Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist

Ewald von Kleist

Ewald von Kleist

Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist (August 8 1881, Braunfels an der Lahn - ca. November 13 1954) was a leading German Field Marshal during World War II.

Born into an aristocratic family, von Kleist was educated in a German military school and served as a lieutenant of hussars and a regimental commander in World War I. After the war he served as a commander of a cavalry division from 1932 to 1935. Semi-retired, in August 1939 he was recalled to active duty at the age of fifty eight.

In the Polish September Campaign he commanded the XXII Panzer Corps. In the Battle of France he commanded Panzergruppe von Kleist, consisting of XLI and XIX (under Guderian) Panzer Corps, the two southernmost armoured corps in the drive to the English Channel. During this time he attempted to relieve Guderian of his command after he and his subordinate, Rommel, disobeyed orders to halt their advance to the Channel; the Wehrmacht Chief of Staff, von Rundstedt, refused to confirm the order, and the Franco-British armies were trapped.

In April 1941, von Kleist commanded 1st Panzergruppe, comprising XVIII and XL Panzer Corps, which spearheaded the Blitzkrieg-style invasions of Yugoslavia and Greece. With this formation he also participated in the subsequent Operation Barbarossa as part of Army Group South.

In 1942 von Kleist was sent to command troops in the Caucasus in order to capture important oil wells in the area. On 22 November 1942 he was placed in command of Army Group A. He was promoted to field marshal in 1943. He was relieved of his command in March 1944 for ordering the 8th Army to retreat when it was in danger of destruction by the Soviets, in explicit violation of Hitler's orders.

Von Kleist was captured by United States forces in 1945. He was sent to communist Yugoslavia to face alleged war crimes charges in 1946. In 1948 he was then extradited to the Soviet Union where he was condemned to a 10-years sentence in 1952 for war crimes and he died in captivity in Vladimir prison in 1954. He was the highest ranked German officer to die in Soviet captivity.