Hermann Fegelein SS - Gruppenführer Hans Georg Otto Hermann Fegelein ( 30 October 1906 – 28 April 1945 ) was a General of the Waffen - SS in Nazi Germany . He was a member of Adolf Hitler ' s entourage and brother - in - law to Eva Braun through his marriage to her sister , Gretl . Units under his command on the Eastern Front were responsible for the deaths of over 17 , 000 civilians during the Pripyat swamps punitive operation in the Byelorussian SSR in 1941 . Fegelein was shot for desertion on 28 April 1945 , two days before Hitler ' s suicide . Historians William L . Shirer and Ian Kershaw characterise him as cynical and disreputable . Albert Speer called him " one of the most disgusting people in Hitler ' s circle " . Fegelein was an opportunist who ingratiated himself with Himmler , who granted him the best assignments and rapid promotions . Career . Fegelein was born in Ansbach , Bavaria , to the retired Oberleutnant Hans Fegelein . As a young boy working at his father ' s equestrian school in Munich , he became proficient in riding skills and participated in jumping events . During this period he met Christian Weber , an original member of the Nazi Party . Weber later sponsored Fegelein for entry into the Schutzstaffel ( SS ) . In 1925 , after studying for two terms at Munich University , Fegelein joined the " Reiter - Regiment " 17 ( Cavalry Regiment 17 ) . On 20 April 1927 , he joined the Bavarian State Police in Munich as an officer cadet . While in Munich , he came into contact with National Socialism , joining the Nazi Party ( membership number 1 , 200 , 158 ) and the Sturmabteilung ( SA ) in 1930 . Fegelein transferred to the SS on 10 April 1933 , with membership number 66 , 680 . He became a leader of an SS equestrian group , which included his brother , Waldemar . Fegelein oversaw the preparation of the courses and facilities for the equestrian events of the Berlin Olympic Games in 1936 . Fegelein won the international tournament in 1937 , as did his brother , Waldemar , in 1939 . On 25 July 1937 Reichsführer - SS Heinrich Himmler , by special order of the SS - Oberabschnitt Süd , created the " Haupt - Reitschule München " ( SS Main Riding School ) in Munich . Fegelein was named commander and promoted to the rank of SS - Standartenführer the same day . Historians William L . Shirer and Ian Kershaw characterise him as cynical and disreputable ; Albert Speer called him " one of the most disgusting people in Hitler ' s circle " . Fegelein was an opportunist who ingratiated himself with Himmler . Himmler in return granted him the best assignments — mostly related to horses — and rapid promotion through the ranks . World War II . In September 1939 , after the end of the Polish Campaign , Fegelein commanded the SS " Totenkopf Reiterstandarte " ( Deaths - Head Horse Regiment ) . They were garrisoned in Warsaw until December . The unit was then split into two " Standarten " ( regiments ) , with Fegelein commanding the 1 . Standarte . The units were placed under the overall command of ( abbreviated HSSPF — Higher SS and Police Leader ) " East " Friedrich - Wilhelm Krüger . Fegelein ' s unit took part in " anti - partisan " fighting in the area of Kammienna – Konsky – Kielce . On 7 December 1939 Fegelein ' s unit was involved in the mass shooting of 1 , 700 people in the Kampinos Forest . On 23 April 1941 Fegelein and his unit were caught stealing money and luxury goods intended for transportation back to Germany . A court - martial ordered for Fegelein was quashed by direct order of Himmler . Fegelein also saw active service on the Eastern Front , beginning as commander of the 1st SS Cavalry Regiment , from the summer of 1941 . That August , Himmler ordered the SS Cavalry Brigade to be formed under the command of Fegelein from the 1st and 2nd SS Cavalry Regiments . On 17 July 1941 Himmler assigned Fegelein ' s regiment to the general command of HSSPF Erich von dem Bach for the " systematic combing " of the Pripyat swamps , an operation designed to round up and exterminate Jews , partisans , and civilians in that area of Byelorussian SSR . The two - stage operation began on 19 July 1941 . Fegelein reported to von dem Bach that his men had killed 13 , 788 Jews and what he claimed were " soldiers in civilian clothes " during the first stage of the operation . At the end of the second stage , which ran during the last two weeks of August , Fegelein reported that all the Jewish men in the Rogatschew region had been killed — a total of