Oberfeldwebel Otto Brakat

 

Oberfeldwebel Otto Brakat (15 January 1916 - 31 January 1978) was a highly decorated soldier of the German Wehrmacht, veteran of Annexation of Austria (1938), Invasion of Poland (1939), Battle of France (1940), Operation Barbarossa (1941), Battle of Białystok–Minsk (1941), Battle of Kiev (1941), Battle of Smolensk (1941), Battle of Voronezh (1942), Battle of Stalingrad (1942-43), and Battle of Berlin (1945). As a Spähtruppführer (Patrol Leader), he always placed himself in front of his soldier and proved his exceptional bravery in the fighting around Bobruisk, south of Mogilev, when he attacked an important Soviet observatory post and, in the process, destroyed three well dug in anti-tank guns and captured large amount of ammunition, grenades, and machine guns. For this achievement he prevent the danger to his advanced division behind, and he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross) in 27 July 1941 as Unteroffizier and Gruppenführer in 2.Schwadron / Radfahr-Abteilung 1 / 1.Kavallerie-Division. He was thus the second member of his division to receive the coveted Ritterkreuz, and the first in the Russian campaign (he would became the only Ritterkreuzträger of non-commissioned officer rank from 1. Kavallerie-Division). After the third wounds he suffered in the Battle of Stalingrad, Brakat returned home and taken the instructor post in Wach-Bataillon "Großdeutschland". Even in the last days of the war he showed his indelible bravery when he destroyed an enemy tank in the Battle of Berlin. Apart from Ritterkreuz, Brakat was also decorated with Medaille zur Erinnerung an die Heimkehr des Memellandes (6 February 1940); Eisernes Kreuz II.Klasse (25 September 1939) und I.Klasse (5 July 1940); Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz (12 July 1941) und in Silber (1 August 1942); Allgemeines-Sturmabzeichen in Silber (1 November 1941); Medaille Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42 (Ostmedaille); Nahkampfspange in Silber (1 May 1945); and Panzervernichctungsabzeichen in Silber (1 May 1945)

Source :
http://das-ritterkreuz.de/index_search_db.php4?modul=search_result_det&wert1=615&searchword=brakat
http://de.metapedia.org/wiki/Brakat,_Otto
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Brakat
http://en.ww2awards.com/person/28632
http://forum.panzer-archiv.de/viewtopic.php?p=75436&sid=a1b89caf7d1645822cb92b801ef1037b
http://www.historicalwarmilitariaforum.com/topic/6937-ritterkreuztr%C3%A4ger-photos-in-color-thread/page-2
https://web.archive.org/web/20140207070239/http://www.ritterkreuztraeger-1939-45.de/Infanterie/B/Br/Brakat-Otto.htm