Helmut Kämpfe
Helmut Kämpfe | |
|---|---|
| Born | 31 July 1909 Jena, Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, German Empire (now Thuringia, Germany) |
| Died | 10 June 1944 (aged 34) German-occupied France |
| Allegiance | Nazi Germany |
| Service | Waffen SS |
| Years of service | 1939–44 |
| Rank | Sturmbannführer |
| Unit | 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich |
| Commands | 3rd Battalion, 4th SS-Panzergrenadier Der Führer Regiment |
| Known for | Executing 99 French men during his SS career in Tulle massacre |
| Battles / wars | World War II |
| Awards | |
Helmut Kämpfe (31 July 1909 – 10 June 1944) was a Waffen-SS Sturmbannführer who was captured and executed by the French Resistance. In retribution, the Germans carried out the Oradour massacre in occupied France on 10 June 1944. In total 643 men, women and children were killed in Oradour-sur-Glane by troops from the 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich. Adolf Diekmann, the SS commander who ordered the massacre, said the death of Kämpfe was the reason for the killings.
Kämpfe was a commander in 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich. He received both the Close Combat Clasp in Gold and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. He was known for executing 99 French men in Tulle massacre.