Gerd-Paul von Below

Gerd-Paul Valerian Georg Heinrich von Below
Gerd-Paul Valerian Georg Heinrich von Below
Born	30 November 1892; Strasbourg
Died	8 December 1953 (aged 61); Woikowo Prisoner-of-war camp near Moscow
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918); Weimar Republic (to 1920); Nazi Germany
Service / branch	Heer
Years of service	1911–20; 1935–45
Rank	Generalmajor of the Reserves
Commands	Grenadier-Regiment 374
Battles / wars	World War II Annexation of the Sudetenland; Invasion of Poland; Battle of the Netherlands; Operation Barbarossa; Siege of Leningrad; Courland Pocket;
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Gerd-Paul Valerian Georg Heinrich von Below (30 November 1892 – 8 December 1953) was a highly decorated Generalmajor of the Reserves in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Gerd-Paul von Below was captured by Soviet troops in May 1945 and died in captivity in 1953.

Awards and decorations

Iron Cross (1914)
- 2nd Class
- 1st Class
Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918
Sudetenland Medal
Iron Cross (1939)
- 2nd Class (6 October 1939)
- 1st Class (28 August 1940)
Wound Badge (1939)
- in Black (May 1943)
Infantry Assault Badge
Eastern Front Medal
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 28 February 1943 as Oberst of the Reserves and commander of the augmented Grenadier-Regiment 374^[1]

References

Citations

^ Scherzer 2007, p. 213.

Bibliography

Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6. {{cite book}}: 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}}: Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)

External links

[1] Scherzer 2007, p. 213.

[1]