Nikolaus von Falkenhorst
| Nikolaus von Falkenhorst | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Birth name | Nikolaus von Jastrzembski |
| Born | 17 January 1885 |
| Died | 18 June 1968 (aged 83) |
| Allegiance |
 Nazi Germany
|
| Service/branch | Army |
| Rank | Generaloberst |
| Commands held | Army Norway (Wehrmacht) |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
| Relations | Erich Dethleffsen (son-in-law) |
Nikolaus von Falkenhorst (17 January 1885 – 18 June 1968) was a German general and a war criminal during World War II. He planned and commanded the German invasion of Denmark and Norway in 1940, and was commander of German troops during the occupation of Norway from 1940 to 1944.
After the war, Falkenhorst was tried by a joint British-Norwegian military tribunal for war crimes. He was convicted and sentenced to death in 1946. The sentence was later commuted to twenty years' imprisonment. Falkenhorst was released in 1953 and died in 1968.
Falkenhorst was born in Breslau (now Wrocław, Poland) into a noble family with military roots, the Jastrzembski of Bad Königsdorff-Jastrzemb in Upper Silesia. In 1911 he changed this Polish-derived family name to the Germanized Falkenhorst (meaning "falcon's nest"). He joined the army in 1903 and served in World War I in regimental and staff roles, including a stint in Finland. In 1919, after the end of the war, he joined the paramilitary group Freikorps, and later the Reichswehr. On 1 July 1935, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the 3rd Army. In 1939 he commanded the XXI Army Corp during the Invasion of Poland.
On 20 February 1940, Hitler informed Falkenhorst that he would be ground commander for the invasion of Norway (Operation Weserübung), and gave him until 5 p.m. the same day to come up with a basic plan. With no time to consult military charts or maps, Falkenhorst picked up a Baedeker tourist guidebook of Norway at a stationery store on his way to his hotel room, where he planned the operation from maps he found in it. Hitler approved his plan.
The invasion was a success, aside from heavy losses inflicted upon the Kriegsmarine (navy). Allied forces tried to counter the German move, but Falkenhorst's troops drove them out of the country. For his part in the success he was promoted to Generaloberst (Colonel General).
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