Georg Lindemann
Encyclopedia
Georg Heinrich Lindemann (8 March 1884 – 25 September 1963) was a German
cavalry
officer
and field commander
who served in the German army during World War I
(Reichswehr
) and World War II
(Wehrmacht Heer). He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Lindemann survived the Second World War and was released after several years as a prisoner-of-war (POW).
in the Province of Saxony
. Georg was a 1st cousin of Dr. jur. Ernst Lindemann, father of Kapitän zur See Ernst Lindemann
, the only commander of the German battleship Bismarck
.
Lindemann joined the Prussian
Officer corps and served in the World War I
on both the Eastern Front and the Western Front. After the war, he joined Von Lettow's Freikorps
and, during the civil unrest of 1919, helped to crush the Communist Workers Council in Hamburg
. In 1930, Lindemann was serving as Commanding officer of the 13th Reiter Regiment.
in Hanover
. He occupied this position until 1936. In 1936, Lindemann was promoted to Generalleutnant and given command of the 36. Infanterie Division. The division was involved in guarding the Saar region during the Invasion of Poland
, and it then took part in the Invasion of France. At the end of the Western campaign, Lindemann was promoted to Cavalry General (General der Kavallerie) and given command of the German L Army Corps (L.Armeekorps
). In June 1941, at the launch of Operation Barbarossa
, Lindemann's Corps was a part of Army Group North
. Lindemann commanded the corps during the Army Group North's advance towards Leningrad
. His unit was briefly shifted to the command of Army Group Centre
during the operations to capture Smolensk
. Lindemann's corps was then shifted back to Army Group North. During the period of his military authority in the area, the Russian city of Gatchina
received the name Lindemannstadt in his honour under the German occupation.
On 16 January 1942, Lindemann took the command of the German Eighteenth Army
(18. Armee
), a part of Army Group North
. Later, in the summer of 1942, he was promoted to Colonel-General (Generaloberst).
Lindemann commanded the German Eighteenth Army throughout the campaigns around Leningrad and during the January 1944 retreat
from Oranienbaum
to Narva
. Until 4 February 1944, the Sponheimer Group which defended the Narva Line
was subordinated to the 18th Army commanded by Lindemann. He was promoted to command of Army Group North on 31 March 1944. His command of the Army Group was short-lived, and on 4 July 1944 he was relieved and transferred to the Reserve Army. Allegedly German dictator Adolf Hitler
gave as reason for this change that Lindemann had become too old and too weak.
After serving a few months in the Reserve Army, Lindemann was put in command of a new staff called "Führungsstab Ostseeküste". From 1 February 1945, he held the post as the "Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces in Denmark" (Wehrmachtsbefehlshaber Dänemark), thereby coming in command of all German troops in Denmark
. In April 1945, when the end of the war was apparent to almost all German commanders, Lindemann issued an order to his troops to preserve strict discipline. He further ordered that Denmark had to be defended to the last bullet.
On 3 May, Lindemann went to the Naval Academy at Mürwik to participate in a meeting with the OKW, the new government and the new German Head of State, Grand Admiral
(Großadmiral) Karl Dönitz
. Lindemann informed Dönitz that he would be able to hold Denmark for at least some time, and he and his colleague in Norway
, General Franz Böhme
, argued for keeping Denmark and Norway in German custody as bargaining chips in the armistice negotiations soon to come. Dönitz however, sued for immediate peace, and Germany surrendered unconditionally in northwest Germany
, Holland, and Denmark on 5 May 1945. As commander of "Army Lindemann" (Armee Lindemann), Lindemann was then tasked with the dismantling of the German occupation of Denmark until 6 June 1945, when he was arrested at his headquarters in Silkeborg
.
. He died on 25 September 1963.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
officer
Officer (armed forces)
An officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...
and field commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
who served in the German army during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
(Reichswehr
Reichswehr
The Reichswehr formed the military organisation of Germany from 1919 until 1935, when it was renamed the Wehrmacht ....
) and World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
(Wehrmacht Heer). He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was a grade of the 1939 version of the 1813 created Iron Cross . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was the highest award of Germany to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership during World War II...
. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Lindemann survived the Second World War and was released after several years as a prisoner-of-war (POW).
Early life
Georg Lindemann was born in Osterburg (Altmark)Osterburg (Altmark)
Osterburg is a town in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, situated approximately 22 km northwest of Stendal.-International relations:Osterburg is twinned with: Wieluń, Poland...
in the Province of Saxony
Province of Saxony
The Province of Saxony was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and later the Free State of Prussia from 1816 until 1945. Its capital was Magdeburg.-History:The province was created in 1816 out of the following territories:...
. Georg was a 1st cousin of Dr. jur. Ernst Lindemann, father of Kapitän zur See Ernst Lindemann
Ernst Lindemann
Otto Ernst Lindemann was a German naval captain. He was the only commander of the battleship during its eight months of service in World War II....
, the only commander of the German battleship Bismarck
German battleship Bismarck
Bismarck was the first of two s built for the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. Named after Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, the primary force behind the German unification in 1871, the ship was laid down at the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg in July 1936 and launched nearly three years later...
.
Lindemann joined the Prussian
Prussian Army
The Royal Prussian Army was the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power.The Prussian Army had its roots in the meager mercenary forces of Brandenburg during the Thirty Years' War...
Officer corps and served in the World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
on both the Eastern Front and the Western Front. After the war, he joined Von Lettow's Freikorps
Freikorps
Freikorps are German volunteer military or paramilitary units. The term was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of the 18th century onwards. Between World War I and World War II the term was also used for the paramilitary organizations that arose during...
and, during the civil unrest of 1919, helped to crush the Communist Workers Council in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
. In 1930, Lindemann was serving as Commanding officer of the 13th Reiter Regiment.
World War II
With the rise of the NSDAP, Lindemann was promoted to Commander of the KriegsschuleKriegsschule (Wehrmacht)
A Kriegschule was a General Military School used for basic officer training in Nazi Germany up until the defeat in 1945. All Wehrmacht officers in World War II had passed through a Kriegsschule during their training....
in Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
. He occupied this position until 1936. In 1936, Lindemann was promoted to Generalleutnant and given command of the 36. Infanterie Division. The division was involved in guarding the Saar region during the Invasion of Poland
Invasion of Poland (1939)
The Invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign or 1939 Defensive War in Poland and the Poland Campaign in Germany, was an invasion of Poland by Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small Slovak contingent that marked the start of World War II in Europe...
, and it then took part in the Invasion of France. At the end of the Western campaign, Lindemann was promoted to Cavalry General (General der Kavallerie) and given command of the German L Army Corps (L.Armeekorps
L Army Corps (Germany)
-Commanders:* Cavalry General Georg Lindemann, 1 October 1940 – 19 January 1942* Cavalry General Philipp Kleffel, 19 January 1942 – 3 March 1942...
). In June 1941, at the launch of Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
, Lindemann's Corps was a part of Army Group North
Army Group North
Army Group North was a German strategic echelon formation commanding a grouping of Field Armies subordinated to the OKH during World War II. The army group coordinated the operations of attached separate army corps, reserve formations, rear services and logistics.- Formation :The Army Group North...
. Lindemann commanded the corps during the Army Group North's advance towards Leningrad
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
. His unit was briefly shifted to the command of Army Group Centre
Army Group Centre
Army Group Centre was the name of two distinct German strategic army groups that fought on the Eastern Front in World War II. The first Army Group Centre was created on 22 June 1941, as one of three German Army formations assigned to the invasion of the Soviet Union...
during the operations to capture Smolensk
Smolensk
Smolensk is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River. Situated west-southwest of Moscow, this walled city was destroyed several times throughout its long history since it was on the invasion routes of both Napoleon and Hitler. Today, Smolensk...
. Lindemann's corps was then shifted back to Army Group North. During the period of his military authority in the area, the Russian city of Gatchina
Gatchina
Gatchina is a town and the administrative center of Gatchinsky District of Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located south of St. Petersburg by the road leading to Pskov...
received the name Lindemannstadt in his honour under the German occupation.
On 16 January 1942, Lindemann took the command of the German Eighteenth Army
German Eighteenth Army
The 18th Army was a World War I and World War II field army.-World War I:The 18th Army was formed in 1918 by the German OHL and commanded by General Oskar von Hutier.-World War II:...
(18. Armee
German Eighteenth Army
The 18th Army was a World War I and World War II field army.-World War I:The 18th Army was formed in 1918 by the German OHL and commanded by General Oskar von Hutier.-World War II:...
), a part of Army Group North
Army Group North
Army Group North was a German strategic echelon formation commanding a grouping of Field Armies subordinated to the OKH during World War II. The army group coordinated the operations of attached separate army corps, reserve formations, rear services and logistics.- Formation :The Army Group North...
. Later, in the summer of 1942, he was promoted to Colonel-General (Generaloberst).
Lindemann commanded the German Eighteenth Army throughout the campaigns around Leningrad and during the January 1944 retreat
Kingisepp–Gdov Offensive
This is a sub-article to Battle of Narva.The Kingisepp–Gdov Offensive was a campaign between the Soviet Leningrad Front and the German 18th Army fought for the eastern coast of Lake Peipus and the western banks of the Narva River from 1 February till 1 March 1944...
from Oranienbaum
Oranienbaum, Russia
Oranienbaum is a Russian royal residence, located on the Gulf of Finland west of St. Petersburg. The Palace ensemble and the city centre are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.-History:...
to Narva
Narva
Narva is the third largest city in Estonia. It is located at the eastern extreme point of Estonia, by the Russian border, on the Narva River which drains Lake Peipus.-Early history:...
. Until 4 February 1944, the Sponheimer Group which defended the Narva Line
Battle of Narva (1944)
The Battle of Narva was a military campaign between the German Army Detachment "Narwa" and the Soviet Leningrad Front fought for possession of the strategically important Narva Isthmus on 2 February – 10 August 1944 during World War II....
was subordinated to the 18th Army commanded by Lindemann. He was promoted to command of Army Group North on 31 March 1944. His command of the Army Group was short-lived, and on 4 July 1944 he was relieved and transferred to the Reserve Army. Allegedly German dictator 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...
gave as reason for this change that Lindemann had become too old and too weak.
