Maximilian von Weichs
| Maximilian Reichsfreiherr von Weichs | |
|---|---|
Weichs in June of 1940
|
|
| Born | 12 November 1881 |
| Died | 27 September 1954 (aged 72) Bonn, West Germany |
| Allegiance |
 German Empire Weimar Republic Nazi Germany
|
| Service/branch | Army (Wehrmacht) |
| Rank | Field Marshal |
| Commands held |
1st Panzer Division XIII Corps 2nd Army Army Group B Army Group F |
| Battles/wars |
|
| Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves |
Maximilian von Weichs (12 November 1881 – 27 September 1954) was a field marshal in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II. He commanded several armies and army groups, including the 2nd Army during Operation Barbarossa and Army Group B during the Battle of Stalingrad in 1943.
In 1944, Weichs commanded Army Group F in the Balkans overseeing the German retreat from Greece and most of Yugoslavia. During the Nuremberg Trials, Weichs was implicated in war crimes and was scheduled to take part in the Hostages Trial. He was removed from the proceeding for medical reasons without having been judged or sentenced.
Born in 1881 into an aristocratic family, Maximilian von Weichs entered the Bavarian Cavalry in 1900 and fought in World War I as a staff officer. After the war he remained in the newly created Reichswehr where he worked at a number of General Staff positions.
Transferred from the 3rd Cavalry Division to command Germany's 1st Panzer Division upon its formation in October 1935, he led the unit in maneuvers that impressed Army Commander in Chief Werner von Fritsch. Weichs' aristocratic and cavalry credentials demonstrated the continuing influence of these military elites in Germany's modernizing force. In October 1937 he became the commander of the 13th Army Corps, that later served in the 1938 German annexation of the Sudetenland.
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Wikipedia