Hermann Ritter von Speck

Hermann Ritter von Speck (8 August 1888 – 15 June 1940) was a German general during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany. Speck was killed by French machine gun fire on 15 June 1940 in Pont-sur-Yonne, France. He was the first German general officer killed in World War II.[1]

Hermann Ritter von Speck
Born	8 August 1888
Died	15 June 1940(1940-06-15) (aged 51) Pont-sur-Yonne, France
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Army (Wehrmacht)
Rank	Full General
Commands held	33. Infanterie-Division XXXXIII. Armeekorps XVIII. Armeekorps
Battles/wars	Battle of France
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

He was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 October 1940.

In 2010, Jay Nordlinger spoke with von Speck's daughter, who claimed that the general deliberately sought death in battle: "According to his daughter, he wanted to die, and arranged to die. He felt he could not break his oath to the army — he could not desert. And his Catholic faith prevented him from committing suicide — suicide straight out, you might say. So, he put himself in the line of fire. In his dying words, he did not say, 'Give my love to my family', or anything like that. He said, 'It had to be this way'.”[2]

Awards and decorations

• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 October 1940 as Generalleutnant and commander of XVIII. Armeekorps[3]

References

Citations

1. Forczyk, Robert (30 November 2017). Case Rot; the Collapse of France. 5715: Osprey Publishing.CS1 maint: location (link)
2. Jay Nordlinger, "Salzburg Souvenirs, Part IV", National Review Online, 30 August 2010
3. Fellgiebel 2000, p. .

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 [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.

Military offices
Preceded by General der Infanterie Eugen Ritter von Schobert	Commander of 33. Infantry-Division 1 March 1938 - 29 April 1940	Succeeded by Generalleutnant Rudolf Sintzenich
Preceded by None	Commander of XXXXIII. Armeekorps 29 April 1940 - 31 May 1940	Succeeded by Generalleutnant Franz Böhme
Preceded by General der Infanterie Eugen Beyer	Commander of XVIII. Armeekorps 5 June 1940 - 15 June 1940	Succeeded by General der Gebirgstruppe Franz Böhme