Hitler's Brandenburgers
Page 43
Divisionseinheiten ‘Brandenburg’.
The division continued to fight in the Balkans until transferred to Austria in October 1944 with elements from Sturm Division Rhodos attached. From there they fought as part of Panzer Corps ‘Grossdeutschland’ against the Red Army, pushed back into eastern Germany where they surrendered at the war’s end to Soviet and Czech forces. That brief history too, is the subject for another book.
In the shadow of the Brandenburgers, the fate of some other important names from its history need to be accounted for. Following the 20 July assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler, revenge was swift against those with even the most tenuous connection to the plot. The SS threw a wide net and many of those caught were Abwehr officers. Friedrich Heinz, Pfuhlstein’s least favourite ‘political officer’, was implicated but escaped arrest after being tipped off that the SS were coming for him. While he went successfully into hiding until the end of the war, papers that he had accumulated and diligently stored were ferreted out. In an almost staggering breach of security – especially when one considers the perilous nature of potential revolution against the Nazis – Oster had carefully written out full and detailed plans for the removal of Hitler and dismantling of the National Socialist regime. These were amongst the papers that Heinz had stashed with his brother-in-law and which were soon recovered by the Gestapo. There, in minute detail, the conspirators’ hopes for a liberated Germany were chronicled. Oster and many others were tried and hung. Canaris himself, even though he had become somewhat removed from active participation in what culminated in the 20 July attempt to kill Hitler with a bomb, was also implicated, named by the conspirator and nominal head of the Abwehr, Oberst Georg Hansen under interrogation as the ‘spiritual instigator of the revolutionary movement that led to 20 July’.17 It was Walter Schellenberg who took Canaris into custody, and Hauptsturmführer Adrian Baron von Fölkersam that drove the car carrying them to the Admiral’s detention in Fürstenberg an der Havel Frontier Police College. Canaris would be found guilty of treason by a specially convened SS court and placed in Flossenbürg Concentration Camp. There he was finally hanged, only days before liberation on 8 April 1945.
Alexander von Pfuhlstein was also arrested. Wounded in the head on 18 July 1944 while commanding the 50th Infantry Division, he had been repatriated to Germany to recuperate. During August, he was suddenly appointed commandant of the fortified area of Hohenstein-Ortelsburg Wald, a role that was considered as ‘light duties’ by his superiors. Implicated by transcripts of interrogations of plotters from 20 July, he was arrested during the night of 31 August and taken in handcuffs to Berlin. Under intense questioning he admitted that he had been aware of the plan to remove Hitler and assigned the duty of occupying west Berlin in the event of a coup. For three months, he was kept in the cellars of SS headquarters at Prinz Albrecht Strasse, before being transferred to a newly established prison camp for officers in the fortress city of Küstrin (Festungshaftanstalt Küstrin). Pfuhlstein believed that he was almost certainly due for execution and later, in American captivity, offered an intriguing glimpse of his own personal theory regarding the fate of two previous subordinates:
I know that many officers who were not immediately apprehended [following the 20 July assassination attempt], their nerves strained by mental uncertainty, sought and found death on the front or through suicide. This was the case of Oberst von Voss, Chief of Staff, Army Group Centre and probably of Hauptmann von Koenen and Hauptmann Helmut Pinkert of the Brandenburg Division.18
To his surprise, Pfuhlstein was abruptly released on 5 January, something that he later attributed to Ernst Kaltenbrunner and the debt he believed he owed him after Budapest. Reduced in rank to Major, he was offered the chance of rehabilitation through front-line service as a battalion commander. Pfuhlstein agreed, though he never had any intention of fulfilling his obligation, his status as ‘recovering from wounds’ keeping him out of action until he surrendered to American troops on 2 April 1945 in his home town of Wertheim.
The two elements of the original Brandenburg Division that continued to function semi-independently were the Fallschirmjäger Battalion and Küstenjäger. The Fallschirmjäger do not appear to have made any more combat drops and were thrown into action as line infantry. It is unclear if any opted to join Skorzeny’s Fallschirmjäger Battalion 600 before the battalion was attached to the Luftwaffe’s 25th Fallschirmjäger Regiment, formed near Stettin during February 1945. The Brandenburgers made up 2nd Battalion, under the command of Hauptmann Skau. Part of the 9th Fallschirmjäger Division, they were involved in combat at the Altdamm bridgehead east of the Oder River which the 3rd Panzer Army had established between Gollnow and Greifenhagen. They held this position until 17 March 1945, at which point the regiment’s entire strength was listed as only 200 able-bodied men. On 20 March 1945, they withdrew to the west side of the Oder and later took part in the battle for Berlin. There, the entire 9th Fallschirmjäger Division and its Brandenburger cadre was swallowed by the inferno and ceased to officially exist.
