Berthold Maria Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg
Encyclopedia
Berthold Maria Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (born 3 July 1934 in Bamberg
Bamberg
Bamberg is a city in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in Upper Franconia on the river Regnitz, close to its confluence with the river Main. Bamberg is one of the few cities in Germany that was not destroyed by World War II bombings because of a nearby Artillery Factory that prevented planes from...

) is a retired German Bundeswehr
Bundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...

 general.

He is the oldest of five children of Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg
Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg
Claus Philipp Maria Justinian Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg commonly referred to as Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg was a German army officer and Catholic aristocrat who was one of the leading members of the failed 20 July plot of 1944 to assassinate Adolf Hitler and remove the Nazi Party from...

 and nephew of Berthold Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg
Berthold Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg
Berthold Alfred Maria Graf Schenk von Stauffenberg was a German aristocrat, lawyer and conspirator in the 20 July plot of 1944, along with his brother, Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg, an army colonel...

, two German aristocrats who were active in the 20 July plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...

.

After the failed assassination and the subsequent executions, Claus's pregnant wife Nina Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenberg
Nina Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenberg
"Nina" Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenberg was the wife of Colonel Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg, the leader of the failed plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler on 20 July 1944, after which she was arrested and imprisoned, where she delivered her youngest child.-Early years:She was born Magdalena...

 was interned in a concentration camp and separated from her four children, who were taken to a foster home in Bad Sachsa
Bad Sachsa
Bad Sachsa is a town in the district of Osterode, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated in the southern Harz, approx. 15 km south of Braunlage, and 25 km southeast of Osterode am Harz. It is well known for being the town where Berthold Maria Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg and his four...

. Until the end of the war they were forced to use a different family name, as von Stauffenberg was not accepted as their name. Berthold Maria von Stauffenberg was the oldest of the children and had just turned ten at the time of the failed assassination plot.

Berthold graduated from Schule Schloss Salem
Schule Schloss Salem
Schule Schloss Salem is a boarding school with campuses in Hohenfels, Salem and Überlingen in Baden-Württemberg, Southern Germany. It is considered one of the most elite schools in Europe.It offers the German Abitur, as well as the International Baccalaureate...

 and studied engineering before becoming an officer in West Germany's new army as soon as it was established in 1956. From 1972 to 1974, he was commander of Tank Battalion 11 at Munster, Lower Saxony
Munster, Lower Saxony
Munster, also called Munster , is a small town in the district of Heidekreis, in Lower Saxony, Germany almost equidistant from Hamburg and Hanover. The town is home to the German Army's largest garrison and is situated between the two training areas of Munster North and Munster South. It is also...

, Germany's largest military base. His career culminated as Supreme Commander of Territorial Command South, and he retired in 1994 with the rank of Generalmajor, as Germany's oldest soldier after 38 years of service.

In Thurn
Thurn
Thurn is a municipality in the district of Lienz in Tyrol in Austria....

 on 22 September 1958, he had married Mechthild Kunigunde Gräfin Bentzel von Sternau und Hohenau von Sturmfelder-Horneck (born 27 January 1938 in Bamberg), and moved to her family's hometown of Oppenweiler
Oppenweiler
Oppenweiler is a town in the district of Rems-Murr in Baden-Württemberg in Germany....

 in Southern Germany. They have three sons:
  • Claus Philipp Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (b. 1 June 1959), married to Iran
    Iran
    Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

    ian Maryam Zahedi
    Zahedi
    Zahedi or Zahidi may refer to:*Fazlollah Zahedi , Iranian general and prime minister*Ardeshir Zahedi, Iranian foreign minister and ambassador*Caveh Zahedi, American film director*Mahbub Jamal Zahedi, Khaleej Times and Dawn News editor...

     (b. Iran
    Iran
    Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

    , 31 January 1962), and has one daughter:
    • Valerie Roxana Monika Mechtild Maria Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenberg (b. Erlangen
      Erlangen
      Erlangen is a Middle Franconian city in Bavaria, Germany. It is located at the confluence of the river Regnitz and its large tributary, the Untere Schwabach.Erlangen has more than 100,000 inhabitants....

      , 17 February 1992)
  • Sebastian Heimrich Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (b. 2 December 1961), unmarried and without issue
  • Gottfried Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (b. 8 October 1964), unmarried and without issue


In July 2004, for his 70th birthday and 60th anniversary of the plot, he was interviewed by several newspapers, and was also invited to a ceremony at the former Wolfschanze.

In 2006, he participated with Richard von Weizsäcker
Richard von Weizsäcker
Richard Karl Freiherr von Weizsäcker , known as Richard von Weizsäcker, is a German politician . He served as Governing Mayor of West Berlin from 1981 to 1984, and as President of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1984 to 1994...

 and others in the opening ceremony of the von Stauffenberg Memorial in Stuttgart.

In 2007, von Stauffenberg voiced concerns over the film Valkyrie
Valkyrie (film)
Valkyrie is a 2008 American historical thriller film set in Nazi Germany during World War II. The film depicts the 20 July plot in 1944 by German army officers to assassinate Adolf Hitler and to use the Operation Valkyrie national emergency plan to take control of the country...

, because the actor portraying his father, Tom Cruise
Tom Cruise
Thomas Cruise Mapother IV , better known as Tom Cruise, is an American film actor and producer. He has been nominated for three Academy Awards and he has won three Golden Globe Awards....

, is a member of the Church of Scientology
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...

.

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