Born in 1906, Harmel volunteered for the
SS-Verfügungstruppe (later known as the
Waffen-SS) in 1935 and served as a company commander in the
SS-Regiment Der Führer, with which he took part in the
Battle of France in 1940. In 1941, Harmel took part in the
Balkans Campaign and
Operation Barbarossa. In December 1941, Harmel took command of SS-Infanterie-Regiment "Deutschland". Harmel participated in the capture of
Kharkov on 15 March 1943. Harmel received the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 31 March 1943. On 7 September 1943, he received the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. In early 1944 after completing a divisional commanders' training course, Harmel took command of the
SS Division Frundsberg. During the summer 1944, the division moved to the
Western Front, in Normandy. Harmel had been ordered to break the enemy's lines, to free the German units encircled in
Falaise Pocket numbering approximately 125,000 troops of the
7th Army. The operation ended with heavy losses and serious damage. Harmel was then sent to the
Netherlands. He fought against the Allied offensive (
Operation Market Garden). After the battles around
Nijmegen, Harmel received the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords on 15 December 1944. His division was then transferred to
Alsace, where Harmel was ordered to establish a bridgehead to join the
Colmar Pocket. After the failure of the December 1944/January 1945 offensive in Alsace, Harmel's division was transferred to the Eastern Front, initially fighting in Pomerania and Brandenburg to hold the Oder Front. The division was subsequently transferred to Heeresgruppe Mitte where in late April it was ordered to counterattack the forces of Marshal
Ivan Konev. Harmel refused and was dismissed from command by Field Marshal
Schörner. Harmel subsequently commanded an ad hoc battle group formed around the
24th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS, the SS Officer's School at Graz and other smaller units. Harmel surrendered to the Allied forces in Austria and ended up in British captivity. Harmel died in 2000. ==Awards==