Rundstedt, (Karl Rudolf) Gerd von (1875–1953)

German field marshal in World War II. Largely responsible for the German breakthrough in France in 1940, he was defeated on the Ukrainian front in 1941. As commander-in-chief in France from 1942, he resisted the Allied invasion in 1944 and in December launched the temporarily successful Ardennes offensive.

After his defeat in the Ukraine he resigned in November 1941 because of Hitler's order that there should be no withdrawals. He was rehabilitated in 1942 and was responsible for the construction of the Atlantic Wall and the defence of ‘Fortress Europe’. He had his hands tied in resisting the Allied invasion of Europe by having to have every decision approved by Hitler. Recognizing the position as hopeless, he advocated peace and was dismissed but again recalled in September 1944. He was captured in 1945, but war-crime charges were dropped in 1949 owing to his ill health.