Far to the south the Küstenjäger had fought in the Aegean and Adriatic until the end of hostilities. The fight against Tito’s Partisans had taken the form of raiding parties against Partisan-dominated islands, intercepting small convoys of arms shipments and skirmishes with increasing numbers of Royal Navy MTBs and MGBs. Following the departure of the Küstenjäger Kompanie Rhodos to its permanent station in the Dodecanese, a new 1st Company was created, designated ‘Special Purpose Construction Training Headquarters’ and stationed in Bar in Montenegro. Its members wore the brown uniform of the Organisation Todt and acted in commando missions against partisans and against the British ships that supplied them.
The Küstenjäger Abteilung appropriated a Greek sailing ship, the Kajikis, and two additional assault boats that bolstered their fire power. Frequently combining with armed MFPs of the Kriegsmarine, the Brandenburgers launched regular raids and interception missions. On 19 August, the Küstenjäger were ordered to reconnoitre the islands of Saria, Skarpanto, Stakida, Umia/Unja-Nisia, Kamilioni, Zaphrani, Syrina, Kandelousia and Perigousa. Instructed to engage any enemy forces encountered, they chanced upon an unknown camouflaged vessel on 26 August and attacked it. The Germans successfully boarded what turned out to be the British HDML 1381 with fourteen men of the Special Boat Squadron on board. This heavily armed boat was repaired and recommissioned as KJ25, the ‘battleship’ of the Küstenjäger.
Some days later a new commando operation was launched against the Isle of Calchi which was occupied by volunteers of the Greek ‘Holy Battalion’. After a short but sharp engagement, the surviving Greeks were captured, their dead commander later buried in a ceremony accompanied by a Küstenjäger guard of honour. Sixty-one members of the ‘Holy Battalion’ with British support landed on Tilos on the night of 26 October and overwhelmed the island’s German garrison made up of the penal unit 999th Regiment, consisting of personnel previously considered unworthy to serve in the Wehrmacht due to their criminal record or ‘politically offensive attitude’ toward the Nazi regime. Küstenjäger were amongst the counter-attacking force that stormed ashore at the rear of the Allied troops and, after four days’ fighting in which the Greek destroyer Navarino provided artillery support to the enemy, the Allied forces were forced to withdraw. However, not all Küstenjäger operations ended in success. A small troop landed on Alinna on 14 November was captured soon after coming ashore by British commandos, as was a second troop put ashore to investigate four nights later.
Turkey declared war on Germany on 20 February 1945 and the Küstenjäger mounted what was probably the only attack on Turkey undertaken by the Wehrmacht. On 1 March a small heavily armed group sailed from Rhodes for the Turkish coast where they landed and stole sheep, goats, grain and general supplies as the Kriegsmarine had stopped supplying Rhodes by sea, the garrison left reliant on bomber aircraft of Kampfgeschwader 200 instead which frequently used captured B 17 or B 24 bombers as well as the more familiar Fw 200 or Ju 290. On 23
March, KJ25 headed a commando action against the island of Calchi where Greek troops and several small vessels were captured. The ‘battleship’ KJ25 was again used on a patrol west of Castellrosso on 13 April. Disguised as British personnel, the Küstenjäger captured a heavily armed vessel with nine soldiers of the Levant Schooner Flotilla, Special Boat Squadron. Finally, the last combat mission of the Küstenjäger Kompanie Rhodos took KJ25 to the waters around Castellrosso on 7 May, but after only a few hours at sea the Brandenburgers were recalled. The war had ended.
On 8 May 1945, the commander of the Rhodes garrison, Generalmajor Otto Wagener, was brought by KJ25 to the island of Symi to sign the island’s surrender. There Wagener ratified the end of hostilities with Germany in the Aegean in the presence of Brigadier James Moffat (British Army) and his second in command Colonel Baird, Colonel Christodoulos Tsigantes (Commander of the ‘Holy Battalion’) and Captain H.C. Legge (Royal Navy). The following day, the Küstenjäger’s KJ25 transported the first British troops to Rhodes and the last independent Brandenburger unit was dissolved.
APPENDIX
Major Decorations Awarded
Baulehr-Bataillon z.b.V. 800
Knight’s Cross
Wilhelm Walther, 24 June 1940, Oberleutnant, 4th Coy.
Lehrregiment z.b.V. 800
Oak Leaves
Siegfried Grabert, 6 November 1943, Hauptmann, 8th Coy./Lehr.Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’ z.b.V. 800.
Knight’s Cross
Siegfried Grabert, 10 June 1941, Oberleutnant, 8th Coy.
