Walter Gericke

Walter Gericke (23 December 1907 – 19 October 1991), was a German paratroop officer in the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany during World War II and a general in the Bundeswehr of West Germany. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves.

Walter Gericke
Walter Gericke
Born(1907-12-23)23 December 1907
Died19 October 1991(1991-10-19) (aged 83)
Allegiance Weimar Republic
 Nazi Germany
 West Germany
Service/branchLuftwaffe (Wehrmacht)
German Army (Bundeswehr)
Years of service1929–45, 1956–65
RankOberst (Wehrmacht)
Generalmajor (Bundeswehr)
Commands held11th Parachute Division
1. Luftlandedivision
Battles/warsWorld War II
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Gericke took part in the Battle of the Netherlands and the Battle of Crete as a Fallschirmjäger battalion commander. He later commanded the Fallschirjäger-Regiment 11 (part of the 4. Fallschirmjäger-Division)) and fought in the Battle of Anzio.

In July 1941 Walter Gericke and his men destroyed the village of Kandanos in Western Crete and killed 180 of its inhabitants.

Gericke joined the newly formed Bundeswehr after the rearmament of West Germany and as a Generalmajor led the 1. Luftlande-Division from 1962 to 1965.

Awards

References

Citations
  1. Thomas 1997, p. 195.
  2. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 135.
  3. Scherzer 2007, p. 332.

Bibliography
  • 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
—		 Commander of the 11th Parachute Division (Wehrmacht)
March 1945 – April 1945		 Succeeded by
—
Preceded by
—		 Commander of the 21. Fallschirmjäger-Division (Wehrmacht)
5 April 1945 – 8 May 1945		 Succeeded by
—
Preceded by
Generalmajor Hans Kroh		 Commander of the 1. Luftlande-Division (Bundeswehr)
1 October 1962 – 31 March 1965		 Succeeded by
Generalmajor Hubert Sonneck


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