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Alexander Andrae | |
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| Born | (1888-04-27)27 April 1888 |
| Died | 3 April 1979(1979-04-03) (aged 90) |
| Allegiance | German Empire Weimar Republic Nazi Germany |
| Branch | Imperial German Army German Army Sicherheitspolizei Luftwaffe |
| Rank | General der Flieger General der Artillerie |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Iron Cross |
Alexander Andrae (27 April 1888 – 3 April 1979), whose first name is often mistakenly given asWaldemar,[1] was aGerman military officer fromKösling,Upper Silesia. Initially pursuing an Army career, he then joined the security police and eventually theLuftwaffe.
DuringWorld War II he was appointed military governor ofCrete. After the war, he was tried and imprisoned forwar crimes committed there under his command.
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Andrae was born in 1888 and joined the army in 1906. DuringWorld War I, he served with the56th Field-Artillery-Brigade, in the Staffs of the2nd Army, the25th Infantry Division, the9th Landwehr Division and theXVI Army Corps.
After the end of World War I, he remained in theReichswehr, from which he retired in 1920. He then moved to thesecurity police, where he stayed until 1935 when he re-entered the army. In August 1936, he joined the then newly establishedLuftwaffe.
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Serving in the Luftwaffe as the Commander of Air Region Staffs 17 (Poland), 300 (Denmark), Balkans, and Crete, Andrae took part in the campaigns againstPoland,Denmark, theBalkans andCrete, respectively. In June 1941, he succeededKurt Student as the Commander-in-Chief of "Fortress Crete". Under his command, thousands of civilian residents ofCrete were tortured or executed. During 1942, SOE agentXan Fielding was considering a plan to capture Andrae.[2] This plan never materialized, since in fall 1942, Andrae was assigned to theReich Air Ministry, leaving the command of Crete to paratrooper GeneralBruno Bräuer. However, the idea of capturing a German general evolved into theabduction of Gen. Kreipe. Andrae retired from service in May 1943, to be called again for active duty as an artillery General in April 1945 with the4th Panzer Army.
After thesurrender of Germany in May 1945, Andrae was captured by the British and then extradited to Greece to be tried for war crimes he was responsible for while in Crete. In 1947, he was condemned to four life sentences.In 1951, his sentence was commuted byKing Paul of Greece to four years imprisonment. As a result, after spending four years in prison, he was released in January 1952. Later, Andrae co-founded theGerman Reich Party.[3]
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