Friedrich Wilhelm von Lindeiner-Wildau
Encyclopedia
Oberst
Friedrich Wilhelm Gustav von Lindeiner-Wildau (12 December 1880 – 22 May 1963) was a German Staff Officer during World War I
best known today as the Kommandant of Stalag Luft III
during World War II
, the setting for the movie The Great Escape
.
as a Second Lieutenant on graduating from the Corps of Cadets on 15 March 1898. On 1 May 1902 he left the Prussian Army
and the following day entered the Schutztruppe
for German East Africa
. Here, von Lindeiner-Wildau served as the Adjutant of Gustav Adolf von Götzen
, the Governor of German East Africa, from 20 June to 13 September 1905 and as the Headquarters Adjutant of the Schutztruppe for German East Africa from 7 September to 11 October 1906. He took part in the Maji Maji Rebellion
, for which he received the Pour le Mérite
and the Prussian Order of the Crown
4th Class with Swords. He left Schutztruppe service on 31 July 1908 and rejoined the Prussian Army on 1 August 1908 with a simultaneous promotion to Oberleutnant
and was assigned to the 4. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß
.
On 20 July 1912, on promotion to Hauptmann
, von Lindeiner-Wildau was assigned as the Commander of the 11th company of 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß
. On 10 August 1914 he was assigned as the Commander of the Infanterie-Stabswache ("Infantry Staff Guard") at the Kaiser's General Field Headquarters. On 19 September he returned to his regiment as Commander of the 11th company, where he was wounded during the First Battle of Ypres
on 17 November 1914. Returning to duty on 13 April 1915 he assumed command of the regiment's 5th company, and then of its second battalion on 27 May 1915. He was again wounded during the pursuit between the Bug River
and Jasiolda on 29 August 1915. On returning to duty von Lindeiner-Wildau assumed command of the Füsilier
battalion of 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß
and was again severely wounded on 5 December 1915 in fighting around Roye-Noyon.
On 24 September 1914 von Lindeiner-Wildau was assigned to Etappen-Inspektion 5 (Lines of Communication Inspectorate) and on 4 October 1916 he was assigned as the Personal Adjutant of Prince Joachim of Prussia
. After his return to his Regiment on 30 October 1917 he became the Adjutant to the Governor of Riga-Dünamünde. Appointed as Adjutant to the Garde-Reserve-Korps on 23 April 1918 he was promoted to Major on 15 July 1918. His final wartime appointment was as Adjutant of the 4th Army, a post he assumed on 8 November 1918.
Following the Armistice von Lindeiner-Wildau was leader of the collecting point in Potsdam
of the Volunteer Border Protection Unit East and Upper East (Grenzschutz Ost/Oberost) from 18 January 1919. He retired on 20 September 1919 with permission to wear the uniform of the 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß. He worked in several civilian posts, and married a Dutch baroness.
He joined the Luftwaffe
in 1937 as one of Hermann Göring
’s personal staff. Refused retirement, during World War II
he was the Kommandant of Stalag Luft III
, the setting for the movie The Great Escape
. Following the escape he feigned mental illness to avoid imprisonment. He was wounded by Russian troops advancing towards Berlin
while acting as second in command of an infantry unit. He later surrendered to advancing British forces as the war ended and was imprisoned for two years at the British prison known as the "London Cage
". He testified during the British SIB
investigation concerning the Stalag Luft III murders
. He had followed the Geneva Conventions
concerning the treatment of POW
s and had won the respect of the senior prisoners. He was released when the testimony given by Allied prisoners at Stalag Luft III saved him from the death penalty.
He died in 1963 at the age of 82.
and the Prussian Order of the Crown
4th Class with Swords for the brutal fighting in the German East Africa campaign of 1905-07. He was also awarded the Colonial Medal with that bar. During World War I
he was also awarded the Saxe-Ernestine House Order
- Knight 1st Class with Swords (1 May 1918) as Hauptmann and 1st Adjutant of the Government of Riga and the Mouth of the Düna, and the House Order of Hohenzollern
Honor Cross 3b with Swords on 5 February 1915. He was also awarded the Iron Cross
First and Second Class.
