Erich von Manstein
Erich von Manstein
24 November 1887(1887-11-24) – 9 June 1973
(aged 85)
Generalfeldmarschall Erich von Manstein
Place of
birth
Berlin, Germany
Place of
death
Irschenhausen, Germany
Allegiance
German Empire (to 1918)
Weimar Republic (to 1933)
Nazi Germany
Federal Republic of Germany
Years of
service
1906–1954
Rank
Generalfeldmarschall
Commands
held
18th Infantry Division
38th Corps
56th Panzer Corps
11th Army
Army Group Don
Army Group South
Battles/
wars
World War I
World War II
• Invasion of Poland
• Battle of France
• Operation Barbarossa
• Battle of Sevastopol
• Siege of Leningrad
• Battle of Stalingrad
• Third Battle of Kharkov
• Battle of Kursk
• Dnieper Campaign
Awards
Knight’s Cross with Oak Leaves and
Swords
Relations
Eduard von Lewinski
Other work Served as senior defence advisor to
the West German Chancellor
Konrad Adenauer
Erich
von Manstein
(November
24,
1887–June 9, 1973) served the German milit-
ary as a lifelong professional soldier. He be-
came one of the most prominent commanders
of Germany’s World War II armed forces
(Wehrmacht). During World War II he at-
tained
the
rank
of
Field Marshal
(Generalfeldmarschall) and was held in high
esteem by his fellow officers as one of the
Wehrmacht’s best military minds.
He was the initiator and one of the plan-
ners of the Ardennes-offensive alternative in
the invasion of France in 1940. He received
acclaim from the German leadership for the
victorious battles of Perekop Isthmus, Kerch,
Sevastopol and Kharkov. He commanded the
failed relief effort at Stalingrad and the Cher-
kassy pocket evacuation. He was dismissed
from service by Adolf Hitler in March 1944,
due to his frequent clashes with Hitler over
military strategy.
In 1949 he was tried in Hamburg for war
crimes and was convicted of "Neglecting to
protect civilian lives" and using scorched
earth tactics which denied vital food supplies
to the local population. He was sentenced to
18 years in prison, later reduced to 12 but he
only served 4 years before being released.
After release fr