Fritz Eckstein
Encyclopedia
Fritz Eckstein was an Unterscharführer
in the Waffen SS during World War II
. Who was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
, which was awarded to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership by Nazi Germany
during World War II
.
, Württemberg
to Adolf and Maria Eckstein, he was the first of three children. He attended the local peoples school until the age of 14 when he started work for his father in his merchant business in Stuttgart
. He then worked for the next two and a half years in the sales department of an iron wholesale company.
During this time at the age of ten he had joined the Hitler Youth
in May 1933, and remained an active member until he volunteered to join the Waffen SS in 1940.
size.
He first saw action during Operation Marita the invasion of the Balkans
and was then involved in the invasion of the Soviet Union
(Operation Barbarossa
). He was awarded the Iron Cross
II class, the Wound Badge
and the Eastern Front Medal
at the same time being promoted to Rottenführer
.
Having been evacuated due to his wounds in the Battle of Kharkov
he did not return to the front until 1944, when he was posted to the 1st Battery, 1st SS Panzerjäger
Battalion LSSAH on the Eastern Front
until April when the whole Battalion was transferred to the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend. Because they had been transferred to the new Division they were not deemed fit for combat and did not accompany the rest of the Division to counter the Normandy Landings until mid July 1944.
When they did reach the front they were quickly sent into action and proved their worth during Operation Totalise
(8–10 August) being largely responsible for defeating the Allied attack.
During this time Eckstein served as the gunner in a Jagdpanzer IV
commanded by Oberscharführer
Rudolf Roy
and knocked out 8 tanks on the 8 August, for which he was awarded the Iron Cross I class. The next day he knocked out a further 13 tanks and within 5 days had knocked out a total of 26 tanks.
Fritz Eckstein was promoted to Unterscharführer
in November 1944, and recommended for the Knight's Cross. The citation reads;
Eckstein became only the second gunner in the Waffen SS to be awarded the Knight's Cross after Rotternführer, Balthasar Woll
. He remained with the 12th SS Panzerjäger Battalion until the end of the war, eventually given command of his own vehicle.
.
Unterscharführer
Unterscharführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party used by the Schutzstaffel between 1934 and 1945. The SS rank was created after the Night of the Long Knives...
in the Waffen SS 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...
. Who was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was a grade of the 1939 version of the 1813 created Iron Cross . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was the highest award of Germany to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership during World War II...
, which was awarded to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership by Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
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...
.
Early life
Fritz Eckstein was born on the 27 January 1923 in SchwaikheimSchwaikheim
Schwaikheim is a town in the district of Rems-Murr in Baden-Württemberg in Germany....
, Württemberg
Württemberg
Württemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
to Adolf and Maria Eckstein, he was the first of three children. He attended the local peoples school until the age of 14 when he started work for his father in his merchant business in Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
. He then worked for the next two and a half years in the sales department of an iron wholesale company.
During this time at the age of ten he had joined the Hitler Youth
Hitler Youth
The Hitler Youth was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party. It existed from 1922 to 1945. The HJ was the second oldest paramilitary Nazi group, founded one year after its adult counterpart, the Sturmabteilung...
in May 1933, and remained an active member until he volunteered to join the Waffen SS in 1940.
World War II
Having volunteered for the Waffen SS aged 17 in 1940, he was called up to begin basic training in June and was assigned to the Training and Reserve Battalion Der Führer. After completing his basic training he was posted to the SS Regiment Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler which had just been increased to BrigadeBrigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...
size.
He first saw action during Operation Marita the invasion of the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
and was then involved in the invasion of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
(Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
). He was 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....
II class, the Wound Badge
Wound Badge
Wound Badge was a German military award for wounded or frost-bitten soldiers of Imperial German Army in World War I, the Reichswehr between the wars, and the Wehrmacht, SS and the auxiliary service organizations during the Second World War. After March 1943, due to the increasing number of Allied...
and the Eastern Front Medal
Eastern Front Medal
The Eastern Front Medal, , more commonly known as the Ostmedaille was instituted on May 26, 1942 to mark service on the German Eastern Front during the period November 15, 1941 to April 15, 1942...
at the same time being promoted to Rottenführer
Rottenführer
Rottenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in the year 1932. The rank of Rottenführer was used by several Nazi paramilitary groups, among them the Sturmabteilung , the Schutzstaffel and was senior to the paramilitary rank of Sturmmann.The insignia for Rottenführer...
.
