Background
His father was a local secondary school teacher and he was educated in his hometown of Speyer.
His father was a local secondary school teacher and he was educated in his hometown of Speyer.
After finishing school in 1909, he enlisted into an infantry regiment (No117) in whose third company he was appointed Second Lieutenant in 1910. During the First World War, Hollidt served on the Western Front. Over the course of the war he received two promotions: to First Lieutenant in 1915 and in 1918 to the rank of Captain.
After several promotions, to the rank of Major on 1 February 1930, and to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel on 1 February 1933, he served as a battalion commander in Infantry Regiment Number.
12 in Dessau. Hollidt next served as a Colonel (in the General Staff) in 1935 and as a Chief-of-Staff of the 1st Army Corps in Königsberg. After his appointment as Major-General on 1 April 1938, Hollidt was active as an infantry commander in Siegen.
He also commanded Infantry Regiments Number. 57, 116 and 136. I At the beginning of I, Hollidt served as commander of the 52nd Infantry Division.
From 1 November 1939, he served as a Chief-of-Staff with Commander-in-Chief Ost, General Blaskowitz.
Lieutenant General Hollidt (promoted 1 April 1940) served from October 1940 as the commander of the 50th Infantry Division in Greece. Promoted to the rank of General der Infanterie (Infantry General), Hollidt commanded XVII Army Corps, which was planned to take part in the relief operation concerning the 6th Army, then encircled in the Russian city of Stalingrad. After the surrender of the 6th Army, it was reconstituted in March 1943 and Hollidt was given its command.
He was promoted to Colonel General on 1 September 1943.
In 1944, his 6th Army suffered severe losses during its retreat from its area of operations north of the Dnieper. Hollidt was subsequently dismissed from his command and put into reserve.
In 1945, Hollidt was captured by United States forces. After a trial held at Nuremberg, he was convicted of the unlawful use of prisoners of war and of the deportation and enslavement of civilians.
He was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment, of which he served a little less than 14 months (from 27 October 1948 until his release on 22 December 1949).
He died in 1985 in Siegen and was interred in his birthplace of Speyer. Wehrmachtbericht reference Bibliography.
Iron Cross (1914) 2nd Class (9 September 1914) 1st Class (18 October 1916) Wound Badge (1914) in Black Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (30 May 1940) 1st Class (7 June 1940) Eastern Front Medal Crimea Shield Order of Michael the Brave, 3rd Class (September 19, 1942) Knight"s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves Knight"s Cross on 8 September 1941 as Generalleutnant and commander of 50. Infanterie-Division 239th Oak Leaves on 17 May 1943 as General der Infanterie and commander of 6th Army Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht (4 August 1943).
