Hasso von Manteuffel

30 January 1945-9 March 1945: Commander-in-Chief of the 5th Panzer Army on the Western Front.
10 March 1945-3 May 1945: Commander-in-Chief of the 3rd Panzer Army on the Eastern Front. [Following Hitler’s abrupt dismissal of Generaloberst Erhard Raus on 10 March 1945, von Manteuffel succeeded him to command of the 3rd Panzer Army of Army Group Weichsel [Vistula] on the Eastern Front. Holding the Oder River from the Baltic Sea coast to Eberswalde, von Manteuffel’s new command proved short of tanks and in ragged condition after several weeks of hammering by multiple Russian armies. On 25 April 1945, the Soviet 2nd Belorussian Front, commanded by Marshal of the Soviet Union Konstantin K. Rokossovski, renewed its offensive and seized a large bridgehead on the Oder River south of Stettin forcing the center of the 3rd Panzer Army back to Prenzlau. After the dismissal of Generaloberst Gotthard Heinrici from command of Army Group Weichsel on 29 April 1945, Generalfeldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel, the Chief of the Armed Forces High Command, initially offered the army group and a promotion to Hasso von Manteuffel—he declined the offer in protest of the harsh treatment meted out to Generaloberst Heinrici.[7]]
30 April 1945-2 May 1945: Withdrawal of the 3rd Panzer Army across Mecklenburg to the demarcation line between the Soviet and Anglo-American forces.
3 May 1945: General der Panzertruppe von Manteuffel surrendered his 3rd Panzer Army to the British at Hagenow.
3 May 1945-December 1946: Prisoner of war in British and, later, U.S. captivity. [After being held at various prisoner of war camps in Great Britain, including Island Farm Special Camp 11, he was handed over to the Americans and imprisoned at Nürnberg-Langwasser and Marburg in Germany. While held at the later camp, he took part in the U.S. Army Historical Division project to record as much useful military information as possible from their former enemies by writing a monograph on the mobile warfare aspect of the Ardennes Offensive.]
1953-1957: Member of the Bundestag (German Parliament) as a representative of the Free Democratic Party.
1959: A German court in Düsseldorf charged Hasso von Manteuffel with manslaughter for ordering the sentencing and shooting of one of his men in January 1944 for cowardice in that, while on guard duty near Shepetovka in the Ukraine, the soldier failed to prevent or report the capture of two fellow soldiers by the Russians. In August 1959, the court sentenced him to 18 months in prison, but through the intercession of West German Bundespräsident Theodor Heuss, he was released after serving two months and pardoned.
1965: Published Die 7. Panzer-Division im Zweiten Weltkrieg: Einsatz und Kampf der “Gespenster-Division” 1939-1945 (The 7th Panzer Division in the Second World War: Employment and Combat of the “Ghost Division” 1939-1945), a unit history sponsored by the Traditions Association of the 7th Panzer Division.
1970: In collaboration with Colonel Wesley W. Yale and General Isaac D. White, co-authored Alternative to Armageddon: The Peace Potential of Lightning War.
1978: Published Die 7. Panzer-Division 1939-1945: die “Gespenster-Division” (The 7th Panzer Division 1939-1945: The “Ghost Division”), a photographic history of the division.

Decorations & Awards:

Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross: 27 November 1941, Oberst, Commander of Schützen-Regiment 6.
Oakleaves (No. 332): 23 November 1943, Generalmajor, Commander of the 7th Panzer Division.
Swords (No. 50): 22 February 1944, Generalleutnant, Commander of the 7th Panzer Division.
Diamonds (No. 24): 18 February 1945, General der Panzertruppe, Commander-in-Chief of the 5th Panzer Army.
Prussian Iron Cross, 1st Class (1914): 2 May 1917.
Prussian Iron Cross, 2nd Class (1914): 13 October 1916.
1939 Bar to the Prussian Iron Cross, 1st Class (1914): 1 August 1941.
1939 Bar to the Prussian Iron Cross, 2nd Class (1914): 22 July 1941.
Medal for the Winter Campaign in Russia 1941/1942 (“East Medal”)
Brunswick War Merit Class, 1st Class
Brunswick War Merit Cross, 2nd Class
Cross of Honor for Combatants 1914-1918
Armed Forces Long Service Award, 1st Class (25-year Service Cross)
Armed Forces Long Service Award, 3rd Class (12-year Service Medal)
Panzer Assault Badge in Silver
Wound Badge in Black – World War I award
German Horseman’s Badge in Gold: 2 January 1931.
German National Sports Badge in Gold
Golden Hitler Youth Honor Badge
“AFRIKA” Campaign Cuff-Title
“Großdeutschland” Cuff-Title
Romanian Order of Michael the Brave, 3rd Class: 30 May 1944 (Royal Decree No. 1072).
Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht [Armed Forces Communiqué]: 8 October 1943; 16 November 1943; 14 March 1944; 8 May 1944.

Sources:

Atkinson, Rick. An Army at Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943. Henry Holt and Company, Inc., New York, New York, 2002.
Barnett, Corelli (editor). Hitler’s Generals. Weidenfeld and Nicholson, United Kingdom, 1989.
Bender, Roger James & Law, Richard D. Uniforms, Organization and History of the Afrika Korps. R. James Bender Publishing, San Jose, California, USA, 1973.
Bender, Roger James & Odegard, Warren W. Uniforms, Organization and History of the Panzertruppe. R. James Bender Publishing, San Jose, California, 1980 (1st Edition).
Brownlow, Donald Grey. Panzer Baron: The Military Exploits of General Hasso von Manteuffel. The Christopher Publishing House, North Quincy, Massachusetts, 1975.
Keilig, Wolf. Die Generale des Heeres. Podzun-Pallas Verlag, Friedberg, Germany, 1983.
Liddell-Hart, B. H. (editor). The Rommel Papers. Paul Findlay, translator. Da Capo Press, U.S.A., reprint of original 1953 edition.
MacDonald, Charles B. A Time for Trumpets: The Untold Story of the Battle of the Bulge. William Morrow and Company, Inc., New York, New York, 1985.
Scheibert, Horst. Panzer Grenadier Division Großdeutschland. Gisele Hockenberry, translator; Bruce Culver, editor. Squadron/Signal Publications, Inc., Carrollton, Texas, 1987.
Vaerst, Gustav von. “Operations of the 5th Panzer Army in Tunisia, 5 March 1943-12 May 1943” (D-001). Written by General der Panzertruppe von Vaerst for the U.S. Army Historical Division after World War II, this account chronicles the movements and actions of the 5th Panzer Army during the time period indicated. Without access to important reference documents, he wrote the account from memory while being held at Prisoner of War Enclosure (PWE) 8, Garmisch, Germany. The quotation by General der Panzertruppe von Vaerst is cited from this document.
Ziemke, Earl F. Moscow to Stalingrad: Decision in the East. Army Historical Series. Washington D.C.: Center of Military History, United States Army, 1987.
Ziemke, Earl F. Stalingrad to Berlin: The German Defeat in the East. Army Historical Series. Washington D.C.: Office of the Chief of Military History, United States Army, 1968.
Rangliste des Deutschen Reichsheeres, 1 May 1930 (compiled and edited by the Reich Defense Ministry/Army Personnel Office).