Heinrich Himmler’s Only Command, Army Group Vistula, 1945.Heinrich Himmler played a very impor

Heinrich Himmler’s Only Command, Army Group Vistula, 1945.Heinrich Himmler played a very important role in Nazi Germany during World War II.  As one of Hitler’s leading henchmen, Himmler organized and commanded the ruthless SS, was head of the secret police, and oversaw the murder of millions during the Holocaust.  However Himmler was not a military man, having never served in war and having little military experience.  Rather Himmler was a political leader and an administrator.  That all changed on January 25th, 1945 when Hitler gave command of Army Group Vistula to Himmler.  His mission was to prevent the Soviets from crossing the Vistula river and threatening Berlin.Giving Heinrich Himmler the responsibility of leading men into combat was an incredible mistake on the part of Hitler, as Himmler would demonstrate a level of incompetence almost unrivaled in military history (for an exception see my post on Gen. Gideon Pillow).  Himmler established his command on a special train from which he rarely left.  The train had only one telephone line, no signal detachment or radios, and inadequate maps.  As a result orders from his command rarely made its way to the front.However, that was only the beginning of Himmler’s incompetence.  Himmler was not a bad commander because he made bad decisions, he was a bad commander because he made no decisions.  He appointed his personal masseuse, Felix Kersten, to his staff and insisted on daily massages followed by long naps.  He only worked four hours a day, and did not work very hard during those four hours since during his command he never developed any viable military plans and never accomplished any military objectives.In February of 1945 Gen. Heinz Guderian had devised a counteroffensive called “Operation Solstice”.  The aim of the operation was to use Army Group Vistula to drive back the Soviets with a massive counterattack.  Gen. Guderian, knowing that a full fledged assault led by Himmler would be a bloody disaster, demanded that someone else lead the operation.  After a very heated argument Hitler agreed to give  command to Gen. Walter Wenck.  Despite the change in command to Wenck the counterattack failed horribly, mostly because the units that made up Army Group Vistula were shattered skeletons of their former selves. They stood no chance against the might of the Red Army. This was the last months of the war in which Hitler brooded in his bunker moving imaginary units on a map and planning the last great battle that would lead Germany to ultimate victory. That victory would never come.  On the 20th of March, 1945 Himmler was relieved of his military command after he deserted his post and fled to a sanitarium at Hohenlychen.  In the last month of the war Himmler tried to save his own skin by attempting to negotiate peace treaties with the Allies and the World Jewish Congress.  Needless to say they weren’t willing to negotiate with the likes of him.  He was captured by Allied forces on the 21st of May, and committed suicide by poison two days later. Good Riddance! -- source link

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