Wolfgang Graf von Blücher

Wolfgang Graf von Blücher
Wolfgang Graf von Blücher
Born	(1917-01-31)31 January 1917 Altengottern
Died	21 May 1941(1941-05-21) (aged 24) Iraklion, Crete
Buried	German War Cemetery at Maleme
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service / branch	Heer Luftwaffe
Years of service	1934–35 1937–41
Rank	Oberleutnant of the Reserves
Unit	Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 1
Battles / wars	World War II Norwegian Campaign Battles of Narvik Battle of the Netherlands Battle of Crete †
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Wolfgang Henner Peter Lebrecht Graf von Blücher^[a] (31 January 1917 – 21 May 1941) was a highly decorated Oberleutnant of the Reserves in the Fallschirmjäger during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Wolfgang Graf von Blücher was one of three brothers who were killed during the Battle of Crete, all three of them on 21 May 1941.

Awards and decorations

• Fallschirmschützenabzeichen
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (18 April 1940)
  • 1st Class (24 May 1940)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 24 May 1940 as Leutnant of the Reserves and Zugführer (platoon leader) in the 2./Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 1

Footnotes

• ^a Regarding personal names: Graf was a title before 1919, but now is regarded as part of the surname. It is translated as Count. Before the August 1919 abolition of nobility as a legal class, titles preceded the full name when given (Graf Helmuth James von Moltke). Since 1919, these titles, along with any nobiliary prefix (von, zu, etc.), can be used, but are regarded as a dependent part of the surname, and thus come after any given names (Helmuth James Graf von Moltke). Titles and all dependent parts of surnames are ignored in alphabetical sorting. The feminine form is Gräfin.

References

Bibliography

• Beevor, Antony (2005). Crete: The Battle and the Resistance. London, England: John Murray (Publishers). ISBN 978-0-7195-6831-2
• 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.
• Kurowski, Franz (1995). Knights of the Wehrmacht Knight's Cross Holders of the Fallschirmjäger. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Military. ISBN 978-0-88740-749-9.
• 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.
• Thomas, Franz; Wegmann, Günter (1986). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Deutschen Wehrmacht 1939–1945 Teil II: Fallschirmjäger [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the German Wehrmacht 1939–1945 Part II: Paratroopers] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-1461-8.