Günter Halm
Günter Halm | |
---|---|
21. Panzer Division | |
Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Iron Cross 1st Class Iron Cross 2nd Class |
Günter Halm (27 August 1922 – 26 September 2017) was a German infantryman and the youngest member of the Afrika Korps to be awarded the Knight's Cross for his bravery in action.
Early life
Halm was born on 27 August 1922 in the town of Elze, Lower Saxony, to Heinrich and Friederike Halm. On attending his local school in Braunschweig, he completed his studies, two of which were dedicated to his vocation as a machinist. At the end of 1941 he was called up for military service, where he completed his basic training and served with the Panzerjäger-Ersatzabteilung 13 in Braunschweig. In 1942 he was posted to the Afrika Korps where he was employed as a gunner with support company’s anti-tank platoon of Panzergrenadier-Regiments 104, 21. Panzer-Division.
Military service
North Africa
The anti-tank platoon consisted of two captured Soviet anti-tank guns, both being 76mm M1936s (F22), which the Wehrmacht designated as the PAK 36 or PAK 36(r), and were colloquially known at the ‘Ratsch-Bumm’. With Halm's gun under the command of Unteroffizier Jabeck, his unit took part in Operation Theseus, also known as the Battle of Gazala. In July 1942 he was promoted to Gefreiter and on 15 July 1942 he was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class for the elimination of two British tanks at the Battle of Bir Hakeim.
Following this he fought at the
His promotion to
Normandy
Between December 1943 and the end of February 1944 he undertook officer training in
Post-war
On his release in 1946 he returned to Germany, where he and his wife ran her parents’ fuel business for the next 42 years until their retirement. Halm joined the local gymnastics and sports club in
For his numerous social commitments he received a golden badge of honour from Lower Saxony's Sports Association, a letter of commendation from the German Gymnastics Association, Bad Münder's silver medal and in 1995 the
Halm died in September 2017 at the age of 95.[1]
Awards
- Iron Cross (1939) 2nd class & 1st class (29 July 1942)
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 29 July 1942 as Grenadier and gunner in the Pakzug (anti tank platoon) in the Stabskompanie/Panzergrenadier-Regiment 104[2]
References
Citations
- ^ "Günter Halm Obituary". Archived from the original on 2017-10-07. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
- ^ Scherzer 2007, p. 362.
Bibliography
- Carell, Paul (2003). Die Wüstenfüchse. Mit Rommel in Afrika [Foxes of the Desert - With Rommel in Africa] (in German). Munich, Germany: Herbig Verlag. ISBN 978-3776623406.
- Möbius, Ingo (2012). Ein Grenadier entscheidet eine Schlacht. Die Erinnerungen von Günter Halm, dem jüngsten Ritterkreuzträger des Afrikakorps [An Infantryman determines a Battle. Memories of Günter Halm, youngest Bearer of the Knight Cross of the Afrika Korps] (in German). Chemnitz, Germany: Möbius Verlag. ISBN 978-3000381072.
- 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.