Kurt Knispel

Kurt Knispel
Photo of Knispel taken during World War II by Alfred Rubbel
Nickname(s)	Känonen
Born	(1921-09-20)20 September 1921 Salisfeld (Salisov), Czechoslovakia
Died	Urbau, Czechoslovakia
Allegiance	Germany
Service/branch	Heer
Years of service	1940–45
Rank	Feldwebel
Unit	12th Panzer Division 503rd Heavy Panzer Battalion
Battles/wars	World War II Eastern Front Normandy
Awards	German Cross in Gold

Kurt Knispel (20 September 1921 – 28 April 1945) was a Czechoslovakian born Sudeten German Heer panzer loader, gunner and later commander with a total of 168 confirmed tank kills;

War service

Knispel was born near the town of Cukmantel (Zlaté Hory) in the Sudetenland, Czechoslovakia. In early 1940, Knispel applied to join the armoured branch of the German Army.

Training

For his basic training, Knispel went to the Panzer Replacement Training Battalion at Sagan in Lower Silesia. He received basic infantry training, learning the use of the Karabiners 98k, the Pistole 08, and the MG 34, followed by tank training on the Panzer I, Panzer II, and Panzer IV. On 1 October 1940, he was transferred to the 3rd Company of the 29th Panzer Regiment, 12th Panzer Division. Knispel completed his training as a loader and gunner in a Panzer IV. This lasted until 11 June 1941 and consisted of courses at Sagan and Putlos.

World War II

Knispel was the gunner of a Panzer IV under Lt. Hellman during Operation Barbarossa, where he participated in the initial assault as part of Panzergruppe 3, LVII Army Corps (later LVII Panzer Corps), commanded by General Adolf-Friedrich Kuntzen. Knispel saw action from Yarzevo to the gates of Stalingrad, in the north around the Leningrad-Tikhvin area, and also in the Caucasus under Eberhard von Mackensen. A photograph of November 1942 shows Gefreiter Knispel with the Panzerkampfabzeichen, the E.K.II, and the Verwundetenabzeichen in black.

A group of men from Putlos were sent to the 500th Panzer Battalion at Paderborn. These men, led by Oberfeldwebel Hans Fendesack, would become the 1st Company of the 503rd Heavy Panzer Battalion which fought at Kursk as flank cover for the 7th Panzer Division (Armee Abteilung Kempf). According to his biography, "Kursk hatte den Namen von Kurt Knispel im Battalion bekannt gemacht" (Kursk has made the name Kurt Knispel famous in the battalion), Knispel saw further action during the relief attack on the Korsun-Cherkassy Pocket, Vinnytsia, Yampil, and Kamianets-Podilskyi. Transferred from the east, the company was re-equipped with Tiger IIs and fought around Caen and in the retreat from Normandy. Then the unit was transferred back to the Eastern Front and saw action around Mezőtúr, Törökszentmiklós, Cegléd, Kecskemét and the Gran bridgehead, Gyula, Nitra, Bab Castle (in one action, Knispel reported 24 enemy hits on his Tiger II), Laa and finally Wostitz, where he was fatally wounded together with another tank commander Feldwebel Skoda. (Skoda was buried in Socherl.) Knispel died in a field hospital in Urbau and was buried at a local cemetery. Ten days after his death, the war ended in Europe.

On April 10, 2013 Czech authorities confirmed that Knispel's remains were found with 15 other German soldiers behind a church wall in Urbau. He was identified by his dog tags. On November 12, 2014 his remains were reburied at the military cemetery in Brno together, with 41 other German soldiers who fell in various places in Moravia and Silesia.

Legacy

With 168 confirmed (possibly as many as 205) kills, Knispel was by far the most successful tanker of the Second World War. He is even credited with knocking out a T-34 at 2000 meters, besides destroying over 70 enemy anti-tank guns, and countless bunkers and field works. He fought in every type of German tank as a loader, gunner and commander. He was awarded the Iron Cross, First Class, after destroying his fiftieth enemy tank, and the Tank Assault Badge in Gold after more than 100 tank battles. When Knispel's tally had reached 126 enemy tanks (with another 20 unconfirmed kills), he was awarded the German Cross in Gold. He became the only non-commissioned officer in the German tank army to be named in a Wehrmacht communique. As commander of a Tiger I and then a Tiger II, Knispel destroyed another 42 enemy tanks.

Although he was recommended for it four times, Knispel never received the coveted Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.

Knispel's slow promotion is attributed to his conflicts with higher Nazi authorities. Once, for example, he assaulted an SS Einsatzgruppen officer whom he saw mistreating Soviet POWs. Some historians also mention his general lack of military bearing by wearing a goatee and hair longer than regulations allowed. However, according to Lt Colonel Alfred Rubbel, Knispel was always willing to help others (immer gewillt zu helfen) and friendly (freundlich).

Awards

• Iron Cross E.K.II (2nd Class)
• Iron Cross E.K. I awarded after actions at Kursk July 1943. He destroyed 27 T-34's in 12 days during this battle.
• Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42, The Eastern Front Medal.
• Wound Badge (silver)
• Panzerkampfabzeichen Panzer Assault Badge (silver)
• Panzerkampfabzeichen 100 assaults.
• German Cross in Gold on 20 May 1944 as Unteroffizier in the 1./schwere Panzer-Abteilung 503
• The only NCO in the German Army mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht on 25 April 1944 for the destruction of 101 enemy tanks, which was submitted by RKT Dr. Franz Baeke.

Reference in the Wehrmachtbericht

Date	Original German Wehrmachtbericht wording	Direct English translation
25 April 1944	Der Unteroffizier Knispel in einer schweren Panzerabteilung im Osten schoß in der Zeit von Juli 1942 und März 1944 101 Panzer ab.	The non-commissioned officer Knispel in a heavy tank detachment in the east destroyed 101 tanks in the timeframe from July 1942 and March 1944.

References

Citations

Bibliography