- Period:
- Second World War (1939-1945)
- Rank:
- Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant-colonel)
- Unit:
- Kommandeur I. / Infanterie-Regiment 90 / 20.Infanterie-Division / XXXI.Armee-Korps
- Awarded on:
- August 5th, 1940
The following wartime excerpt (dated 30.08.1940) describes why Traut received the Knight’s Cross…
“On the 16.06.1940 Oberstleutnant Traut thrusted against Vesoul from the direction of Langres in order to swiftly capture this vital railroad junction and thereby block the enemy’s retreat route towards the south. Despite becoming increasingly threatened from the north in the process, Oberstleutnant Traut pushed forward towards Pont-sur-Saône with his reinforced Bataillon. After a hard fight he and his men secured the river crossing there and immediately thereafter continued the attack towards Vesoul.
The mountain positioned just before Vesoul had to be taken, and so Oberstleutnant Traut continued to prosecute his attack in the late evening hours. However the assault stalled about halfway up the slope under the fire of numerous machine-guns. Oberstleutnant Traut thus personally rallied his troops for a renewed attack, which succeeded in eliminating the enemy resistance nests one by one. The commanding mountain finally ended up in friendly hands at almost the same time as the break of dawn, and with this the fate of Vesoul was sealed.”
153rd Award.