Friedrich Kirchner

Friedrich Kirchner (26 March 1885 – 6 April 1960) was a German general during World War II who commanded 1st Panzer Division and the LVII Panzer Corps. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords.

Friedrich Kirchner
Born	(1885-03-26)26 March 1885 Zöbigker, Leipzig, Kingdom of Saxony, German Empire
Died	6 April 1960(1960-04-06) (aged 75) Fulda, Hesse, West Germany
Allegiance	German Empire  Weimar Republic  Nazi Germany
Service / branch	German Army
Years of service	1899–1945
Rank	General der Panzertruppe
Commands	1st Panzer Division LVII Panzer Corps
Battles / wars	World War I World War II Invasion of Poland Battle of France
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords

Career

Friedrich Kirchner joined the Royal Saxon Army in 1899 and became an officer in 1907. During World War I he served with the 23d Division.^{[citation needed]} After World War I he was retained in the Reichsheer. Kirchner was promoted to major in 1928 and from 1929 he served in the staff of a cavalry division. Since 1 October 1933, he commanded a battalion in the 11th Cavalry Regiment in Neustadt (now Prudnik, Poland).^[1] Kirchner was promoted to Oberst in 1934 and appointed to command an infantry regiment in the 1st Panzer Division on 15 October 1935 and commanding officer of an infantry brigade on 10 November 1938. He was promoted to Generalmajor in March 1938.^[1]

He participated in the invasion of Poland as a brigade commander; he was appointed command of the 1st Panzer Division in November 1939.^[1] On 1 April 1940 he was promoted to Generalleutnant.^[1] Kirchner led the division in the Battle of France and was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross on 20 May 1940.^[2] He then took command of the LVII Armeekorps on 15 November 1941 and remained in command of the unit (re-designated LVII Panzer Corps) until the end of World War II.

He was taken prisoner by US forces in May 1945 and released in 1947.

Awards

• Iron Cross (1914) 2nd Class (1 October 1914) & 1st Class (26 September 1917)^[3]
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (22 September 1939) &1st Class (4 October 1939)^[3]
• German Cross in Gold on 22 April 1942 as Generalleutnant and commander of the 1. Panzer-Division^[4]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords
  • Knight's Cross on 20 May 1940 as Generalleutnant and commander of the 1. Panzer-Division^[5]
  • Oak Leaves on 12 February 1944 as General der Panzertruppe and commanding general of the LVII. Panzer-Korps^[5]
  • Swords on 26 January 1945 as General der Panzertruppe and commanding general of the LVII. Panzer-Korps^[5]

References

Citations

1. Mitcham 2009, p. 133.
2. To Lose a Battle: France 1940, Alistair Horne
3. Thomas 1997, p. 364.
4. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 229.
5. Scherzer 2007, p. 442.

Bibliography

• Horne, Alistair (1982) [1969]. To Lose a Battle: France 1940 (Penguin repr. ed.). London: Macmillan. ISBN 0-14-00-5042-6.
• Mitcham, Samuel W. (2009). Men of Barbarossa: Commanders of the German Invasion of Russia, 1941. Philadelphia: Casemate Publishers. ISBN 978-1-935149-66-8.
• Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II [The German Cross 1941 – 1945 History and Recipients Volume 2] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
• Thomas, Franz (1997). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 1: A–K [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 1: A–K] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2299-6.

Military offices
Preceded by Generalleutnant Rudolf Schmidt	Commander of 1. Panzer-Division 2 November 1939 – 17 July 1941	Succeeded by Generalmajor Walter Krüger
Preceded by LVII. Armeekorps	Commander of LVII Panzer Corps 21 June 1942 – 30 November 1943	Succeeded by General der Panzertruppe Hans-Karl Freiherr von Esebeck
Preceded by General der Panzertruppe Hans-Karl Freiherr von Esebeck	Commander of LVII Panzer Corps 19 February 1944 – 25 May 1944	Succeeded by General der Infanterie Dr. Franz Beyer
Preceded by General der Infanterie Dr. Franz Beyer	Commander of LVII Panzer Corps 2 June 1944 – 8 May 1945	Succeeded by none