Oberkommando des Heeres

Oberkommando des Heeres
Oberkommando des Heeres
	Command flag from 1938 to 1942
Founded	1935
Disbanded	23 May 1945
Country	German Reich
Branch	German Army
Type	High Command
Part of	Oberkommando der Wehrmacht
Nickname(s)	OKH
Commanders
Chief of the General Staff	Wilhelm Keitel
Insignia
Command flag 1936-38
Command flag 1938-42

The Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH) was the High Command (lit. 'Upper Command') of the German Army during the Era of Nazi Germany. It was founded in 1935 as a part of Adolf Hitler's re-militarisation of Germany. From 1938 OKH was, together with OKL (Oberkommando der Luftwaffe, High Command of the Air Force) and OKM (Oberkommando der Marine, High Command of the Navy), formally subordinated to the OKW (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, High Command of the Armed Forces), with the exception of the Waffen-SS. During the war, OKH had the responsibility of strategic planning of Armies and Army Groups, while the General Staff of the OKH managed operational matters. Each German Army also had an Armeeoberkommando, Army Command, or AOK. Until the German defeat at Moscow in December 1941, OKH and its staff was de facto the most important unit within the German war planning. OKW then took over this function for theatres other than the German-Soviet front. OKH commander held the title Oberbefehlshaber des Heeres (Supreme Commander of the Army). Following the Battle of Moscow, after OKH commander Field Marshal Walther von Brauchitsch was excused, Hitler appointed himself as Commander-in-Chief of the Army.

OKH vs OKW

Hitler had been the head of OKW since January 1938, using it to pass orders to the navy (OKM), air force (OKL), and army (OKH). After a major crisis developed in the Battle of Moscow, Walther von Brauchitsch was dismissed (partly because of his failing health), and Hitler appointed himself as head of the OKH while still retaining his position at the OKW. At the same time, he limited the OKH's authority to the Russian front, giving OKW direct authority over army units elsewhere. This enabled Hitler to declare that only he had complete awareness of Germany's strategic situation, should any general request a transfer of resources between the Russian front and another theater of operations.^[1]

Organisation

In 1944, these elements were subordinate to the OKH:^[2]

C.-in-C. Reserve Army and Chief of Equipment (Chef der Heeresausrüstung und Befehlshaber des Ersatzheeres): Friedrich Fromm
Chief of Army General Division (Chef des Allgemeines Heeresamt): Friedrich Olbricht
Chief of Army Ordnance (Chef des Heereswaffenamtes): Emil Leeb
Chief of Army Personnel Division (Chef des Heerespersonalamtes): Rudolf Schmundt
Chief of Army Administrative Division (Chef des Heeresverwaltungsamtes): Herbert Osterkamp
Army Propaganda and Public Relations Office: Hasso von Wedel – Albrecht Blau – Kurt Dittmar
Inspector General of Armoured Troops (Generalinspekteur der Panzertruppen): Heinz Guderian
General officer commanding for Engineers and Fortifications (General der Pioniere und Festungen): Alfred Jacob
Inspector General for Officer Cadets (Generalinspektion des Militärerziehungs- und Bildungswesens): Karl-Wilhelm Specht

Leadership

Commander-in-Chief of the Army

The Commander-in-Chief of the Army (German: Oberbefehlshaber des Heeres) was the head of the OKH and the German Army during the years of the Nazi regime. Supreme Commanders of the Army were:

No.	Commander-in-Chief	Took office	Left office	Time in office
1	von Fritsch, WernerGeneraloberst Werner von Fritsch (1880–1939)	1 January 1934	4 February 1938	4 years, 34 days
2	von Brauchitsch, WaltherGeneralfeldmarschall Walther von Brauchitsch (1881–1948)	4 February 1938	19 December 1941	3 years, 318 days
3	Hitler, AdolfFührer und Reichskanzler Adolf Hitler (1889–1945) ^[a]	19 December 1941	30 April 1945 †	3 years, 132 days
4	Schörner, FerdinandGeneralfeldmarschall Ferdinand Schörner (1892–1973) ^[b]	30 April 1945	8 May 1945	8 days

