Rudolf Meister

Not to be confused with Rudolf Maister.

Rudolf Meister
Rudolf Meister
Born	1 August 1897 Cologne, German Empire
Died	11 September 1958(1958-09-11) (aged 61) Hanover, West Germany
Allegiance	German Empire Weimar Republic Nazi Germany
Service / branch	Luftwaffe
Years of service	1914–28 1931–45
Rank	General der Flieger
Commands	4th Air Corps
Battles / wars	World War II Eastern Front
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Rudolf Meister (1 August 1897 – 11 September 1958) was a German general (General der Flieger) in the Luftwaffe during World War II who commanded the 4th Air Corps. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany. Meister surrendered to the American troops in May 1945 and was interned until 1948.

In 1950, Meister was one of the authors of the Himmerod memorandum which addressed the issue of rearmament (Wiederbewaffnung) of the Federal Republic of Germany after World War II.

Awards and decorations

• German Cross in Gold on 30 October 1941 as Oberst im Generalstab (in the General Staff) of VIII. Fliegerkorps
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 5 September 1944 as Generalleutnant and commander of IV. Fliegerkorps

References

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.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.