Buried at Fort Benning Name Willibald Borowietz Commands held 33rd Infantry Division | Years of service 1914–191935–43 Other work Police Officer Service/branch German Army | |
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Born 17 September 1893Ratibor, Province of Silesia, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire now Raciborz, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland ( 1893-09-17 ) Battles/wars World War IWorld War IIInvasion of PolandBattle of FranceOperation BarbarossaBattle of UmanBattle of Kiev (1941)Battle of MoscowTunisian Campaign Battles and wars World War I, Invasion of Poland, Battle of France | ||
Willibald Borowietz (17 September 1893 – 1 July 1945) was a highly decorated Generalleutnant in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded several divisions. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Borowietz was captured when the Afrika Korps surrendered to Allied forces. He was held as a POW by the United States in Camp Clinton, Mississippi, where he committed suicide by electrocuting himself in a bathtub on 1 July 1945. Officially his death was attributed to a cerebral hemorrhage.
His wife, Eva Ledien, was of Jewish descent. She committed suicide in October 1938 so that their children could be Aryanized. This freed Willibald to follow his career. Eva's sister, Kathe (Ledien) Bosse, was killed in Ravensbruck concentration camp on 16 December 1944.