Karl Fischer von Treuenfeld

Karl Fischer von Treuenfeld
Born	31 March 1885
Died	7 June 1946(1946-06-07) (aged 61) Steinlager Allendorf, Allendorf, Allied-occupied Germany
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Imperial German Army Waffen-SS
Rank	SS-Gruppenführer
Unit	2 SS Infantry Brigade 1 SS Infantry Brigade SS Panzer Division Frundsberg VI SS Army Corps
Battles/wars	World War II

Karl Fischer von Treuenfeld (31 March 1885 – 7 June 1946) was a high-ranking member of the Waffen-SS during World War II and the commander of the 2 SS Infantry Brigade and the 1 SS Infantry Brigade in the occupied Soviet Union, which engaged in the murder of Jews and partisans. He went on to command the SS Panzer Division Frundsberg. Treuenfeld committed suicide in 1946 while being held in an American prisoner-of-war camp.

Pre-war career

Born in 1885, Karl Fischer von Treuenfeld enlisted in the army in 1904. He studied at the War Academy until 1914, and then served during World War I. After recovering from his wounds received at the front, he was transferred to the General staff in December 1915 and later served on the staff of the field army of General Erich Ludendorff. He was decorated with the Knight's Cross of the Albert Medal with Swords and the Knight's Order of Hohenzollern with Swords.

After the end of the war he was the commander of the militia units in the Hamburg area. In 1922, he was introduced to Adolf Hitler by General Ludendorff and organised the militia to assist Hitler during the Munich putsch. In 1929, Treuenfeld's business failed which he blamed on the banks, writing in his biography: "As a result, the hate of the Jews and free masons that caused the economic disaster... caused my business to collapse." In March 1937 Ludendorf and Hitler became political allies and Treuenfeld was promoted to Major in December 1938. In April 1939, he joined the SS (SS number 323 792).

World War II

At the start of World War II Treuenfeld was in command of the SS Panzer Signals Battalion 2. In January 1941, he was made the SS and Police Leader of Waffen-SS in the Northwest and West, until April 1941, when he was given command of the 2 SS Infantry Brigade, which started forming in May 1941 for Operation Barbarossa. He remained as the commander of the 2 SS Infantry Brigade until July 1942, when he took over command of the 1 SS Infantry Brigade. Both these brigades conducted rear-area security operations and the killing of Jews and other groups.

Treuenfeld continued to hold the position of SS and Police Leader of Waffen-SS North East between April 1941 to December 1941. From December 1941 to September 1942 he held the same position for Bohemia and Moravia, and served the deputy of Reinhard Heydrich. After the assassination of Heydrich in Operation Anthropoid on 27 May 1942, the men responsible, Jan Kubiš, Jozef Gabčík and others, were betrayed and trapped in the crypt of Ss. Cyril and Methodius Cathedral in Prague. Treuenfeld was in command of the troops that stormed the church on 18 June 1942, only to find that after holding out for hours they had committed suicide.

A difference in opinion between Treuenfeld and the Gestapo led to his replacement and transfer at the end of 1942. He then took up the post of commander of the Waffen-SS in Southern Russia and the Ukraine from February to November 1943. In November 1943, now promoted to Gruppenführer, he took over command of the SS Panzer Division Frundsberg, but was relieved of command after receiving another severe wound in the battles of Tarnopol on 22 April 1944.^[1] After recovering he became the SS leader in the SS Main Office and the Befehlshaber of the Waffen SS in Italy.^[2] His final command of the war, was the VI SS Army Corps which he took over in July 1944, but only for 4 days. Treuenfeld committed suicide on 7 June 1946 whilst a prisoner of the American Army at Steinlager Allendorf prisoner-of-war camp.

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