Ernst-Günther Baade

Ernst-Günther Baade
Born	(1897-08-20)20 August 1897 Falkenhagen
Died	8 May 1945(1945-05-08) (aged 47) Bad Segeberg
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918) Weimar Republic (to 1933) Third Reich
Service/branch	Heer
Years of service	1914–45
Rank	Generalleutnant
Commands held	90th Light Infantry Division
Battles/wars	World War I World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords

Ernst-Günther Baade (20 August 1897 – 8 May 1945) was a German general during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords. Baade was wounded in action and died from his injuries on 8 May 1945.

Career

Ernst-Günther Baade volunteered for military service in 1914 and fought on both the Eastern Front and Western Front. During World War II, in March 1942 Baade was assigned to the active reserve of officers (Führerreserve). He subsequently transferred to the 15th Panzer Division in North Africa and took command of the 115th Rifle Regiment on 15 April 1942, at that time committed to action in Libya and Cyrenaica.

Baade became a legend in the Afrika Korps and was known to go into battle dressed in a Scottish kilt and carrying a claymore, a double-edged broadsword. In May 1942 he took part in the Battle of Bir Hakeim. Baade was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his actions during the battle. He was wounded on 28 July 1942 at El-Alamein, and evacuated to Germany.

During the evacuation of German forces from Sicily to the Italian mainland in early August 1943, Baade was placed in charge of the force defending the Straits of Messina. Baade commanded the 90th Infantry Division in the Battle of Monte Cassino. He was known for his occasionally eccentric behavior, his very small staff, and his frequent front-line inspection visits, all of which made him popular with his troops. He was awarded a Tank Destruction Badge for the single-handed destruction of an enemy tank with an infantry weapon.

Baade was wounded on 24 April 1945, when his staff car was strafed by a British fighter aircraft near Neverstaven in Holstein. He died of gangrene in a hospital at Bad Segeberg on 8 May 1945.

Awards

• Wound Badge
  • in Black (1 July 1918)
  • in Silver
• Wehrmacht Long Service Award 2nd Class (2 October 1936)
• Infantry Assault Badge
• Tank Destruction Badge for Individual Combatants
• German Cross in Gold on 2 November 1941 as Oberstleutnant in the I./Reiter-Regiment 22
• Iron Cross (1914)
  • 2nd Class (25 November 1916)
  • 1st Class (24 December 1917)
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (18 September 1939)
  • 1st Class (5 June 1940)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords
  • Knight's Cross on 27 June 1942 as Oberst and commander of Schützen-Regiment 115
  • 402nd Oak Leaves on 22 February 1944 as Oberst and leader of the 90. Panzergrenadier-Division
  • 111th Swords on 16 November 1944 as Generalleutnant and commander of the 90. Panzergrenadier-Division
• Mentioned twice in the Wehrmachtbericht (8 February 1944, 27 May 1944)

Footnotes and references

Bibliography

• Atkinson, Ricky (2007). The Day of Battle – The War in Sicily and Italy 1943–1944. London: Little, Brown. ISBN 978-0-316-72560-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Berger, Florian (1999). Mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern. Die höchstdekorierten Soldaten des Zweiten Weltkrieges (in German). Vienna, Austria: Selbstverlag Florian Berger. ISBN 978-3-9501307-0-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
• Hapgood, David; Richardson, David (1984). Monte Cassino. New York: Congdon & Weed. ISBN 0-86553-105-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Mitcham, Samuel W. (2007). Rommel's Desert Commanders — The Men Who Served the Desert Fox, North Africa, 1941–42. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-3510-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Miltaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
• Senger und Etterlin, Fridolin von (1960). Krieg in Europa. Translated by Malcolm, George. London: Macdonald & Co. Ltd. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
• Thomas, Franz; Wegmann, Günter (1987). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Deutschen Wehrmacht 1939–1945 Teil III: Infanterie Band 1: A–Be (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-1153-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
• Thomas, Franz (1997). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 1: A–K (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2299-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)