Burgdorf, Wilhelm

Date of birth:: February 15th, 1895 (Fürstenwalde/Brandenburg, Germany)
Date of death:: May 2nd, 1945 (Berlin/Brandenburg, Germany)
Nationality:: German

Biography

Wilhelm Burgdorf comitted suicide at the Reichskanzlerei bunker in Berlin on May 2nd, 1945, durin gthe Battle for Berlin. At that moment he served as Chefadjutant der Wehrmacht, Führer und Chef des Heerespersonalamtes der OKH and Kommandeur Grenadier-Regiment 524 with the rank of General der Infanterie.

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Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes

Period:: Second World War (1939-1945)
Rank:: Oberst (Colonel)
Unit:: Kommandeur Infanterie-Regiment 529 / 299. Infanterie-Division
Awarded on:: September 29th, 1941

The following excerpt from Burgdorf’s Knight’s Cross recommendation describes why he received the award…

“The capture of the important Hill 234 on the 09.07.1941 is first and foremost thanks to Oberst Burgdorf. This hill constituted the lynchpin of the Soviet position on the eastern side of the Slucz river, and it thus provided a decisive foothold for the Division on the eastern bank of the Slucz. It was only after the capture of this important hill that the Division found it possible to construct a bridge, and this in turn laid the groundwork for the future breakthrough of the Stalin Line. If Oberst Burgdorf had instead waited for an order to cross the Slucz river then the enemy would have had plenty of time to bring up new forces to Hill 234. This would have made the hill into such a strong position that it would have only been possible to capture it via a deliberate assault and heavy casualties.”