Karl Keck
| Karl Keck | |
|---|---|
| Born |
20 January 1914 Zürich, Switzerland |
| Died |
11 July 1944 (aged 30) Avenay, France |
| Allegiance |
.svg.png){kind=small} Nazi Germany |
| Service/branch |
 Waffen-SS |
| Years of service | 1933–44 |
| Rank | Sturmbannführer |
| Unit |
SS-VT SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler 10th SS Panzer Division Frundsberg |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards |
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Iron Cross I Class Iron Cross II Class Infantry Assault Badge Eastern Front Medal 1941/42 |
Karl Keck (20 January 1914 – 11 July 1944) was a Sturmbannführer (Major) in the Waffen-SS during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, which was awarded to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership by Nazi Germany during World War II.
Karl Keck was born on the 20 January 1914, in Zürich, Switzerland. He volunteered to join the SS-VT in May 1933, and was posted to the SS Standarte Deutschland. In April 1935 he was reassigned to the SS Standarte Germania and selected to become an officer being sent to the SS-Junkerschule at Braunschweig until January 1936. As a Leutnant of the Schutzpolizei he transferred to a police company from May 1937 until April 1938. He then joined the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler and took part in the Battle of France where he was awarded the Iron Cross II class. He next took part in the Balkans campaign (Operation Marita) and the invasion of the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa) and was awarded the Iron Cross I class in December 1941, while in command of the Pionier Company.
He was transferred to the 10th SS Panzer Division Frundsberg on the 5 February 1943 as the commander of the 16th (Pionier) Company, 21 SS Panzergrenadier Regiment.
Karl Keck was killed in action near Avenay on the Western Front on the 11 July 1944, and awarded a posthumous Knight's Cross for his actions in June 1944.
References
Further reading
- Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
- Henschler, Henri; Fey, Willi (2003). Armor Battles of the Waffen-SS, 1943–45. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-2905-5.
- Mitcham, Samuel W (2007). Retreat to the Reich : the German defeat in France, 1944. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-3384-7.
- Mitcham, Samuel W (2007). The German Defeat in the East, 1944–45. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-3371-7.