Oberst
Oberst is a military rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark and Norway. The Swedish rank överste is a direct translation, as are the Finnish rank eversti...
Friedrich Wilhelm Gustav von Lindeiner-Wildau (12 December 1880 – 22 May 1963) was a German Staff Officer during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
best known today as the Kommandant of Stalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III was a Luftwaffe-run prisoner-of-war camp during World War II that housed captured air force servicemen. It was in the German Province of Lower Silesia near the town of Sagan , southeast of Berlin...
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...
, the setting for the movie The Great Escape
The Great Escape (film)
The Great Escape is a 1963 American film about an escape by Allied prisoners of war from a German POW camp during World War II, starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Richard Attenborough...
.
Military career
Friedrich Wilhelm von Lindeiner-Wildau was born at Glatz in 1880. He entered the 3. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß3rd Foot Guards (German Empire)
The 3rd Foot Guards were an infantry regiment of the Royal Prussian Army. The regiment was formed in 1860. As part of the Guards Corps it fought in the Second Schleswig War, the Austro-Prussian war, the Franco-Prussian war and World War I. The regiment was disbanded in 1919 with the Infantry...
as a Second Lieutenant on graduating from the Corps of Cadets on 15 March 1898. On 1 May 1902 he left the Prussian Army
Prussian Army
The Royal Prussian Army was the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power.The Prussian Army had its roots in the meager mercenary forces of Brandenburg during the Thirty Years' War...
and the following day entered the Schutztruppe
Schutztruppe
Schutztruppe was the African colonial armed force of Imperial Germany from the late 19th century to 1918, when Germany lost its colonies. Similar to other colonial forces, the Schutztruppe consisted of volunteer European commissioned and non-commissioned officers, medical and veterinary officers. ...
for German East Africa
German East Africa
German East Africa was a German colony in East Africa, which included what are now :Burundi, :Rwanda and Tanganyika . Its area was , nearly three times the size of Germany today....
. Here, von Lindeiner-Wildau served as the Adjutant of Gustav Adolf von Götzen
Gustav Adolf von Götzen
Count Gustav Adolf von Götzen was a German explorer and Governor of German East Africa. He was the second European to set foot in Rwanda, after Dr Oscar Baumann, and later presided over the bloody quashing of the Maji Maji Rebellion in what is now Tanzania.- Early life :Götzen studied law at the...
, the Governor of German East Africa, from 20 June to 13 September 1905 and as the Headquarters Adjutant of the Schutztruppe for German East Africa from 7 September to 11 October 1906. He took part in the Maji Maji Rebellion
Maji Maji Rebellion
The Maji Maji Rebellion, sometimes called the Maji Maji War, was a violent African resistance to colonial rule in the German colony of Tanganyika, an uprising by several African indigenous communities in German East Africa against the German rule in response to a German policy designed to force...
, for which he received the Pour le Mérite
Pour le Mérite
The Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
and the Prussian Order of the Crown
Order of the Crown (Prussia)
The Order of the Crown was Prussia's lowest ranking order of chivalry. Instituted in 1861 as an award equal in rank to the Order of the Red Eagle, it could only be awarded to commissioned officers , but there was a medal associated with the order which could be earned by non-commissioned officers...
4th Class with Swords. He left Schutztruppe service on 31 July 1908 and rejoined the Prussian Army on 1 August 1908 with a simultaneous promotion to Oberleutnant
Oberleutnant
Oberleutnant is a junior officer rank in the militaries of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. In the German Army, it dates from the early 19th century. Translated as "Senior Lieutenant", the rank is typically bestowed upon commissioned officers after five to six years of active duty...
and was assigned to the 4. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß
4th Foot Guards (German Empire)
The 4th Foot Guards were an infantry regiment of the Royal Prussian Army. The regiment was formed in 1860. It served with the Guards Corps in the Second Schleswig War, the Austro-Prussian war, the Franco-Prussian war, and World War I. The regiment was disbanded in June 1919.Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck...
.
On 20 July 1912, on promotion to Hauptmann
Hauptmann
Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian and Swiss armies. While "haupt" in contemporary German means "main", it also has the dated meaning of "head", i.e...
, von Lindeiner-Wildau was assigned as the Commander of the 11th company of 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß
1st Foot Guards (German Empire)
The 1st Foot Guards was an infantry regiment of the Royal Prussian Army formed in 1806. The regiment considered itself the most noble regiment of Christendom . The regiment was disbanded in 1919, with the Infantry Regiment 9 Potsdam of the new Reichsheer bearing its tradition...
. On 10 August 1914 he was assigned as the Commander of the Infanterie-Stabswache ("Infantry Staff Guard") at the Kaiser's General Field Headquarters. On 19 September he returned to his regiment as Commander of the 11th company, where he was wounded during the First Battle of Ypres
First Battle of Ypres
The First Battle of Ypres, also called the First Battle of Flanders , was a First World War battle fought for the strategic town of Ypres in western Belgium...
on 17 November 1914. Returning to duty on 13 April 1915 he assumed command of the regiment's 5th company, and then of its second battalion on 27 May 1915. He was again wounded during the pursuit between the Bug River
Bug River
The Bug River is a left tributary of the Narew river flows from central Ukraine to the west, passing along the Ukraine-Polish and Polish-Belarusian border and into Poland, where it empties into the Narew river near Serock. The part between the lake and the Vistula River is sometimes referred to as...
and Jasiolda on 29 August 1915. On returning to duty von Lindeiner-Wildau assumed command of the Füsilier
Fusilier
Fusilier was originally the name of a soldier armed with a light flintlock musket called the fusil. The word was first used around 1680, and has later developed into a regimental designation.-History:...
battalion of 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß
1st Foot Guards (German Empire)
The 1st Foot Guards was an infantry regiment of the Royal Prussian Army formed in 1806. The regiment considered itself the most noble regiment of Christendom . The regiment was disbanded in 1919, with the Infantry Regiment 9 Potsdam of the new Reichsheer bearing its tradition...
and was again severely wounded on 5 December 1915 in fighting around Roye-Noyon.
On 24 September 1914 von Lindeiner-Wildau was assigned to Etappen-Inspektion 5 (Lines of Communication Inspectorate) and on 4 October 1916 he was assigned as the Personal Adjutant of Prince Joachim of Prussia
Prince Joachim of Prussia
Prince Joachim Franz Humbert of Prussia was the youngest son of Wilhelm II, German Emperor, by his first wife, Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein.-Candidate for thrones:...
. After his return to his Regiment on 30 October 1917 he became the Adjutant to the Governor of Riga-Dünamünde. Appointed as Adjutant to the Garde-Reserve-Korps on 23 April 1918 he was promoted to Major on 15 July 1918. His final wartime appointment was as Adjutant of the 4th Army, a post he assumed on 8 November 1918.
Following the Armistice von Lindeiner-Wildau was leader of the collecting point in Potsdam
Potsdam
Potsdam is the capital city of the German federal state of Brandenburg and part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. It is situated on the River Havel, southwest of Berlin city centre....
of the Volunteer Border Protection Unit East and Upper East (Grenzschutz Ost/Oberost) from 18 January 1919. He retired on 20 September 1919 with permission to wear the uniform of the 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß. He worked in several civilian posts, and married a Dutch baroness.
He joined the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
in 1937 as one of Hermann Göring
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
’s personal staff. Refused retirement, 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...
he was the Kommandant of Stalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III was a Luftwaffe-run prisoner-of-war camp during World War II that housed captured air force servicemen. It was in the German Province of Lower Silesia near the town of Sagan , southeast of Berlin...
