Oberkommando der Wehrmacht

Oberkommando der Wehrmacht
Unit name	Oberkommando der Wehrmacht
Dates	1938–1945
Country	Nazi Germany
Branch	Wehrmacht
Role	High command
Size	High command staff
Garrison	Berlin
Notable commanders	Wilhelm Keitel, Alfred Jodl

Oberkommando der Wehrmacht

The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) served as the senior high command organ of Nazi Germany's armed forces from the late 1930s through 1945, acting as a central coordinating staff amid complex relations with the Oberkommando des Heeres, Kriegsmarine, and Luftwaffe. It emerged during the regime of Adolf Hitler and operated at the intersection of political leadership and operational control, interacting with institutions such as the Reich Chancellery, the Foreign Office, and the Reich Ministry of War. The OKW’s authority and functions evolved through episodes including the Blomberg–Fritsch Affair, the Invasion of Poland (1939), and the Operation Barbarossa campaign.

History and Formation

The OKW was established amid reorganization of the Reichswehr and the consolidation of power by Hitler following events like the Night of the Long Knives and the resignations of Werner von Blomberg and Werner von Fritsch. Initial restructuring drew on precedents from the Imperial German Army and the Weimar Republic’s military administration, while responding to pressures from figures such as Hermann Göring and Heinrich Himmler. The OKW formally crystallized functions previously split among the Ministry of War remnants and the service high commands, shaped by the 1938–1939 centralization during the run-up to the Sudeten Crisis and the Munich Agreement.

Organization and Structure

The OKW consisted of a chief’s office, operations staff, legal branch, and liaison sections interacting with the General Staff of the Army, the Abwehr, and the Reichssicherheitshauptamt. Its leadership core included a Chief of the OKW and a Chief of Operations, supported by departments covering intelligence coordination, logistics direction, and strategic planning; these sections coordinated with the Heerespersonalamt and the Luftwaffenpersonalamt. Administrative links extended to the Reich Ministry of Aviation and the Naval High Command, while parallel channels existed with the SS and the RSHA for security and occupation affairs. The OKW’s headquarters in Berlin became a hub for liaison officers from theaters such as the Western Front and the Eastern Front.

Roles and Functions

The OKW’s stated roles included overall strategic coordination, theatre-level directive issuance, and political liaison between Hitler and service commands during campaigns like the Battle of France and the North African Campaign. It supervised joint planning for combined operations including Operation Weserübung and provided directives affecting occupation policy in regions like Poland, France, and the Soviet Union. The OKW also handled military diplomacy involving actors such as the Italian Social Republic, Vichy France, and the Japanese Empire, and interfaced with organizations like the German Foreign Office on armistice terms and prisoner matters.

Relationship with OKH and Other Military Commands

The OKW’s relationship with the Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH) was contentious, particularly after the onset of Operation Barbarossa when strategic responsibility for the eastern theater remained largely with the OKH while the OKW retained control over other theaters. Power struggles involved personalities such as Wilhelm Keitel, Friedrich Paulus, and Erich von Manstein, and institutions including the General Staff. The OKW’s interactions with the Kriegsmarine command under figures like Erich Raeder and Karl Dönitz and with the Luftwaffe under Hermann Göring reflected competition for resources and operational primacy, while the SS under Heinrich Himmler increasingly encroached on OKW responsibilities in occupied territories.

Wartime Operations and Decision-Making

During wartime, the OKW issued strategic directives, mobilized resources, and adjudicated disputes, participating in planning for operations including Case Yellow, Operation Citadel, and defensive measures during the Normandy invasion. Decision-making often involved consultations with Hitler at the Wolfsschanze and the Berghof, with the OKW acting as conduit for orders such as the infamous Kommissarbefehl and directives related to anti-partisan actions in the Balkans Campaign. The OKW’s staff produced situation reports, coordinated intelligence from the Abwehr and later the Fremde Heere Ost, and managed liaison with allied militaries like the Royal Italian Army and the Imperial Japanese Army.

Leadership and Key Personnel

Prominent OKW leaders included Chief Wilhelm Keitel and Chief of Operations Alfred Jodl, alongside staff officers and specialists who interacted with figures such as Joseph Goebbels, Ribbentrop, and military commanders like Gerd von Rundstedt and Walther von Brauchitsch. Chiefs of staff and section heads often had backgrounds in the Prussian Army or the General Staff, and OKW personnel included liaison officers transferred from the Abwehr and the service high commands. Postwar prosecutions at the Nuremberg Trials addressed the responsibilities of OKW leaders for criminal orders and occupation policies, implicating individuals connected to events like the Commissar Order and the Holocaust.

Dissolution and Postwar Legacy

The OKW was effectively dissolved with Germany’s surrender in May 1945; many of its leaders were captured, tried, and convicted at the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg. The dissolution preceded the Allied occupation of Germany and the ensuing demilitarization and denazification processes overseen by the Allied Control Council. In postwar historiography and military studies, the OKW is examined in relation to debates about civil-military relations, command responsibility, and the interaction of ideology and strategy, with archival materials held in institutions such as the UK National Archives, the Bundesarchiv, and the United States National Archives and Records Administration.

Category:Wehrmacht