Alfred-Hermann Reinhardt was born on 15 November 1897 in Affalterbach, Württemberg, as the son of a schoolteacher named Ferdinand Reinhardt and his wife Amalie, née Mayer. He volunteered for military service on 7 January 1916 during the First World War and was assigned to Grenadier-Regiment 123. Reinhardt saw combat on the Western Front and rose through the ranks amid the brutal trench warfare that defined the conflict. After the armistice in 1918, he transitioned into the police force of the Weimar Republic, where he continued his military-related career and attained the rank of Hauptmann. In 1935 he transferred back to the newly expanding German Army, or Heer, as a Hauptmann, beginning a steady climb through the officer corps that would culminate in high command during the Second World War.
With the outbreak of war in 1939, Reinhardt served initially in staff and regimental roles before taking command of Infanterie-Regiment 421 within the 125th Infantry Division. His early wartime experiences included the campaign in Yugoslavia in April 1941 and subsequent operations on the Eastern Front following the launch of Operation Barbarossa. By the late summer of 1941, his regiment became heavily engaged in the massive encirclement battles around Kiev. On 20 September 1941, amid desperate Soviet breakout attempts, Reinhardt led his men in a determined assault that secured the village of Tarassowka, sealing a critical escape route and contributing significantly to the capture of hundreds of thousands of Soviet troops. For this tactical success and his regiment's overall performance in the Kiev pocket, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 4 December 1941 as an Oberstleutnant. The fighting around Tarassowka involved intense close-quarters combat through muddy fields and ruined buildings, where German infantry repelled wave after wave of Soviet assaults under heavy artillery and small-arms fire, ultimately collapsing organized resistance in one of the largest encirclements in military history.
Reinhardt continued to distinguish himself as the war shifted into grueling defensive phases. Promoted to Oberst, he commanded Grenadier-Regiment 421 during the intense battles for the Kuban bridgehead in the Caucasus region in 1943. On 24 July 1943, Soviet forces achieved a dangerous penetration against the neighboring 73rd Infantry Division near Dolgaja-Berg and Neberdshajewskaja, threatening to unravel the entire German defensive line. Reinhardt's regiment was rapidly redeployed and launched a fierce counterattack over the following two days. In brutal attritional fighting across ravines and along the Kamm river, his grenadiers engaged in hand-to-hand combat with bayonets and grenades, enduring relentless Soviet artillery barrages and infantry assaults supported by tanks. By 26 July they had restored the original line between Neberdshajewskaja and Bogago-Tal, preventing the collapse of the Kuban bridgehead and allowing for an orderly later evacuation. This action earned him the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross on 28 September 1943 as the 306th recipient, recognizing his regiment's decisive role in stabilizing a critical sector under extreme pressure.
In early 1944 Reinhardt advanced to divisional command. He attended a divisional leaders' course and briefly served as deputy commander of the 73rd Infantry Division before being promoted to Generalmajor on 1 February 1944 and given command of the 98th Infantry Division. The division had suffered heavy losses earlier in the war, including on the Kerch Peninsula, and was reformed for operations in the Mediterranean theater. Under Reinhardt's leadership, it was transferred to the Italian front to help hold the Gothic Line defenses along the Adriatic coast. There the unit faced relentless Allied pressure during Operation Olive in the summer and autumn of 1944, battling British, Canadian, Polish, and other Commonwealth forces amid pouring rain and mud that turned the terrain into a quagmire. Reinhardt's men conducted tenacious defenses on ridges and river lines near Rimini and Coriano, repelling repeated infantry-tank assaults through olive groves and ruined villages in house-to-house fighting that inflicted significant casualties on the attackers.
The defensive battles on the Adriatic coast showcased the 98th Infantry Division's exceptional firmness, as noted in the Wehrmachtbericht on 10 September 1944. Reinhardt's command emphasized resolute holding actions and timely counterattacks that delayed the Allied advance toward the Po Valley for crucial days, despite being outnumbered and short on supplies. The combat around Croce and Coriano Ridge was particularly savage, with soldiers fighting in knee-deep mud under constant artillery and air strikes. For the division's overall performance and his personal leadership in these attritional engagements, Reinhardt received the Swords to the Knight's Cross on 24 December 1944 as the 118th recipient, and he was promoted to Generalleutnant on 1 September 1944. He continued leading the division through further defensive actions along the Senio and Po rivers into 1945 before being succeeded in command on 11 April 1945.
