Rudolf Schmidt

For other uses, seeRudolf Schmidt (disambiguation).

Rudolf Schmidt
Rudolf Schmidt in 1942
Born	(1886-05-12)12 May 1886 Berlin,Kingdom of Prussia,German Empire
Died	7 April 1957(1957-04-07)(aged 70) Krefeld,North Rhine-Westphalia,West Germany
Allegiance	German Empire Weimar Republic Nazi Germany
Service/branch	German Army
Years of service	1906–45
Rank	Generaloberst
Commands held	1st Panzer Division XXXIX Panzer Corps 2nd Panzer Army
Battles/wars	World War II Defence against theKozelsk Offensive
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
Relations	Hans-Thilo Schmidt(brother)

Rudolf Schmidt(12 May 1886 – 7 April 1957) was a general in theWehrmachtofNazi GermanyduringWorld War IIwho commanded the2nd Panzer Armyon theEastern Front.He was a recipient of theKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves.He was the older brother ofHans-Thilo Schmidt,who sold secrets about theEnigma machineto the French.

Career

Schmidt joined thePrussian Armyin 1906 and served during World War I. He was retained in theReichswehrwhere he served in staff roles. In October 1936 he was promoted toGeneralmajorand appointed commander of the1st Panzer Division.In 1939 Schmidt led the division in theinvasion of Poland.

On 1 February 1940 he was appointed commanding general of theXXXIX Panzer Corps.He led the Corps in France and was awarded theKnight's Cross of the Iron Crossfor his role in that campaign on 3 June 1940. He was promoted toGeneral der Panzertruppeand appointed acting commander of the2nd Armywhich took part in theBattle of Moscow.On 25 December 1941 he was appointed Commander of the2nd Panzer Army(replacing the sackedGeneral Guderian).

His brotherHans-Thilo Schmidtsold details of the Germans'Enigma machineand other sensitive military information to the FrenchDeuxième Bureaufrom 1931 until the German invasion of France in 1940.In January 1942 Rudolf Schmidt was promoted toGeneraloberst,but on 10 April 1943 he was relieved of his command after theGestapoarrested his brother for spying for the French, and found letters that Schmidt had written in which he was highly critical of Hitler’s conduct of the war and theNazi Party.He appeared before acourt martialbut was acquitted and transferred to the leadership reserve on 30 September 1943. He was never re-employed.

On 16 December 1947 Schmidt was arrested by Soviet forces on his way to his home in Weimar. Taken to Moscow, he was initially imprisoned at theVladimir Central PrisonandButyrka prison.In 1952, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for war crimes by amilitary tribunal.On 30 September 1955, Schmidt was among the last prisoners to be released. He died in 1957.

Awards

• Iron Cross(1939) 2nd Class (22 September 1939) & 1st Class (2 October 1939)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 3 June 1940 asGeneralleutnantand commanding general of the XXXIX. Armeekorps (mot.)
  • 19th Oak Leaves on 10 July 1941 asGeneral der Panzertruppeand commanding general of the XXXIX. Armeekorps (mot.)

References

Bibliography

• 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.ISBN978-3-938845-17-2.
• Thomas, Franz (1998).Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 2: L–Z[The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 2: L–Z] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag.ISBN978-3-7648-2300-9.