Adrian Baron von Fölkersam, 14 September 1942, Leutnant Adjutant, I Btn.
Ernst Prochaska, 16 September 1942, Leutnant, Führer 8th Coy.
Hans-Wolfram Knaak, 30 November 1942, Oberleutnant, Commander 8th Coy.
Werner Lau, 9 December 1942, Leutnant, Zugführer, 5th Coy.
Friedrich von Koenen, 16 September 1943, Hauptmann, Commander, III Btn.
German Cross in Gold
Dietrich Wolter, 12 March 1942, Leutnant, 6th Coy.
Karl Klein, 5 June 1942, Leutnant, 9th Coy.
Hans-Gerhard Bansen, 9 July 1942, Oberleutnant, 6th Coy.
Edgar von Hübschmann, 27 October 1942, Unteroffizier, 10th Coy.
Karl-Heinz Oesterwitz, 13 December 1942, Oberleutnant, 7th Coy.
Dr Walter Slama, 10 January 1943, Leutnant, 7th Coy.
Gerhard Pinkert, 9 April 1943, Hauptmann, 2nd Coy.
Army Honour Roll Clasp
Dr Helmut Weber, 16 October 1942, Stabsarzt, 8th Coy.
Hans-Erich Seuberlich, 19 November 1942, Leutnant, 5th Coy.
Commendation Certificate of the Commander-in-Chief of the Army
[first name unknown] Haut, 12 July 1941, Feldwebel, Lehr.Rgt. z.b.V. 800 ‘Brandenburg’.
Hans-Wolfram Knaak, 12 July 1941, Oberleutnant, Commander 8th Coy.
[first name not listed] Werner, 12 July 1941, Oberfeldwebel, Lehr.Rgt. z.b.V. 800 ‘Brandenburg’.
Oskar Hüller, 5 October 1942, Leutnant, Halb Kompanieführer 8th Coy.
Romanian Order of Michael the Brave, 3rd Class (Orden ‘Michael der Tapfere’ III. Klasse)
Hans Bansen, 31 March 1943, Leutnant, Lehr.Rgt. z.b.V. ‘Brandenburg’.
Sonderverbänd Brandenburg
German Cross in Gold
Karl Renner, 14 February 1943, Oberleutnant, III Btn./Verband 82.
Werner John, 2 April 1943, Hauptmann, Verband 81.
Hans-Erich Seuberlich, 24 April 1943, Leutnant, Verband 82.
Brandenburg Division
Knight’s Cross
Friedrich von Koenen, 16 September 1943, Hauptmann, Commander III Btn./4th Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Max Wandrey, 9 January 1944, Oberleutnant, Chef 11th Coy./1st Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Konrad Steidl, 26 January 1944, Hauptmann, Führer I Btn./2nd Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
German Cross in Gold
Albert Hald, 26 December 1943, Feldwebel, 15th Coy./4th Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Gustav Froboese, 30 December 1943, Hauptmann, III Btn./1st Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Robert Breitkreiz, 2 May 1944, Oberjäger, 2nd Coy./2nd Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Conrad von Leipzig, 20 May 1944, Rittmeister, Küstenjäger-Abt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Wolfram Kirchner, 8 July 1944, Oberleutnant, Verband Wildschütz/Div. ‘Brandenburg’.
Erich Horsthemke, 23 September 1944, Oberfeldwebel, 9th Coy./1st Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Ernst-Eberhard Frey, 9 October 1944, Oberleutnant, III Btn./4th Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Karl Ernst Kiefer, 13 December 1944, Oberleutnant, I Btn./1st Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Heinz-Willi Töppner, 15 December 1944, OberFeldwebel, III Btn./4th Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Army Honour Roll Clasp
Conrad von Leipzig, 17 November 1944, Rittmeister, Küstenjäger-Abt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Wilhelm Rowohl, 25 March 1945, Leutnant, Wehrwirtschaftsstab 85 [cover for Verband Wildschütz].
Commendation Certificate of the Commander-in-Chief of the Army
Dieter Weithoener, 7 July 1944, Oberleutnant, Battalion Leader I Btn./2nd Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Commendation Certificate of the Commander-in-Chief of the Army for Shooting Down Aircraft
Anton Rauch, 27 June 1944 [Date of Action], Feldwebel, III Btn./4th Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Knight’s Cross of the War Merit Cross with Swords
Reinhardt Volkmann, 12 August 1944, Fahnenjunker-Oberwachtmeister, Div. ‘Brandenburg’.
