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Rudolf Koch-Erpach (9 April 1886 – 28 November 1971) was an officer in the German Army (''Heer'') during World War II. ==Biography== Koch-Erpach was born in Munich, and eventually rose to the rank of ''General der Kavallerie'' (General of Cavalry). In 1939, he commanded the German 8th Infantry Division during the invasion of Poland. On 23 September 1939, Koch-Erpach had the distinction of being captured by the Polish forces during the Battle of Krasnobrod. On 24 June 1940, after the Battle of France and while still commanding the German 8th Infantry Division, Koch-Erpach was awarded a Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. From 1 November 1940 to 1 March 1941, Koch-Erpach commanded the German LX Corps. After a short break, he briefly commanded the XXXV Corps from 1 April 1941 to 1 May 1941. Koch-Erpach commanded Military District VIII from 1 May 1942 to 26 January 1945. The headquarters for this military district was Breslau and the district included Silesia, Sudetenland, parts of Moravia, and parts of southwestern Poland. Military District VIII ceased operations in February 1945. From 26 January 1945 to 10 April 1945, Koch-Erpach experienced another command of brief duration as commander of the LVI Panzer Corps. In March 1945 Koch-Erpach and his H.Q were encircled by the Red Army near Oppeln—present-day Opole. To bring him out of there, Generalfeldmarschall Ferdinand Schörner gave orders to an Estonian officer, Colonel Alfons Rebane from the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS, famous for breaking out of circles . Rebane picked 4 Estonian volunteers from his group and brought Koch-Erpach and his H.Q to safety with no casualties. For this Koch-Erpach suggested Rebane to be awarded with Oak leaves to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Later in 1945, Koch-Erpach was acting commander of the German 1st Army for two days before the war ended, from 6 May to 8 May. He died in Bad Boll. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Rudolf Koch-Erpach」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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