Rudolf von Ribbentrop

{{distinguish|text=his father, Joachim von Ribbentrop, the Nazi Foreign Minister}}

{{Infobox military person

| name = Rudolf von Ribbentrop

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| birth_date = 11 May 1921

| death_date = {{Death date and age|2019|05|20|1921|05|11|df=y}}

| birth_place = Wiesbaden, Weimar Republic

| death_place = Ratingen, Germany

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| allegiance = {{flagcountry|Nazi Germany}}

| branch = Waffen-SS

| serviceyears = 1939–45

| rank = Hauptsturmführer

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| unit = Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler{{Clear}}SS Division Hitlerjugend

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| battles = World War II

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| awards = Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross{{Clear}}German Cross in Gold{{Clear}}Cross of Liberty, 4th class (Finland)

| relations = Joachim von Ribbentrop (father)

| laterwork = Author

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Rudolf von Ribbentrop (11 May 1921 – 20 May 2019){{Cite web |title=Rudolf von Ribbentrop - Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek |url=https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/person/gnd/136207286 |access-date=2024-04-30 |website=www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de}} was a German Waffen-SS officer who served and was decorated in World War II, and later became a wine merchant. His father was Nazi diplomat and Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop. His autobiography gave further insight into his father and the last days of Adolf Hitler.

Early life

Rudolf von Ribbentrop was born in Wiesbaden as one of five children to Joachim von Ribbentrop. His father was appointed as German Ambassador to the United Kingdom in 1936 and was accompanied to London by Rudolf. Enrolled into Westminster School, he had to later return to a boarding school in Germany after The Times became aware of his presence.{{Citation

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| title = Rudolf von Ribbentrop, decorated officer in the Nazi Waffen-SS and son of Hitler's trusted foreign minister – obituary

| newspaper = Daily Telegraph

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| year = 2019

| url = https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2019/05/29/rudolf-von-ribbentrop-decorated-officer-nazi-waffen-ss-son-hitlers/

| access-date = 17 March 2023}}

World War II

On 1 September 1939, when the Second World War started, Ribbentrop joined as a private soldier in the SS-Infantry Regiment Deutschland, with which he served during the Western Campaign, receiving the Iron Cross second class. During Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union, his unit was sent to Finland. In February 1943 he was assigned to a Panzer regiment the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler division (LSSAH) and sent to Kharkov in February 1943, where he took part in the Third Battle of Kharkov.{{Citation

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| title = Obituary Rudolf von Ribbentrop

| newspaper = The Times

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| year = 2019

| url = https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/rudolf-von-ribbentrop-3pdlxqvcr

| access-date = 17 March 2023}}

Ribbentrop was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 15 July 1943.{{r|Scherzer2007}} On 1 August he was transferred to the newly formed SS Division Hitlerjugend as a training officer and company commander. During battles in Normandy, Ribbentrop was awarded the German Cross in Gold. Following the breakout from Falaise, he saw action during Battle of the Bulge. He surrendered with the division to the U.S. Army on 8 May 1945. Ribbentrop was “taken aback” by the American artillery barrages in Normandy: “The Americans threw everything at us, particularly artillery … it put everything that we had previously undergone into the shade”.*{{cite book |last= Trigg |first= Jonathan |title= To VE-Day through German Eyes: The Final Defeat of Nazi Germany |accessdate= |edition= |origyear= |year= 2020 |publisher= Amberley |location= Stroud UK |isbn= 978-1-4456-9944-8 |oclc= |page= 147 |pages= }}

Post-war

Ribbentrop spent over three years in American, British, and French custody. While in custody, he was accused of shooting two Canadian prisoners of war, one of them fatally, during an interrogation in France. However, the charges could not be proven. Ribbentrop was released from Cherche-Midi Prison in July 1948.{{Cite book |last=Ribbentrop |first=Rudolf von |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Kk8IEAAAQBAJ |title=My Father Joachim von Ribbentrop: Hitler's Foreign Minister, Experiences and Memories |date=2019-07-30 |publisher=Pen and Sword |isbn=978-1-5267-3926-1 |pages=516 |language=en}} Afterwards, he became a wine merchant and wrote his memoirs. These gave fresh insight into the career of his father and also into the final days of Adolf Hitler. His work included previously unpublished photographs of his family and Hitler.{{Citation

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| author-link = Sandomir, Richard

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| title = Rudolf Von Ribbentrop, Son of Top Nazi Diplomat, Dies at 98

| newspaper = New York Times

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| year = 2019

| url = https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/06/obituaries/rudolf-von-ribbentrop-dead.amp.html

| access-date = 17 March 2023}}{{Citation

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| title = Obituary Rudolf von Ribbentrop

| newspaper = Independent.ie

| pages =

| year = 2019

| url = https://m.independent.ie/world-news/europe/obituary-rudolf-von-ribbentrop-38171118.html

| access-date = 17 March 2023}}

Works

{{cite book |title=My Father Joachim von Ribbentrop: Hitler's Foreign Minister, Experiences and Memories |year=2019 |publisher=Pen & Sword Books |isbn=9781526739254}}

References

{{Reflist|refs=

{{Cite book |last=Scherzer |first=Veit |year=2007 |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 |trans-title=The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives |language=de |location=Jena |publisher=Scherzers |page=626 |isbn=978-3-938845-17-2 }}

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Category:1921 births

Category:2019 deaths

Category:German untitled nobility

Category:SS-Hauptsturmführer

Category:Recipients of the Gold German Cross

Category:Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Category:Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Liberty

Category:People educated at Westminster School, London