Albert Kesselring
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Albert Kesselring (August 8, 1881 - July 16, 1960) was a German Generalfeldmarschall who commanded Army Group C during World War II. One of the most respected and skillful German generals, he was nicknamed "Smiling Albert" or "smiling Kesselring".
Biography
Kesselring was born in Marktsteft, Bavaria Germany, on 8 August 1881.He joined the German Army in 1904 and became an officer cadet in the 2nd Bavarian Foot Artillery Regiment at Metz. He served on various divisional and corps staffs in World War I. After various staff and troop assignments, he was assigned as administrative chief to the Reich Air Ministry. He became a Freemason during this time, and remained one until his death. Kesselring remained in this position until June 1936, when he was assigned as chief of the Luftwaffe (air force) General Staff.
In the Polish campaign, Kesselring commanded 1st Air Fleet and later in 1940 2nd Air Fleet in France. During the Battle of Britain he almost succeeded in defeating the RAF. In December 1941, Kesselring was appointed as Commander-in-Chief South with command of all Luftwaffe units in the Mediterranean and North African theaters. In late 1943 he was redesignated as Commander-in-Chief Southwest with nominal command of all German armed forces in Italy, where he led a brilliant twenty-month-long campaign of defence up the peninsula. Kesselring was transferred to Germany as Commander-in-Chief West in March 1945, and later designated as Commander-in-Chief South. He was taken prisoner at Saalfelden on 6 May 1945.
In 1947, the Allies tried him for the shootings of partisans by troops under his command. He was found guilty and sentenced to death. This sentence caused much controversy and protest, as the evidence of Kesselring's complicity in the executions was tenuous. In his memoirs Kesselring claims that many of these shootings were carried out by communist partisans in German uniforms, while others were carried out by the SS, over which he had no authority. Kesseling succeeded in keeping Rome an open city, avoiding the destruction of many artisticly important Italian cities, including Rome, Florence, Sienna and Orvieto. Kesselring was reprieved and released from prison in 1952 in consideration of his ill health.
He died at Bad Nauheim, West Germany, in 1960 at the age of 79.
His memoirs are entitled Soldat bis zum letzten Tag ("A soldier to the last day").
See also
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| Erich Raeder | Karl Dönitz | |
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Werner Mölders | Adolf Galland | Gordon Gollob | Hans-Joachim Marseille | Hermann Graf | Erwin Rommel | Wolfgang Lüth | Walter Nowotny | Adelbert Schulz | Hans-Ulrich Rudel | Hyazinth Graf von Strachwitz | Herbert Otto Gille | Hans-Valentin Hube | Albert Kesselring | Helmut Lent | Sepp Dietrich | Walter Model | Erich Hartmann | Hermann Balck | Hermann-Bernhard Ramcke | Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer | Albrecht Brandi | Ferdinand Schörner | Hasso von Manteuffel | Theodor Tolsdorff | Karl Mauss | Dietrich von Saucken | |
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