Werner Freiherr von Beschwitz

Maximilian Richard Hans Christoph Werner Freiherr von Beschwitz (19 January 1915 – 25 May 2011) was a highly decorated Major in the Wehrmacht during World War II and an Oberst (colonel) in the Bundeswehr. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Beschwitz joined the postwar Bundeswehr in 1956 and retired in 1973 as an Oberst.

Awards and decorations

 * Anschluss Medal (8 November 1938)
 * Sudetenland Medal (25 October 1939)
 * Iron Cross (1939)
 * 2nd Class (22 September 1939)
 * 1st Class (27 May 1940)
 * Wound Badge (1939)
 * in Black (9 November 1943)
 * Panzer Badge
 * in Silver (24 June 1940)
 * in II Class (10 December 1943)
 * in III Class (5 December 1944)
 * Eastern Front Medal (30 July 1942)
 * German Cross in Gold (15 December 1941)
 * Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 27 July 1944 as Major and commander of schwere Panzer-Abteilung 505