Wilhelm Bodewin Johann Gustav Keitel
September 22, 1882–October 16, 1946
Wilhelm Keitel
Nickname	"LaKeitel" (English: Lackey)
Place of birth	Helmscherode, Brunswick, German Empire
Place of death	Nuremberg, Germany
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918) Weimar Republic (to 1933) Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Wehrmacht
Rank	Generalfeldmarschall
Commands held	OKW
Battles/wars	World War I World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Wilhelm Bodewin Johann Gustav Keitel (September 22, 1882–October 16, 1946) was a German field marshal (Generalfeldmarschall). Events 66 - Emperor Nero creates the Legion I Italica. 1236 - The Lithuanians Year 1882 ( MDCCCLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 456 - Magister militum Ricimer defeats the Emperor Avitus at Piacenza and becomes master of the western Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Brunswick (Braunschweig was a historical state in Germany. Originally the territory of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel in the Holy Roman Empire, it was established The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification The term Weimar Republic ( ˈvaɪmarɐ repuˈbliːk is used by historians to signify the democratic and Republican period of Germany from 1919 to 1933 Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Wehrmacht (literally "defense force" was the name of the unified Armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945 Field Marshal General, in German Generalfeldmarschall ( (usually translated simply as Field marshal, and sometimes written only as Feldmarschall For other uses of OKW see OKW (disambiguation. The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht ( OKW) ( English: "High Command World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross ( German language: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes, often simply Ritterkreuz) was a grade of the Iron Cross Events 66 - Emperor Nero creates the Legion I Italica. 1236 - The Lithuanians Year 1882 ( MDCCCLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 456 - Magister militum Ricimer defeats the Emperor Avitus at Piacenza and becomes master of the western Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. For other meanings see Field Marshal (disambiguation Field marshal is a military officer rank Field Marshal General, in German Generalfeldmarschall ( (usually translated simply as Field marshal, and sometimes written only as Feldmarschall As head of the High Command of the Armed Forces, he was one of Germany's most senior military leaders during World War II. For other uses of OKW see OKW (disambiguation. The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht ( OKW) ( English: "High Command World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including At Nuremberg he was tried, sentenced to death and hanged as a major war criminal. The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after

Biography

Early life and career

Keitel was born in Helmscherode, Brunswick, German Empire, the son of Carl Keitel, a middle-class landowner, and his wife Apollonia Vissering. Brunswick (Braunschweig was a historical state in Germany. Originally the territory of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel in the Holy Roman Empire, it was established The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification After completing his education in Göttingen, he embarked on a military career in 1901, becoming a Fahnenjunker (Cadet Officer), joining the 6th Lower-Saxon Field Artillery Regiment. Göttingen ( ˈgœtɪŋən, Low German: Chöttingen is a College town in Lower Saxony, Germany. He married Lisa Fontaine, a wealthy landowner's daughter, in 1909. Together they had six children, one of whom died in infancy. During World War I Keitel served on the Western front with the Field Artillery Regiment No. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All 46. In September 1914, during the fighting in Flanders, he was seriously wounded in his right forearm by a shell fragment. Flanders (Vlaanderen Flandre Flandern is a geographical region located in parts of present day Belgium, France, and the Netherlands.

Keitel recovered, and thereafter was posted to the German General Staff in early 1915. The German General Staff ( Großer Generalstab literally Great General Staff) was an institution whose rise and development gave the German military a decided After World War I ended, he stayed in the newly created Reichswehr, and played a part in organizing Freikorps frontier guard units on the Polish border. The Reichswehr ( German for "National Defence" formed the military organisation of Germany from 1919 until 1935 when it was The designation of Freikorps ( German for "Free Corps " was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of 18th century Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Keitel also served as a divisional general staff officer, and later taught at the Hanover Cavalry School for two years.

