Albert Kesselring

Albert Kesselring

November 1885 – July 1960

Overview

Albert Kesselring was born on November 30, 1885, in Marktsteft, Bavaria, in the German Empire. He initially served in the Imperial German Army during World War I and later joined the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) in the 1930s. Rising quickly through the ranks, he became one of the most prominent military leaders in Germany during the Second World War.

Kesselring held various high-command positions within the Luftwaffe and the Wehrmacht. He played a major role in the invasions of France and the Low Countries and later commanded German forces in the Mediterranean theatre, including North Africa and Italy. His strategic defense of the Italian peninsula earned him recognition for his military skill, particularly in difficult terrain under constant Allied pressure.

After the war

After the war, Kesselring was tried by a British military court for war crimes related to civilian massacres in Italy and was sentenced to death in 1947. The sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment, and he was released on health grounds in 1952.

Albert Kesselring died on July 16, 1960, in Bad Nauheim, West Germany, due to a heart attack.