Mortimer von Kessel | |
---|---|
Born |
Arnswalde, German Empire |
25 May 1893
Died | 8 January 1981 Goslar, West Germany |
(aged 87)
Allegiance |
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Service/branch | Army |
Years of service | 1914–45 |
Rank | General der Panzertruppe |
Commands held |
20th Panzer Division Head of the Army Personnel Department VII Panzer Corps |
Battles/wars |
World War II |
Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves |
Mortimer von Kessel (25 May 1893 – 8 January 1981) was a German General in the Wehrmacht during the Second World War.
Kessel joined the Imperial German Army in March 1915 and was then retained in the Reichswehr following World War I. He led a reconnaissance regiment during the Invasion of Poland in 1939. Promoted to Oberst in October that year, he was appointed as the head of the Army Personnel Department and remained in this post until January 1943. In May 1943 he was appointed as the commander of the 20th Panzer Division.
On 1 December 1943, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his actions in the Vitebsk region on the Eastern Front. Then for his actions during the Soviet 1944 summer offensive, Operation Bagration, he was awarded the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross. In December 1944, he was appointed commander of the VII Panzer Corps in East Prussia with which he surrendered at the end of the war.