Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel Jr.
(15.11.1891 - 14.10.1944)
place of birth: Heidenheim an der Brenz, Württemberg
A
future field marshal and the "Desert Fox" of the Second
World War, Rommel also had a distinguished career during the
Great War, serving in France, Russia, and Italy. His father Erwin
Sr., a school administrator, had served as an artillery officer.
In the
summer of 1914, as Germany mobilized for war, Rommel was a
lieutenant and company commander in an infantry regiment. By late
August, he had already demonstrated his military leadership in the Longwy
area, earning the Iron Cross 2nd Class the Iron Cross 1st Class.
Rommel was
then assigned to the Württemberg Mountain Battalion, attached to the Alpenkorps,
a unit which soon transferred to Romania for the successful attack on
Bucharest in November 1915. October 1917 saw his 200-man battalion
moving to the Italian Alps, where they played a leading role in the breakthrough at Caporetto.
For this his bravery and leadership, was also awarded the Pour le Merite.
As a highly respected and successful Wehrmacht field marshal during
World War Two, Erwin Rommel found himself involved on the fringes of the
assassination plot against Hitler and was ultimately coerced into taking
his own life (in order to protect his family's honor) at the age of 52.
|