terkreuz(Knight’s Cross), gained promotion to
colonel-general, and was installed as com-
mander in chief of occupied Poland. In dealing
with civilians, this proud, traditional soldier
kept a tight rein over his men. For this reason,
he was shocked and outraged when SS units,
over which he had no control—or respect—
began murdering Jews and plundering Polish
shops. Stung by these atrocities, Blaskowitz
composed a harsh memorandum protesting SS
misbehavior and demanding the units be prose-
cuted for war crimes. He repeated this request
in February 1940 and was especially keen on
pressing charges against Hitler’s henchman,
Josef Dietrich. However, the general’s com-
plaints were coolly received in Berlin, and
Chief of StaffAlfred Jodldismissed them as
naive. When knowledge of Blaskowitz’s mis-
sives became known to the Führer, the general
found himself on a military blacklist. To Hitler,
the last thing the Third Reich needed was gen-
erals questioning Nazi sensibilities.
After the fall of France in May 1940,
Blaskowitz was slated to receive command of
the Ninth Army for occupation purposes, but
Hitler vindictively blocked the appointment.
Instead, Blaskowitz obtained a relatively
minor position as governor of northern
France. That fall he transferred south to an-
other insignificant command, that of the First
Army on the southwestern coast between
Brittany and the Spanish border. Blaskowitz
possessed strategic and tactical talents of a
high order, but thanks to his political unrelia-
bility, he had no outlet for their employment
until 1944. That May, following the appoint-
ment of Gerd von Rundstedtas commander
in chief in the west, Blaskowitz became head
of Army Group G. With this relatively small
command, consisting of the First and 19th
Armies, he was tasked with defending south-
ern France from an imminent Allied offensive.
The invasion of northern France commenced
on June 6, 1944, with the landings at Nor-
mandy, and two months later a similar effort
was mounted against Blaskowitz.
On August 15, 1944, the Allies unleashed
Operation Anvil/Dragoon against the Riviera
coastline. The 7th Army under Gen. Alexan-
der M. Patch stormed ashore and quickly
overcame weak German resistance. Blas-
kowitz, knowing he was badly outnum-
bered—and lacking control of the air—
brought up units, stabilized his front, and led
a tenacious fighting withdrawal northward to
prevent encirclement. His performance was
masterful and prevented the VI Corps under
Gen. Lucian K. Truscott from cutting off his
retreat. Still, the August 23–28 Battle of Mon-
telimar was a bloodbath, and the Germans de-
parted southern France after losing 75,000
prisoners and 4,000 vehicles. The Americans
then hotly pursued Blaskowitz up through the
Vosges Mountains before pausing to regroup.
There the Germans were also reinforced by
the 5th Panzer Army under Gen. Hasso von
Manteuffel. Blaskowitz correctly wanted to
entrench his battered forces, but Hitler or-
dered him to counterattack Gen. George S.
Patton’s Third Army immediately. Both Man-
teuffel and Blaskowitz realized the futility of
this directive, but the Führer had spoken.
Their attack caught the Americans in disarray,
following their recent charge across France,
and pushed them back to the vicinity of
Luneville on September 18–20, 1944. At that
point, resistance stiffened and the attack was
suspended. Hitler, furious over this failure,
summarily relieved Blaskowitz and replaced
him with another skillful leader, Gen. Her-
mann Balck.
Blaskowitz remained unemployed for sev-
eral months into the winter, until Hitler sud-
denly recalled him in December 1944. His or-
ders were to attack in the vicinity of
Alsace-Lorraine in support of the ongoing Ar-
dennes offensive. On New Year’s Day 1945,
Blaskowitz did as ordered against tremen-
dous odds. Army Group G hit Gen. Jacob
Dever’s 7th Army, and severe fighting erupted
before this last German offensive in the west
was finally contained. Subsequently, Ameri-
can maneuvers brought about the creation of
the so-called Colmar pocket, wherein thou-
sands of German troops were trapped. How-
ever, Blaskowitz was suddenly transferred atBLASKOWITZ, JOHANNES