Chief of the OKH General Staff

Flag of Chief of the German Army General Staff

The Chiefs of the OKH General Staff (German: Chef des Generalstabes des Heeres) were:

No.	Chief of the OKH General Staff	Took office	Left office	Time in office
1	Beck, LudwigGeneraloberst Ludwig Beck (1880–1944)	1 July 1935	31 August 1938	3 years, 61 days
2	Halder, FranzGeneraloberst Franz Halder (1884–1972)	1 September 1938	24 September 1942	4 years, 23 days
3	Zeitzler, KurtGeneraloberst Kurt Zeitzler (1895–1963)	24 September 1942	10 June 1944	1 year, 260 days
–	Heusinger, AdolfGeneralleutnant Adolf Heusinger (1897–1982) Acting ^[c]	10 June 1944	21 July 1944	41 days
–	Guderian, HeinzGeneraloberst Heinz Guderian (1888–1954) Acting	21 July 1944	28 March 1945	250 days
–	Krebs, HansGeneral der Infanterie Hans Krebs (1898–1945) Acting ^[d]	1 April 1945	1 May 1945 †	30 days
–	Keitel, WilhelmGeneralfeldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel (1882–1946) Acting	1 May 1945	13 May 1945	12 days
–	Jodl, AlfredGeneraloberst Alfred Jodl (1890–1946) Acting	13 May 1945	23 May 1945	10 days

Although both OKW and OKH were headquartered in Zossen during the Third Reich, the functional and operational independence of both establishments were not lost on the respective staff during their tenure. Personnel at the sprawling Zossen compound remarked that even if Maybach 2 (the OKW complex) was completely destroyed, the OKH staff in Maybach 1 would scarcely notice. These camouflaged facilities, separated physically by a fence, also maintained structurally different mindsets towards their objectives.

On 28 April 1945 (two days before his suicide), Hitler formally subordinated OKH to OKW, giving the latter command of forces on the Eastern Front.^[3]

Notes

^ Hitler assumed personal command of the OKH following Brauchitsch's dismissal in order to supervise Operation Barbarossa, the German-led invasion of the Soviet Union.
^ one of Hitler's favorite military commanders was named in Hitler's last will and testament, which the latter issued prior to his suicide on April 30, 1945 as the new commander of the OKH. Meanwhile, the OKH was subordinated to the OKW of the Wehrmacht, under Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel.
^ Later served as the Inspector General of the Bundeswehr (1957–1961) and Chairman of the NATO Military Committee (1961–1964)
^ Committed suicide

References

^ Barnett, Correlli (1989). Hitler's Generals. Grove. pp. 497. ISBN 978-1555841614.
^ CIA (1944). Who's Who In Nazi Germany (PDF). CIA. pp. 31–32. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
^ Grier, Howard D. Hitler, Dönitz, and the Baltic Sea, Naval Institute Press, 2007, ISBN 1-59114-345-4. p. 121

[3] Hitler assumed personal command of the OKH following Brauchitsch's dismissal in order to supervise Operation Barbarossa, the German-led invasion of the Soviet Union.

[4] Hitler's favorite military commanders was named in Hitler's last will and testament, which the latter issued prior to his suicide on April 30, 1945 as the new commander of the OKH. Meanwhile, the OKH was subordinated to the OKW of the Wehrmacht, under Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel.

[5] Later served as the Inspector General of the Bundeswehr (1957–1961) and Chairman of the NATO Military Committee (1961–1964)

[6] Committed suicide

[1] Barnett, Correlli (1989). Hitler's Generals. Grove. pp. 497. ISBN 978-1555841614.

[2] CIA (1944). Who's Who In Nazi Germany (PDF). CIA. pp. 31–32. Retrieved 30 October 2019.

[7] Grier, Howard D. Hitler, Dönitz, and the Baltic Sea, Naval Institute Press, 2007, ISBN 1-59114-345-4. p. 121

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