Hans-Jürgen von Arnim

Hans-Jürgen von Arnim
General von Arnim
Born	4 April 1889(1889-04-04) Ernsdorf, Silesia, Prussia
Died	1 September 1962(1962-09-01) (aged 73) Bad Wildungen, Hesse
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918) Weimar Republic (to 1933) Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Heer
Years of service	1907 – 1945
Rank	Generaloberst
Commands held	52nd Infantry Division 17th Panzer Division XXXIX Panzer Corps 5th Panzer Army Panzer Army Africa
Battles/wars	World War I World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Hans-Jürgen Bernhard Theodor von Arnim (4 April 1889 – 1 September 1962) was a German Generaloberst who served during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes). The Knight's Cross or the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Life

Arnim was born in Ernsdorf in the Prussian Province of Silesia, the son of General Hans von Arnim (1861–1931) and Martha Honrichs (1865–1953). He served in the German Army from 1907 until the end of World War II. During the First World War he saw action on both the Eastern and Western fronts. After the war he remained in the Reichswehr and rose to command the elite 68th Infantry Regiment in Berlin.

With the rise of Nazi Germany, Arnim was made a major-general in 1938. He commanded the 52. Infanterie-Division in both the Battles for Poland and France. In October 1940, Arnim was given command of the 17. Panzer-Division. With the outbreak of the war against the Soviet Union, he was promoted to lieutenant general under Heinz Guderian, but was seriously wounded a few days after the start of the campaign. He was promoted to General der Panzertruppe on 1 October 1941 and commanded the XXXIX. Panzerkorps until November 1942, when he was placed in command of the 5th Panzer Army under Erwin Rommel in North Africa.

Generaloberst Hans-Jürgen von Arnim (left) and General der Panzertruppe Hans Cramer (centre) in British captivity at Trent Park camp in 1943

When Adolf Hitler refused to allow Rommel to return to Tunisia, Arnim was promoted to full general (Generaloberst) on 4 December 1942, and made Commander-in-Chief of Army Group Africa and de facto commander of the Afrika Korps from 9 March 1943 until his capture by the British Indian Army's 4th Infantry Division two months later on 12 May 1943. After he was captured, Arnim allegedly expected to be met by his opposite numbers and asked to see Dwight D. Eisenhower. The American general replied to his aides to get as much information out of him as they could, but a personal meeting was out of the question. He would not meet with any German officers until the final surrender.

Arnim served the rest of the war as a British prisoner of war interned along with 24 other German general officers at Camp Clinton, Mississippi, and was released on 1 July 1947. He returned to Germany and died in Bad Wildungen, Hesse.

Arnim's Steyr 1500A Afrika Korps staff car from the north African campaign is exhibited at Eastbourne Redoubt in the United Kingdom.

Awards

General von Arnim's Staff Car at the Eastbourne Redoubt.

• Iron Cross (1914)
  • 2nd Class (2 November 1914)
  • 1st Class (16 September 1914)
• Hanseatic Cross of Hamburg
• House Order of Hohenzollern (7 September 1918)
• Wound Badge in Silver (1918)
• Cross of Honor
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (8 October 1939)
  • 1st Class (3 November 1939)
• German Cross in Gold (18 May 1942)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (4 September 1941)
• Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht (addendum) on 13 May 1943
• Ärmelband “Afrika"

See also

• Eastbourne Redoubt

References

Citations

Bibliography

• Alman, Karl (1998). Ritterkreuzträger des Afrikakorps (in German). Rastatt, Germany: VPM Verlagsunion Pabel Moewig. ISBN 3-8118-1457-5.
• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000). Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945 (in German). Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 3-7909-0284-5.
• Patzwall, Klaus D. and Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 - 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II. Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 3-931533-45-X.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). 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.

External links

• Media related to Hans-Jürgen von Arnim at Wikimedia Commons
• Redoubt Fortress Museum

Military offices
Preceded by Generaloberst Karl-Adolf Hollidt	Commander of 52. Infanterie-Division September 8, 1939 – October 5, 1940	Succeeded by Generaloberst Lothar Rendulic
Preceded by General der Panzertruppen Wilhelm Ritter von Thoma	Commander of 17. Panzer-Division September 15, 1941 – November 11, 1941	Succeeded by Generalleutnant Rudolf-Eduard Licht
Preceded by Generaloberst Rudolf Schmidt	Commander of XXXIX. Panzerkorps November 11, 1941 – November 30, 1942	Succeeded by General der Artillerie Robert Martinek
Preceded by Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel	Commander of Heeresgruppe Afrika March 10, 1943 – May 13, 1943	Succeeded by disbanded