Fedor von Bock

Home > ... > People > History > German History: Biographies > ...

Fedor von Bock

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | 2008 | The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Fedor von Bock , 1880-1945, German field marshal. During World War II he led German armies in Poland, the Low Countries, France, and Russia. In 1941 he failed to take Moscow and was relieved of his command. In 1942 he commanded the army against Stalingrad (now Volgograd) but was removed by Adolf Hitler when he did not capture that city. Bock's bullet-ridden body was found by Allied soldiers near Hamburg in May, 1945.

Hide all research tools
Print this article Print all entries for this topic Cite this article Link to this article
Link to this article

CloseClose

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1E1-Bock-Fed" title="Facts and information about Fedor von Bock">Fedor von Bock</a>

Add this article to Del.icio.usBookmark this article on DiigoShare this article on FacebookSubmit this article to RedditGive this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon
Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

"Fedor von Bock." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 29 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Fedor von Bock." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (November 29, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Bock-Fed.html

"Fedor von Bock." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Retrieved November 29, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Bock-Fed.html

Learn more about citation styles

Bock, Field Marshal Fedor von

The Oxford Companion to World War II | 2001 | | © The Oxford Companion to World War II 2001, originally published by Oxford University Press 2001. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Bock, Field Marshal Fedor von (1880–1945),German Army officer who, as the son of a Prussian general, was born and bred to his career. He detested National Socialism, but supported Hitler's military aims. ‘Tall and thin, he was a humourless, ambitious, arrogant, opinionated, and energetic zealot’ ( S. W. Mitcham, Hitler's Field Marshals and their Battles, London, 1988, p. 145). Unlike many high-ranking German officers during the Second World War, he gained first-hand experience of commanding infantry in battle when he served as a battalion commander in 1917–18, winning what was then Germany's highest decoration, the Pour le Mérite.

Between the wars Bock rose rapidly in rank. He was promoted general on 1 March 1938, commanded the forces which occupied Austria later that month, then Army Group North in the Polish campaign, and Army Group B during the fighting which led to the fall of France. Promoted field marshal in July 1940, he was appointed C-in-C Army Group Centre for the invasion of the USSR in June 1941 (see BARBAROSSA) which destroyed Red Army formations at Bialystok–Minsk, Smolensk, and Briansk–Vyazma, and at the end of November got to within 32 km. (20 mi.) of Moscow. But Bock's forces suffered heavy casualties when Stalin launched his counter-offensive, and on 19 December, the day Hitler took personal control of the war on the Eastern Front from Brauchitsch, Bock returned home on sick leave (he had stomach ulcers) and was replaced by Kluge.

Bock's sick leave did not last long for on 17 January 1942 Reichenau, the C-in-C Army Group South, died and Bock was ordered to replace him. At the end of May he inflicted a heavy defeat on Timoshenko's force before launching the second phase of Hitler's offensive (BLUE) towards the Caucasus the following month (see German–Soviet war, 4). The plan included the division of the Army Group into A and B, with Bock taking command of B. But Bock deviated from Hitler's plan and BLUE was delayed, and in mid-July Hitler gave command of the newly activated Army Group B to General Maximilian von Weichs instead.

Bock's prestige in Germany was so great that the pretence was maintained for some time that he still held his command, but he was never employed again. On 4 May 1945 he was killed when his car was shot up by a British aircraft.

Hide all research tools
Print this article Print all entries for this topic Cite this article Link to this article
Link to this article

CloseClose

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1O129-BockFieldMarshalFedorvon" title="Facts and information about Fedor von Bock">Fedor von Bock</a>

Add this article to Del.icio.usBookmark this article on DiigoShare this article on FacebookSubmit this article to RedditGive this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon
Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "Bock, Field Marshal Fedor von." The Oxford Companion to World War II. Oxford University Press. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 29 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "Bock, Field Marshal Fedor von." The Oxford Companion to World War II. Oxford University Press. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (November 29, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O129-BockFieldMarshalFedorvon.html

I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "Bock, Field Marshal Fedor von." The Oxford Companion to World War II. Oxford University Press. 2001. Retrieved November 29, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O129-BockFieldMarshalFedorvon.html

Learn more about citation styles

Free newspaper and magazine articles

Free Article Panzierkrieg: the Rise and Fall of Hitler's Tank Divisions.(Book Review)
Magazine article from: Military Review; 11/1/2003
Free Article Death of the Wehrmacht: The German Campaigns of 1942.(Book review)
Magazine article from: Military Review; 1/1/2009

Facts and information from other sites

Related topics

  Edit this list

Related articles from newspapers, magazines, and more

victory of a monster; Hitler's defeat 60 years ago this weekend prompted the wildest celebrations Britain had ever seen. But the real victor was Stalin, a dictator every bit as bloody and evil.
Newspaper article from: The Daily Mail (London, England); 5/9/2005; 700+ words ; ...Molotov and his German counterpart Joachim von Ribbentropp, allowed Hitler to unleash his...into Soviet territory, especially by General Fedor von Bock's Army Group Centre. By mid-July von Bock's Panzer tank pincer movements had snapped...
Admiral Karl Donitz & Hitler's legacy of shame
Magazine article from: Sea Classics; 2/1/2000; ; 700+ words ; ...April, just before my appointment, Field Marshals (Fedor) von Bock and (Erich) von Manstein (both previously fired by Hitler) had...views. On 1 May, therefore, I gave orders that von Manstein was to be contacted at once.. to invite...
Panzierkrieg: the Rise and Fall of Hitler's Tank Divisions.(Book Review)
Magazine article from: Military Review; 11/1/2003; ; 700+ words ; ...constantly reminded of the genius of Hermann Balck, Friedrich Wilhelm yon Mellenthin, and Erich von Manstein, while Fedor von Bock, Erich von Kleist, and Adolf Hitler can do little right. Heinz von Guderian, of course, appears as the sole...
Death of the Wehrmacht: The German Campaigns of 1942.(Book review)
Magazine article from: Military Review; 1/1/2009; ; 700+ words ; ...centuries. From the Great Elector to Field Marshal Erich von Manstein, the German "way of war" featured recklessly...familiar with Irwin Rommel's exploits in Libya and Egypt or Fedor von Bock's drive to the Volga will find a challenging new interpretation...

Pictures from Google Image Search

Click to see an enlarged picture
Click to see an enlarged picture
Click to see an enlarged picture

For students and teachers!

Encyclopedia.com provides students and teachers facts, information, and biographies from verified, citable sources, including:

Encyclopedia.com provides students and teachers facts, information, and biographies from verified, citable sources, including:

Popular on Newser: