Erich Dethleffsen


Erich Dethleffsen was a German general from Kiel. He was married to the daughter of Nikolaus von Falkenhorst, who planned the German invasion of Norway and Denmark during World War II.

Career

Dethleffsen joined the Reichsheer in 1923, and was promoted to the German General Staff in 1937. He fought as a Captain in the Heer on the Eastern Front in World War II. Dethleffsen was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his service. After his recovery, he rose to the rank of Generalmajor, and served on the army General Staff in Adolf Hitler's headquarters. Dethleffsen was arrested on 23 May 1945, and was held until March 1948 in an American Prisoner of War Camp. He was originally held in Luxembourg with Hermann Göring, Joachim von Ribbentrop, and others.
On his release, Dethleffsen became executive secretary of the Wirtschaftspolitische Gesellschaft von 1947 The society was used to spread pro-western sentiment in West Germany.
He was the author of Das Wagnis der Freiheit ; Soldatische Existenz morgen ; Der Artillerie gewidmet ; and Robert Martinek: General der Artillerie, Lebensbild eines Soldaten.
Dethleffsen died in Munich on 4 July 1980.

Decorations and awards