Historical 5.5X8 German document giving Peter Schulte a second class medal signed in black felt tip ink nicely by Kraiss. Some folds, otherwise nice. Dietrich Kraiss was a German general during World War II. Afterward, his unit was relocated back to Germany in preparation for the Invasion of France. From May 1940, the regiment was a part of the 20th Infantry Division during the occupation of the Netherlands and France. He was promoted to Major General on 1 February 1941. In March 1941, he handed command of the regiment to Colonel Erich Jaschke and was briefly transferred into the Führerreserve. From July 1941 to March 1943 Kraiss was given command of the 168th Infantry Division and participated in Operation Barbarossa. For his leadership of the division during the Third Battle of Kharkov, he was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross. On October 1, 1942, he received his final promotion to the rank of lieutenant general. In April 1943 Kraiss took over the newly established 355th Infantry Division, which sustained heavy losses during action against the Red Army at Merefa and was subsequently disbanded on 9 November 1943. From November 1943 onwards he was in command of the newly established 352nd Infantry Division, which with six other divisions, was located in Normandy in front of the Allied invasion. The division was sent to the coastal areas after Allied forces landed on the beaches Omaha and Gold. Against the orders of Adolf Hitler, Kraiss moved his division back to a defensive line about 20 kilometers away from the coast. There he was able to resist Allied forces in this section for several weeks. Kraiss suffered a severe wound on August 2, 1944, near Saint-Lô, and died on 6 August. He was posthumously awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves on August 11, 1944.
