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Siegfried Westphal

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Siegfried Westphal
Westphal (background) in a propaganda photo with Erwin Rommel, North Africa 1941
Born18 March 1902
Leipzig, German Empire
Died2 July 1982(1982-07-02) (aged 80)
Celle, West Germany
Allegiance Weimar Republic
 Nazi Germany
Service / branchHeer
RankGeneral of the Cavalry
Battles / warsWorld War II
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Siegfried Carl Theodor Westphal (18 March 1902 – 2 July 1982) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II.

Upon the outbreak of the war, Westphal, then a major, served as the operations officer 58th Infantry Division.[1]

In 1941, he was promoted to Oberstleutnant and attached to the staff of Erwin Rommel in June of that year.[1] He served as operations officer under Rommel and chief of staff under Kesselring and Rundstedt. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany.

Westphal surrendered to the American troops in May 1945 and acted as a witness at the Nuremberg Trials. He was released in 1947. He wrote a book titled The German Army in the West, which was published in 1952. He appears in a number of interview segments of The World at War.

Awards and decorations

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References

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  1. ^ a b Tucker, Spencer C. (2022). "Westphal, Siegfried (1902–1982)". In Zabecki, David T. (ed.). Germany at War: 400 Years of Military History. Vol. 4. ABC Clio. p. 1456. ISBN 9781598849806.
  2. ^ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 360.

Bibliography

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  • 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.
Military offices
Preceded by Chief of the General Staff of Heeresgruppe C
26 November 1943 – 9 September 1944
Succeeded by
General der Panzertruppe Hans Röttiger
Preceded by
General der Infanterie Günther Blumentritt
Chief of the General Staff of Oberbefehlshaber West
10 September 1944 – 22 April 1945
Succeeded by
None