Wilhelm Mohnke

Wilhelm Mohnke (15 March 1911 – 6 August 2001) was a German military officer who was one of the original members of the Schutzstaffel SS-Stabswache Berlin (Staff Guard Berlin) formed in March 1933.

Mohnke was born in Lübeck on 15 March 1911.

His father, who shared his name with his son, was a cabinetmaker.

After his father's death, he went to work for a glass and porcelain manufacturer, eventually reaching a management position.

He also held a degree in economics.

He took command of the 2nd Battalion on 28 May after the battalion commander was wounded.

Mohnke, who had joined the Nazi Party in September 1931, rose through the ranks to become one of Adolf Hitler's last remaining general officers at the end of World War II in Europe.

With the SS Division Leibstandarte, Mohnke participated in the fighting in France, Poland and the Balkans.

Mohnke joined the Nazi Party with number 649,684 on 1 September 1931.

Shortly thereafter, he joined the Schutzstaffel (SS) with number 15,541.

Mohnke began with the rank of SS-Mann (private).

After Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in January 1933, SS Headquarters in Berlin requested that all SS regiments submit three names of their best soldiers for transfer to a personal guard unit for Hitler.

Mohnke was selected for the unit in March 1933.

He was assigned to SS-Stabswache Berlin (SS-Staff Guard Berlin), which established its first guard at the original Reich Chancellery.

By August, Mohnke was one of two company commanders.

In September, the unit became known as the SS-Sonderkommando Berlin after the training units SS-Sonderkommando Zossen and SS-Sonderkommando Jüterbog merged with it under Dietrich's command.

With the merger, Mohnke was transferred to the 2nd Battalion and given command of the 3rd Company.

In November 1933, on the 10th anniversary of the Beer Hall Putsch, the Sonderkommando swore personal allegiance to Hitler.

At the conclusion of the ceremony the unit received the new title, "Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler" (LAH).

On 13 April 1934, Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS, ordered the Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler (LAH) to be renamed "Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler" (LSSAH).

Mohnke took part in the Polish Campaign in September 1939.

He was wounded on 7 September 1939 and recovered in the hospital in Prague.

For this, Mohnke received the Wound Badge in Black.

He was awarded the Iron Cross, Second Class on 29 September 1939 and the Iron Cross, First Class on 8 November 1939.

He was investigated after the war for war crimes, including allegations that he was responsible for the killing of prisoners in France in 1940, Normandy in June 1944 and Belgium in December 1944.

Mohnke led the 5th company of the 2nd Battalion of the Infanterie-Regiment Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler, at the outset of the Battle of France in 1940.

He commanded the 2nd Battalion during the Balkans campaign, where he suffered a severe leg wound in a Yugoslavian air attack on 6 April 1941, the first day of the campaign.

It was the decision of the medics that his leg would need to be amputated, but Mohnke overrode them.

His wound was so serious that a part of his foot still had to be removed.

On 26 December 1941, while still recuperating, Mohnke was awarded the German Cross in Gold.

Mohnke returned to active service in 1942; he was transferred to a replacement battalion in March 1942.

He was appointed to command a regiment in the SS Division Hitlerjugend in 1943.

He led the unit in the Battle for Caen, receiving the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 11 July 1944.

Mohnke was given command of his original division, the Leibstandarte, during the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944.

During the Battle of Berlin, Mohnke commanded the Kampfgruppe Mohnke and was charged with defending the Berlin government district, including the Reich Chancellery and the Reichstag.

It was around this time that Mohnke was allegedly involved in the murder of 80 British (of the 48th division) and French prisoners of war (POWs) near Wormhoudt.

Mohnke was never brought to trial over these allegations, and when the case was reopened in 1988, a German prosecutor came to the conclusion there was insufficient evidence to bring charges.

The case briefly resurfaced once again in late 1993 when it became evident that the British government had not revealed some pertinent files from its archives during the earlier investigation.

However, nothing substantial came from this either.

Although Mohnke served 10 years in Soviet custody, he was never charged with any crimes, and died in 2001, aged 90.