Wilhelm Bodewin Johann Gustav Keitel,
September 22nd, 1882.
When I first started doing this daily newsletter about people whose birthday it was, I had in my head the idea of doing it about bastards. Nasty bastards, mean bastards, cool bastards, funny bastards and so on. But mostly about horrible people because, sometimes, they’re the most interesting.
One soon finds out that there were an awful lot of such nasty bastards and that, unsurprisingly, Germany was responsible for producing a lot of them in the middle of the last century. The trouble with writing about them is that, after a while, one tends to grow a little tired of writing about how vile these motherfuckers were and the urge to write about how humans can also be brilliant and magnificent bastards takes over. Celebrating humankind can be more fun than highlighting the monsters we are also responsible for creating.
Plus they’re rather hard to make jokes about.
Having said that, every now and then, it comes to pass that it’s the birthday of a human being so absolutely despicably vile that it would almost seem irresponsible to let it pass without noting it. Particularly if one thinks that there might be some people out there who don’t know who this bastard was and what he was responsible for. Field Marshall Wilhelm Keitel, who was the highest-ranked German military commander of WW2 behind Hermann Göring, is one of those bastards. He doesn’t have the famous name of other prominent Nazis and so might not have entered the historical conscience in the same way, but make no mistake, this man was a monster.
Wilhelm Keitel, born on September 22, 1882, in Helmscherode, Germany, was a high-ranking German military officer who played a central role in the planning and execution of the Nazi regime's atrocities during World War II. As a close associate of Adolf Hitler, Keitel held the position of Chief of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW), the German Armed Forces High Command, from 1938 to 1945. His loyalty to Hitler and his unwavering commitment to the Nazi cause made him a key figure in orchestrating many of the war’s most horrific crimes, earning him the dubious distinction of one of the most notorious war criminals of the era.
Keitel’s early life was marked by a strict upbringing in a conservative Prussian family. He joined the German Army in 1901, where his disciplined demeanour and adherence to military hierarchy helped him rise through the ranks. His career progressed steadily during World War I, where he served as a staff officer, but it was his post-war roles that set the stage for his involvement with the Nazi regime. The Treaty of Versailles and the resulting downsizing of the German military left Keitel and many of his peers feeling humiliated, sentiments that were later exploited by Hitler’s promises to restore Germany’s military might.
By the time Hitler came to power in 1933, Keitel had established himself as a competent and loyal officer, though his talents were more administrative than strategic. He was promoted rapidly within the military bureaucracy, and in 1938, following the Blomberg-Fritsch Affair that led to a major reshuffling of military leadership, Hitler appointed Keitel as Chief of the OKW. This position placed Keitel at the heart of Nazi Germany’s military machine, effectively making him Hitler’s military right-hand man. However, this role also meant Keitel would become directly responsible for implementing many of the regime’s most brutal policies.
Keitel’s willingness to follow orders without question earned him the derisive nickname “Lakeitel,” a pun combining his name with the German word for “lackey.” He was not known for independent thought or strategic brilliance but rather for his servile loyalty to Hitler, often signing off on orders without debate. One of his most notorious acts came in 1939 with the signing of the “Night and Fog Decree” (Nacht und Nebel Erlass). This order mandated the secret arrest, disappearance, and execution of resistance fighters and political dissidents across occupied Europe. The decree was designed to terrorize the local populations by ensuring that those arrested would vanish without a trace, leaving their families in a state of fear and uncertainty. Thousands were abducted, tortured, and murdered under this directive, and Keitel’s complicity in this campaign of terror marked one of the darkest aspects of his legacy.
Keitel also played a significant role in the planning and execution of the invasion of Poland in 1939, which marked the beginning of World War II. The invasion was characterized by extreme brutality against Polish civilians and prisoners of war, as the German military employed a scorched-earth policy that included mass executions and the deliberate destruction of villages. Keitel was directly involved in overseeing these actions, which were part of a broader strategy of terror and annihilation that would be replicated throughout Nazi-occupied Europe. He signed the orders for the ruthless treatment of Polish prisoners and authorized the Einsatzgruppen, paramilitary death squads, to carry out mass shootings of civilians, including Jews, intellectuals, and political leaders.
Keitel’s crimes extended beyond the battlefield as he became one of the architects of the brutal occupation policies in the Soviet Union following the launch of Operation Barbarossa in 1941. He was a staunch supporter of the Commissar Order, which called for the execution of Soviet political commissars captured on the battlefield, a clear violation of international law. Keitel endorsed and enforced directives that led to the mass murder of millions of Soviet prisoners of war, who were often starved, shot, or worked to death under inhumane conditions. Under his watch, the Wehrmacht became deeply complicit in the Holocaust and other genocidal activities, such as the infamous Babi Yar massacre, where tens of thousands of Jews were slaughtered by German forces and their collaborators.
Keitel was also directly responsible for the severity of reprisals against civilian populations in occupied territories. His endorsement of the “Severity Order” decreed that any acts of resistance against German forces would be met with extreme punishment, including the execution of civilians. This order led to countless massacres, including the destruction of entire villages and the murder of hostages as collective punishment. These brutal policies were particularly evident in countries like Greece and Yugoslavia, where resistance movements were met with systematic terror and retribution.
As the war dragged on and Germany’s fortunes began to wane, Keitel’s loyalty to Hitler only deepened. He was present at many of Hitler’s key military briefings and remained an unwavering supporter, even as the dictator’s decisions grew increasingly erratic. Keitel was one of the signatories of the 1941 Directive No. 21, which authorized the invasion of the Soviet Union, a decision that would ultimately prove disastrous for Germany. He was also complicit in the use of forced labour, approving orders that led to the exploitation and brutal treatment of millions of foreign workers who were enslaved to support the German war effort.
Keitel’s lack of moral courage was epitomized in his actions following the failed July 20, 1944, plot to assassinate Hitler. Rather than question the increasingly desperate and self-destructive path of the Nazi regime, Keitel participated in the vicious crackdown on suspected conspirators. He signed off on the arrests, torture, and executions of those implicated in the plot, further solidifying his reputation as a blindly obedient servant of Hitler’s whims.
After Germany’s defeat in 1945, Keitel was arrested by Allied forces and brought to trial at the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal. The evidence against him was overwhelming, as documents bearing his signature detailed his involvement in war crimes and crimes against humanity. During the trial, Keitel attempted to defend himself by claiming he was merely following orders and had no choice but to obey Hitler’s commands. This defence was rejected by the tribunal, which held him accountable for his actions and his active participation in the planning and execution of Nazi Germany’s criminal policies.
On October 1, 1946, Keitel was found guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and conspiracy to wage aggressive war. He asked that, as a soldier, he should be executed by firing squad. It’s a reflection of the crimes he committed that, instead, he was sentenced to death by hanging in the manner of a criminal. In his final moments, Keitel expressed remorse, stating that he should have recognized the moral limits of obedience. However, his contrition came far too late for the millions of victims of the Nazi regime. He was executed on October 16, 1946, at Nuremberg, his legacy forever tarnished by his role in one of history’s most barbaric periods.
Wilhelm Keitel’s story is a chilling reminder of the dangers of blind loyalty and the catastrophic consequences of uncritical obedience to power. His actions helped enable the Nazi regime’s systematic campaign of terror, genocide, and destruction across Europe, leaving a legacy of horror that continues to resonate as a stark warning of the depths of human cruelty.
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He was "just following orders", as many Nazis said they were doing, but he wasn't just following them- he influenced their execution.