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The Upper Rhine High Command ((ドイツ語:Oberkommando Oberrhein)), also incorrectly referred to as Army Group Upper Rhine ((ドイツ語:Heeresgruppe Oberrhein)), was a short-lived headquarters unit of the German Armed Forces (''Wehrmacht'') created on the Western Front during World War II. The Upper Rhine High Command was formed on 26 November 1944 and deactivated on 25 January 1945. The sole commander of this headquarters unit was Heinrich Himmler. Although English language sources refer to this command as an "army group," the German term ''Oberkommando'' actually means "high command". As such, the ''Oberrhein'' command was not an army group subordinated to theater command, but a command of importance equal to that of a theater command and one which reported directly to Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (''OKW'') and Adolf Hitler. The German term ''Oberrhein'' refers to the upper reaches of the Rhine River, the geographical area for which this command had defense responsibility. ==Creation== Following successful Allied offensives in November 1944 that forced the Saverne and Belfort Gaps, reached the Rhine River, and liberated Belfort, Strasbourg, and Mulhouse, Hitler ordered the German troops around Colmar in Alsace to hold fast. German Army Group G (''Heeresgruppe G'') was stripped of defense responsibility for the area around Colmar and the defense of the Rhine River south of the Bienwald. On November 26, 1944, the Germans organized the Upper Rhine High Command to defend the upper Rhine.〔Georg Tessin. ''Verbände und Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS 1939-1945. Die Waffengattungen - Gesamtübersicht.'' Chapter "I. Oberbefehlshaber", p. 5.〕〔Schramm, p. 419, (translated) "On this day, all Army, Air Force, and Waffen-SS troops from the south edge of the Bienwald to the Swiss border are placed under the command of the ''Reichsführer-SS'' and given the mission to prevent a crossing of the Rhine by the enemy. In support of this, all ''Volkssturm'' will be mobilized. Reports from the ''Reichsführer-SS'' will be made directly to the ''Führer''."〕 Hitler placed German Interior Minister Heinrich Himmler in command on December 10,〔Clarke and Smith, p. 485〕 believing that Himmler's presence would stimulate extraordinary efforts by both German military and Nazi Party officials in the region. The designation of the command as a "High Command" also meant that the Upper Rhine High Command was an independent theater-level command that answered directly to ''OKW'', rather than to the OB West. OB West was the German command responsible for the rest of the Western Front. With Himmler in charge of the Upper Rhine High Command, the practical effect was that this army group answered directly to Hitler. This introduced a largely disadvantageous schism into the German high command for operations on the Western Front. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Army Group Oberrhein (Germany)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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