Background
Walther Model was born on 24 January 1891 in Genthin, near Magdeburg, the son of a music master.
Walther Model was born on 24 January 1891 in Genthin, near Magdeburg, the son of a music master.
A professional soldier, Model held various regimental, staff and adjutant appointments during World War I before joining the Reichswehr in 1919. A loyal Nazi, he was made head of the Technical Department in the Army General Staff in 1935 and promoted three years later to Major General. He commanded the Fourth Army Corps during the Polish invasion and was Chief of Staff of the Sixteenth Army in the French campaign. In 1940 he was promoted to Lieutenant-General and in February 1942 to General, receiving the Oak Leaves of the Knight’s Cross.
Appointed General of Panzer troops in October 1941, Model commanded the Third Panzer Division and then the Ninth Army with great energy and panache during Operation Barbarossa.
His ruthless, offensive drive carried him to the gates of Moscow. After commanding Army Group North, he was transferred to Army Group South in 1944, and then in June of the same year, having just been promoted to General Field Marshal, he was moved to Army Group Centre to stem the Russian summer offensive.
His loyalty to Hitler was, however, never in doubt and, after the failure of the July1944 plot, he was appointed to replace von Klu on 17 August as Commander-in-Chief of the Army West. Model held back the Allied armies at Arnhem and commanded the Ardennes offensive, displaying considerable talent in organizing meagre resources. In April 1945 his Army Group Four, consisting of the Fifteenth and Fifth Panzer armies, was encircled in the Ruhr pocket. Nevertheless he held out for eighteen days against superior American forces until forced to surrender over 300,000 German troops.
On 21 April 1945 Model shot himself.
Nicknamed ‘the Fiihrer’s fireman’ for his ability as a troubleshooter.
Model's middle-class background, his energy and lack of conservatism appealed to Hitler, who also appreciated his blunt, direct manner. Model was not only capable of standing up to the Führer and answering back, he also knew how' to circumvent his orders when the military situation demanded it.