In late 1924, Keitel was transferred to the Ministry of Defence (Reichswehrministerium), serving with the Troop Office (Truppenamt), the post-Versailles disguised General Staff. This page contains a List of German defence ministers For pre-1919 Prussian Ministers of War see Prussian Minister of War. The Truppenamt or 'Troop Office' was the cover organisation for the German General Staff from 1919 through until 1933 when the General Staff was re-created The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. The German General Staff ( Großer Generalstab literally Great General Staff) was an institution whose rise and development gave the German military a decided He was soon promoted to the head of the organizational department, a post he retained after the Nazi seizure of power in 1933. Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German Machtergreifung ( is a German word meaning "seizure of power" In 1935, based on a recommendation by Werner von Fritsch, Keitel was promoted to Lieutenant-General and appointed as the departmental head of the Wehrmachtsamt (Armed Forces Office) which had the responsibility over all three branches of the armed forces. Werner Freiherr (Baron von Fritsch ( 4 August 1880 &ndash 22 September 1939) was a prominent Wehrmacht officer member of the

OKW and World War II

Keitel, signing the ratified surrender terms for the German Army in Berlin, 8/9 May 1945

In 1937, Keitel received a promotion to General and, in the following year, he assumed the position of Chief of the Supreme Command of the Armed Forces (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, or OKW) in the wake of the Blomberg-Fritsch Affair, and the replacement of the Ministry of War (Reichskriegsministerium) with the OKW. For other uses of OKW see OKW (disambiguation. The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht ( OKW) ( English: "High Command The Blomberg-Fritsch Affair (also known as Blomberg-Fritsch-Krise or Blomberg-Fritsch crisis) were two related scandals in early 1938 that resulted in the subjugation This page contains a List of German defence ministers For pre-1919 Prussian Ministers of War see Prussian Minister of War.

For a brief period in October 1938, Keitel was the Military Governor of the Sudetenland, but in February 1938 Keitel again became Commander-in-Chief of the OKW, the post he retained until surrender in 1945. Sudetenland ( Czech and Polish: Sudety) is the German name used in English in the first half of the 20th century for the western regions of For other uses of OKW see OKW (disambiguation. The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht ( OKW) ( English: "High Command Shortly following his appointment he convinced Hitler to appoint his close friend, Heinrich von Brauchitsch, as the Commander-in-Chief of the Army (OKH). The Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH was Germany 's Army High Command from 1936 to 1945

In 1940, following the conclusion of the French campaign, he was promoted to Field Marshal along with a number of Adolf Hitler's other generals. In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately Unusually for a non-field commander, Keitel was awarded the Knight's Cross, for having arranged the armistice with France. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross ( German language: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes, often simply Ritterkreuz) was a grade of the Iron Cross

During World War II, Keitel was one of the primary planners of the Wehrmacht campaigns and operations On the Western and the Eastern Fronts, but proved to be weak and cautious: he advised Hitler against invading France and opposed Operation Barbarossa. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Western Front of the European Theatre of World War II encompassed the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, The Eastern Front of World War II (die Ostfront 1941-1945, der Rußlandfeldzug 1941-1945 (Russian campaign or der Ostfeldzug 1941-1945 (Eastern Campaign In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II Both times he backed down in the face of Hitler and tendered his resignation: the Führer refused to accept it.

After participation in the planning and execution of the Operation Barbarossa, in 1942 he attempted to convince Hitler in defence of the actions of Field Marshal Wilhelm List, whose army was struggling to extricate themselves from inconclusive and bloody fighting in the Battle of the Caucasus. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II Siegmund Wilhelm List ( May 14, 1880 &ndash August 17, 1971) was a German Field marshal during World War II The Battle of Caucasus is a name given to a series of German and Soviet operations in the Caucasus area during the Soviet-German War. Keitel's defence of List was his last act of defiance to Hitler, for after that he never again challenged one of Hitler's orders, and was referred to by his colleagues as "Lakaitel" ("Lackey-tel" or "Little Lackey") and as the "nodding donkey".

Keitel signed numerous orders of dubious legality under the laws of war, the most infamous being the notorious Commissar Order, and unquestionably allowed Heinrich Himmler a free hand with his racial controls and ensuing terror in captured Soviet Union territory. The Commissar Order (Kommissarbefehl was a written order given by Adolf Hitler on 6 June 1941, prior to Operation Barbarossa. Heinrich Luitpold Himmler ( 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945 was a Nazi German politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Another was the order to have any of the French pilots fighting for the Normandie-Niemen fighter regiment in the USSR executed instead of their being treated as prisoners of war. The Normandie-Niemen squadron (Нормандия-Неман was a fighter squadron of the French Air Force. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991

