Franz Friedrich Johann Griesbach was a German officer and general during the Second World War who rose from the rank of reserve lieutenant to generalmajor while serving primarily with the 170th Infantry Division on the Eastern Front. A veteran of the First World War and a civilian elementary school teacher for two decades between the wars, he became one of the few regimental commanders to receive the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords. His leadership in critical defensive and offensive actions in the Crimea and the Leningrad sector earned him these high decorations, and he briefly commanded his division before being severely wounded and later taken prisoner by Soviet forces.
Born on 21 December 1892 in Brück in der Mark, Province of Brandenburg, Kingdom of Prussia, Griesbach entered the Imperial German Army on 1 April 1914 as a one-year volunteer with Infantry Regiment 27, known as Prinz Louis Ferdinand von Preußen, 2nd Magdeburgisches. He served throughout the First World War on the Western Front, rising steadily through the enlisted ranks to become a vice sergeant by May 1916 and receiving his commission as lieutenant of the reserves on 23 August 1916. During the conflict he was awarded the Iron Cross Second Class on 22 December 1914 and the First Class on 23 August 1917, along with the Wound Badge in black on 5 May 1918 and in silver on 25 June 1918. After the armistice he left active service and pursued a teaching career, passing his final teacher examination in 1920. He taught at elementary schools in Saxony and later in the Magdeburg area, including at a Volksschule in Putlitz, Westprignitz, while maintaining his connection to the military through reserve officer training.
In the interwar period Griesbach completed his formal teacher training at the Präparandenanstalt in Genthin from 1907 to 1910 and the Lehrerseminar from 1910 to 1913 before his military call-up. He remained on the reserve list and participated in periodic exercises. Recalled to active duty at the outbreak of the Second World War, he was initially assigned as company chief of the 6th Company, Infantry Regiment 12, in Halberstadt on 1 March 1939. He advanced rapidly in supplementary and replacement units, serving as commander of Infantry Replacement Battalion 467 in 1940 and later as a staff officer undergoing further training at Königsbrück. By late 1940 he had been promoted to major of the supplementary officers on 20 October 1940 and transferred to the active list as a regular major effective 1 December 1941. In September 1941 he took command of the 1st Battalion of Infantry Regiment 391 within the 170th Infantry Division, a formation with which he would remain for the duration of his frontline service.
Griesbach first distinguished himself in the Crimea during the winter campaign of 1941-1942. On 15 January 1942, at 0600 hours, Infantry Regiment 391 launched a hasty attack with his 1st Battalion in the lead. Despite fierce Soviet resistance the battalion fought past Hill 200 and captured Hill 175. The following day, advancing through difficult ravine-covered terrain, Griesbach demonstrated exceptional bravery and tactical skill. His leadership enabled the regiment, which was operating at little more than battalion strength, to seize Hill 251.4. When Hill 175 temporarily fell back into enemy hands he independently ordered a counterattack that secured it again, an action vital for the division's continued operations. These efforts contributed directly to the fall of Feodosia on 18 January 1942. For his role in this successful offensive Griesbach was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 14 March 1942 while still a major and battalion commander.
He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 1 April 1942 and shortly afterward assumed command of Infantry Regiment 399, later redesignated Grenadier Regiment 399, still within the 170th Infantry Division. In early 1943 the division faced a deep Soviet penetration south of Lake Ladoga near Krasny Bor that reached a depth of approximately two kilometres. Acting on his own initiative, Colonel Griesbach, now promoted to that rank effective 1 January 1943 with seniority from 1 December 1942, launched a counterattack using the battle-weary troops of his 3rd Battalion. He personally led from the front at the spearhead of the foremost company, overrunning resistance nests one after another, directing shock troops, and guiding artillery observers onto key targets while coming under enemy blocking fire himself. After five and a half hours of intense fighting more than half the penetrated area had been recaptured. Griesbach then shifted to the sector of his 1st Battalion on the Soviet right flank and launched a surprise assault without artillery preparation. The two German battalions squeezed the enemy into an ever-narrowing pocket, inflicting devastating losses. Approximately 2,000 Soviet soldiers were killed, 338 taken prisoner, and large quantities of equipment, including five tanks, 24 artillery pieces, and 149 mortars and machine guns, were destroyed or captured. The victory was highlighted in the Wehrmacht communiqué of 25 March 1943. In recognition of this feat Griesbach received the 242nd Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross on 17 May 1943.
