- Roland von Hößlin
Infobox Military Person
name=Roland von Hößlin
lived=21 February 1915 –14 October 1944
placeofbirth=Munich
placeofdeath=Berlin (Plötzensee Prison )
caption=
nickname=
allegiance=flagicon|Nazi GermanyNazi Germany
branch=Heer
serviceyears=1933-1944
rank=Major
commands=PzAufklAbt 33
unit=
battles=World War II
awards=Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
laterwork=Roland-Heinrich von Hößlin, or Hösslin (
21 February 1915 –13 October 1944 ) was a GermanWehrmacht officer and resistance fighter in the time of theThird Reich .Roland von Hößlin was born in
Munich into an oldcavalry officer family. In 1933, at 17, he joined theReichswehr and became an ensign ("Fahnenjunker") in Mounted Regiment 17 inBamberg . In 1936, he was promoted tolieutenant . In 1939, during theSecond World War , he took part in the Invasion of Poland as a first lieutenant and adjutant inReconnaissance Detachment 10. He later hadtank training at the "Panzertruppenschule" in Krampnitz, now part ofPotsdam , and from March to July 1941, he was an orderly officer with theAfrika Korps staff inTripolitania under Field MarshalErwin Rommel .In August 1941, von Hößlin was named chief of the 3rd Reconnaissance Detachment 33, and in February 1942, he was promoted to
captain . On12 July 1942 , he was badly wounded as leader of Reconnaissance Detachment 33, and he was awarded theKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross ("Ritterkreuz"). His brotherHartmut von Hößlin was also awarded the Knight's Cross on17 April 1945 as commander of II./ArtRgt 7.By February 1944, von Hößlin was commander of the Officer-Candidate Training Detachment 24 in Insterburg,
East Prussia (nowadaysChernyakhovsk inRussia 'sKaliningrad Oblast ). In April 1944, through his earlier friendship with Claus Graf Schenk von Stauffenberg, he was let in on theJuly 20 Plot ters' plans to overthrowAdolf Hitler . In the event of a successfulcoup d'état , von Hößlin was to have his unit in "Wehrkreis I" (i.e., East Prussia) occupy important buildings and take other measures against the Nazi régime.On
1 August 1944 , a week and a half after the failed plot at theWolf's Lair , came a transfer toMeiningen inThuringia and a promotion tomajor . On23 August 1944 , however, von Hößlin was arrested by theGestapo , and shortly thereafter was ejected from the Wehrmacht.On
13 October 1944 came the sentencing byRoland Freisler at von Hößlin's trial at the "Volksgerichtshof ". Freisler sentenced him to death for his part in the plot to assassinate Hitler, and Roland von Hößlin was hanged that same afternoon atPlötzensee Prison in Berlin.At Bamberg
Cathedral , a plaque commemorates the five "Bamberg Troopers" – among them Roland von Hößlin – who gave their lives in the struggle against the Nazi régime.References
* Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer. "Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945". Friedburg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas, 2000. ISBN 3-7909-0284-5.
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