Wikipedia:WikiProject Germany/Portal:Baden-Württemberg/Selected biography/4

Erwin Rommel (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as the Desert Fox, was a senior German Army officer during World War II. Rommel was a highly decorated officer in World War I and was awarded the Pour le Mérite for his actions on the Italian Front. In World War II, he distinguished himself as the commander of the 7th Panzer Division during the 1940 invasion of France. His leadership of German and Italian forces in the North African Campaign established his reputation as one of the most able commanders of the war, and earned him the appellation of "the Desert Fox". He later commanded the German forces opposing the Allied cross-channel invasion of Normandy in June 1944. Rommel supported the Nazi seizure of power and Adolf Hitler, although his attitude towards Nazi ideology and level of knowledge in the regime's crimes remain a matter of debate among scholars. In 1944, Rommel was implicated in the 20 July plot to assassinate Hitler. Due to Rommel's status as a national hero, Hitler desired to eliminate him quietly.