Role in The Resistance
Olbricht was one of few German military officers who supported the democratic Weimar Republic. His mistrust of the Nazis became apparent early on, particularly after the Beer Hall Putsch in 1923, when he stood together with Hans Oster, Erwin von Witzleben and Georg Thomas, who all distanced themselves from the growing National Socialist movement, worried as they were at the allure that the Nazis seemed to have for a lot of military men.
In 1926, Olbricht was called into the Reich Defence Ministry as leader of the "Foreign Armies Bureau". In 1933, he became chief of staff of the Dresden Division.
In 1934, Olbricht managed to save several men from being shot in the wake of the Night of the Long Knives by having them assigned to military-political duties under army protection. They had already been arrested, and would have been put to death in fairly short order.
In 1935, Olbricht was appointed chief of staff of the Fourth Army Corps stationed in Dresden. In 1938, he took over leadership of the 24th Infantry Division. That same year, he unsuccessfully advocated the rehabilitation of Werner von Fritsch, who had been disgraced as a result of an accusation of homosexuality (see Blomberg-Fritsch Affair).
When World War II broke out in 1939, Olbricht commanded the 24th Infantry Division during the Invasion of Poland. He led the division from the front, in one case creating an improvised "motorized unit" by loading troops on his own staff car so he could rush ahead and secure important bridges before they could be demolished by the enemy. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his personal bravery and his dynamic leadership style. On 15 February 1940, Olbricht was promoted to General of the Infantry. He was appointed Chief of the General Army Office (Allgemeines Heeresamt) in the Army High Command (Oberkommando des Heeres). He was furthermore made Chief of the Armed Forces Replacement Office (Wehrersatzamt) at the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht.
Read more about this topic: Friedrich Olbricht
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