After the end of the war, Reinhardt was held in British captivity until his release in 1948. He returned to civilian life in West Germany, settling in Öhringen, Baden-Württemberg. Married to Frida Hartlieb and with no children, he lived quietly until his death on 15 January 1973 at the age of 75. Reinhardt's military career exemplified the qualities valued by the German Army: adaptability from private soldier in the First World War to divisional commander in the Second, combined with tactical skill and steadfast leadership in some of the conflict's most demanding campaigns on the Eastern Front and in Italy. His decorations reflected not only personal courage but the operational impact of the units he led during pivotal moments of the war.
With the outbreak of war in 1939, Reinhardt served initially in staff and regimental roles before taking command of Infanterie-Regiment 421 within the 125th Infantry Division. His early wartime experiences included the campaign in Yugoslavia in April 1941 and subsequent operations on the Eastern Front following the launch of Operation Barbarossa. By the late summer of 1941, his regiment became heavily engaged in the massive encirclement battles around Kiev. On 20 September 1941, amid desperate Soviet breakout attempts, Reinhardt led his men in a determined assault that secured the village of Tarassowka, sealing a critical escape route and contributing significantly to the capture of hundreds of thousands of Soviet troops. For this tactical success and his regiment's overall performance in the Kiev pocket, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 4 December 1941 as an Oberstleutnant. The fighting around Tarassowka involved intense close-quarters combat through muddy fields and ruined buildings, where German infantry repelled wave after wave of Soviet assaults under heavy artillery and small-arms fire, ultimately collapsing organized resistance in one of the largest encirclements in military history.
Reinhardt continued to distinguish himself as the war shifted into grueling defensive phases. Promoted to Oberst, he commanded Grenadier-Regiment 421 during the intense battles for the Kuban bridgehead in the Caucasus region in 1943. On 24 July 1943, Soviet forces achieved a dangerous penetration against the neighboring 73rd Infantry Division near Dolgaja-Berg and Neberdshajewskaja, threatening to unravel the entire German defensive line. Reinhardt's regiment was rapidly redeployed and launched a fierce counterattack over the following two days. In brutal attritional fighting across ravines and along the Kamm river, his grenadiers engaged in hand-to-hand combat with bayonets and grenades, enduring relentless Soviet artillery barrages and infantry assaults supported by tanks. By 26 July they had restored the original line between Neberdshajewskaja and Bogago-Tal, preventing the collapse of the Kuban bridgehead and allowing for an orderly later evacuation. This action earned him the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross on 28 September 1943 as the 306th recipient, recognizing his regiment's decisive role in stabilizing a critical sector under extreme pressure.
In early 1944 Reinhardt advanced to divisional command. He attended a divisional leaders' course and briefly served as deputy commander of the 73rd Infantry Division before being promoted to Generalmajor on 1 February 1944 and given command of the 98th Infantry Division. The division had suffered heavy losses earlier in the war, including on the Kerch Peninsula, and was reformed for operations in the Mediterranean theater. Under Reinhardt's leadership, it was transferred to the Italian front to help hold the Gothic Line defenses along the Adriatic coast. There the unit faced relentless Allied pressure during Operation Olive in the summer and autumn of 1944, battling British, Canadian, Polish, and other Commonwealth forces amid pouring rain and mud that turned the terrain into a quagmire. Reinhardt's men conducted tenacious defenses on ridges and river lines near Rimini and Coriano, repelling repeated infantry-tank assaults through olive groves and ruined villages in house-to-house fighting that inflicted significant casualties on the attackers.
The defensive battles on the Adriatic coast showcased the 98th Infantry Division's exceptional firmness, as noted in the Wehrmachtbericht on 10 September 1944. Reinhardt's command emphasized resolute holding actions and timely counterattacks that delayed the Allied advance toward the Po Valley for crucial days, despite being outnumbered and short on supplies. The combat around Croce and Coriano Ridge was particularly savage, with soldiers fighting in knee-deep mud under constant artillery and air strikes. For the division's overall performance and his personal leadership in these attritional engagements, Reinhardt received the Swords to the Knight's Cross on 24 December 1944 as the 118th recipient, and he was promoted to Generalleutnant on 1 September 1944. He continued leading the division through further defensive actions along the Senio and Po rivers into 1945 before being succeeded in command on 11 April 1945.
After the end of the war, Reinhardt was held in British captivity until his release in 1948. He returned to civilian life in West Germany, settling in Öhringen, Baden-Württemberg. Married to Frida Hartlieb and with no children, he lived quietly until his death on 15 January 1973 at the age of 75. Reinhardt's military career exemplified the qualities valued by the German Army: adaptability from private soldier in the First World War to divisional commander in the Second, combined with tactical skill and steadfast leadership in some of the conflict's most demanding campaigns on the Eastern Front and in Italy. His decorations reflected not only personal courage but the operational impact of the units he led during pivotal moments of the war.
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