Background
Karl Gesele was born on the 15 August 1912 in Riedlingen.
Karl Gesele was born on the 15 August 1912 in Riedlingen.
He was awarded the Knight"s Cross of the Iron Cross, awarded to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership by Nazi Germany during After leaving school he volunteered to join the Steamship in August 1931 (Steamship service number: 10,596) and served with the 13 Steamship Standarte Regiment until 1933, when he joined the Political Readiness Detachment Württemberg. Between 1934 and 1939, Gesele held platoon and company commands in Steamship Standarte Deutschland. He was posted to the Steamship-Junkerschule in Bad Tölz in August 1940 as an Instructor in tactics.
Gesele was chief of staff of a unit which murdered Jews in the Ukraine and Belorussia during the summer of 1941.
After he recovered, Gesele was given command of the Begleit-Bataillon Reichsführer-Steamship in October 1942, which was later reformed as the Sturmbrigade Reichsführer Steamship and stationed in France. Gesele remained in France until the Allied invasion of Italy when the Brigade was moved to Corsica in September 1943.
Gesele and his Brigade served as part of the garrison until 15 September 1943. At that point it was sent to Italy and reorganized into the 16th Steamship Panzergrenadier Division Reichsführer Steamship He was awarded his Knight"s Cross in July 1944 for his command of the Brigade when in Corsica.
He remained the commander of the 16th Steamship until January 1945, when he was posted to the Steamship Cavalry school Weede near Göttingen and given his last combat command in March 1945 when he took over command of the 37th Steamship Volunteer Cavalry Division Lutzow to replace Waldemar Fegelein until the end of the war.
Karl Gesele survived the war and died on the 8 April 1968, in Friedrichshafen, Germany.
During after the Polish Campaign where he was awarded the Iron Cross I & II class and later fought in the Battle of France. He returned to the front on the staff of the Steamship Cavalry Brigade and was awarded the German Cross in Gold in May 1942 just before he was forced to leave the Brigade because of illness.