Having been evacuated due to his wounds in the Battle of Kharkov
Battle of Kharkov
Battle of Kharkov may refer to:* First Battle of Kharkov, a 1941 battle in which German troops captured the city* Second Battle of Kharkov, a 1942 battle in which Soviet forces attempted to retake the city...
he did not return to the front until 1944, when he was posted to the 1st Battery, 1st SS Panzerjäger
Panzerjäger
Panzerjäger was a branch of service of the Wehrmacht during the Second World War which were the anti-tank arm-of-service who operated anti-tank artillery, and made exclusive use of the tank destroyers which were also named Panzerjäger...
Battalion LSSAH on the Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
until April when the whole Battalion was transferred to the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend. Because they had been transferred to the new Division they were not deemed fit for combat and did not accompany the rest of the Division to counter the Normandy Landings until mid July 1944.
When they did reach the front they were quickly sent into action and proved their worth during Operation Totalise
Operation Totalise
Operation Totalize was an offensive launched by Allied troops of the First Canadian Army during the later stages of the Operation Overlord, from August 8 to August 13, 1944...
(8–10 August) being largely responsible for defeating the Allied attack.
During this time Eckstein served as the gunner in a Jagdpanzer IV
Jagdpanzer IV
The Jagdpanzer IV, Sd.Kfz. 162, was a tank destroyer based on the Panzer IV chassis built in three main variants. As one of the casemate-style turretless Jagdpanzer designs, it was developed against the wishes of Heinz Guderian, the inspector general of the Panzertruppen, as a replacement for the...
commanded by Oberscharführer
Oberscharführer
Oberscharführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that existed between the years of 1932 and 1945. Translated as “Senior Squad Leader”, Oberscharführer was first used as a rank of the Sturmabteilung and was created due to an expansion of the enlisted positions required by growing SA membership...
Rudolf Roy
Rudolf Roy
Rudolf Roy Jr. was a Untersturmführer in the Waffen SS during World War II, awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, which was awarded to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership by Nazi Germany during World War II.-Early life:Rudolf Roy Jr...
and knocked out 8 tanks on the 8 August, for which he was awarded the Iron Cross I class. The next day he knocked out a further 13 tanks and within 5 days had knocked out a total of 26 tanks.
Fritz Eckstein was promoted to Unterscharführer
Unterscharführer
Unterscharführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party used by the Schutzstaffel between 1934 and 1945. The SS rank was created after the Night of the Long Knives...
in November 1944, and recommended for the Knight's Cross. The citation reads;
SS-Rottenführer Eckstein was awarded the E.K. I on 8.8.44 for his outstanding bravery during the attack of an enemy tank formation near St. Aigan, where he alone destroyed eight enemy tanks.
On the morning of 9.8.44 enemy tanks penetrated into the rear of Kampfgruppe Waldmüller through the gaps in the HKL near Soignolles and from Hill 111 dominated all supply lines.
A Panzerjäger 39 with SS-Rottenführer Eckstein as the gunner engaged the numerically superior enemy tanks in combat. Despite extremely difficult circumstances SS-Rttf. Eckstein knocked out nine English tanks within a short period of time. For that reason it was possible for the supply columns to pass through to the Kampfgruppe again.
At twilight, a formation of enemy tanks launched a surprise attack on the Kampfgruppe while it was disengaging. Eckstein destroyed four of the attacking tanks. The Kampfgruppe was able to carry out the withdrawal without losses.
Consequently, on this day alone SS-Rottenführer Eckstein knocked out 13 enemy tanks and within 5 days increased his total number to 26 English tanks.
Eckstein became only the second gunner in the Waffen SS to be awarded the Knight's Cross after Rotternführer, Balthasar Woll
Balthasar Woll
Balthasar "Bobby" Woll was a Oberscharführer in the Waffen SS who was also awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. He was born in Wemmetsweiler on 1 March 1922, ....
. He remained with the 12th SS Panzerjäger Battalion until the end of the war, eventually given command of his own vehicle.
Post war
Eckstein survived the war and died on the 4 April 1979 at the age of 56, in his hometown of SchwaikheimSchwaikheim
Schwaikheim is a town in the district of Rems-Murr in Baden-Württemberg in Germany....
.
Further reading
- Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945. Friedburg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas, 2000. ISBN 3-7909-0284-5.
- Mitcham, Jr. Samuel, Retreat to the Reich, Stackpole books 2007. ISBN 081173384X
- Henschler Henri & Fay Will, Armor Battles of the Waffen-SS, 1943-45 Stackpole Books, 2003. ISBN 0811729052
- Mitcham Samuel, The German Defeat in the East, 1944-45,Stackpole Books, 2007. ISBN 0811733718
- Meyer Hubert, The 12th SS: The History of the Hitler Youth Panzer Division, Stackpole Books, 2005.ISBN 0811731987
- Reynolds, Michael (1997). Steel Inferno: I SS Panzer Corps in Normandy. Spellmount. ISBN 1873376901