In the twelth Countdown to D-Day officer bio, Peter Margaritis writes about the defiant general Hans von Salmuth, a fierce critic of the Führer himself.
Hans Eberhard Kurt von Salmuth, born in Metz on November 11, 1888, was a stocky, self-confident leader with a reputation for being outspoken and for often directly presenting his views when he felt the need arose. Like most of his peers, he is a veteran of World War I. Now at 55 years old, he had accumulated plenty of wartime experience. When the Second World War broke out, he initially served as chief of staff to General von Bock commanding Heeresgruppe Nord in the invasion of Poland, and then later in the Dutch invasion of 1940. In the spring of 1941, on the Östfront, he took over command of XXX Corps and later served in the opening invasion of Russia and the Sevastopol campaign. The next summer, he was given command of the Second Army, and was part of the drive on Stalingrad, covering the northern flank of von Weich’s army group, and in November, the fierce Russian counterattack.
Two months later, his army was attacked and encircled by a mighty Russian winter counteroffensive, and he found himself on the brink of another, smaller Stalingrad. A practical fellow (who had learned from von Paulus’ fateful decision to hold fast), he rejected the Führer’s usual ‘stand-and-hold’ order. Instead, in a daring counterattack, he led his men in a hard-fought breakout that rescued his army. Still, he had disobeyed orders, unfortunately in the same month that von Paulus surrendered to the Russians. Hitler had not yet learned the harsh lessons of the Sixth Army’s fate, so in early February, von Salmuth was relieved. It was a humiliating experience that left him bitter and resentful. Eventually, OKW begrudged him the possibility that he had done the right thing and had, after all, saved his army. So four months later, he was restored to duty and given command of the Fourth Army on the Russian Front. Still, his previous defiance to orders had earned him the disfavour of the Führer. Therefore, after the failed Kursk offensive in July 1943, von Salmuth was again relieved.
In August, he was reassigned to the West to command the Fifteenth Army. His hatred of Hitler and the Nazis though never left him, and as a result, he shared a number of conversations with officers that were a part of the resistance against the Führer.
After D-Day, his army sat waiting for a hypothetical landing at the Pas-de-Calais. Finally, after the Allies broke out of Normandy in August, the Fifteenth Army was sent down towards Normandy. However, the German front collapsed and von Salmuth, suspected of fraternizing with anti-Hitler conspirators, was relieved of his command.
After the war, Hans von Salmuth was tried in Nuremberg and found guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity. He was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment but was released in 1953.
He died on New Year’s Day, 1962.
Hans von Salmuth and his role in the defence of the Atlantic Wall is explored in the new book, Countdown to D-Day, due to be released June 2019.
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