Ferdinand Schaal

Ferdinand Friedrich Schaal (7 February 1889 – 9 October 1962) was a German general during World War II. He commanded the 10th Panzer Division in the 1939 Invasion of Poland and directed the successful Siege of Calais in 1940. Schaal was involved in the unsuccessful 20 July plot against Adolf Hitler; for his participation in the conspiracy, he was imprisoned until the end of the war.

Ferdinand Friedrich Schaal
Born	(1889-02-07)7 February 1889 Freiburg im Breisgau, Grand Duchy of Baden, German Empire
Died	9 October 1962(1962-10-09) (aged 73) Baden-Baden, Baden-Württemberg, West Germany
Allegiance	German Empire Weimar Republic Nazi Germany
Branch	Imperial German Army Reichswehr German Army
Service years	1908–1944
Rank	General der Panzertruppe
Commands	10th Panzer Division LVI Panzer Corps Military commander, Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
Conflicts	World War I World War II Invasion of Poland Battle of Wizna Battle of France Siege of Calais Operation Barbarossa
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross German Cross in gold

Career

Schaal was born on 7 February 1889 in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden. He entered the Imperial German Army in 1908. He fought in World War I and, at the end of the war, he was a Rittmeister and battalion commander in Infantry Regiment 463. He remained in the peacetime Reichswehr as a career officer. In April 1939, as part of the lead-up to the invasion of Poland, Schaal was tapped to lead the new 10th Panzer Division. He continued to command that unit through the invasions of Poland, France, and the USSR. On 16 March 1942, as the 10th Panzer Division returned to France from its bloody tour of the eastern front, Schaal was given the command of LVI Panzer Corps, which was also stationed in the Soviet Union. He served in that capacity until 1 August 1943, when he became Wehrmacht commander in the military district of Bohemia and Moravia. He remained in that post until July 1944.

Operation Valkyrie

Main article: 20 July plot

Schaal's role in Operation Valkyrie was to involve subduing the Nazi Party and establishing military control over Bohemia and Moravia. On the evening of 20 July 1944, Schaal waited for clarification on how to proceed from General Friedrich Fromm, a co-conspirator in Berlin. None came, as the assassination attempt had failed and Fromm had decided to betray the other plotters. Schaal was arrested the next day on the orders of Heinrich Himmler and imprisoned. Unlike many other conspirators, Schaal was spared execution, instead being imprisoned until the end of war.

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1914) 2nd and 1st class
• Knight's Cross 2nd class of the Order of the Zähringen Lion
• Hanseatic Cross of Hamburg
• Wound Badge in black
• Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918
• Clasp to the Iron Cross, 2nd and 1st class
• German Cross in gold (8 March 1942)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 13 July 1940 as Generalleutnant and commander of 10. Panzer-Division

References

Bibliography

• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
• Webb, James Jack (2025). Generals and Admirals of the Third Reich: For Country or Fuehrer. Vol. 3: P–Z. Havertown, PA: Casemate Publishers. ISBN 978-1-952-71518-1.