Further promotion to colonel followed, and Griesbach continued to lead his regiment in the Leningrad sector. In January 1944 his battle group destroyed 69 Soviet tanks near the village of Pelellja on 17 January. Two days later the battle group recaptured the heights near Duderhof that had fallen to the enemy. On 23 January he led another successful counterthrust at Gatschina. These actions prevented a major Soviet breakthrough south of Leningrad. For his repeated demonstrations of aggressive leadership and tactical success under extreme pressure Griesbach was awarded the 53rd Swords to the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on 6 March 1944 while still commanding his regiment.
On 15 February 1944 he was given temporary command of the 170th Infantry Division itself, serving as its leader for only one day before being succeeded by Generalleutnant Siegfried Haß on 16 February. Severe wounds sustained in the fighting near Leningrad shortly afterward forced his evacuation to Reserve Hospital Görden, where he remained until April 1945. He was then transferred to the Führer Reserve of the Army High Command. In April 1945 Soviet forces captured him, and he spent more than four years in prisoner-of-war camps before his release on 21 October 1949. During his wartime service he had also earned the 1939 Clasp to the Iron Cross Second Class on 22 October 1941 and First Class on 20 November 1941, the Infantry Assault Badge in silver on 19 December 1941, the 1939 Wound Badge in gold on 4 February 1942, the Order of the Crown of Romania with swords, the Winter Battle in the East Medal, the Crimea Shield, the Romanian Commemorative Medal for the Crusade Against Communism, the Honour Cross of the World War 1914-1918 with swords, and the War Merit Cross Second Class with swords.
After returning to West Germany Griesbach lived quietly in retirement. He had married Martha Matthes in 1921; she died in 1940, and the couple had two sons. In 1942 he married Gertrud Murmann. No further details of his postwar civilian life or any additional family members are recorded. Franz Friedrich Johann Griesbach died on 24 September 1984 in Lage, North Rhine-Westphalia, at the age of 91. His career exemplified the path of many reserve officers who transitioned from civilian professions to high command in the Wehrmacht, achieving extraordinary decorations through personal courage and decisive leadership on the Eastern Front.
Source:
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/
https://en.wikipedia.org/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/
https://grokipedia.com/
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300
https://www.unithistories.com/units_index/index.php?file=/officers/personsx.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20091027052912fw_/http://geocities.com/orion47.geo/index2.html
https://forum.axishistory.com/
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/
https://www.bundesarchiv.de/en/
https://www.geni.com/
https://books.google.com/
https://www.walter-frentz-collection.de/fotoarchiv/personenarchiv-a-z/personen-g-h/
Born on 21 December 1892 in Brück in der Mark, Province of Brandenburg, Kingdom of Prussia, Griesbach entered the Imperial German Army on 1 April 1914 as a one-year volunteer with Infantry Regiment 27, known as Prinz Louis Ferdinand von Preußen, 2nd Magdeburgisches. He served throughout the First World War on the Western Front, rising steadily through the enlisted ranks to become a vice sergeant by May 1916 and receiving his commission as lieutenant of the reserves on 23 August 1916. During the conflict he was awarded the Iron Cross Second Class on 22 December 1914 and the First Class on 23 August 1917, along with the Wound Badge in black on 5 May 1918 and in silver on 25 June 1918. After the armistice he left active service and pursued a teaching career, passing his final teacher examination in 1920. He taught at elementary schools in Saxony and later in the Magdeburg area, including at a Volksschule in Putlitz, Westprignitz, while maintaining his connection to the military through reserve officer training.
In the interwar period Griesbach completed his formal teacher training at the Präparandenanstalt in Genthin from 1907 to 1910 and the Lehrerseminar from 1910 to 1913 before his military call-up. He remained on the reserve list and participated in periodic exercises. Recalled to active duty at the outbreak of the Second World War, he was initially assigned as company chief of the 6th Company, Infantry Regiment 12, in Halberstadt on 1 March 1939. He advanced rapidly in supplementary and replacement units, serving as commander of Infantry Replacement Battalion 467 in 1940 and later as a staff officer undergoing further training at Königsbrück. By late 1940 he had been promoted to major of the supplementary officers on 20 October 1940 and transferred to the active list as a regular major effective 1 December 1941. In September 1941 he took command of the 1st Battalion of Infantry Regiment 391 within the 170th Infantry Division, a formation with which he would remain for the duration of his frontline service.