Keitel accepted Hitler's directive for Operation Citadel in 1943 despite strong opposition from several field officers who argued that neither the troops nor the new tanks on which Hitler staked his reliance for victory were ready. The Battle of Kursk (Курская битва refers to a series of German and Soviet operations on the Eastern Front of World War II

Keitel was also instrumental in foiling the attempted coup of the July 20 plot in 1944, which attempted to assassinate Hitler. Keitel then sat on the following Army Court of Honour that handed many officers, including Field Marshal Erwin von Witzleben, over to Roland Freisler's notorious People's Court. A court of honor (or court of honour) is a semi-official or unofficial Tribunal constituted to determine various questions of social protocol, breaches Job-Wilhelm Georg "Erwin" von Witzleben ( 4 December 1881 - 8 August 1944) was a German army officer (by 1940 a Early life In contrast to most of the Nazi leadership not much beyond basic details is known about Freisler The People's Court (Volksgerichtshof was a court established in 1934 by German Dictator Adolf Hitler, who had been dissatisfied with the outcome of the

Keitel

In April and May 1945, during the Battle for Berlin, Keitel urged various German generals to attack the Soviet forces and relieve Berlin. For the bombing campaign on Berlin by the RAF from November 1943 to March 1944 see Battle of Berlin (air. But, so late in the war, none of the generals urged by Keitel commanded forces that were capable of saving the German capital: not Gotthard Heinrici's Army Group Vistula, not Felix Steiner's Army Detachment Steiner, not Walther Wenck's 12th Army, nor Theodor Busse's 9th Army. Gotthardt Heinrici ( December 25, 1886 – December 13, 1971) was a General in the German Army during World War Army Group Vistula ( Heeresgruppe Weichsel) was an Army Group of the Wehrmacht, formed on January 24[[ 945]] Felix Martin Julius Steiner ( 23 May 1896 – 12 May 1966) was a German Heer and Waffen-SS officer who served Army Detachment Steiner ( Armeeabteilung Steiner) was a temporary military unit something more than a corps but less than an army created on paper by German dictator Adolf Walther Wenck ( September 18, 1900 &ndash May 1, 1982) was the youngest General in the German Army during the Second Theodor Busse ( 15 December 1897 &ndash 21 October 1986) was a German officer during World War I and World War II.

After the suicide deaths of German dictator Adolf Hitler on 30 April and Joseph Goebbels on 1 May, Keitel became a member of the short-lived Flensburg government controlled by German President (Reichspräsident) Karl Dönitz. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately Events 313 - Roman emperor Licinius unifies the entire Eastern Roman Empire under his rule Paul Joseph Goebbels (German pronunciation ˈɡœbəls English generally ˈɡɝbəlz (29 October 1897 1 May 1945 was a German politician and Reich Minister of Public Events 305 - Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman Emperor. The Flensburg government was the short-lived administration that attempted to rule Germany during most of May 1945 at the very end of World War II. The Reichspräsident was the German Head of state during the period of the 1919-1934 Weimar Republic and the title was later briefly revived Karl Dönitz (ˈdøːnɪts) (16 September 1891 &ndash 24 December 1980 was a German naval Commander who served

On May 8, 1945, Dönitz authorized Keitel to sign the second instrument of unconditional surrender in Berlin. Events 589 - Reccared summons the Third Council of Toledo 1450 - Jack Cade's Rebellion: Kentishmen Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar On the previous day, Alfred Jodl had signed an instrument of unconditional surrender in Rheims, France. Alfred Jodl (10 May 1890 – 16 October 1946 was a German military commander attaining the position of Chief of the Operations Staff of the Armed Forces High Reims (alternative English spelling Rheims; riːmz in English and /ʁɛ̃s/ in French) is a city of the Champagne-Ardenne région of northern This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.

Nazi connections

As a military officer, Keitel was prohibited by law from joining the NSDAP. The, officially National Socialist German Workers' Party, ( abbreviated NSDAP) was a Political party in Germany between 1919 and 1945 However, after the Wehrmacht's rapid early successes on the Russian Front, he was given a "Golden" (Honorary) NSDAP membership badge by Adolf Hitler, who was seeking to link military successes to political successes. The Eastern Front of World War II (die Ostfront 1941-1945, der Rußlandfeldzug 1941-1945 (Russian campaign or der Ostfeldzug 1941-1945 (Eastern Campaign In 1944, German laws were changed and military officers were encouraged to seek NSDAP membership. Keitel claimed he did so as a formality at the Nuremberg Trials, but never received formal party membership. The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after He was one of only two people to receive honorary party membership status.

Before the execution Keitel published Mein Leben: Pflichterfullung bis zum Untergang : Hitlers Feldmarschall und Chef des Oberkommandos der Wehrmacht in Selbstzeugnissen, otherwise known in English as "In the Service of the Reich", and was later re-edited as The Memoirs of Field-Marshal Keitel by Walter Görlitz from a translation by David Irving as the author in 1965. David John Cawdell Irving (born 24 March 1938 is a British writer specializing in the Military history of World War II. Another work by Keitel later published in English was "Questionnaire on the Ardennes offensive" ^[1]

Trial and execution

Four days after the surrender, Keitel was arrested. He soon faced the International Military Tribunal (IMT), which charged him with a number of offences:

• Conspiracy to commit crimes against peace;
• Planning, initiating and waging wars of aggression;
• War crimes; and,
• Crimes against humanity. The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after A crime against peace, in International law, refers to "planning preparation initiation or waging of wars of aggression, or a war in violation of international A war of aggression is a Military conflict waged in the absence of "a necessity of self-defense instant overwhelming leaving no choice of means and no moment of deliberation War crimes are "violations of the laws or customs of war" including but not limited to "murder the ill-treatment or deportation of civilian residents of an occupied In Public international law, a crime against humanity is an act of Persecution or any large scale atrocities against a body of people and is the highest level of

The IMT rejected Keitel's defence that he was following orders in conformity to "the leadership principle" (Führerprinzip) and found him guilty on all charges. The, German for "leader principle" prescribes a system with a hierarchy of leaders that resembles a military structure To underscore the criminal rather than military nature of Keitel's acts, the Allies denied his request to be shot by firing squad. Instead, he was executed by hanging. Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death Keitel's last words were: "Ich rufe den Allmächtigen an, er möge sich des deutschen Volkes erbarmen. Über zwei Millionen deutsche Soldaten sind vor mir für ihr Vaterland in den Tod gegangen. Ich folge meinen Söhnen nach. Alles für Deutschland!", which translates roughly to: "I call on God Almighty to have mercy on the German people. More than two million German soldiers went to their death for the fatherland before me. I follow now my sons—all for Germany (Alles für Deutschland). "

Legacy

When moving to the United States and Australia after World War II, some of Keitel's family changed their last name to Keetle so as to not be associated with his crimes. Many of his descendants still go by this last name.

Portrayal in popular culture

Wilhelm Keitel has been portrayed by the following actors in film, television and theater productions;^[2]

• Leopold Hainisch in the 1955 West German film Der Letzte Akt (Hitler: The Last Ten Days)^[3]
• Tadeusz Bialoszczynski in the 1971 Polish film Epilogue at Nurnberg
• Raymond Adamson in the 1973 British television production The Death of Adolf Hitler^[4]
• Frank Fontaine in the 2000 Canadian/U. West Germany ( Inf German: Westdeutschland or West-Deutschland) was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany ( The year 1971 in film involved some significant events Events February 8 - Bob Dylan 's hour long documentary The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Frank Fontaine ( 19 April 1920 – 4 August 1978) was an American Comedian and Singer. The year 2000 in television involved some significant eventsBelow is a list of Television -related events in 2000. S. T. V. production Nuremberg
• Dieter Mann in the 2004 German film Downfall (Der Untergang)^[5]
• Miroslav Kosev in the 2006 British television docudrama Nuremberg: Nazis on Trial

See also

• German Instrument of Surrender (8 May 1945) on Wikisource
• War crimes of the Wehrmacht

Notes

Bibliography

• BARBAROSSA. By Alan Clark. Perennial, 2002. ISBN: 0-688-04268-6
• Hitler and Russia. By Trumbull Higgins. The Macmillan Company, 1966.
• The World War II. Desk Reference. Eisenhower Center director Douglas Brinkley. Editor Mickael E. Haskey. Grand Central Press, 2004.
• The story of World War II. By Donald L. Miller. Simon & Schuster, 2006. ISBN: 10: 0-74322718-2.
• Scourched earth. By Paul Carell. Schiffer Military History, 1994. ISBN: 0-88740-598-3

External links

• The Memoirs of Fieldmarshal Keitel, Keitel autobiography