Born in 1890, Erlencamp joined the 5th Dragoon Regiment of the
Imperial German Army in 1910. From 1935, he commanded the 4th Cavalry Regiment before an appointment three years later as Higher Cavalry Officer I. He was later made inspector of cavalry and transport. After the commencement of
World War II, he was appointed to command Special Administrative Staff 410. In March 1940 he was promoted to
Generalmajor, just before the
Battle of France he was named commander of the
29th Motorized Infantry Division. He successfully led the division through the campaigns in Belgium and France and was awarded the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 15 August 1940. He had received the
Iron Cross, 1st and 2nd Classes, earlier in the year. On 7 September 1940, Erlencamp was given command of the
4th Panzer Division, which he led from the opening stages of
Operation Barbarossa up until the closing stages of
Operation Typhoon. In January 1942 he was appointed as commander of the
XXIV Panzer Corps. Within weeks, he received a promotion to
Generalleutnant and this was followed in mid-1942 by a further advance in rank to
General der panzertruppe. On 17 February 1942, he was awarded the Oak Leaves to the Knights Cross. ==Death==