Arno von Lenski Arno Ernst Max von Lenski ( 20 July 1893 – 4 October 1986 ) was a German military officer and general who served in the Imperial German army , the " Wehrmacht " , and after the war in the National People ' s Army of the German Democratic Republic , where he was also a politician . Early career . Lenski was born in the East Prussia n village of Czymochen to a landowning family ; his mother was a teacher of Masuria n descent . Starting in 1903 he was educated at the Cadet School Köslin , Farther Pomerania and the Hauptkadettenanstalt Lichterfelde ( Berlin ) in 1908 . In 1912 Lenski joined the German Imperial Army and was promoted to a Fähnrich in the Grenadierregiment zu Pferde Nr . 3 ( Mounted Grenadier Regiment No . 3 ) in Bromberg on 22 March 1912 . Lenski fought in World War I , initially as a platoon leader , and joined the staff of the " Generalkommando z . b . V . 55 " in 1915 . After the end of the war Lenski served in the Weimar German Reichswehr and served in the Kavallerieregiment 6 in Demmin and Pasewalk and at the Cavalry School Hanover , where he was a subordinate of Wilhelm Keitel in 1921 . In 1925 he became a teacher at the cavalry school and in 1929 , now a Rittmeister , commanding officer of the 5 . Squadron of the Reiterregiment 14 at Ludwigslust . Nazi Germany . In 1933 he was promoted to a Major and became the commander of the NCO riding school and adjutant of the Cavalry School commander at Hanover . In 1935 Lenski became the commander of the Kavallerieregiment 6 in Schwedt / Oder , which was transferred to Darmstadt in 1937 . Promoted to an Oberst in 1938 , Lenski commanded a reconnaissance unit at the Western Front in 1939 and became the commander of the " " School for Mobile Troops " " in Krampnitz near Potsdam on 1 December 1939 . On 29 August 1940 Lenski was appointed as an assessor at the Volksgerichtshof in Berlin by Adolf Hitler . He was involved in at least eight trials , including a death sentence , as an assessor of Roland Freisler . In September 1942 Lenski took over the command of the 24 Panzer Division , which fought near Stalingrad and was promoted to a lieutenant general on 1 January 1943 . After the defeat of the German Wehrmacht in the Battle of Stalingrad Lenski became a prisoner of war in the Soviet Union . Soviet captivity . Lenski was first imprisoned at Krasnogorsk and transferred to Suzdal in April 1943 . After initial hesitation he joined the National Committee for a Free Germany and the " Bund Deutscher Offiziere " led by Walther von Seydlitz - Kurzbach on 7 May 1944 . Lenski was released on 17 August 1949 and moved to the Soviet Occupation Zone of Germany . German Democratic Republic . After the foundation of the German Democratic Republic Lenski was formally acknowledged as a " " Victim of Fascism " " in October 1949 and became a member of the council of the National Democratic Party of East Germany ( NDPD ) in May 1950 . Between March 1951 and July 1952 Lenski worked at the municipal administration of Berlin . Starting on 1 August 1952 he joined the staff of the East German paramilitary Kasernierte Volkspolizei ( Barracked People ' s Police ) and was responsible for the configuration of tank troops . On 28 April 1953 he was promoted to Commander of Tank Troops ( " Chef der Panzertruppen " ) at the " Department of National Defence " at Strausberg and became a major general of the National People ' s Army after its foundation . Beginning in 1954 Lenski was observed by the East German Secret Police ( Stasi ) . In December 1957 the Socialist Unity Party of Germany decided to release Lenski from duty in the National People ' s Army and Lenski retired on 31 July 1958 . Private life . Lenski first married in 1930 , but his first wife died in 1932 . He married again in 1935 , and had two sons and a daughter with his second wife . In 1952 Lenski became a member of the East German Parliament for the NDPD . After his retirement he joined several equestrian associations and was a member of the East German Olympic Committee and the executive board of the Society for German - Soviet Friendship and the East German Gymnastics and Sports Association . Lenski was the President of the equestrian sports society , the equestrian board of the paramilitary " Gesellschaft für Sport und Technik " and the Consortium of former officers . Lenski died on 4 October 1986 and was buried at Strausberg .