Walter Weiß

General Walter-Otto Weiß, also spelt Weiss (5 September 1890 – 21 December 1967), was a German general during World War II. In 1945 he became commander in chief of Army Group North on the Eastern Front. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves.

Walter Weiß
Walter-Otto Weiß (2nd from left)
Born	(1890-09-05)5 September 1890 Tilsit, Province of East Prussia, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire
Died	21 December 1967(1967-12-21) (aged 77) Aschaffenburg, Bavaria, West Germany
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918)  Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Army (Wehrmacht)
Years of service	1908–45
Rank	Generaloberst
Commands held	26 Infantry Division XXVII Army Corps 2nd Army Army Group North
Battles/wars	First World War World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Career

Weiss was born in Tilsit, East Prussia[1] and joined the Army on 19 March 1908. At the beginning of the Second World War, during the Polish Campaign, he was given command of I. Army Corps, holding the position chief of the general staff on 1 September. On 15 December 1940 he took command of the 97th Light Division, and on 15 January 1941 command of the 26th Infantry Division. This Division was subordinated to Army Group Centre and participated in Operation Barbarossa. Weiss took command of the XXVII Army Corps on 1 July 1942. Weiss led the 2nd Army on the Eastern Front from 3 February 1943 on. He received command of Army Group North on 12 March 1945 with which he surrendered to the American forces.

Awards

• Iron Cross (1914) 2nd Class (9 September 1914) & 1st Class (15 December 1915)[2]
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (19 September 1939) & 1st Class (2 October 1939)[2]
• German Cross in Gold on 19 February 1943 as General der Infanterie and commanding general of the XXVII. Armeekorps[3]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 12 September 1941 as Generalmajor and commander of the 26.Infanterie-Division[4]
  • Oak Leaves on 5 November 1944 as Generaloberst and Commander-in-Chief of the 2. Armee[4]

References

Citations

2. Thomas 1998, p. 429.
3. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 504.
4. Scherzer 2007, p. 776.

Bibliography

• Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II [The German Cross 1941 – 1945 History and Recipients Volume 2] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8.
• 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 [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
• Thomas, Franz (1998). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 2: L–Z [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 2: L–Z] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2300-9.

Military offices
Preceded by None	Commander of 97. leichte-Division 15 December 1940 – January 15, 1941	Succeeded by General der Infanterie Sigismund von Förster
Preceded by General der Infanterie Sigismund von Forster	Commander of 26. Infantrie-Division 15 January 1941 – 15 April 1942	Succeeded by General der Infanterie Friedrich Wiese
Preceded by General Hans von Salmuth	Commander of 2. Armee 4 February 1943 – 9 March 1945	Succeeded by General Dietrich von Saucken
Preceded by Generaloberst Dr. Lothar Rendulic	Commander of Heeresgruppe Nord 12 March 1945 – 2 April 1945	Succeeded by none