Joachim Witthöft

Joachim Witthöft (23 September 1887 – 7 July 1966) was a German general during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Witthöft commanded Army Group South Rear Area (as Army Group B) during the 1942 Wehrmacht's campaign.[1]

Joachim Witthöft
Born(1887-09-23)23 September 1887
Marienwerder
Died7 July 1966(1966-07-07) (aged 78)
Dalheim-Rödgen
Allegiance Nazi Germany
Service/branchArmy (Wehrmacht)
Years of service1906–45
RankGeneral of the Infantry
Commands heldXXVII Army Corps
Army Group South Rear Area (Army Group B)
Battles/warsWorld War II
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Like other Army Group Rear Areas, the territories under Witthöft's control were the sites of mass murder during the Holocaust and other crimes against humanity targeting the civilian population. Rear Area commanders operated in parallel, and in cooperation, with the Higher SS and Police Leaders appointed by the head of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, for each of the army group's rear areas.[2] In the words of historian Michael Parrish, these army commanders "presided over an empire of terror and brutality".[3]

Awards and decorations

References

Citations
  1. Pohl 2008, p. 100.
  2. Megargee 2007, p. 36.
  3. Parrish 1996, p. 127.
  4. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 364.

Bibliography
  • Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
  • Megargee, Geoffrey P. (2007). War of Annihilation: Combat and Genocide on the Eastern Front, 1941. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-0-7425-4482-6.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Parrish, Michael (1996). The Lesser Terror: Soviet State Security, 1939–1953. Praeger Press. ISBN 978-0-275-95113-9.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Pohl, Dieter (2008). Die Herrschaft der Wehrmacht: Deutsche Militärbesatzung und einheimische Bevölkerung in der Sowjetunion 1941–1944. Oldenbourg Wissenschaftsverlag. ISBN 978-3486580655.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
Military offices
Preceded by
None		 Commander of 86th Infantry Division
26 August 1939 – 1 January 1942		 Succeeded by
General Helmuth Weidling
Preceded by
General Eccard Freiherr von Gablenz		 Commander of XXVII Army Corps
3 January 1942 – 1 July 1942		 Succeeded by
Generaloberst Walter Weiß
Preceded by
 Commander of Army Group South Rear Area (Army Group B)
21 July 1942 – 10 January 1943		 Succeeded by
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