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Wilhelm ListField Marshal of the German Army.
Date of Birth: 14.05.1880
Country:  Germany |
Content:
- Biography of Wilhelm List
- Early Career and World War I
- Leadership Roles
- World War II
- Dismissal and Conviction
- Later Years
Biography of Wilhelm List
Wilhelm List (1880-1971) was a German general field marshal of the German army. He was born on May 14, 1880 in Oberkirchberg, Württemberg.
Early Career and World War I
List joined the army in 1898 and in 1912, he graduated from the Bavarian Military Academy. He served in the military from 1898 onwards and participated in World War I. After the war, he continued his service in the Reichswehr.
Leadership Roles
From 1930 onwards, List became the head of the Infantry School in Dresden. In 1933, he became the commander of a infantry division and later a corps. In 1938, List joined the command of the 5th Army Group, which was specifically created for the "annexation" of Austria and the Sudetenland.
World War II
During the German invasion of Poland in 1939, List commanded the 14th Army. He then commanded the 12th Army during the French campaign and the aggression against Yugoslavia and Greece (1940-41). List later led the occupation forces in the Balkans and brutally suppressed partisan movements.
Dismissal and Conviction
From June to September 1942, List commanded the German-Fascist Army Group A on the Soviet-German front, operating in the North Caucasus. However, due to disagreements with Hitler on strategic planning, List was dismissed from his position in 1944. In 1948, he was sentenced to lifelong imprisonment by a military tribunal in Nuremberg for his crimes committed in Yugoslavia and Greece. However, he was released by the American authorities in 1952.
Later Years
After his release, List resided in West Germany and actively supported the ruling circles in the creation and strengthening of the Bundeswehr. He was one of the figures in fascist Germany who attempted to shift all the blame for the defeat in the war onto Hitler, seeking to justify the Wehrmacht and its generals, and conceal the true reasons for the collapse of the fascist adventure.
