Hans Degen was born in
Rosenheim in
Upper Bavaria in 1899. He entered the German Army in September 1916 as an
ensign, serving in a
Jäger battalion until the end of World War I. He remained in the army after 1918, becoming a
general staff officer. In this capacity he served with
2nd Mountain Division in 1938, moving to the
1st Mountain Division on the outbreak of war in September 1939. He was then appointed chief of staff of
VI Army Corps and then
XIX Army Corps. In November 1943 he took command of the
2nd Mountain Division. This served on the
Arctic and
Western fronts, where Degen was badly wounded, retiring from the division in February 1945. In March 1945 he was awarded the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his command of the division. Degen ended the war with the rank of
Generalleutnant. ==Awards and decorations==