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Willibald Utz

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Willibald Utz
Colonel Utz
NicknameWilly
Born(1893-01-20)20 January 1893
Furth im Wald, Kingdom of Bavaria, German Empire
Died20 April 1954(1954-04-20) (aged 61)
Bad Reichenhall, Bavaria, West Germany
Place of burial
Saint Zeno Cemetery
Allegiance Kingdom of Bavaria
German Empire
Weimar Republic
Nazi Germany
Branch
 Bavarian Army
 Imperial German Army
 Reichsheer
 German Army
Service years
1913–1945
Rank
Generalleutnant
Commands100th Gebirgsjäger Regiment
100th Jäger Division
2nd Mountain Division
Conflicts
World War I
World War II
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Relations∞ 10 December 1952 Elvira Pfeiffer, née Soutschek (1896–1982)

Willibald "Willy" Johann Sebastian Utz[1] (20 January 1893 – 20 April 1954) was a German general during World War II who commanded several divisions. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.

Life and career

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Willibald Utz was born in Furth im Wald in Bavaria on 20 January 1893. On 1 October 1913, at the age of 20, he entered the Bavarian Army as an officer candidate (Fahnenjunker), and by September 1914 he had been commissioned lieutenant.

After serving in World War I he joined the preliminary Reichswehr. From 1 September to 31 December 1920, he served with the Munich State Police (Landespolizei München) but soon realized that this profession did not suit him and returned to the Reichswehr on 1 January 1921.

By the outbreak of World War II in 1939 he was commander of the 100th (mountain) (Gebirgsjäger) Regiment,[2] and was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his leadership of this regiment during the invasion of Crete during May and June 1941.[3]

In April 1943, Utz was appointed commander of the newly reconstituted 100th Jäger Division, which had been destroyed at the end of the Battle of Stalingrad. Promoted to major general (Generalmajor) on 1 July 1943, he held his command on the Eastern Front from March to December 1944.[4]

Now a lieutenant general (Generalleutnant),[4] he took over command of the 2nd Mountain Division on 9 February 1945 when its previous commander was wounded. After fighting on the Western Front in the Saar-Moselle Triangle, his new command, earlier in the war considered an elite unit, was well below strength and combat effectiveness. The division finished the war in Württemberg where Utz surrendered it to the Western Allies.[5]

Promotions

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  • 1 October 1913 Fahnenjunker (Officer Candidate)
  • 7 January 1914 Fahnenjunker-Unteroffizier (Officer Candidate with Corporal/NCO/Junior Sergeant rank)
  • 1 July 1914 Fähnrich (Officer Cadet)
  • 19 September 1914 Leutnant (2nd Lieutenant) without Patent (ernannt)
    • 9 October 1917 received Patent from 7 January 1913
  • 6 April 1918 Oberleutnant (1st Lieutenant)
    • 1 July 1922 received Reichswehr Rank Seniority (RDA) from 18 April 1918 (21)
  • 1 September 1920 Oberleutnant der Landespolizei (1st Lieutenant of the State Police)
  • 1 November 1926 (2) Hauptmann (Captain)
  • 1 September 1934 Major (6)
  • 16 March 1937 Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant Colonel) with effect and RDA from 1 March 1937 (30)
  • 30 January 1940 Oberst (Colonel) with effect and RDA from 1 February 1940 (28)
  • 10 July 1943 Generalmajor (Major General) with effect and RDA from 1 July 1943 (6a)
  • 24 January 1944 (telex date) Generalleutnant (Lieutenant General) with effect and RDA from 1 February 1944 (8)

Awards and decorations

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Grave in Bad Reichenhall

Sources

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  • German Federal Archives: BArch PERS 6/972 and PERS 6/301169

Notes

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  1. ^ Birth/Baptism, Furth im Wald (Bavaria), Mariä Himmelfahrt parish book #20, image 208 (pp. 407-408), accessed 28 March 2025 at Matricula Online: https://data.matricula-online.eu/en/deutschland/regensburg/furth-i-wald/Furth_i_Wald020/?pg=208
  2. ^ Lucas 1980, p. 219.
  3. ^ a b Fellgiebel 2000, p. 348.
  4. ^ a b Mitcham 2007, pp. 247–248.
  5. ^ Mitcham 2007, pp. 263–264.

References

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  • Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
  • Lucas, James (1980). Alpine Elite: German Mountain Troops of World War II. Jane's Publishing. ISBN 0531037134.
  • Mitcham, Samuel W. Jr. (2007). German Order of Battle, Volume Two: 291st–999th Infantry Divisions, Named Infantry Divisions, and Special Divisions in WWII. Mechanicsburg, PA, United States: Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-3437-0.
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  • Wikimedia Commons logo Media related to Willibald Utz at Wikimedia Commons
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