Hans Schmidt born in Bayreuth, German Empire 
on 14-03-1895 and Hans joined the Imperial German Army 
in August 1914 at the start of World War I. Hans became a Second Lieutenant of infantry in 1915, and he had reached the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in Adolf Hitler‘s Wehrmacht 
by the time that World War II broke out in 01-09-1939. The Wehrmacht were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer (army), the Kriegsmarine (navy) 
and the Luftwaffe (air force). 
under command of Herman Wilhelm Göring.
The designation “Wehrmacht” replaced the previously used term Reichswehr (Reich Defence) and was the manifestation of the Nazi regime’s efforts to rearm Germany to a greater extent than the Treaty of Versailles permitted.
Schmidt commanded a battalion during the invasion of Poland and led the 245th Regiment during the Battle of France. In 1943, Schmidt was promoted to Generalmajor and sent to command the 68th Division 
on the Eastern Front, fighting against the Soviet Union. Schmidt replaced Generalleutnant Robert Meißner, an Austrian General. 
Meissner survived the war and died 08-08-1953 (aged 64) in Pervouralsk, Soviet Union.
In December, Schmidt was sent to France to head the 275th Division. 
The 275th was formed in late 1943, in France, from remnants of the 223rd Infantry Division. It was commanded by Generalleutnant Hans Schmidt from 10-12-1943 until it was disbanded on 22-11-1944. The 275th suffered heavy losses in the Falaise pocket and was transferred to Aachen for refitting.
Schmidt’s division also suffered losses during Operation Overlord 
(failing to hold Pegasus Bridge 
during Operation Deadstick) and was virtually eliminated after the Battle of Aachen. 
He was recalled to Germany to lead a new division on the Russian front, and he was captured by the British at Tangermunde on 06-05-1945.
Death and burial ground of Generalleutnant Schmidt Hans.
Generalleutnant Hans Schmidt died 28-12-1971 in Bayreuthe, at the age of 76, with his wife Sophie, born Münch, who died age 80 in 1984 and his ashes are buried in the Urn crypt and with 2 name plaques in the crypt at the Stadtfriedhof Bayreuth, Erlanger Strasse. Wolfgang Linke from Germany was so kind to sent the grave phto with great thanks..
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