{{Short description|Army High Command of the Wehrmacht}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2025}} {{Italic title}} {{Redirect|OKH}} {{More citations needed|date=September 2009}} {{Infobox military unit | unit_name = Army High Command | native_name = {{lang|de|Oberkommando des Heeres}} | image = OKH2.svg | image_size = 150px | alt = | caption = Command flag from 1938 to 1942 | start_date = 1935 | disbanded = 23 May 1945 | country = {{flag|Nazi Germany}} | branch = {{army|Nazi Germany}} | type = High Command | role = | size = | command_structure = Armed Forces High Command ({{lang|de|Oberkommando der Wehrmacht}}) | garrison = Maybach I, Wünsdorf | garrison_label = Headquarters | nickname = OKH | battles = <!-- Commanders --> | commander1 = ''See list'' | commander1_label = Commander-in-Chief | commander2 = ''See list'' | commander2_label = Chief of the General Staff <!-- Insignia --> | identification_symbol = 50px | identification_symbol_label = Command flag 1936–38 | identification_symbol_2 = 50px | identification_symbol_2_label = Command flag 1938–42 }}
The '''{{lang|de|Oberkommando des Heeres}}''' ({{literal translation|Upper Command of the Army}}; abbreviated '''OKH''') was the high command of the Army of Nazi Germany. It was founded in 1935 as part of Adolf Hitler's rearmament of Germany. OKH was ''de facto'' the most important unit within the German war planning until the defeat at Moscow in December 1941.
During World War II, OKH had the responsibility of strategic planning of Armies and Army Groups. The General Staff of the OKH managed operational matters. Each German Army also had an Army High Command ({{lang|de|Armeeoberkommando}} or AOK). The Armed Forces High Command ({{lang|de|Oberkommando der Wehrmacht}}) then took over this function for theatres other than the Eastern front.
The OKH commander held the title of Commander-in-chief of the Army ({{lang|de|Oberbefehlshaber des Heeres}}). After the Battle of Moscow, the OKH commander Field marshal Walther von Brauchitsch was removed from office, and Hitler appointed himself as Commander-in-Chief of the Army.
From 1938, OKH was, together with {{lang|de|Oberkommando der Luftwaffe}} ({{translation|Air Force High Command}}) and {{lang|de|Oberkommando der Marine}} ({{translation|Naval High Command}}) formally subordinated to the {{lang|de|Oberkommando der Wehrmacht}}.
==OKH vs OKW== OKH had been independent until February 1938, when Hitler created the ''Oberkommando der Wehrmacht'' which, on paper, subordinated OKH to OKW. After a major crisis developed in the Battle of Moscow, von Brauchitsch was dismissed (partly because of his failing health), and Hitler appointed himself as head of the OKH. At the same time, he limited the OKH's authority to the Russian front, giving OKW direct authority over army units elsewhere. This enabled Hitler to declare that only he had complete awareness of Germany's strategic situation, should any general request a transfer of resources between the Russian front and another theatre of operations.<ref>{{cite book| last =Barnett| first =Correlli| title =Hitler's Generals| publisher =Grove| date =1989| pages =[https://archive.org/details/hitlersgenerals00barn/page/497 497]| isbn =978-1555841614| url-access =registration| url =https://archive.org/details/hitlersgenerals00barn/page/497}}</ref>
Although both OKW and OKH were headquartered in the Maybach complex in Nazi Germany, the functional and operational independence of both establishments were not lost on the respective staff during their tenure. Personnel at the compound remarked that even if Maybach 2 (the OKW complex) was completely destroyed, the OKH staff in Maybach 1 would scarcely notice. These camouflaged facilities, separated physically by a fence, also maintained structurally different mindsets towards their objectives.
