Franz Bäke
| Franz Bäke | |
|---|---|
Franz Bäke, February 1944
|
|
| Born |
28 February 1898 Province of Hesse-Nassau, German Empire |
| Died | 12 December 1978 (aged 80) Bochum, West Germany |
| Buried at | Hagen |
| Allegiance |
 German Empire Weimar Republic Nazi Germany
|
| Service/branch | Army |
| Years of service | 1915–20, 1937–45 |
| Rank | Generalmajor |
| Unit | 6th Panzer Division |
| Commands held | Panzerdivision Feldherrenhalle 2 |
| Battles/wars |
|
| Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords |
| Other work | Dentist |
Franz Bäke (28 February 1898 – 12 December 1978) was an officer and tank commander in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords, one of only 160 German military men to be so decorated.
In the post-war popular culture, Bäke is one of the "panzer aces", that is, a highly decorated German tank commanders popularised in the English-language translations of the German author Franz Kurowski's Panzer Aces series.
Born in 1898, Bäke volunteered for the German Army in May 1915 and was posted to an infantry regiment. Fighting on the Western Front, Bäke earned the Iron Cross 2nd Class in 1916. Bäke was discharged from military service in January 1919. From 1919 to 1921, Bäke served in the Freikorps Epp, a right-wing paramilitary unit named after Franz Ritter von Epp. In parallel, he studied medicine and dentistry and attained degree of Doctor of Medical Dentistry in 1923.
On 1 March 1933, Bäke joined the SA; his final rank within the SA was SA-Standartenführer as of August 1944. Bäke established his own dentistry practice in Hagen. In 1937 he was accepted into the reserves and was posted to a reconnaissance unit. In 1938, he was mobilized for full-time service as an officer and took part in the occupation of Czechoslovakia.
Bäke's unit took part in the Invasion of Poland as part of the 1st Light Division, which was redesignated 6th Panzer Division in October 1939. With this unit, Bäke took part in the Battle of France and Operation Barbarossa. Following the encirclement of the German 6th Army at Stalingrad, the division took part in the abortive attempt to relieve the 6th Army in Operation Winter Storm in December 1942 and then retreated to Kharkov. In January 1943, Bäke was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. During the Battle of Kursk (Operation Citadel) in July 1943, Bäke's unit fought near Belgorod, retreating to the Dniepr afterwards. For his actions during Operation Citadel, Bäke was awarded the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross.
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