Oberkommando des Heeres

Army High Command
Army High Command
Oberkommando des Heeres
	Command flag from 1938 to 1942
Founded	1935
Disbanded	23 May 1945
Country	Nazi Germany
Branch	German Army
Type	High Command
Part of	Armed Forces High Command (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht)
Headquarters	Maybach I,Wünsdorf
Nickname(s)	OKH
Commanders
Commander-in-Chief of the Army	See list
Chief of the General Staff	See list
Insignia
Command flag 1936–38
Command flag 1938–42

TheOberkommando des Heeres(lit. 'Upper Command of the Army';abbreviatedOKH) was thehigh commandof theArmyofNazi Germany.It was founded in 1935 as part ofAdolf Hitler'srearmament of Germany.OKH wasde factothe most important unit within the German war planning until thedefeat at Moscowin December 1941.

DuringWorld War II,OKH had the responsibility of strategic planning ofArmiesandArmy Groups.The General Staff of the OKH managed operational matters. Each German Army also had an Army High Command (Armeeoberkommandoor AOK). The Armed Forces High Command (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht) then took over this function for theatres other than theEastern front.

The OKH commander held the title of Commander-in-chief of the Army (Oberbefehlshaber des Heeres). After theBattle of Moscow,the OKH commanderField marshal Walther von Brauchitschwas removed from office, and Hitler appointed himself as Commander-in-Chief of the Army.

From 1938, OKH was, together withOberkommando der Luftwaffe(transl. Air Force High Command) andOberkommando der Marine(transl. Naval High Command) formally subordinated to theOberkommando der Wehrmacht.

OKH vs OKW[edit]

OKH had been independent until February 1938, when Hitler created theOberkommando der Wehrmachtwhich, on paper, subordinated OKH to OKW. After a major crisis developed in theBattle of Moscow,von Brauchitsch was dismissed (partly because of his failing health), and Hitler appointed himself as head of the OKH. At the same time, he limited the OKH's authority to the Russian front, giving OKW direct authority over army units elsewhere. This enabled Hitler to declare that only he had complete awareness of Germany's strategic situation, should any general request a transfer of resources between the Russian front and another theatre of operations.^[1]

Although both OKW and OKH were headquartered in theMaybach complexin Nazi Germany, the functional and operational independence of both establishments were not lost on the respective staff during their tenure. Personnel at the compound remarked that even if Maybach 2 (the OKW complex) was completely destroyed, the OKH staff in Maybach 1 would scarcely notice. These camouflaged facilities, separated physically by a fence, also maintained structurally different mindsets towards their objectives.

On 28 April 1945 (two days beforehis suicide), Hitler formally subordinated OKH to OKW, giving the latter command of forces on the Eastern Front.^[2]

Organisation[edit]

In 1944, these elements were subordinate to the OKH:^[3]

C.-in-C.Reserve Armyand Chief of Equipment (Chef der Heeresausrüstung und Befehlshaber des Ersatzheeres):Friedrich Fromm
Chief ofGeneral Army Office[de](Chef des Allgemeines Heeresamt):Friedrich Olbricht
Chief of Army Ordnance Office(Chef des Heereswaffenamtes):Emil Leeb
Chief of Army Personnel Office(Chef des Heerespersonalamtes):Rudolf Schmundt
Chief of Army Administrative Office (Chef des Heeresverwaltungsamtes):Herbert Osterkamp[de]
Army Propaganda and Public Relations Office:Hasso von Wedel–Albrecht Blau–Kurt Dittmar
Inspector General of Armoured Troops (Generalinspekteur der Panzertruppen):Heinz Guderian
General officer commanding for Engineers and Fortifications (General der Pioniere und Festungen):Alfred Jacob
Inspector General for Officer Cadets (Generalinspektion des Militärerziehungs- und Bildungswesens):Karl-Wilhelm Specht

List of commanders[edit]

Commander-in-Chief of the Army[edit]

The Commander-in-Chief of the Army (German:Oberbefehlshaber des Heeres) was the head of the OKH and the German Army during the years of theNazi regime.

No.	Commander-in-Chief	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref.
1	von Fritsch, WernerGeneraloberst Werner von Fritsch (1880–1939)	1 February 1934	4 February 1938	4 years, 34 days	–
2	von Brauchitsch, WaltherGeneralfeldmarschall Walther von Brauchitsch (1881–1948)	4 February 1938	19 December 1941	3 years, 318 days	–
3	Hitler, AdolfFührer und Reichskanzler Adolf Hitler (1889–1945) ^[a]	19 December 1941	30 April 1945 †	3 years, 132 days	–
4	Schörner, FerdinandGeneralfeldmarschall Ferdinand Schörner (1892–1973) ^[b]	30 April 1945	8 May 1945	8 days	–

Chief of General Staff of the OKH[edit]

The Chiefs of the OKH General Staff (German:Chef des Generalstabes des Heeres) were:

No.	Chief of the OKH General Staff	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref.
1	Beck, LudwigGeneraloberst Ludwig Beck (1880–1944)	1 July 1935	31 August 1938	3 years, 61 days	^[4]
2	Halder, FranzGeneraloberst Franz Halder (1884–1972)	1 September 1938	24 September 1942	4 years, 23 days	^[5]^[6]
3	Zeitzler, KurtGeneraloberst Kurt Zeitzler (1895–1963)	24 September 1942	10 June 1944	1 year, 260 days	^[6]
–	Heusinger, AdolfGeneralleutnant Adolf Heusinger (1897–1982) Acting ^[c]	10 June 1944	21 July 1944	41 days	–
–	Guderian, HeinzGeneraloberst Heinz Guderian (1888–1954) Acting	21 July 1944	28 March 1945	250 days	^[7]
4	Krebs, HansGeneral der Infanterie Hans Krebs (1898–1945) ^[d]	1 April 1945	2 May 1945 †	30 days	^[8]
–	Keitel, WilhelmGeneralfeldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel (1882–1946) Acting	2 May 1945	8 May 1945	7 days	–
–	Jodl, AlfredGeneraloberst Alfred Jodl (1890–1946) Acting	13 May 1945	23 May 1945	10 days	–

Notes[edit]

^Hitler assumed personal command of the OKH following Brauchitsch's dismissal in order to superviseOperation Barbarossa,the German-led invasion of the Soviet Union.
^One of Hitler's favorite military commanders who was named in Hitler's last will and testament as the new commander of the OKH. Meanwhile, the OKH was subordinated to the OKW of theWehrmacht,under Field MarshalWilhelm Keitel.
^Later served as theInspector General of the Bundeswehr(1957–1961) andChairman of the NATO Military Committee(1961–1964)
^Committed suicide

References[edit]

^Barnett, Correlli (1989).Hitler's Generals.Grove. pp.497.ISBN 978-1555841614.
^Grier, Howard D.Hitler, Dönitz, and the Baltic Sea,Naval Institute Press, 2007,ISBN 1-59114-345-4.p. 121
^CIA (1944).Who's Who In Nazi Germany(PDF).CIA. pp. 31–32. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on January 23, 2017.Retrieved30 October2019.
^Murray, Williamson (1984).The Change in the European Balance of Power, 1938–1939 The Path to Ruin.Princeton: Princeton University Press. p. 184.ISBN 978-0-691-05413-1.
^Müller, Rolf-Dieter(2015).Enemy in the East: Hitler's Secret Plans to Invade the Soviet Union.London:I.B. Tauris.p. 96.ISBN 978-1-78076-829-8.
^^a ^bAdam, Wilhelm; Ruhle, Otto (2015).With Paulus at Stalingrad.Translated by Tony Le Tissier. Pen and Sword Books Ltd. p. 78.ISBN 9781473833869.
^Hart, Russell A. (2006).Guderian: Panzer Pioneer or Myth Maker?.Washington, D.C.: Potomac Books. p. 103.ISBN 978-1-59797-453-0.
^Joachimsthaler, Anton(1999) [1995].The Last Days of Hitler: The Legends – The Evidence – The Truth.Brockhampton Press. p. 288.ISBN 978-1-86019-902-8.

External links[edit]

"Not the Stuff of Legend: The German High Command in World War II"– lecture by Dr.Geoffrey Megargee,author ofInside Hitler's High Command,available at the official YouTube channel of theU.S. Army Heritage and Education Center

[4] Hitler assumed personal command of the OKH following Brauchitsch's dismissal in order to superviseOperation Barbarossa,the German-led invasion of the Soviet Union.

[5] One of Hitler's favorite military commanders who was named in Hitler's last will and testament as the new commander of the OKH. Meanwhile, the OKH was subordinated to the OKW of theWehrmacht,under Field MarshalWilhelm Keitel.

[9] Later served as theInspector General of the Bundeswehr(1957–1961) andChairman of the NATO Military Committee(1961–1964)

[11] Committed suicide

[1] Barnett, Correlli (1989).Hitler's Generals.Grove. pp.497.ISBN 978-1555841614.

[2] Grier, Howard D.Hitler, Dönitz, and the Baltic Sea,Naval Institute Press, 2007,ISBN 1-59114-345-4.p. 121

[3] CIA (1944).Who's Who In Nazi Germany(PDF).CIA. pp. 31–32. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on January 23, 2017.Retrieved30 October2019.

[6] Murray, Williamson (1984).The Change in the European Balance of Power, 1938–1939 The Path to Ruin.Princeton: Princeton University Press. p. 184.ISBN 978-0-691-05413-1.

[7] Müller, Rolf-Dieter(2015).Enemy in the East: Hitler's Secret Plans to Invade the Soviet Union.London:I.B. Tauris.p. 96.ISBN 978-1-78076-829-8.

[Adam-8] Adam, Wilhelm; Ruhle, Otto (2015).With Paulus at Stalingrad.Translated by Tony Le Tissier. Pen and Sword Books Ltd. p. 78.ISBN 9781473833869.

[10] Hart, Russell A. (2006).Guderian: Panzer Pioneer or Myth Maker?.Washington, D.C.: Potomac Books. p. 103.ISBN 978-1-59797-453-0.

[12] Joachimsthaler, Anton(1999) [1995].The Last Days of Hitler: The Legends – The Evidence – The Truth.Brockhampton Press. p. 288.ISBN 978-1-86019-902-8.

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v t e Chiefs of theGerman General Staffof theWehrmacht
Chiefs of general staff of the Army	Ludwig Beck Franz Halder Kurt Zeitzler Adolf Heusinger* Heinz Guderian* Hans Krebs* Alfred Jodl*
Chiefs of the general staff of theLuftwaffe	Walther Wever Albert Kesselring Hans-Jürgen Stumpff Hans Jeschonnek Günther Korten Werner Kreipe* Karl Koller
Chiefs of the general staff of theKriegsmarine	Otto Schniewind Kurt Fricke Wilhelm Meisel
*Acting

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