Josef Armberger
Encyclopedia
Josef Armberger was a Obersturmführer
(Senior Assault (or Storm) Leader) in the 1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler
. He was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
during World War II
, the highest award for bravery of Nazi Germany
.
Austria
on the 26 June 1920, he spent his early life working in a Vineyard
and joined the SS on 1 May 1938 and was given the SS number 372 349 he was sent to the SS disposal unit to receive officer training.
and the Balkans Campaign.
During Operation Barbarossa
he was wounded three times on the 11,13,14 March 1943 but remained with his troops and a short time later took over command of the 5th Flak Company. He was wounded again on the 10 April 1944 and this time sent to the SS hospital in Vienna
to recover from his wounds.
After recovering he returned to the LSSAH and took over command of the 8th Company, SS Panzer Regiment 1 LSSAH and moved to France
.
During operations in Normandy
the company was active in the areas of St Lambert, Tournay-sur-Dive, and Villedieu les Bailleul, during the fighting to break out of the Falaise Gap on 19 August 1944, he showed special bravery. After a fierce fire fight with Allied tanks, SS-Obersturmführer Armberger on the 20 August as the leader of the 8th Company led them from the trap at Falaise, on the way destroying a larger number of tanks. Personally knocking out 4 Sherman tanks with Panzerfaust
s. Afterwards he was killed in the heavy fighting in the area northeast of Mossey / Evreux
On the 31 October 1944 he received the Knight's Cross posthumously.
Josef Armberger's grave is located at the military cemetery Champigny
in the department of Eure
.
Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi party that was used by the SS and also as a rank of the SA. Translated as “Senior Assault Leader”, the rank of Obersturmführer was first created in 1932 as the result of an expansion of the Sturmabteilung and the need for an additional rank in...
(Senior Assault (or Storm) Leader) in the 1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler
1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler
The Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler was Adolf Hitler's personal bodyguard. Initially the size of a regiment, the LSSAH eventually grew into a divisional-sized unit...
. He was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was a grade of the 1939 version of the 1813 created Iron Cross . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was the highest award of Germany to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership during World War II...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the highest award for bravery of Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
.
Early life
He was born in GuggingGugging
The Maria Gugging Psychiatric Clinic, known as Gugging, HAS BEEN a psychiatric institution located on the outskirts of Vienna, Austria. Several of its patients became known for their Outsider Art, and were referred to as the Gugging Artists...
Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
on the 26 June 1920, he spent his early life working in a Vineyard
Vineyard
A vineyard is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice...
and joined the SS on 1 May 1938 and was given the SS number 372 349 he was sent to the SS disposal unit to receive officer training.
World War II
He was then posted to the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler attached to the Anti Aircraft Battalion and took part in the Battle of FranceBattle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
and the Balkans Campaign.
During Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
he was wounded three times on the 11,13,14 March 1943 but remained with his troops and a short time later took over command of the 5th Flak Company. He was wounded again on the 10 April 1944 and this time sent to the SS hospital in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
to recover from his wounds.
After recovering he returned to the LSSAH and took over command of the 8th Company, SS Panzer Regiment 1 LSSAH and moved to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
During operations in Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
the company was active in the areas of St Lambert, Tournay-sur-Dive, and Villedieu les Bailleul, during the fighting to break out of the Falaise Gap on 19 August 1944, he showed special bravery. After a fierce fire fight with Allied tanks, SS-Obersturmführer Armberger on the 20 August as the leader of the 8th Company led them from the trap at Falaise, on the way destroying a larger number of tanks. Personally knocking out 4 Sherman tanks with Panzerfaust
Panzerfaust
The Panzerfaust was an inexpensive, recoilless German anti-tank weapon of World War II. It consisted of a small, disposable preloaded launch tube firing a high explosive anti-tank warhead, operated by a single soldier...
s. Afterwards he was killed in the heavy fighting in the area northeast of Mossey / Evreux
Évreux
Évreux is a commune in the Eure department, of which it is the capital, in Haute Normandie in northern France.-History:In late Antiquity, the town, attested in the fourth century CE, was named Mediolanum Aulercorum, "the central town of the Aulerci", the Gallic tribe then inhabiting the area...
On the 31 October 1944 he received the Knight's Cross posthumously.
Josef Armberger's grave is located at the military cemetery Champigny
Champigny
Champigny may refer to several communes in France:*Champigny, Marne*Champigny, Yonne*Champigny-en-Beauce, in the Loir-et-Cher département*Champigny-la-Futelaye, in the Eure département*Champigny-le-Sec, in the Vienne département...
in the department of Eure
Eure
Eure is a department in the north of France named after the river Eure.- History :Eure is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...
.
See also
- Waffen SS
- 1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf HitlerThe Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler was Adolf Hitler's personal bodyguard. Initially the size of a regiment, the LSSAH eventually grew into a divisional-sized unit...
- List of Knight's Cross holders 1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler