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Karl Mauss

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Karl Mauss
Mauss in 1945
Born(1898-05-17)17 May 1898
Plön, German Empire
Died9 February 1959(1959-02-09) (aged 60)
Hamburg, West Germany
Allegiance German Empire
Weimar Republic
Nazi Germany
Branch
Imperial German Army
Freikorps
German Army
Service years
1914–1922
1934–1945
Rank
Generalleutnant
Unit10th Panzer Division
Commands7th Panzer Division
Conflicts
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds
Alma materUniversity of Hamburg
Other workDentist

Karl Mauss (17 May 1898 – 9 February 1959) was a German military officer and dentist who fought in both world wars. As a general during World War II, he commanded the 7th Panzer Division and was one of only 27 German military men to receive the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. After the war, he returned to his dental practice until his death.

World War I

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Mauss was born in Plön in 1898 and volunteered for service in World War I in 1914 at the age of sixteen.[1] He joined Lauenburger Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 9 of Ratzeburg, serving on the western front. In 1915, the youngest man in the division, he was awarded the Iron Cross, 2nd class, as the best scout in the region during the Battle of the Somme.[2] The following year, shortly after the transfer of his division to the eastern front, he received the Iron Cross, 1st class. While serving with the 157th Infantry Regiment (4th Silesian), he was awarded the Hanseatic Cross of Lübeck by the Lübeck Senate on 22 March 1916.[3] At the end of the war, he was a Leutnant with Infantry Regiment 162 (3rd Hanseatic).[4]

Interwar years

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Following World War I, Mauss joined the paramilitary groups Freikorps Oberland and Marinebrigade Ehrhardt and fought against the Silesian Uprisings, including at the Battle of Annaberg. He left military service and, beginning in 1922, he studied dentistry at the University of Hamburg. He attained his doctorate in 1929, and opened a private dental practice. He re-enlisted in the army in October 1934 and served as a company and a battalion commander in Infantry Regiment 69.[4] He reached the rank of Major in April 1938.

World War II

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At the start of World War II, Mauss served with the 20th Motorized Infantry Division, with which he participated in the September 1939 Invasion of Poland. In May 1940, his 10th Panzer Division took part in the Battle of France together with Heinz Guderian's XIX Army Corps. In the second phase of the campaign, Mauss participated in the battles against the French 7th Army.

Mauss' Grave at the St. Lorenz Cemetery, Lübeck

In June 1941, Mauss took part in Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. In November 1941, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. From March 1942 to January 1944, he commanded Panzer Grenadier regiment 33.[4] In April 1942, he was promoted to Oberst; he was awarded the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross in November 1943. In January 1944, he took command of the 7th Panzer Division. Mauss was promoted to Generalmajor on 1 April 1944, and to Generalleutnant on 1 October 1944.[4] On 23 October 1944, he received the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords. In February 1945, he was seriously injured and had a leg amputated. He received the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds on 15 April 1945. Reports that he was promoted to General der Panzertruppe in April are undocumented.[5]

After the war, Mauss again worked as a dentist in his own practice. He died in 1959 following a lengthy illness.

Awards and decorations

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References

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Citations

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  1. ^ Fraschka 1994, p. 325.
  2. ^ Fraschka 1994, p. 326.
  3. ^ a b Verzeichnis der Inhaber des Lübeckischen Hanseatenkreuzes in dem Bestand der Neuen Lübecker Senatsakten.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Webb 2024, pp. 294–295.
  5. ^ Reinhard Stumpf: Die Wehrmacht-Elite Rang- und Herkunftsstruktur der deutschen Generale und Admirale 1933–1945, Boppard am Rhein 1982, pp. 125, 127.
  6. ^ a b Thomas 1998, p. 64.
  7. ^ Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 299.
  8. ^ a b c d Scherzer 2007, p. 531.

Sources

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  • Fraschka, Günther (1994). Knights of the Reich. Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Military/Aviation History. ISBN 978-0-88740-580-8.
  • 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 Militär-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
  • Stockert, Peter (1998). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 4 [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 4] (in German). Bad Friedrichshall, Germany: Friedrichshaller Rundblick. ISBN 978-3-932915-03-1.
  • Thomas, Franz (1998). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 2: L–Z [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 2: L–Z] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2300-9.
  • Webb, James Jack (2024). Generals and Admirals of the Third Reich: For Country or Fuehrer. Vol. 2: H–O. Havertown, PA: Casemate Publishers. ISBN 978-1-952-71517-4.
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