Oskar Dirlewanger
| Oskar Dirlewanger | |
|---|---|
Dirlewanger in 1944
|
|
| Birth name | Oskar Dirlewanger |
| Born | 26 September 1895 Würzburg, German Empire |
| Died | 7 June 1945 (aged 49) Altshausen, Allied-occupied Germany |
| Allegiance |
 Nazi Germany
|
| Service/branch |
Condor Legion Waffen-SS
|
| Rank | SS-Oberführer |
| Commands held | Dirlewanger Brigade |
| Battles/wars |
|
| Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Oskar Dirlewanger (26 September 1895 – 7 June 1945) was a German military officer who served as the founder and commander of the infamous Nazi SS penal unit "Dirlewanger" during World War II. His name is closely linked to some of the worst crimes of the war. He also fought in World War I, the post-World War I conflicts, and the Spanish Civil War. He died after World War II while in Allied custody, apparently beaten to death by his guards.
Dirlewanger is invariably described as an extremely cruel person by historians and researchers, including as "a psychopathic killer and child molester" by Steven Zaloga, "violently sadistic" by Richard Rhodes, "an expert in extermination and a devotee of sadism and necrophilia" by J. Bowyer Bell, and "a sadist and necrophiliac" by Bryan Mark Rigg. World War II historian Chris Bishop called him the "most evil man in the SS". According to Timothy Snyder, "in all the theaters of the Second World War, few could compete in cruelty" with Dirlewanger.
Dirlewanger was born in Würzburg. He enlisted in the Prussian Army in 1913 and served as a machine gunner in the 123rd Grenadier Regiment on the Western Front of World War I, where he took part in the German invasion of Belgium and later fought in France. He won the Iron Cross 2nd Class and 1st Class medals, having been wounded six times, and finished the war with the rank of Lieutenant in charge of the machine gun company of the Infantry Regiment 121 on the Eastern Front in southern Russia and Romania. At the cessation of hostilities the German units in Dirlewanger's area were ordered to be interned in Romania, but Dirlewanger disobeyed orders and led 600 men from his and other units back to Germany.
...
Wikipedia