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Fritz Witt

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Fritz Witt
Witt (centre) with Max Wünsche (left) and Kurt Meyer (right). France, 1944
Born(1908-05-27)27 May 1908
Hohenlimburg, German Empire
Died14 June 1944(1944-06-14) (aged 36)
Venoix, Occupied France
Buried
Champigny-Saint-André German war cemetery
Allegiance Nazi Germany
Service / branch Waffen-SS
Years of service1933–44
RankSS-Brigadeführer
Service numberNSDAP #816,769
SS #21,518
CommandsSS Division Hitlerjugend
Battles / warsInvasion of Normandy  †
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Fritz Witt (27 May 1908 – 14 June 1944) was a German Waffen-SS commander during the Nazi era. During World War II, he served with the SS Division Leibstandarte before taking command of the SS Division Hitlerjugend. He was killed in action in June 1944.

Early life and career

Born in 1908 into a family of a merchant, Witt worked in the textile industry until he lost his job in June 1931.[1] Witt joined the Nazi Party (NSDAP) (Nr. 816,769) in December 1931 and the SS (Nr. 21,518).[2] In March 1933, Witt became a member of the SS-Stabswache "Berlin", a bodyguard unit to protect Adolf Hitler. It was renamed to SS-Sonderkommando "Berlin" in September and in the following month, Witt was appointed a platoon leader.[1] This unit was the nucleus of the later SS Division Leibstandarte (LSSAH).[3] In January 1935, Witt was appointed company commander in the SS-Standarte "Deutschland", a unit that later became part of the SS Division Das Reich.[1]

World War II

Witt participated in the Invasion of Poland in September 1939 as a member of the motorized infantry regiment "Deutschland", which was subordinated to Panzer Division Kempf, a combined arms unit commanded by General Werner Kempf. Witt's unit took part in the Battle of the Border and then in the fighting at Zakroczym where men from Panzer Division Kempf committed the Massacre in Zakroczym on 28 September 1939.[1][4] During the campaign, Witt was awarded both classes of the Iron Cross.[5]

On 19 October 1939, Witt was appointed battalion commander in the SS-Regiment "Deutschland", leading the battalion in the Battle of the Netherlands and the Battle of France.[5] On 4 September 1940, Witt was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. He was then transferred to the LSSAH on 16 October 1940 as battalion commander.[5]

As battalion commander in the LSSAH, Witt participated in the Battle of Greece (6–30 April 1941), the Axis invasion of the Allied Kingdom of Greece. On 11–12 April 1941, Witt's battalion participated in the assault on the Klidi Pass, sustaining heavy casualties in the attack. On 14 April 1941, the battalion fought against British forces in the Battle of Kleisoura Pass. There, Witt's brother, a member of the same unit, was killed in action.[6]

Divisional command

In January 1944, Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt inspected the Hitlerjugend division at Beverloo Camp

On 1 July 1943, Witt was promoted to SS-Oberführer and was appointed commander of the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend, the majority of its enlisted men were drawn from members of the Hitler Youth. His previous command of the SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 1 was given to Albert Frey. In the following months, Witt oversaw the formation and training of Hitlerjugend division at Beverloo Camp, Belgium.[7]

In expectation of the Allied invasion, 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend was ordered to relocate to France in March 1944. On 1 April 1944, elements of the division committed the Ascq massacre in Ascq, France. In command of those troops was SS-Obersturmführer Walter Hauck, a company commander in the Hitlerjugend division.[8]

On 20 April 1944, Witt was promoted to SS-Brigadeführer und Generalmajor of the Waffen-SS.[9] On 6 June 1944, the Western Allies launched the Invasion of Normandy. During the Normandy Campaign, Kurt Meyer, commander of the Hitlerjugend 25th Panzer Grenadier Regiment, used the Ardenne Abbey for his regimental headquarters.[10] On 7 June, members of the division under Kurt Meyer illegally executed Canadian soldiers in what became known as the Ardenne Abbey massacre.[11]

On 14 June 1944, Witt was killed in action by a Royal Navy naval artillery barrage which hit the divisional command post at Venoix. He was initially buried at Venoix and later reinterred at Champigny—Saint-André-de-l'Eure, France.[12]

Awards

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d Stockert 2012, p. 389.
  2. ^ Westfälische Forschungen, p. 370.
  3. ^ Cook & Bender 1994, pp. 17, 19.
  4. ^ Datner 1961, pp. 60–61.
  5. ^ a b c Stockert 2012, p. 390.
  6. ^ Stockert 2012, p. 391.
  7. ^ Stockert 2012, p. 394.
  8. ^ Westemeier 2013, p. 300.
  9. ^ Stockert 2012, p. 395.
  10. ^ Margolian 2000, p. 44.
  11. ^ Birn 2006, p. 567.
  12. ^ Stockert 2012, p. 396.
  13. ^ Thomas 1998, p. 450.
  14. ^ Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 518.
  15. ^ a b Scherzer 2007, p. 791.

Bibliography

  • Birn, Ruth Bettina (2006). "Spät, aber gründlich. Die Ermittlungen gegen Kriegsverbrecher in Kanada". In Frei, Norbert (ed.). Transnationale Vergangenheitspolitik. Der Umgang mit deutschen Kriegsverbrechern in Europa nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg. Göttingen: Wallstein. ISBN 978-3-89244-940-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Cook, Stan; Bender, Roger James (1994). Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler: Uniforms, Organization, & History. San Jose, CA: James Bender Publishing. ISBN 978-0-912138-55-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Datner, Szymon (1961). Zbrodnie Wehrmachtu na jeńcach wojennych armii regularnych w II wojnie światowej (in Polish). Warszawa, Poland: Wydawnictwo Ministerstwa obrony narodowej. OCLC 491616631. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  • Margolian, Howard (2000) [1998]. Conduct Unbecoming: The Story of the Murder of Canadian Prisoners of War in Normandy. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. ISBN 978-0802083609. {{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 Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  • Stein, George H. (1984). The Waffen SS: Hitler's Elite Guard at War, 1939–1945. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. ISBN 978-0-8014-9275-4. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Stockert, Peter (2012) [1997]. Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 2 (in German) (4th ed.). Bad Friedrichshall, Germany: Friedrichshaller Rundblick. ISBN 978-3-9802222-9-7. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  • Thomas, Franz (1998). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 2: L–Z (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2300-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  • Stollberg-Rilinger, Barbara, ed. (2003). Westfälische Forschungen, Band 53. Münster, Germany: Aschendorff. ISBN 978-3-402-09232-3. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  • Westemeier, Jens (2013). Himmlers Krieger: Joachim Peiper und die Waffen-SS in Krieg und Nachkriegszeit. Paderborn, Germany: Ferdinand Schöningh. ISBN 978-3-506-77241-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
Military offices
Preceded by
none
 Commander of 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend
24 June 1943 – 14 June 1944 		Succeeded by
SS-Brigadeführer Kurt Meyer
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