Julius Ringel

Julius Alfred "Papa" Ringel (16 November 1889 – 11 February 1967) was an Austrian-born German General of Mountain Troops (General der Gebirgstruppen). He commanded the 3. Gebirgs-Division, 5. Gebirgs-Division, LXIX Armeekorps, Wehrkreis XI and the Korps Ringel. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves.

Early career
Julius Ringel was born in Völkermarkt in the Austrian state of Carinthia. In 1905 he was admitted to a military school in Vienna, graduating on 18 August 1909. Following his education Fähnrich Ringel was assigned to the k.u.k. Landwehr Infanterie-Regiment 4 (a mountain infantry unit) and a year later, he was promoted to Leutnant. At the outbreak of World War I, Ringel served with Gebirgs-Schützen-Regiment 2 participating in the operations in Galicia and the Italian Alps where he was taken a prisoner of war in 1918. Upon his return to the newly formed Republic of German Austria, Ringel fought against the troops of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes occupying his native Carinthia. Following the Carinthian Plebiscite and the creation of the First Austrian Republic, Ringel was transferred to the Austrian Federal Army where he rose to the rank of Major in 1930 and became Lieutenant Colonel in 1932. Two years later he was assigned to the 5th Gebirgsjäger-Brigade.

Service in the Wehrmacht
As a supporter of the Nazi Party, Ringel strongly encouraged the union of Austria with the German Reich and after the Anschluss enthusiastically joined the Wehrmacht with the 3. Gebirgs-Division. On 1 February 1939, Ringel was promoted to a full colonel and became the commander of the Infanterie-Regiments 74. When World War II began, he was then assigned to the 268. Infanterie-Division and on 27 October 1939 he took over as a commander of Infanterie-Regiments 266, which he led during the campaign in the West.

On 7 June 1940, Ringel returned to the 3. Gebirgs-Division, becoming its commander on 14 July 1940. He led the division until the end of October, when he was promoted to Major General and received a new assignment; as a commander of the newly established 5. Gebirgs-Division. The division saw its first action in the spring of 1941 in the Balkans Campaign, operations code name Marita and Merkur. Following the operations in Greece, the division distinguished itself on Crete, where it took part in the battles to secure the island from the British. For his outstanding leadership during these operations Ringel was awarded the prestigious Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 13 June 1941.

In November 1941, Ringel’s division was posted back to Germany for rest and refitting. However, only four months later it was sent back to action on the Eastern front. Ringel commanded the 3. Gebirgs-Division through the operations southwest of Leningrad, where it played a major role in the defeat of the Volkhov Front; an achievement for which Julius Ringel was promoted to Lieutenant General and in October 1943 also received the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. After nearly two years in Russia, Ringel was ordered to move his Division to Italy and in December 1943 it arrived on the Gustav Line near the town of Cassino. He stayed in Italy for another four months, before he received a new assignment and became a commander of the LXIX Armeekorps in Croatia. In June, Ringel was once again promoted, this time to full General of the mountain troops and put in charge of the Military District Salzburg (Wehrkreis XVIII (Salzburg)) from which the Korps Ringel were formed. He held this appointment until the war's end.

Dates of rank

 * k.u.k Leutnant: 1 November 1910
 * k.u.k Oberleutnant: 1 August 1914
 * k.u.k Hauptmann (with Wirkung from 1 July 1917): 7 July 1917
 * Major: 15 May 1921
 * Stabshauptmann: 27 November 1923
 * Oberstleutnant (Austrian Army): 15 December 1932
 * Oberstleutnant (German Army – with Patent 1.08.36): 1938
 * Oberst: 1 February 1939
 * Generalmajor (with Patent 1 September 1941): 1 November 1940
 * Generalleutnant: 1 December 1942
 * General der Gebirgstruppe: 1 June 1944

Decorations

 * Austrian Order of the Iron Crown, 3rd Class with War Decoration, Swords and Golden Bar (awarded two times)(?)
 * Austrian Military Merit Medal on the Ribbon of the Bravery Medal with Swords in Silver (?) and Bronze (?)
 * Wound Medal (Austria-Hungary) with Two Stripes (Austria-Hungary)
 * Karl Troop Cross (1918)
 * Anschluss Medal (?)
 * Sudetenland Medal (?)
 * Golden Party Badge (30 January 1941)
 * Eastern Front Medal (15 August 1942)
 * Ärmelband Kreta (10 December 1942)
 * Iron Cross
 * Second class (10 November 1939)
 * First class (15 April 1941)
 * Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (?)
 * Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (13 June 1941), 312th Oak Leaves added on 25 October 1943
 * Grand Officer of the Order of St Alexander, with Swords (Bulgaria)
 * Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht on 11 June 1941 and on 12 August 1941
 * Austrian War Memorial Medal with swords
 * Wehrmacht Long Service Award