Otto von Stülpnagel

Who was Otto von Stülpnagel?

Otto von Stülpnagel was the German military commander of France during the Second World War.

Born 16 June 1878 in Berlin, Otto von Stülpnagel pursued a military career in keeping with his family’s long tradition of military service. Commissioned in 1898 and accepted as a member of the Imperial General Staff, he received several decorations for distinguished service on the western front during World War I. Nominated for the Pour le Merité, Stülpnagel survived personnel cuts mandated by the Treaty of Versailles. Dismayed by accusations of German atrocities, he published an angry defence of German military conduct in a popular book entitled The Truth about German War Crimes in 1921. Promoted to the rank of Colonel in 1925 and Lieutenant General in 1931, Stülpnagel played a leading role in the Reichswehr in conjunction with Kurt von Schleicher and Freiherr von Bussche during the Weimar era. Transferred to the fledgling German air force in 1934, Stülpnagel eventually took charge of the air force academy before falling from favor and retiring in March 1939.

Days before the German invasion of Poland, Hitler recalled Stülpnagel to active service and placed him in charge of a military district in Austria, and he held the latter post for fourteen months. On 25 October 1940, German army high command transferred Otto von Stülpnagel to France and placed him in charge of a military government with the title of Military Commander in France. Not without controversy, this last assignment defined Stülpnagel’s career.