Walter Girg
Encyclopedia
Walter Girg was a Hauptsturmführer
(Captain) in the Waffen SS during World War II
and was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves
.
Girg was born in Hamburg
on 13 August 1919. At the start of World War II, he joined the SS and was posted to the SS-Verfügungstruppe
(SS Troops-at-disposal or Troops-on-call was formed in 1934 as combat troops for the NSDAP). Girg served in the Balkans
(Operation Marita) with SS Panzer Division Das Reich
and took part in Operation Barbarossa
(the invasion of Soviet Union
) in June 1941.
At the end of 1943, he was promoted to Untersturmführer
(Second Lieutenant). In April 1944, he became a platoon leader in the 1st Company, 502nd SS Jäger Battalion.
In early September 1944, he carried through Operation Landfried with his company of 105 men behind enemy lines in the Carpathian
mountains in Romania
. They were discovered in the Braşov
region but were saved from capture by a German artillery
barrage which allowed them to escape back to the German lines, during which, however, Girg was wounded. The intelligence that Girg had obtained was instrumental in the continued operations on the Romanian front. For his performance he was promoted to Obersturmführer
(First Lieutenant) on 16 September 1944 and awarded the Knight's Cross
on 4 October 1944.
After recovering from his wounds, he was given command of a special unit of the SS-Jagdverband Mitte which operated Russian tanks behind enemy lines in Pomerania
.
On 12 March 1945, he operated with his unit in the area of the enemy-encircled Kolberg garrison. The German forces there believed Girg and his men to be Seydlitz agents (German soldiers working for the Soviet forces) and they were going to be shot, but the mistake was clarified a short time later. Girg remained in Kolberg until 18 March 1945 when the garrison was evacuated by sea.
On 27 March 1945, Girg was promoted to Hauptsturmführer
(Captain) and, upon presenting himself to Adolf Hitler
, was awarded the Wound Badge
and the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on 1 April 1945.
Girg ended the war as an inspector of training for SS Jäger
units.
Hauptsturmführer
Hauptsturmführer was a Nazi rank of the SS which was used between the years of 1934 and 1945. The rank of Hauptsturmführer was a mid-grade company level officer and was the equivalent of a Captain in the German Army and also the equivalent of captain in foreign armies...
(Captain) in the Waffen SS during 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...
and was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves
Knight's Cross
Knight's Cross refers to a distinguishing grade or level of various orders that denotes bravery and leadership on the battlefield....
.
Girg was born 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...
on 13 August 1919. At the start of World War II, he joined the SS and was posted to the SS-Verfügungstruppe
SS-Verfügungstruppe
The SS-Verfügungstruppe was formed in 1934 as combat troops for the NSDAP. By 1940 these military SS units had become the nucleus of the Waffen-SS....
(SS Troops-at-disposal or Troops-on-call was formed in 1934 as combat troops for the NSDAP). Girg served in the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
(Operation Marita) with SS Panzer Division Das Reich
Das Reich
Das Reich is the name of:* a German SS-division, see 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich* a national socialist newspaper, see Das Reich * the main work of German right-wing intellectual Friedrich Hielscher...
and took part in 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...
(the invasion of Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
) in June 1941.
At the end of 1943, he was promoted to Untersturmführer
Untersturmführer
Untersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the German Schutzstaffel first created in July 1934. The rank can trace its origins to the older SA rank of Sturmführer which had existed since the founding of the SA in 1921...
(Second Lieutenant). In April 1944, he became a platoon leader in the 1st Company, 502nd SS Jäger Battalion.
In early September 1944, he carried through Operation Landfried with his company of 105 men behind enemy lines in the Carpathian
Carpathian
Carpathian may refer to:*Carpathian Mountains of Central and Eastern Europe*Carpathian Convention on sustainable development in that region*Carpathian Shepherd Dog, a Romanian sheep dog*Subcarpathian Voivodeship, an administrative division of Poland...
mountains in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. They were discovered in the Braşov
Brasov
Brașov is a city in Romania and the capital of Brașov County.According to the last Romanian census, from 2002, there were 284,596 people living within the city of Brașov, making it the 8th most populated city in Romania....
region but were saved from capture by a German artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
barrage which allowed them to escape back to the German lines, during which, however, Girg was wounded. The intelligence that Girg had obtained was instrumental in the continued operations on the Romanian front. For his performance he was promoted to Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi party that was used by the SS and also as a rank of the SA. Translated as “Senior Assault Leader”, the rank of Obersturmführer was first created in 1932 as the result of an expansion of the Sturmabteilung and the need for an additional rank in...
(First Lieutenant) on 16 September 1944 and awarded the Knight's Cross
Knight's Cross
Knight's Cross refers to a distinguishing grade or level of various orders that denotes bravery and leadership on the battlefield....
on 4 October 1944.
After recovering from his wounds, he was given command of a special unit of the SS-Jagdverband Mitte which operated Russian tanks behind enemy lines in Pomerania
Pomerania
Pomerania is a historical region on the south shore of the Baltic Sea. Divided between Germany and Poland, it stretches roughly from the Recknitz River near Stralsund in the West, via the Oder River delta near Szczecin, to the mouth of the Vistula River near Gdańsk in the East...
.
On 12 March 1945, he operated with his unit in the area of the enemy-encircled Kolberg garrison. The German forces there believed Girg and his men to be Seydlitz agents (German soldiers working for the Soviet forces) and they were going to be shot, but the mistake was clarified a short time later. Girg remained in Kolberg until 18 March 1945 when the garrison was evacuated by sea.
On 27 March 1945, Girg was promoted to Hauptsturmführer
Hauptsturmführer
Hauptsturmführer was a Nazi rank of the SS which was used between the years of 1934 and 1945. The rank of Hauptsturmführer was a mid-grade company level officer and was the equivalent of a Captain in the German Army and also the equivalent of captain in foreign armies...
(Captain) and, upon presenting himself to 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...
, was awarded the Wound Badge
Wound Badge
Wound 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...
and the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on 1 April 1945.
Girg ended the war as an inspector of training for SS Jäger
Jäger
Jäger is the German word for "hunter", and also a common Jäger is the [[German language|German]] word for "[[hunter]]", and also a common Jäger is the [[German...
units.
Further reading
- Florian Berger. "Ritterkreuzträger mit Nahkampfspange in Gold" (2004). ISBN 3-9501307-3-X
- Walther-Peer Fellgiebel. "Die Trager des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes, 1939-1945: Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile" (1986). ISBN 3790902845