Matthäus Hetzenauer
{{Short description|Austrian sniper in the Wehrmacht during WW2}}
{{more citations needed|date=July 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2015}}
{{Infobox military person
| name = Matthäus Hetzenauer
| image =
| caption =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1924|12|23|df=y}}
| birth_place = Brixen im Thale, Austria
| death_date = {{death date and age|2004|10|3|1924|12|23|df=y}}
| death_place = Brixen im Thale, Austria
| placeofburial =
| allegiance = Wehrmacht
| branch = Heer
| serviceyears = 1943–1945
| rank = Gefreiter
| unit = 3rd Mountain Division
| battles =
{{tree list}}
{{tree list/end}}
| awards = Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
}}
Matthäus Hetzenauer ({{IPA|de|maˈtɛːʊs ˈhɛtsənaʊ̯ɐ}}, 23 December 1924 – 3 October 2004) was an Austrian sniper in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II. He served in the 3rd Gebirgsjäger Division on the Eastern Front of World War II, and was, with 345 confirmed kills, the most successful German sniper. In Nazi Germany, confirmed kills were only valid in the presence of an officer, so Hetzenauer's estimated kills are many times higher. His longest confirmed kill was reported at {{convert|1100|m|yds|abbr=off|sp=us}}.{{sfn|Sadowski|2015|loc=Chapter 3: A Brief History of Military Snipers}} Hetzenauer received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 April 1945.{{sfn|Scherzer|2007|p=388}}
Early life
Matthäus Hetzenauer was born on 23 December 1924 in the Austrian Tyrolean village of Brixen im Thale to Simon and Magdalena Hetzenauer, descendants of a long line of Austrian peasantry in the Kitzbühel region. He was baptized as a Catholic on Christmas Eve in the medieval parish church and was raised with his two brothers and sister on his parents' farm above the village.{{efn|Today, the Hetzenauer family's farm house, the Sonnleithof, is a hotel.{{cite web|title=Sonnleithof|url=https://www.kitzbueheler-alpen.com/en/brixen-im-thale/accommodation/details/farm-farmhouse/sonnleithof.html|website=kitzbueheler-alpen.com/en|publisher=Kitzbühler Alpen|access-date=10 May 2018}}}}
Military career
Hetzenauer trained as a sniper from March to July 1944 at the Truppenübungsplatz Seetaler-Alpe in Steiermark, before being assigned as a Gefreiter to the 3rd Gebirgsjäger Division. He utilized both a Karabiner 98k sniper variant with 6× telescopic sight and a Gewehr 43 with ZF4 4× telescopic sight.{{sfn|Sadowski|2015|loc=chptr 3 A Brief History of Military Snipers}} He saw action against Soviet forces in the Carpathians, Hungary, and Slovakia.
On 6 November 1944, he suffered head trauma from artillery fire and was awarded the Wound Badge three days later.
{{lang|de|Gefreiter}} Hetzenauer received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 April 1945. {{lang|de|Generalleutnant}} and division commander Paul Klatt had recommended Hetzenauer because of his numerous sniper kills, which totalled two enemy companies, without fear for his own safety under artillery fire and enemy attacks. This recommendation was approved by {{lang|de|General der Gebirgstruppe}} Karl von Le Suire and {{lang|de|General der Panzertruppe}} Walter Nehring.{{sfn|Thomas|Wegmann|1993|p=306}}
Hetzenauer was captured by Soviet troops the following month, and served five years in a Soviet prison camp.
He died on 3 October 2004. His wife Maria died in 2006.{{Cite web|url=https://ww2gravestone.com/people/hetzenauer-matthaus/|title = Hetzenauer, Matthäus}}
Awards
- Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (1 September 1944) & 1st Class (25 November 1944){{sfn|Thomas|Wegmann|1993|p=307}}
- Wound Badge (1939) in Black (9 November 1944){{sfn|Thomas|Wegmann|1993|p=307}}
- Infantry Assault Badge in Silver (13 November 1944){{sfn|Thomas|Wegmann|1993|p=307}}
- Sniper's Badge in Gold (3 December 1944; one of three recipients){{sfn|Thomas|Wegmann|1993|p=307}}
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 April 1945 as Gefreiter and sniper in the 7./Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 144{{sfn|Fellgiebel|2000|p=225}}{{sfn|Scherzer|2007|p=388}}
Echoes in culture
Sixty years after the war, Hetzenauer become an inspiration for Quentin Tarantino's film Inglourious Basterds.{{cite web|last=Schultz|first=Cathy|url=https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/entertainment/movies/inglourious-basterds-more-fantasy-than-fact/Yb9pwVYLBAkn1RbwICCvjL/|title='Inglourious Basterds' more fantasy than fact|work=Springfield News-Sun|date=28 August 2009|access-date=5 March 2022|archive-date=5 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220305172155/https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/entertainment/movies/inglourious-basterds-more-fantasy-than-fact/Yb9pwVYLBAkn1RbwICCvjL/|url-status=live}}
Notes
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=Citations=
{{Reflist}}
References
=English=
{{refbegin}}
- {{cite book|last=Sadowski|first=Robert A.|title=Shooter's Bible Guide to Tactical Firearms: A Comprehensive Guide to Precision Rifles and Long-Range Shooting Gear|year=2015|publisher=Skyhorse Publishing|isbn=978-1-63220-935-1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4LZGCgAAQBAJ}}
{{refend}}
=German=
{{refbegin}}
- {{cite book|last=Fellgiebel|first=Walther-Peer|title=Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile|year=2000|orig-year=1986|publisher=Podzun-Pallas|language=de|isbn=978-3-7909-0284-6}}
- {{Cite book|last=Scherzer|first=Veit|title=Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives|year=2007|publisher=Scherzers Miltaer-Verlag|language=de|isbn=978-3-938845-17-2}}
- {{Cite book|last1=Thomas|first1=Franz|last2=Wegmann|first2=Günter|title=Die Ritterkreuzträger der Deutschen Wehrmacht 1939–1945 Teil VI: Die Gebirgstruppe Band 1: A–K|year=1993|language=de|publisher=Biblio-Verlag|isbn=978-3-7648-2430-3}}
{{refend}}
{{WWIISniper}}
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Category:People from Kitzbühel District
Category:Gebirgsjäger of World War II
Category:Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Category:German military snipers
Category:German prisoners of war in World War II held by the Soviet Union