Edgar Feuchtinger
| Edgar Feuchtinger | |
|---|---|
Generalleutnant Edgar Feuchtinger
|
|
| Born | 9 November 1894 Metz, Alsace-Lorraine |
| Died |
21 January 1960 (aged 65) Berlin, Germany |
| Allegiance |
 German Empire (to 1918) Weimar Republic (to 1933) Nazi Germany (to 1945) |
| Service/branch | Army |
| Years of service | 1914–45 |
| Rank | Generalleutnant |
| Commands held | 21st Panzer Division |
| Battles/wars |
World War II World War I |
| Awards |
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Deutsches Kreuz in Silver |
Edgar Feuchtinger (9 November 1894 – 21 January 1960) was a German General (Generalleutnant) during the Second World War. Feuchtinger was commander of the 21st Panzer Division during the Normandy Invasion. Later in 1944 he was tried and convicted of treason by the Reich court, demoted and sentenced to execution. The sentence was commuted by the intervention of Adolf Hitler. Feuchtinger did not report to his next assignment, and avoided the German military police until he could surrender to the Allies.
Later in life, while a private citizen, Feuchtinger was pressured by the KGB into finding and disclosing secret information on the West German military and transferring this information to the Soviet Union.
In 2008 his conviction by the Reich court in 1944 came up during a German national discussion on the review of war veterans convicted by the Nazi government of treason. His earlier conviction was not overturned.
Feuchtinger joined a cadet school in Karlsruhe in 1907. During the First World War, he fought as lieutenant in Russia and France. While there, he participated in the Battle of Verdun, the Battle of the Somme and the Second Battle of the Aisne.
After Germany's capitulation, Feuchtinger was selected to continue on as an officer in the much reduced Reichswehr where he served in a variety of staff roles. He transition to field command in 1937, and in August 1939, he was appointed to commander of an artillery regiment of the 227th Infantry Division. Feuchtinger commanded this unit in the western campaign, fighting in Belgium and France. In 1941, the unit was transferred to the Eastern Front, where his division participated in Operation Barbarossa as part of Army Group North.
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