Karl Eglseer (5 July 1890 – 23 June 1944) was a general in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded the XVIII Corps. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Eglseer was killed in an air crash in Austria on 23 June 1944.
Karl Eglseer | |
|---|---|
| Born | 5 July 1890 Bad Ischl, Upper Austria, Austria-Hungary |
| Died | 23 June 1944 (aged 53) near Rettenegg, Nazi Germany now Austria |
| Allegiance |  Austria-Hungary  First Austrian Republic Nazi Germany |
| Service | Army |
| Years of service | 1908–38 1938–44 |
| Rank | Oberst (Austria) General (Germany) |
| Commands | 4th Mountain Division 114th Jäger Division XVIII Corps |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Life and career
editKarl Eglseer was born in Bad Ischl in Upper Austria on 5 July 1890. He entered the Austro-Hungarian Army in August 1908 as an ensign, serving in World War I. Remaining in the Austrian Bundesheer after 1918, he transferred to the Wehrmacht after the Anschluss with Germany in 1938.[1]
In October 1940 he was promoted to command the 4th Mountain Division, serving in Army Group South on the Eastern Front.[1] In October 1941 he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his leadership of the division.[2] Eglseer then led the 714th Infantry Division[a] in Yugoslavia from February 1943 to December 1943, when he became commander of the XVIII Army Corps on the Northern sector of the Eastern Front.[1]
On 23 June 1944 the aircraft carrying Eglseer, as well as Generals Dietl, von Wickede and Franz Rossi, crashed in the Styria region of Austria. There were no survivors.[3] At the time of his death Eglseer held the rank of General of Mountain Troops.[1]
Awards
edit- Austro-Hungarian Empire
- Karl Troop Cross
- Military Merit Cross, 3rd class with war decoration and swords
- Nazi Germany
- Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st Class
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 23 October 1941 as Generalmajor and commander of 4. Gebirgs-Division[2]
References
editCitations
edit- ^ a b c d Lucas 1980, p. 212.
- ^ a b Fellgiebel 2000, p. 143.
- ^ Heinemann, Smelser & Syring 1997, p. 107.
- ^ Renamed the 114th Jäger Division in April 1943.
Bibliography
edit- Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
- Heinemann, Winfried; Smelser, Ronald; Syring, Enrico (1997). Die Militärelite Des Dritten Reiches: 27 Biographische Skizzen [The military elite of the Third Reich. 27 biographical sketches] (in German). Berlin: Ullstein. ISBN 978-3548332208.
- Lucas, James (1980). Alpine Elite: German Mountain Troops of World War II. Jane's Publishing. ISBN 0531037134.
