page_title: Johann Mickl
section_title: Death and legacy
hierarchical_section_title: Johann Mickl / Death and legacy
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Mickl-Kaserne mit ehem. Stallungen, Hauptfront Plaschenaustraße, mittig gesetzte einfache Eingangstüre, rechts daneben Steinblock mit Erklärungen zur Kaserne &#160; This media shows the protected monument with the number 3316 in Austria. (Commons, de, Wikidata)
context_page_description: Johann Mickl was an Austrian-born Generalleutnant and division commander in the German Army during World War II, and was one of only 882 recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. He was commissioned shortly before the outbreak of World War I, and served with Austro-Hungarian forces on the Eastern and Italian Fronts as company commander in the Imperial-Royal Mountain Troops. During World War I he was decorated several times for bravery and leadership, and was wounded on four occasions, finishing the war as an Oberleutnant.
  Immediately after the war, Mikl served in the Volkswehr militia which was formed to resist the incorporation of his home town of Radkersburg into the newly created Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. He served with the Austrian Army from 1920 until the Anschluss in 1938, when it was absorbed by the Wehrmacht, and he transferred to the German Army as an Oberstleutnant. He commanded an anti-tank battalion during the invasion of Poland and Battle of France, during which he was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd and 1st Class, and was promoted to Oberst.
context_section_description: During the last few months of the war, the division was engaged in the defence of the northern Adriatic coast and Lika. On 8 April 1945, the city of Senj fell to the Partisans. The following day, during desperate fighting to control the Vratnik pass through the mountains from Senj to Brinje, Mickl personally took part in the fighting and was shot in the head around noon. He was transported to hospital in Fiume on a tank, but died the following day.
  Oberstleutnant Kobe, the chief operations officer of the 392nd Division, described Mickl as "a giant in stature, lean and muscular despite his 50 years", a very demanding commander who was also very demanding of himself. Kobe stated that Mickl was frequently at the forefront of the fighting, carrying a Gewehr 43 carbine. In 1967, the Austrian Armed Forces barracks (Mickl-Kaserne) in Bad Radkersburg were named after him, and they were used continuously by the Austrian Armed Forces for 44 years until 30 September 2008.
caption: The dedication tablet at the Mickl-Kaserne in Bad Radkersburg, named after Mickl in honour of his service in the Volkswehr militia in 1919–1920
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