On 28 April 1945 (two days before his suicide), Hitler formally subordinated OKH to OKW, giving the latter command of forces on the Eastern Front.<ref>Grier, Howard D. ''Hitler, Dönitz, and the Baltic Sea'', Naval Institute Press, 2007, {{ISBN|1-59114-345-4}}. [https://books.google.com/books?id=u4IbqxEQeBMC&pg=PA121 p. 121]<!--Last sentence only--></ref>
==Organisation== In 1944, these elements were subordinate to the OKH:<ref>{{cite book |author1=CIA |title=Who's Who In Nazi Germany |date=1944 |publisher=CIA |pages=31–32 |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/WHO%27S%20WHO%20IN%20NAZI%20GERMANY%201944_0001.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170123014855/https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/WHO%27S%20WHO%20IN%20NAZI%20GERMANY%201944_0001.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 23, 2017 |access-date=30 October 2019}}</ref> * C.-in-C. Reserve Army and Chief of Equipment ({{lang|de|Chef der Heeresausrüstung und Befehlshaber des Ersatzheeres}}): Friedrich Fromm * Chief of {{ill|General Army Office (Wehrmacht)|de|Allgemeines Heeresamt|lt=General Army Office}} ({{lang|de|Chef des Allgemeines Heeresamt}}): Friedrich Olbricht * Chief of Army Ordnance Office ({{lang|de|Chef des Heereswaffenamtes}}): Emil Leeb * Chief of Army Personnel Office ({{lang|de|Chef des Heerespersonalamtes}}): Rudolf Schmundt * Chief of Army Administrative Office ({{lang|de|Chef des Heeresverwaltungsamtes}}): {{ill|Herbert Osterkamp|de}} * Army Propaganda and Public Relations Office: Hasso von Wedel – Albrecht Blau – Kurt Dittmar * Inspector General of Armoured Troops ({{lang|de|Generalinspekteur der Panzertruppen}}): Heinz Guderian * General officer commanding for Engineers and Fortifications ({{lang|de|General der Pioniere und Festungen}}): {{ill|Alfred Jacob|de}} * Inspector General for Officer Cadets ({{lang|de|Generalinspektion des Militärerziehungs- und Bildungswesens}}): Karl-Wilhelm Specht
== List of commanders ==
=== Commander-in-Chief of the Army === The Commander-in-Chief of the Army ({{langx|de|Oberbefehlshaber des Heeres}}) was the head of the OKH and the German Army during the years of the Nazi regime.
{{Officeholder table start | showorder = y | showimage = y | image_title = Portrait | officeholder_title = Commander-in-Chief of the German Army | showtermlenght = y | showparty = n | showdefencebranch = n | showref = y }} {{Officeholder table | order = 1 | image = Werner von Fritsch (cropped).jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Generaloberst}} | officeholder = Werner von Fritsch | officeholder_sort = von Fritsch, Werner | born_year = 1880 | died_year = 1939 | term_start = 1 February 1934 | term_end = 4 February 1938 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1934|01|01|1938|02|04}} | ref = – }} {{Officeholder table | order = 2 | image = Bundesarchiv Bild 183-E00780, Walther von Brauchitsch.jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Generalfeldmarschall}} | officeholder = Walther von Brauchitsch | officeholder_sort = von Brauchitsch, Walther | born_year = 1881 | died_year = 1948 | term_start = 4 February 1938 | term_end = 19 December 1941 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1938|02|04|1941|12|19}} | ref = – }} {{Officeholder table | order = 3 | image = Hitler portrait crop.jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Führer und Reichskanzler}} | officeholder = Adolf Hitler | officeholder_sort = Hitler, Adolf | officeholder_note = {{efn|Hitler assumed personal command of the OKH following Brauchitsch's dismissal in order to supervise Operation Barbarossa, the German-led invasion of the Soviet Union.}} | born_year = 1889 | died_year = 1945 | died = y | term_start = 19 December 1941 | term_end = 30 April 1945 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1941|12|19|1945|04|30}} | ref = – }} {{Officeholder table | order = 4 | image = Bundesarchiv Bild 183-L29176, Ferdinand Schörner.jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Generalfeldmarschall}} | officeholder = Ferdinand Schörner | officeholder_sort = Schörner, Ferdinand | officeholder_note = {{efn|One of Hitler's favorite military commanders who was named in Hitler's last will and testament as the new commander of the OKH. Meanwhile, the OKH was subordinated to the OKW of the Wehrmacht, under Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel.}} | born_year = 1892 | died_year = 1973 | term_start = 30 April 1945 | term_end = 8 May 1945 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1945|04|30|1945|05|08}} | ref = – }} {{Officeholder table end}}
=== Chief of General Staff of the OKH === thumb|Flag of Chief of the German Army General Staff The Chiefs of the OKH General Staff ({{langx|de|link=no|Chef des Generalstabes des Heeres}}) were: {{Officeholder table start | showorder = y | showimage = y | image_title = Portrait | officeholder_title = Chief of the OKH General Staff | showtermlenght = y | showparty = n | showdefencebranch = n | showref = y }} {{Officeholder table | order = 1 | image = Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1980-033-04, Ludwig Beck.jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Generaloberst}} | officeholder = Ludwig Beck | officeholder_sort = Beck, Ludwig | born_year = 1880 | died_year = 1944 | term_start = 1 July 1935 | term_end = 31 August 1938 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1935|07|01|1938|08|31}} | ref = <ref>{{cite book |last=Murray |first=Williamson |year=1984 |title=The Change in the European Balance of Power, 1938–1939 The Path to Ruin |location=Princeton |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-0-691-05413-1 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/changeineuropean0000murr |page=184}}</ref> }} {{Officeholder table | order = 2 | image = Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1970-052-08, Franz Halder.jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Generaloberst}} | officeholder = Franz Halder | officeholder_sort = Halder, Franz | born_year = 1884 | died_year = 1972 | term_start = 1 September 1938 | term_end = 24 September 1942 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1938|09|01|1942|09|24}} | ref = <ref>{{cite book |last = Müller|first=Rolf-Dieter|author-link=Rolf-Dieter Müller|title = Enemy in the East: Hitler's Secret Plans to Invade the Soviet Union| year=2015 | place=London | publisher=I.B. Tauris | isbn=978-1-78076-829-8 |page=96}}</ref><ref name=Adam>{{Cite book |last1=Adam |first1=Wilhelm |first2=Otto |last2=Ruhle |translator=Tony Le Tissier |title=With Paulus at Stalingrad |publisher=Pen and Sword Books Ltd. |year=2015 |isbn=9781473833869 |page=78}}</ref> }} {{Officeholder table | order = 3 | image = Kurt Zeitzler.jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Generaloberst}} | officeholder = Kurt Zeitzler | officeholder_sort = Zeitzler, Kurt | born_year = 1895 | died_year = 1963 | term_start = 24 September 1942 | term_end = 10 June 1944 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1942|09|24|1944|06|10}} | ref = <ref name=Adam /> }} {{Officeholder table | order = – | image = Bundesarchiv Bild 146-2005-0030, Adolf Heusinger.jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Generalleutnant}} | officeholder = Adolf Heusinger | officeholder_sort = Heusinger, Adolf | officeholder_note = {{efn|Later served as the Inspector General of the Bundeswehr (1957–1961) and Chairman of the NATO Military Committee (1961–1964)}} | born_year = 1897 | died_year = 1982 | term_start = 10 June 1944 | term_end = 21 July 1944 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1944|06|10|1944|07|21}} | acting = y | ref = – }} {{Officeholder table | order = – | image = Heinz Guderian portrait.jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Generaloberst}} | officeholder = Heinz Guderian | officeholder_sort = Guderian, Heinz | born_year = 1888 | died_year = 1954 | term_start = 21 July 1944 | term_end = 28 March 1945 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1944|07|21|1945|03|28}} | acting = y | ref = <ref>{{Cite book |last=Hart |first=Russell A. |year=2006 |title=Guderian: Panzer Pioneer or Myth Maker? |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J8tqY5Vy0e4C&pg=PA16 |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=Potomac Books |isbn=978-1-59797-453-0 |page=103}}</ref> }} {{Officeholder table | order = 4 | image = Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1978-111-10A, Hans Krebs.jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|General der Infanterie}} | officeholder = Hans Krebs | officeholder_sort = Krebs, Hans | officeholder_note = {{efn|Committed suicide}} | born_year = 1898 | died_year = 1945 | died = y | term_start = 1 April 1945 | term_end = 2 May 1945 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1945|04|01|1945|05|01}} | acting = | ref = <ref>{{cite book |last=Joachimsthaler |first=Anton |author-link=Anton Joachimsthaler |year=1999 |orig-year=1995 |title=The Last Days of Hitler: The Legends – The Evidence – The Truth |publisher=Brockhampton Press |isbn=978-1-86019-902-8 |page=288}}</ref> }} {{Officeholder table | order = – | image = Bundesarchiv Bild 183-H30220, Wilhelm Keitel.jpg (cropped).jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Generalfeldmarschall}} | officeholder = Wilhelm Keitel | officeholder_sort = Keitel, Wilhelm | born_year = 1882 | died_year = 1946 | term_start = 2 May 1945 | term_end = 13 May 1945 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1945|05|01|1945|05|13}} | acting = y | ref = – }} {{Officeholder table | order = – | image = Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1971-033-01, Alfred Jodl.jpg | military_rank = {{lang|de|Generaloberst}} | officeholder = Alfred Jodl | officeholder_sort = Jodl, Alfred | born_year = 1890 | died_year = 1946 | term_start = 13 May 1945 | term_end = 23 May 1945 | timeinoffice = {{ayd|1945|05|13|1945|05|23}} | acting = y | ref = – }} {{Officeholder table end}}
== See also == * German general staff * Glossary of World War II German military terms * Maybach I and II * ''Oberste Heeresleitung'', the German Empire's highest army command during World War I
==Notes== {{notelist}}
== References == {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLJol2jcOIE "Not the Stuff of Legend: The German High Command in World War II"] – lecture by Dr. Geoffrey Megargee, author of ''Inside Hitler's High Command'', available at the official YouTube channel of the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center
{{Chiefs of Staff of the Wehrmacht}} {{Chief of the army by country}} {{Authority control}} {{italic title}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oberkommando Des Heeres}} Category:German High Command during World War II Category:German Army (1935–1945) Category:National army headquarters