, the setting for the movie The Great Escape
The Great Escape (film)
The Great Escape is a 1963 American film about an escape by Allied prisoners of war from a German POW camp during World War II, starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Richard Attenborough...
. Following the escape he feigned mental illness to avoid imprisonment. He was wounded by Russian troops advancing towards Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
while acting as second in command of an infantry unit. He later surrendered to advancing British forces as the war ended and was imprisoned for two years at the British prison known as the "London Cage
London Cage
The "London Cage" was a MI19 prisoner of war facility during and immediately after World War II that was subject to frequent allegations of torture...
". He testified during the British SIB
Special Investigation Branch
The Special Investigation Branch is the name given to the detective branches of all three British military police arms: the Royal Navy Police, Royal Military Police and Royal Air Force Police. It is most closely associated with the Royal Military Police, which has the largest SIB. SIB members...
investigation concerning the Stalag Luft III murders
Stalag Luft III murders
The Stalag Luft III murders was a war crime perpetrated by members of the Gestapo following the "Great Escape" of Allied prisoners of war from the German Air Force prison camp known as Stalag Luft III on March 25, 1944. Of a total of 76 successful escapees, 73 were recaptured, mostly within days of...
. He had followed the Geneva Conventions
Geneva Conventions
The Geneva Conventions comprise four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish the standards of international law for the humanitarian treatment of the victims of war...
concerning the treatment of POW
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
s and had won the respect of the senior prisoners. He was released when the testimony given by Allied prisoners at Stalag Luft III saved him from the death penalty.
He died in 1963 at the age of 82.
Awards
Friedrich von Lindeiner-Wildau received the Pour le MéritePour le Mérite
The Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
and the Prussian Order of the Crown
Order of the Crown (Prussia)
The Order of the Crown was Prussia's lowest ranking order of chivalry. Instituted in 1861 as an award equal in rank to the Order of the Red Eagle, it could only be awarded to commissioned officers , but there was a medal associated with the order which could be earned by non-commissioned officers...
4th Class with Swords for the brutal fighting in the German East Africa campaign of 1905-07. He was also awarded the Colonial Medal with that bar. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he was also awarded the Saxe-Ernestine House Order
Saxe-Ernestine House Order
The Saxe-Ernestine House Order was a German Ducal award, instituted by Duke Friedrich of Saxe-Altenburg, Duke Ernst I of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and Duke Bernhard II of Saxe-Meiningen, on 25 December 1833 as a joint award of the Saxon duchies.-Classes:At first, the Order consisted of five classes: Grand...
- Knight 1st Class with Swords (1 May 1918) as Hauptmann and 1st Adjutant of the Government of Riga and the Mouth of the Düna, and the House Order of Hohenzollern
House Order of Hohenzollern
The House Order of Hohenzollern was an order of chivalry of the House of Hohenzollern. It was both a military and a civil award...
Honor Cross 3b with Swords on 5 February 1915. He was also awarded the Iron Cross
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross is a cross symbol typically in black with a white or silver outline that originated after 1219 when the Kingdom of Jerusalem granted the Teutonic Order the right to combine the Teutonic Black Cross placed above a silver Cross of Jerusalem....
First and Second Class.
External links
- http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=rExW6AJOGZUC&pg=PA53&lpg=PA53&dq=von+Lindeiner-Wildau&source=bl&ots=D7OZoiw7PH&sig=xTfTR9JaEi8w3K8zZVgUumtp-8o&hl=en&ei=MKi4TPvxI6SR4gbyrtSUDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9&ved=0CDkQ6AEwCDgU#v=onepage&q=von%20Lindeiner-Wildau&f=falseKozak-Holland, Mark Project Lessons from the Great Escape (Stalag Luft III) Multi-Media Publications Inc (2007) Google Books]