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Karl Bodenschatz

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Karl Bodenschatz
Born(1890-12-10)10 December 1890
Rehau, Bavaria, German Empire
Died25 August 1979(1979-08-25) (aged 88)
Erlangen, Bavaria, West Germany
Allegiance German Empire (to 1918)
 Weimar Republic (to 1933)
 Nazi Germany
Service / branchBavarian Army
Luftstreitkräfte
Reichsheer
Luftwaffe
Years of service1910–45
Rank General der Flieger
Battles / warsWorld War I
World War II

Karl-Heinrich Bodenschatz (10 December 1890 – 25 August 1979) was a German general who was the adjutant to Manfred von Richthofen in World War I and the liaison officer between Hermann Göring and Adolf Hitler in World War II.

Biography

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Early life and First World War

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Bodenschatz was born in Rehau, Kingdom of Bavaria in 1890. He enlisted in the Royal Bavarian 8th Infantry Regiment (Königlich Bayerisches 8. Infanterie-Regiment „Großherzog Friedrich II. von Baden“) and was a cadet at the War Academy in Metz. He was commissioned a Leutnant on 28 October 1912. Following the German entry into World War I he saw active infantry service on the Western Front and participated in the Battle of Verdun. After being wounded four times, in 1916 he transferred to the Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte. He served as an adjutant in Jagdstaffel 2 ("Jasta Boelcke") and then in Jagdgeschwader 1 based at Avesnes-le-sac. He was adjutant to Manfred von Richthofen and later, after the deaths of Manfred von Richthofen and his successor Wilhelm Reinhard, to Hermann Göring, who took over command of the fighter wing in June 1918.[1]

Between the wars

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After the war, Bodenschatz was carried over into the Reichswehr as a regular officer and served in the 21st (Bavarian) Infantry Regiment from 1919 until April 1933.[1] He had maintained a friendship with Göring and joined the Luftwaffe as his military adjutant, serving in this capacity until 1938, visiting Britain in November 1938.[2] In 1939, he warned the Polish military attaché in Berlin that Nazi Germany was planning to invade Poland by the end of the year.[3]

Left to right: Karl Bodenschatz, Walter von Reichenau and Wilhelm Keitel in 1939.

Second World War

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During World War II he was the liaison officer between Hitler's headquarters and the Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe until he was seriously injured in 1944 by the 20 July plot bomb at the Wolf's Lair headquarters in Rastenburg, East Prussia. He was fortunate to survive the explosion as two officers immediately to his left and one to his right were killed.

Post-war

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He was captured at Reichenhall on 5 May 1945 and served two years in prison. In 1946 he was called as a witness at the Nuremberg Trials of major Nazi war criminals. He died in Erlangen, West Germany, in 1979, aged 88.

Decorations and awards

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References

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Citations
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m German Federal Archives (Bundesarchiv), Luftwaffe Personalakte von Karl Bodenschatz, BArch PERS 6/83
  2. ^ Hansard 28 November 1938
  3. ^ Bouverie, Tim (2019). Appeasement: Chamberlain, Hitler, Churchill, and the Road to War (1 ed.). New York: Tim Duggan Books. p. 341. ISBN 978-0-451-49984-4. OCLC 1042099346.
  4. ^ Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 537.
Bibliography
  • Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II [The German Cross 1941 – 1945 History and Recipients Volume 2] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8.
  • Hunting With Richthofen: The Bodenschatz Diaries: Sixteen Months of Battle with J G Freiherr Von Richthofen No. 1. Grub Street, 1998, ISBN 1-898697-97-3.
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