FERDINAND 'THE BLOODY'

Known for his brutal martial punishment and execution of his own men, Ferdinand Schérner’s ruthlessness was matched only by his devotion to Nazi ideology

- MARK SIMNER

According to the Oxford Companion to World War II: “Only Model and Keitel among the German generals rivalled [Ferdinand] Schörner as a devotee to Hitler.” It is probably also fair to say that his devotion to his Führer was matched only by his ruthlessness. A ruthlessness not only unleashed upon the enemy, but also often inflicted on his own soldiers. This in turn led to Schörner drawing much post-war criticism from the very men who fought and suffered under his command.

Schörner’s devotion and brutality were not lost on Hitler, who promoted him to generalfeldmarschall in April 1945, the final such promotion of the war. Hitler seemingly liked Schörner so much that he even went as far as to name him in his will as the new commander-in-chief of the German Army. Later imprisoned by the Soviets for war crimes, Schörner returned to West Germany following an unusual early release, where he found himself convicted of further crimes (this time for actions against his own soldiers) and again imprisoned. Released once more after only a few years behind bars, Schörner would live out his days in his native Munich in virtual obscurity.

More recently, several historians have attempted to portray Schörner as an extremely able commander and organiser, who even acted against Hitler’s orders on occasion. Nevertheless, Schörner rightly remains remembered for being the fanatical Nazi, butcher and war criminal that he was.

Early life and military career

The son of a senior police officer, Schörner was born in Munich in June 1892. His military service commenced in late 1911 when he joined the Bavarian Army, being posted to the Königlich Bayerisches Infanterie-Leib-Regiment, which traditionally acted as lifeguards to the Bavarian monarchy. Shortly after the outbreak of the First World War, he was promoted to leutnant der reserve der infanterie.