Feuchtinger, Edgar.

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Feuchtinger, Edgar, born on 09-11-1894 in Metz, joined a cadet school in Karlsruhe in 1907. During the First World War, he fought as Leutnant in Russia and France. While there, he participated in the Battle of Verdun, the Battle of the Somme and the Battle of the Aisn. After the war, he continued to serve with the Reichswehr  in a variety of staff roles and was promoted to Major, in November 1935. Now serving with the Wehrmacht, Feuchtinger was promoted to Oberst and by 1939 had risen to the role of Commander of the 227th Artillery-Regiment which he commanded from 26-08-1939 until 16-08-1942.  Feuchtinger was appointed Commander of Fast Division West on April 1943 and Commander of the 21st Panzer-Division  on August 1943, where he succeeded Generalmajor, Heinrich Herman von Hülsen  , who died old age 86, on 06-06-1982 in Celle. The last commander of the 21st, Generalleutnant der Artillerie, Kommandeur LXXXIV Heeres Gruppe, Werner Marcks was killed in action on the Normandy front. The youngest Generalleutnant in WWII with 36, was Theodor Tolsdorff.  Feuchtinger was in Paris at the time of the Normandy invasion. He returned to Normandy with his female companion on June 6, but commanded the division from the rear. He allowed his subordinate commanders a great deal of latitude in making decisions for their units. On 01-08-1944 Feuchtinger was promoted to Generalleutnant. Shortly thereafter, on 06-08-1944, he received the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross. Oberst Hans von Luck  , a commander of broad experience, ended up operating his armoured regiment through the entire campaign, from the Normandy landings through the breakout attempt of Operation Goodwood to the final devastation of the 7th Army in the Falaise pocket, with very little contact or direction from Feuchtinger. Oberst Hans von Luck survived the war and died in Hamburg on 01-08-1997 at the age of 86.
Much of the 21st Panzer Division was caught in the Falaise Gap, but Feuchtinger managed to keep clear of the encirclement, telling von Luck: “From now on you are on your own. I cannot tell you where you will get fuel, ammunition or food. All the best, Luck. Bring me back lots of men from our division. Under him with the 22nd Panzer Regiment was then Oberst  der Panzertruppe, Kommandeur 20th Panzer Division . Golden Medal winner Olympic 1936, Hermann von Oppeln Bronikowski
     The 21st Panzer Division was deployed near Caen, as a mobile striking force as part of the Army Group B Reserve. Exhausted and lacking any serviceable tanks the unit surrendered to the Soviets on 29-04-1945, the day before Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun  (see Braun parents) committed suicide in his Berlin Bunker. Later in 1944 he was tried and convicted of treason by the Reich court under jurist Roland Freisler
, demoted and sentenced to execution. The sentence was commuted by the intervention of Adolf Hitler. Feuchtinger did not report to his next assignment, and avoided the German military police until he could surrender to the Allies. Arrested and imprisoned in Torgau in January 1945, Feuchtinger was condemned to death by a German military court and demoted to Kanonier. Pardoned, Edgar Feuchtinger was detached to the 20th Panzer-Grenadier-Division , under Generalleutnant der Panzertruppe, Commanding General of Panzer Corps “Grossdeutschland”,
 Georg Jauer   as Kanonier, before being captured by British troops in April 1945.
Edgar Feuchtinger was married to Hildegard, born Sistig Feuchtinger and she died in 2002 (age 89–90)

Death and burial ground of Feuchtinger, Edgar.

 
Feuchtinger died at Berlin, on 21-01-1960 at the age of 65 and is buried, with his wife Sistig, on the Hauptfriedhof of Krefeld. Close by the graves of two other WWII Generalleutnant der Infanterie, Kommandeur van Thorn,
Eduard Klutmann   and Waffen SS General, Bernard Wünnenberg  .

Message(s), tips or interesting graves for the webmaster:    robhopmans@outlook.com

 

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