Richard Ruoff

Who is Richard Ruoff?

Richard Ruoff was an officer in the German Army before and during World War II.

Colonel-General Richard Ruoff commanded the 4th Panzer Army from 8 January 1942 to 31 May 1942. The 4th Panzer Army was part of Army Group A which was formed when Army Group South was split into two formations for the summer offensive of 1942.

Ruoff commanded the 17th Army from 1 June 1942 to 24 June 1943. The 17th Army was also part of Army Group A. Ruoff was the commander of the 17th Army when, on 3 June 1942, the Italian Expeditionary Corps in Russia was briefly subordinated to it. From June to July, the German 17th Army, the CSIR, and the Romanian 3rd Army were organized as "Army Group Ruoff".

By July 1942, Ruoff lost the Italian unit. The CSIR was subsumed by the larger Italian Army in Russia and transferred to Army Group B.

During the late summer, as part of Army Group A, Ruoff and the 17th Army attacked towards the Caucasus oilfields. By December, Soviet forces had destroyed the armies defending its flanks and had en-circled the German 6th Army at Stalingrad.