Eric Schwarzkopf is a 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...

 soldier who was born to Jewish parents, Simon and Thekla, and grew up in Waldshut

Waldshut

Waldshut is a district in the south of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighbouring districts are Lörrach, Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald and Schwarzwald-Baar; followed in the south by the Swiss cantons of Schaffhausen, Zürich and Aargau.-History:The district dates to the Oberamt Waldshut, which was...

, 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...

 with 4 older siblings.

Jewish extermination and persecution had already begun in the mid-1930s and by 1937 the family escaped the Nazis (thanks to Thekla's dual Swiss citizenship) and fled to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

In 1942 Eric volunteered for the US army along with his brothers Hans and Bernard (Hans would be captured and held in Africa until the war’s end). Eric was placed in Military Field Intelligence with the airborne troops. In the 18th corps., he fought with the 101st, the 82nd and 17th divisions.

He parachuted as a pathfinder at Normandy

Operation Overlord

Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings...

 on the night of June 5, 1944 and participated in the Battle of the Bulge

Battle of the Bulge

The Battle of the Bulge was a major German offensive , launched toward the end of World War II through the densely forested Ardennes mountain region of Wallonia in Belgium, hence its French name , and France and...

, as well as other conflicts.

Toward the end of the war, his battalion took Essen

Essen

- Origin of the name :In German-speaking countries, the name of the city Essen often causes confusion as to its origins, because it is commonly known as the German infinitive of the verb for the act of eating, and/or the German noun for food. Although scholars still dispute the interpretation of...

. As the senior officer of the MIS team he was put in charge of the industrial city until he was called to serve near Oberursel

Oberursel

Oberursel is a town in Germany. It is located to the north west of Frankfurt, and is the second largest town in the county of Hochtaunuskreis and the 14th largest town in Hessen.-Extent of municipal area:...

. There, with his brother Bernard, he monitored captured SS

Schutzstaffel

The Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...

 officers’ conversations and translated them for evidence to be used at the Nuremberg Trials

Nuremberg Trials

The Nuremberg Trials were a series of military tribunals, held by the victorious Allied forces of World War II, most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, and economic leadership of the defeated Nazi Germany....

.

He returned to the US the day before Christmas Eve, 1945.