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Otto Günsche

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Otto Günsche

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Also known as Günsche

Hitler's personal adjutant (1917–2003)

Music · MusicBrainz

Type
Person
Country
DE
Active from
1948-07-22

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Key facts

Born
( 1917-09-24 ) 24 September 1917, Jena , German Empire
Died
2 October 2003 (2003-10-02) (aged 86), Lohmar , Germany
Resting place
North Sea (ashes scattered)
Allegiance
Germany
Branch
Waffen-SS
Service years
1933–1945
Rank
SS- Sturmbannführer
Unit
1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (1934–1945) Führerbegleitkommando (1940–1941; 1943; 1944–1945)
Known for
Being Adolf Hitler's personal adjutant and being present during Hitler's suicide on 30 April 1945
Conflicts
World War II Western Front Occupation of France Eastern Front Invasion of the Soviet Union Battle of Berlin ( Prisoner of war</span>"}]]}'>POW ) 20 July plot

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Instance of
human
Given name
Otto
Gender
male
Citizenship
Germany
Place of birth
Jena
Place of death
Lohmar
Occupation
soldier
Political party
Nazi Party
Languages spoken
German
Conflict
World War II
Military branch
Waffen-SS
Military rank
Sturmbannführer
Image
Otto Günsche.jpg
Show 10 more facts
cause of death
myocardial infarction
date of birth
1917-09-24
date of death
2003-10-02
member of
Schutzstaffel
manner of death
natural causes
name in native language
Otto Günsche
allegiance
Nazi Germany
start of work period
1935-00-00
Commons category
Otto Günsche
Sources (3)

via Wikidata · CC0

~8 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Otto Günsche (24 September 1917 – 2 October 2003) was a mid-ranking officer of the Waffen-SS during World War II. He was a member of the SS Division Leibstandarte before he became Adolf Hitler's personal adjutant. During the Battle of Berlin, Günsche was present in the Führerbunker during Hitler's suicide on 30 April 1945 and was captured by the Red Army as a prisoner of war two days later.

While in custody at various labour camps and prisons across the Soviet Union, Günsche was tortured and interrogated for information on the circumstances of Hitler's death and the purported possibility of his escape. Günsche was transferred to a prison in East Germany in 1955 and released on 2 May 1956. He was again questioned and brought to court by the Western Allies to provide sworn key testimony about Hitler's death.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Otto Günsche” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.