Karl Rothenburg | |
|---|---|
 Karl Rothenburg (2nd from left), June 1940 | |
| Born | 8 June 1894 |
| Died | 28 June 1941(1941-06-28) (aged 47) NearMinsk, Soviet Union |
| Allegiance | German Empire Nazi Germany |
| Branch | German Army |
| Service years | 1914–1941 |
| Rank | Generalmajor (Posthumously) |
| Conflicts | |
| Awards | Pour le Mérite Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Karl Eduard August Rothenburg (8 June 1894 – 28 June 1941) was a highly decorated German officer in theWehrmacht duringWorld War II. He was a recipient of both thePour le Mérite (ofWorld War I) and theKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross ofNazi Germany. Between wars he served as a commander in the police force, before returning to the Wehrmacht in 1934. During World War II he was the commander of a Panzer Regiment of the7th Panzer Division. Rothenburg was killed six days into the invasion of the Soviet Union on 28 June 1941 nearMinsk,Belarus and wasposthumously promoted to Generalmajor.[1][2]
Karl Rothenburg was born on 8 June 1894 inFürstenwalde,German Empire as the son of high school teacher Georg Rothenburg and his wife Alwina (néé Sittmann). Following theAbitur, young Karl became a teacher as well, but was drafted into theGerman Imperial Army asOne-year volunteer on 1 April 1914. He was assigned to the 3rd Company of the 5th Guards Foot Regiment (5. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß) located inSpandau nearBerlin and underwent his basic training there.[1]
Upon the outbreak ofWorld War I, his regiment was ordered to theWestern Front and took part in theSiege of Namur inBelgium. The 5th Guards Foot Regiment was subsequently transferred to theEastern Front and Rothenburg took part in the combats againstImperial Russian Army at theMasurian Lakes andŁódź. He distinguished himself and was promoted to the rank ofUnteroffizier (Corporal) by the end of December 1914.[1]
In early 1915, Rothenburg took part in thewinter battle of the Masurian Lakes and later in the combats inCourland andLithuania. He was also appointed aOffizierstellvertreter (Officer Deputy) during that time. His regiment was ordered back to the West in fall of 1915 and Rothenburg was promoted to the rank ofLeutnant der Reserve (Second lieutenant in the Reserves) on 8 November 1915. He participated later in theBattle of the Somme and became the acting commander of the 2nd Company.[1]
One year later, in April 1917, Rothenburg became the permanent commander of this company and already had both classes of theIron Cross for bravery. He later led his company during theGerman spring offensive and was wounded by shrapnel in the right hand during the breakthrough betweenGouzeaucourt andVermand on 29 March 1918. For his merits during the fighting in France, Rothenburg received theKnight's Cross of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern with Swords.[1][2]
During the following German offensive (Operation Gneisenau) in June 1918, Rothenburg's company was tasked with the capture ofNoyon-Montdidier area. While advancing onLa Berlière, Rothenburg haven't wait for orders and captured the heavily fortified village including the nearbyRicquebourg wood. His company then led the battalion's subsequent pursuit of fleeing enemy and after reaching the Matz river, where advance was halted. Rothenburg and his company then crossed the river on its own despite heavy enemy fire and covered regiment's crossing. For his service during theGneisenau Operation, Rothenburg was decorated with thePour le Mérite, the highest German decoration for bravery.[1][2]
Following theArmistice, Rothenburg was demobilized on 20 December 1918 and resumed his job as a teacher. He then joined theSchutzpolizei inGotha and rose to the rank ofHauptmann (Captain) by September 1924. Rothenburg then assumed command of police detachment inJena and following the promotion to Major in summer 1930, he was appointed commander of Schutzpolizei inWeimar. In April 1933, Rothenburg was promoted toOberstleutnant (lieutenant colonel) and assumed command of Police school inSondershausen.[1]
When theWehrmacht was established in early 1935, Rothenburg requested to be reactivated to the Army service, which was granted and he was assigned as Major to theKampfwagen-Regiment 1 (Armored Vehicle Regiment Nr. 1) inZossen. The regiment was redesignatedPanzer-Regiment 1 under ColonelLudwig von Radlmaier and Rothenburg was assigned to the regimental staff inErfurt. He assumed command of 2nd Battalion, Panzer-Regiment 6 inNeuruppin in August 1936 and took part in theOccupation of Czechoslovakia duringSudeten crisis. Rothenburg was promoted toOberstleutnant (lieutenant colonel) on 1 April 1938 and became commander of Panzer-Regiment 6 in March 1939. He was promoted to the temporary rank ofOberst (Colonel) in August 1939.[1]
During theInvasion of Poland in September 1939, Rothenburg and his regiment took part in the combats inPolish Corridor and then inToruń andBrest-Litovsk area as the part of3rd Panzer Division. Rothenburg receivedClasps to the Iron Cross for his service and following the Polish campaign, he was transferred toGera,Thuringia where he assumed command ofPanzer Regiment 25 of the newly formed7th Panzer Division under GeneralmajorGeorg Stumme.[1][3]
Rothenburg spent following months with the training onCzechoslovakPanzer 38(t) tanks and developed a kind relationship with new divisional commander, then-GeneralmajorErwin Rommel. During theBattle of France in May and June 1940, Rothenburg's regiment broke through the Allies' Meuse River defenses, smashed throughBelgium andFrance, and overran French1st Armoured Division, destroying more than 100 tanks and some 30 armored cars in the process.[1][4]
Then Rothenburg and his tanks helped to repelBritish counterattack to Arras, overran the French 31st Motorized Infantry Division and then helped destroyFrench 1st Army atLille. The 25th Panzer Regiment then turned south and captured the city ofCherbourg and pushed almost to the Spanish border by the time the French surrendered. Rothenburg also rescued Rommel by picking him up from the battlefield, when his command tank was knocked out. For his service in France, Rothenburg received theKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross, the highest decoration ofNazi Germany awarded for bravery in combat.[1][2][4]
The 25th Panzer Regiment was then engaged in the occupation duties in the area ofBordeaux until February 1941 when it was relocated toEast Prussia. During theOperation Barbarossa, the invasion of theSoviet Union, Rothenburg and his regiment during the capture ofWilna on 24 June 1941. His regiment then became involved in theheavy fighting of Minsk, where Rothenburg was wounded by an explosion from the burning armored train.[1][4]
Rothenburg was offered to be evacuated by aFiesler Storch reconnaissance plane or by a panzer escort, but he refused both because he didn't want to weaken his already depleted regiment. He decided to drive with two cars back to the rear. On his way through the enemy occupied land, he was killed on 28 June and his body was discovered the next day. Rothenburg wasposthumously promoted to Generalmajor and his regiment received an honorary title"Panzerregiment Rothenburg", which was also commonly accepted by its members.[1][2][4]
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