Obersturmführer Hans Georg Schulze  fell 27-06-1944, age 23, in Russia barely 100 metres away from his brother Richard, who was the boss of the 2nd Company. He was buried in Bila Tserkva, Ukraine. His older brother Richard Schulze, who also belonged to the Leibstandarte SS “Adolf Hitler” , was addressed at the funeral, whether he wanted to take over his brother’s post as adjutant, because the leader valued Hans-Georg Schulze extraordinary who was very much sad about the death of his brother. Richard agreed and was assigned to the Führer Companion Command in October 1941 after recovering from a wound. Richard Schulze died age 73 on 03-07-1988 in Düsseldorf. Hitler’s next aide was Max Wünsche

   Standartenführer, Fritz Darges

  1943-44, Darges died very old age of 96, on 25-10-2009. Shortly before his death, Darges stated that he found Hitler to be a “genius” and that “I served him and would do it all again now. On 18-07-1944, during a strategy conference in the Wolfsschanze, a fly began buzzing around the room, allegedly landing on Hitler’s shoulder and on the surface of a map several times. Irritated, Hitler ordered Darges to dispatch the nuisance. Darges suggested that, as it was an airborne pest, the job should go to the Luftwaffe adjutant, Nicolaus von Below  who died age 76, on 24-07-1983, in Dermold. Enraged, Hitler dismissed Darges on the spot and had him banished to the Eastern Front. Another version of this story claims Darges was merely snickering as Hitler looked up from the map. Yet another version of Darges’ dismissal and banishment by Hitler involves his refusal to marry Eva Braun’s  (see parents Braun) sister Gretl Braun, who married Hitler’s adjutant Hermann Fegelein  , (see brother Fegelein, Waldemar “Axel”)  who was pregnant at the moment, The drunken Fegelein was executed age 38, on 29-04-1945 in the Führerbunker garden. Last adjutant was Otto Günsche  1944-45, he would bring the bodies of Hitler and Eva up to the garden and burn them with petrol, after their suicide.

   There were military adjutants such as Von Below Hitler’s Luftwaffe Adjutant. Rudolf Schmundt,  his army and chief military adjutant, Karl Jesco von Puttkamer,  Naval adjutant. Albert Bormann,

   brother of Martin Bormann, Albert died age 86, on 08-04-1889, in Munich, Personal adjutant assigned to Hitler’s personal office. And the list goes on, Bruno Gesche  Head of his SS Fuhrerbegleitkommando, who died old age 85, in 1980, Erich Kempka   Hitler’s SS chauffer, Karl Wilhelm Krause

head SS valet and Heinz Linge

Head SS valet, who died age 67, on 09-03-1980, in Bremen.

After his release from American captivity, Engel was manager of a sugar factory in Nörvenich and then of a machine factory in Düsseldorf. From April 1958 to December 1976, he worked as State Commissioner of the Society for Military Customer in North Rhine Westphalia. Gerhard Engel living in Starnberg died there at the age of 70, on 09-12-1976. Gerhard Engel is buried with his wife Karin, born Franck, 32 years later, who died on 31-02-2009, on the Waldfriedhof of Starnberg, close by the grave of Generalmajor der Wehrmacht, Heinrich Voigtberger.

 

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