Griesbach first distinguished himself in the Crimea during the winter campaign of 1941-1942. On 15 January 1942, at 0600 hours, Infantry Regiment 391 launched a hasty attack with his 1st Battalion in the lead. Despite fierce Soviet resistance the battalion fought past Hill 200 and captured Hill 175. The following day, advancing through difficult ravine-covered terrain, Griesbach demonstrated exceptional bravery and tactical skill. His leadership enabled the regiment, which was operating at little more than battalion strength, to seize Hill 251.4. When Hill 175 temporarily fell back into enemy hands he independently ordered a counterattack that secured it again, an action vital for the division's continued operations. These efforts contributed directly to the fall of Feodosia on 18 January 1942. For his role in this successful offensive Griesbach was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 14 March 1942 while still a major and battalion commander.
He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 1 April 1942 and shortly afterward assumed command of Infantry Regiment 399, later redesignated Grenadier Regiment 399, still within the 170th Infantry Division. In early 1943 the division faced a deep Soviet penetration south of Lake Ladoga near Krasny Bor that reached a depth of approximately two kilometres. Acting on his own initiative, Colonel Griesbach, now promoted to that rank effective 1 January 1943 with seniority from 1 December 1942, launched a counterattack using the battle-weary troops of his 3rd Battalion. He personally led from the front at the spearhead of the foremost company, overrunning resistance nests one after another, directing shock troops, and guiding artillery observers onto key targets while coming under enemy blocking fire himself. After five and a half hours of intense fighting more than half the penetrated area had been recaptured. Griesbach then shifted to the sector of his 1st Battalion on the Soviet right flank and launched a surprise assault without artillery preparation. The two German battalions squeezed the enemy into an ever-narrowing pocket, inflicting devastating losses. Approximately 2,000 Soviet soldiers were killed, 338 taken prisoner, and large quantities of equipment, including five tanks, 24 artillery pieces, and 149 mortars and machine guns, were destroyed or captured. The victory was highlighted in the Wehrmacht communiqué of 25 March 1943. In recognition of this feat Griesbach received the 242nd Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross on 17 May 1943.
Further promotion to colonel followed, and Griesbach continued to lead his regiment in the Leningrad sector. In January 1944 his battle group destroyed 69 Soviet tanks near the village of Pelellja on 17 January. Two days later the battle group recaptured the heights near Duderhof that had fallen to the enemy. On 23 January he led another successful counterthrust at Gatschina. These actions prevented a major Soviet breakthrough south of Leningrad. For his repeated demonstrations of aggressive leadership and tactical success under extreme pressure Griesbach was awarded the 53rd Swords to the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on 6 March 1944 while still commanding his regiment.
On 15 February 1944 he was given temporary command of the 170th Infantry Division itself, serving as its leader for only one day before being succeeded by Generalleutnant Siegfried Haß on 16 February. Severe wounds sustained in the fighting near Leningrad shortly afterward forced his evacuation to Reserve Hospital Görden, where he remained until April 1945. He was then transferred to the Führer Reserve of the Army High Command. In April 1945 Soviet forces captured him, and he spent more than four years in prisoner-of-war camps before his release on 21 October 1949. During his wartime service he had also earned the 1939 Clasp to the Iron Cross Second Class on 22 October 1941 and First Class on 20 November 1941, the Infantry Assault Badge in silver on 19 December 1941, the 1939 Wound Badge in gold on 4 February 1942, the Order of the Crown of Romania with swords, the Winter Battle in the East Medal, the Crimea Shield, the Romanian Commemorative Medal for the Crusade Against Communism, the Honour Cross of the World War 1914-1918 with swords, and the War Merit Cross Second Class with swords.
After returning to West Germany Griesbach lived quietly in retirement. He had married Martha Matthes in 1921; she died in 1940, and the couple had two sons. In 1942 he married Gertrud Murmann. No further details of his postwar civilian life or any additional family members are recorded. Franz Friedrich Johann Griesbach died on 24 September 1984 in Lage, North Rhine-Westphalia, at the age of 91. His career exemplified the path of many reserve officers who transitioned from civilian professions to high command in the Wehrmacht, achieving extraordinary decorations through personal courage and decisive leadership on the Eastern Front.
Source:
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/
https://en.wikipedia.org/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/
https://grokipedia.com/
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300
https://www.unithistories.com/units_index/index.php?file=/officers/personsx.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20091027052912fw_/http://geocities.com/orion47.geo/index2.html
https://forum.axishistory.com/
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/
https://www.bundesarchiv.de/en/
https://www.geni.com/
https://books.google.com/
https://www.walter-frentz-collection.de/fotoarchiv/personenarchiv-a-z/personen-g-h/
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