Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller

Infobox Military Person
name=Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller
lived=birth date|1897|8|29|df=y — death date and age|1947|5|20|1897|8|29|df=y
placeofbirth=Barmen, Prussia
placeofdeath=Athens


caption=
nickname=
allegiance=flagicon|German Empire German Empire (to 1918)
flagicon|Germany Weimar Republic (to 1933)
flagicon|Nazi Germany Nazi Germany
branch=Heer
serviceyears=
rank=General der Infanterie
commands=
unit=
battles=World War I
World War II
awards=Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords
laterwork=

Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller (August 29, 1897 – May 20, 1947) was a General in the German army in World War II. He is notorious for being the most brutal commander of occupied Crete, where he earned the nickname "The Butcher of Crete." After the war, he was executed by the Greek government for war crimes.

Pre-war and early war

In 1914 Müller joined the German 2nd Infantry Regiment. He became a second lieutenant in the 266th Regiment in 1915. In 1936 he became a major in the German army and by 1940 was a lieutenant colonel and commander of the 105th Infantry Regiment. He was awarded the Knight's Cross in 1941 and received oak leaves in 1942 for operations in Russia.

Crete

In August 1942 General Müller took command of the 22nd Bremen-Sebastopol Division, which was transferred from the Eastern Front to garrison occupied Crete. In Crete, Müller was known for his brutality, and was responsible for many of the atrocities committed on the island. On August 13, 1944 he replaced Bruno Brauer as Commander on Crete. During the autumn of 1943, he led the German forces in their victory over the Italian-British forces in the Dodecanese Campaign.

In 1946 Müller was tried by a Greek court in Athens for the massacres of hostages for reprisals. He was sentenced to death on December 9, 1946 and was shot on May 20 1947, [http://www.ess.uwe.ac.uk/WCC/warcrimgenrls.htm] along with Bruno Brauer.

Ill Met by Moonlight

The original plan, as published in the book "Ill Met by Moonlight", was to capture General Müller, commander of the Sebastopol division. However, he had been replaced by General Kreipe and SOE believed that Müller had left the island when he was really in Hania replacing Brauer as the commander of the island. The operation was carried out nevertheless, as it was reckoned that one German general was as good as another.

Awards

* Prussian Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, Knight's Cross with Swords
* Wound Badge in Silver
* Infantry Assault Badge
* "Crimea" Shield
* "Bulgarian Military Order of Merit"
* German Cross in Gold
* Iron Cross 2. and 1. class
* Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords
** Knight's Cross (22 September 1941)
** 86. Oak Leaves (8 April 1942)
** 128. Swords (27 January 1945)
* Mentioned four times in the Wehrmachtbericht

References

* Berger, Florian. "Mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern. Die höchstdekorierten Soldaten des Zweiten Weltkrieges". Wien, Austria: Selbstverlag Florian Berger, 2006. ISBN 3-9501307-0-5.
*Beevor, Antony. "Crete: The Battle and the Resistance". 1991
* Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer. "Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945". Friedburg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas, 2000. ISBN 3-7909-0284-5.

External links

* [http://www.historic.de/ Historic.de - Militärgeschichte - Bremen und Umland 1933-1945 ] at www.historic.de