Panzergrenadier Division ‘Brandenburg’
Oak Leaves
Karl-Heinz Oesterwitz, 10 February 1945, Oberstleutnant, Commander 2nd Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Max Wandrey, 16 March 1945, Major d.R., Commander II Btn/1st Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Knight’s Cross
Erich von Brückner, 11 March 1945, Oberst, Commander 1st Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Eckard Afheldt, 17 March 1945, Oberleutnant, Leader II Btn./2nd Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Erich Röseke, 14 April 1945, Oberleutnant, Leader 9th Coy./1st Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Hellmut von Leipzig, 28 April 1945, Leutnant, Zugführer Pz.Aufkl.Abt ‘Brandenburg’.
Wilhelm Brökerhoff, 8 May 1945, Major, Leader Pz.Art.Rgt ‘Brandenburg’ (unconfirmed).
Friedrich Müller-Rochholz, 8 May 1945, Hauptmann, Commander Pz.Pi.Btl ‘Brandenburg’ (unconfirmed).
Werner Voshage, 8 May 1945, Major, Commander Heeres-Flak.Art.Abt ‘Brandenburg’ (unconfirmed).
German Cross in Gold
Konrad Steidl, 13 January 1945, Hauptmann, Commander I Btn./2nd Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Dr Theodor Becker, 31 January 1945, Oberarzt, 1st Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Erich Glaser, 22 March 1945, Feldwebel, 6th Coy./1st Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Erich Röseke, 22 March 1945, Oberleutnant, 9th Coy./1st Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Karl-Heinz Gohlke, 30 March 1945, Leutnant, II Btn./2nd Jäger Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Army Honour Roll Clasp
Gerhard Pinkert, 5 February 1945, Hauptmann, I Btn./Rgt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Wolf Meschkeris, 5 March 1945, Oberleutnant, Begleit Kompanie/Pz.Gren.Div. ‘Brandenburg’.
Hans-Gerhard Bansen, 25 March 1945, Major, Pz.Aufkl.Abt. ‘Brandenburg’.
Werner Stalf, 1945 [date unconfirmed], Leutnant, 7th Coy/2nd Jäger Rgt ‘Brandenburg’.
Notes
Prelude: The Concept Behind the Brandenburger Regiment
1CIA Archives, report by General Lahousen; also National Archives, KV2/173.
2‘The Lohmann Affair’, Central Intelligence Agency. https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/kent-csi/vol4no2/html/v04i2a08p_0001.htm
3Nuremberg Trial Proceedings, Ninth Day, Friday 30 November 1945. See: www.avalon.law.yale.edu/imt/11-30-5.asp
4The Höheren Offizierskurse existed because Article 160 of the Treaty of Versailles forbade General Staff Officer
training.
5National Archives, KV2/173, Erwin von Lahousen interrogation.
6National Archives, KV2/1736. Abshagen was later arrested by the Gestapo following the 20 July bomb plot, his name linked to the explosives procured by von Stauffenberg, which he had in fact supplied. Released through lack of evidence in November 1944, he was dismissed from the Army. In May 1945, he was arrested by the Soviet SMERSH (an acronym for the Russian phrase ‘Smert Shpionam’, or, ‘Death to Spies’ which was popularised by James Bond novels and correspondingly frequently thought of as fiction) and condemned to death for his Abwehr role. He was executed in Brest, Belarus, in August 1945.
7These numbers quoted by author Andrzej Szefer and Major Dietrich Witzel respectively.
8According to these biographical details, Ebbinghaus was promoted to Major and awarded the EK II after the conclusion of the Polish campaign. After the war he lived in the Federal Republic of Germany and died in 1958 in Lünen, Westphalia. See Grzegorza Bębnik, Sokoły kapitana Ebbinghausa (Libron, 2014).
1 Baptism of Fire
1See Peter Hoffmann, History of the German Resistance, 1933–1945 (McGill-Queen’s University Press, 1996), pp. 92–6 for a detailed account of the event.
2When the actual invasion came on 1 September, the tunnel was successfully blown up by its Polish defenders, only minutes before the arrival of German troops.
3Seeliger would later be killed in action at the rank of Oberstleutnant while leading Frontaufklärung 202 (FAK202) made up of Russians, Ukrainians and Poles during the late summer of 1944.
4See National Archives, KV2/1736.
5The Füsilier-Regiment Nr. 35 and Kürassier-Regiment Nr. 6 had maintained barracks in the town from 1880 until the First World War.
6Jahnke served as intelligence adviser to Walter Schellenberg of the SD but later fled to Switzerland after Gestapo investigators discovered his links with British Intelligence. Returning as the war was ending, he and his wife were captured by Soviet SMERSH agents in May 1945, interrogated and executed. In November 1944 Marcus crossed Allied lines in France in uniform to surrender himself to British Intelligence, acting as a peace emissary on Jahnke’s behalf with information for Allied intelligence officers.