another 3 , 500 men . Fegelein was wounded in action by Soviet snipers on 21 December and 22 December 1941 . On 20 April 1942 he was appointed commander of the 8th SS Cavalry Division " Florian Geyer " and returned to service on the Eastern front until September 1943 . After Fegelein was wounded for a third time in action on the Russian front , Himmler reassigned him on 1 January 1944 to Hitler ' s headquarters staff as his liaison officer and representative of the SS . He was promoted to the rank of SS - Gruppenführer and Generalleutnant of the Waffen - SS on 10 June 1944 . On 20 July 1944 Fegelein was present at the failed attempt on Hitler ' s life at the Wolf ' s Lair headquarters in Rastenburg , East Prussia , and received a minor wound to his left thigh from the bomb blast . Fegelein often showed around the photographs of the hanged men who had been executed as a result of this failed assassination attempt . Marriage . Fegelein ' s politically motivated marriage to Gretl Braun , Eva Braun ' s sister , took place on 3 June 1944 in Salzburg . Historians Kershaw and Shirer believe he courted Braun as a way to advance his career . Hitler , Himmler , and Bormann acted as witnesses at the ceremony . A two - day celebration was then held at Hitler ' s and Martin Bormann ' s Obersalzberg mountain homes and the Eagle ' s Nest . Fegelein was a known playboy and had many extramarital affairs . Death . After Himmler tried to negotiate a surrender to the western Allies via Count Bernadotte in April 1945 , Fegelein left the Reich Chancellery bunker complex and was caught by SS - Obersturmbannführer Peter Högl in his Berlin apartment on 27 April , wearing civilian clothes and preparing to flee to Sweden or Switzerland . He was carrying cash — German and foreign — and jewellery , some of which belonged to Eva Braun . Högl also uncovered a briefcase containing documents with evidence of Himmler ' s attempted peace negotiations with the western Allies . According to most accounts he was intoxicated when arrested and brought back to the Führerbunker . Journalist James P . O ' Donnell , who conducted extensive interviews in the 1970s , provides a detailed description of what happened next . Waffen - SS General Wilhelm Mohnke , who presided over the court martial for desertion , told O ' Donnell that Hitler ordered him to set up a tribunal . Mohnke arranged for a court martial panel , which consisted of Wilhelm Burgdorf , Hans Krebs , Johann Rattenhuber , and himself . Fegelein , still drunk , refused to accept that he had to answer to Hitler , and stated that he was responsible only to Himmler . Fegelein was so drunk that he was crying and vomiting ; he was unable to stand up , and even urinated on the floor . Mohnke was in a quandary , as German military law required the defendant to be of sound mind and body during court martial . Although he was certain Fegelein was " guilty of flagrant desertion " , Mohnke closed the proceedings and turned the defendant over to General Rattenhuber and his RSD security squad . Mohnke never saw Fegelein again . Fegelein ' s wife was heavily pregnant when he was arrested ( the baby was born in early May ) . Hitler considered releasing him without punishment or assigning him to Mohnke ' s troops . Hitler ' s secretary , Traudl Junge — an eye - witness to bunker events — stated that Braun pleaded with Hitler to spare her brother - in - law and tried to justify Fegelein ' s behaviour . However , he was taken to the garden of the Reich Chancellery on 28 April , and was " shot like a dog " . Rochus Misch , the last surviving individual from the Führerbunker , disputed aspects of this account in a 2007 interview with Der Spiegel . According to Misch , Hitler did not order Fegelein ' s execution , only his demotion . Misch claimed to know the identity of Fegelein ' s killer , but refused to reveal his name . Legacy . Fegelein ' s parents and his brother Waldemar survived the war . Gretl , who inherited some of Eva ' s valuable jewellery , also survived the war . She gave birth to a daughter ( named Eva Barbara Fegelein , after her late aunt ) on 5 May 1945 . Eva Fegelein committed suicide on 25 April 1971 after her boyfriend was killed in an auto accident . Gretl Braun - Fegelein moved to Munich and remarried in 1954 . She died in 1987 , aged 72 . Awards and decorations . The death sentence on 28 April resulted in the loss of all orders , awards , and honorary signs . Notes and references . Explanatory notes Citations Sources