(Photo courtesy of Gareth Collins)
General der Infanterie Eberhard Kinzel
Born: 18 Oct 1897 in Berlin-Friedenau
Died: 23 May 1945 in Idstedt near Flensburg (Suicide)
Promotions:
Gefreiter (16 Dec 1914); Fähnrich (08 May 1915); Leutnant (30 Jul 1915); Oberleutnant (31 Jul 1925); Hauptmann (01 Feb 1932); Major (18 Jan 1936); Oberstleutnant (01 Mar 1939); Oberst (01 Feb 1941); Generalmajor (01 Jan 1943); Generalleutnant (01 Sep 1943); General der Infanterie (20 Apr 1945)
Career:
Entered Army Service (16 Oct 1914)
War Volunteer in the 20th Infantry-Regiment (16 Oct 1914-25 Jan 1915)
Fahnenjunker in the 20th Infantry-Regiment (25 Jan 1915-09 May 1915)
Leader of the Mortar-Detachment of the 6th Infantry-Division (09 May 1915-22 May 1915)
Wounded, in Field-Hospital 7 (22 May 1915-12 Jul 1915)
Back in the Field with the 20th Infantry-Regiment (12 Jul 1915-19 Apr 1917)
Company-Leader in the 20th Infantry-Regiment (19 Apr 1917-06 Aug 1917)
Ordinance-Officer with the Staff of II. Battalion of the 20th Infantry-Regiment (06 Aug 1917-03 Mar 1918)
Ordinance-Officer with the Staff of III. Battalion of the 20th Infantry-Regiment (03 Mar 1918-01 Mar 1919)
Transferred to Regiment Oven, Freikorps von Oven (01 Mar 1919-01 Oct 1919)
Adjutant of I. Battalion of Regiment Oven, renamed 91st then 103rd Infantry-Regiment (01 Oct 1919-15 May 1920)
Ordinance-Officer with the Staff of III. Battalion of the 6th Reichswehr-Infantry-Regiment (15 May 1920-01 Oct 1920)
Ordinance-Officer with the Staff of E-Battalion of the 5th Reichswehr-Infantry-Regiment (01 Oct 1920-01 Jan 1921)
Company-Officer in the 14th Company of the 5th Infantry-Regiment (01 Jan 1921-01 Apr 1923)
Adjutant of the Training-Battalion of the 5th Infantry-Regiment (01 Apr 1923-01 Oct 1928)
Detached to the 7th Artillery-Regiment (01 Jul 1926-15 Sep 1926)
Detached for Subsidiary-Leadership-Training to the Staff of 2nd Division (01 Oct 1926-01 Jun 1927)
Detached to the 7th Motor-Transport-Battalion (01 Jun 1927-31 Jul 1927)
Detached to the 3rd Signals-Battalion (01 Aug 1927-20 Sep 1927)
Detached to the 5th Signals-Battalion (01 Jul 1928-31 Jul 1928)
Detached to the 3rd Motor-Transport-Battalion (01 Aug 1928-25 Sep 1928)
Detached to Command-Office Berlin (01 Oct 1928-06 Jun 1929)
Detached to Escort Russian Officers (06 Jun 1929-01 Oct 1929)
Detached to the RWM (01 Oct 1929-01 Oct 1930)
Transferred into the RWM (01 Oct 1930-01 Oct 1933)
Assistant of the Military Attaché in Warsaw (01 Oct 1933-01 Apr 1936)
Transferred into the 66th Infantry-Regiment (01 Apr 1936-01 Apr 1937)
Chief of Operations (Ia) in the General-Staff of the 19th Division (01 Apr 1937-10 Nov 1938)
Chief of Department Foreign Armies East (Fremde Heere Ost) in the Army General Staff (10 Nov 1938-01 Mar 1939)
Chief of Department OKH/Army General Staff/Oqu IV/Department Foreign Armies East (II) (Fremde Heere Ost (II)) (01 Mar 1939-01 May 1942)
Führer-Reserve OKH (01 May 1942-23 May 1942)
Chief of the General Staff of XXIX. Army-Corps (23 May 1942-12 Nov 1942)
Führer-Reserve OKH (12 Nov 1942-22 Jan 1943)
Chief of the General Staff of Army-Group North (22 Jan 1943-18 Jul 1944)
Führer-Reserve OKH (23 Jul 1944-01 Sep 1944)
Commander of the 570th Volksgrenadier-Division (01 Sep 1944-15 Sep 1944)
Commander of the 337th Volksgrenadier-Division (15 Sep 1944-02 Mar 1945)
Chief of the General Staff of Army-Group Vistula (03 Mar 1945-22 Apr 1945)
Chief of the General Staff of (Operations-Staff North) OKW-Operations-Staff A (under Großadmiral Dönitz) (22 Apr 1945-03 May 1945)
Member of a German Delegation under the Leadership of the Commander-in-Chief of the Kriegsmarine, Generaladmiral von Friedeburg, for the Absorption of Surrender Negotiations opposite the Commander-in-Chief of the English 21st Army-Group, Field-Marshall Montgomery (03 May 1945-04 May 1945)
Signing at 18:30 Hours near Lüneburg: 'Cessation of Hostilities starting 8:00 Hours on May 5th' (Holland, North West Germany between the Ems Delta and Kieler Förde as well as Denmark including her Islands. Cessation of Air & Sea Operations in these Areas). Kinzel then went afterwards with Generalarmiral von Friedeburg to Negotiations in the Allied Headquarters at Reims (04 May 1945-05 May 1945)
German Liaison Officer with Montgomery (05 May 1945-06 May 1945)
Back in Flensburg in the Morning for Reporting (06 May 1945-08 May 1945)
In Captivity (08 May 1945-23 May 1945)
Committed Suicide (23 May 1945)

Decorations & Awards:
- Ritrwekreuz: 23.12.1942 als Oberst i.G. und Chef der Abteilung Fremde Heere Ost (II)/ Oberquartiermeister IV /Generalstab des Heeres
- RK des Kgl. Preuss. Hausordens von Hohenzollern mit Schwertern: 29.07.1918
- 1914 EK I
- 1914 EK II
- Verwundetenabzeichen, 1918 in Schwarz
- Ehrenkreuz für Frontkämpfer
- Wehrmacht-Dienstauszeichnung IV. bis I. Klasse
- Spange zum EK II
- Spange zum EK I
- Finn. Freiheitskreuz II. Klasse mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern: 25.03.1942


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