After serving a few months in the Reserve Army, Lindemann was put in command of a new staff called "Führungsstab Ostseeküste". From 1 February 1945, he held the post as the "Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces in Denmark" (Wehrmachtsbefehlshaber Dänemark), thereby coming in command of all German troops in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. In April 1945, when the end of the war was apparent to almost all German commanders, Lindemann issued an order to his troops to preserve strict discipline. He further ordered that Denmark had to be defended to the last bullet.
On 3 May, Lindemann went to the Naval Academy at Mürwik to participate in a meeting with the OKW, the new government and the new German Head of State, Grand Admiral
Grand Admiral
Grand admiral is a historic naval rank, generally being the highest such rank present in any particular country. Its most notable use was in Germany — the German word is Großadmiral.-France:...
(Großadmiral) Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner...
. Lindemann informed Dönitz that he would be able to hold Denmark for at least some time, and he and his colleague in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, General Franz Böhme
Franz Böhme
Franz Friedrich Böhme was an Austrian who later went on to become a military officer...
, argued for keeping Denmark and Norway in German custody as bargaining chips in the armistice negotiations soon to come. Dönitz however, sued for immediate peace, and Germany surrendered unconditionally in northwest Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Holland, and Denmark on 5 May 1945. As commander of "Army Lindemann" (Armee Lindemann), Lindemann was then tasked with the dismantling of the German occupation of Denmark until 6 June 1945, when he was arrested at his headquarters in Silkeborg
Silkeborg
Silkeborg is a city in central Denmark. Located in Silkeborg municipality in Jutland, the city has a population of 42,724 . The development of Silkeborg as a modern city may be traced to the foundation of the paper mill by Michael Drewsen on the Gudenaa in 1844...
.
Post-war
Lindemann was a POW in American custody until 1948. He was not charged for war crimes by either the Allies or by Denmark. After his release, Lindemann went into retirement in West GermanyWest Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
. He died on 25 September 1963.
Awards and decorations
- Iron CrossIron CrossThe Iron Cross is a cross symbol typically in black with a white or silver outline that originated after 1219 when the Kingdom of Jerusalem granted the Teutonic Order the right to combine the Teutonic Black Cross placed above a silver Cross of Jerusalem....
(1914)- 2nd Class (9 September 1914)
- 1st Class (28 July 1915)
- Wound BadgeWound BadgeWound Badge was a German military award for wounded or frost-bitten soldiers of Imperial German Army in World War I, the Reichswehr between the wars, and the Wehrmacht, SS and the auxiliary service organizations during the Second World War. After March 1943, due to the increasing number of Allied...
(1914)- in Black
- Knight's Cross of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern with SwordsHouse Order of HohenzollernThe House Order of Hohenzollern was an order of chivalry of the House of Hohenzollern. It was both a military and a civil award...
- Cross of HonorCross of HonorThe Cross of Honor, also known as the Honor Cross or, popularly, the Hindenburg Cross, was a commemorative medal inaugurated on July 13, 1934 by Reichspräsident Paul von Hindenburg for those soldiers of Imperial Germany who fought in World War I...
in 1934 - Iron CrossIron CrossThe Iron Cross is a cross symbol typically in black with a white or silver outline that originated after 1219 when the Kingdom of Jerusalem granted the Teutonic Order the right to combine the Teutonic Black Cross placed above a silver Cross of Jerusalem....
(1939)- 2nd Class (26 September 1939)
- 1st Class (30 October 1939)
- Eastern Front MedalEastern Front MedalThe Eastern Front Medal, , more commonly known as the Ostmedaille was instituted on May 26, 1942 to mark service on the German Eastern Front during the period November 15, 1941 to April 15, 1942...
- Knight's Cross of the Iron CrossKnight's Cross of the Iron CrossThe Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was a grade of the 1939 version of the 1813 created Iron Cross . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was the highest award of Germany to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership during World War II...
with Oak Leaves- Knight's Cross on 5 August 1940 as Generalleutnant and commander of the 36. Infantry-Division
- 275th Oak Leaves on 21 August 1943 as Generaloberst and commander of the 18.Armee
- Order of the Cross of LibertyOrder of the Cross of LibertyThere are three official orders in Finland: the Order of the Cross of Liberty , the Order of the White Rose of Finland and the Order of the Lion of Finland. The President of Finland is the Grand Master of the two orders, and usually of the Order of the Cross of Liberty as well, Grand Mastership of...
1st Class with Star (29 March 1943) - Mentioned twice in the WehrmachtberichtWehrmachtberichtThe Wehrmachtbericht was a daily radio report on the Großdeutscher Rundfunk of Nazi Germany, published by the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht regarding the military situation on all fronts of World War II....
(29 June 1942 and 12 August 1943)
External links
- Generaloberst Goerg Lindemann at Axis Biographical Research (biography and photos)