The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht or OKW (Wehrmacht High Command, Armed Forces High Command) was part of the command structure of the German armed forces during World War II. In theory, it served as the military general staff for Adolf Hitler's Third Reich, coordinating the efforts of the German Army (Heer), Navy (Kriegsmarine), and Air Force (Luftwaffe). In practice, the OKW was only Hitler's military office, that had to translate Hitler's ideas into military orders, and had little real control over the Army, Navy and the Air Force High Commands. Instead, as the war progressed the OKW found itself exercising increasing amounts of direct command authority over military units particularly in the West. This created a situation such that by 1942, the OKW was the defacto command of Western forces while the OKH (the Army High Command) exercised defacto command of the Russian front. Wehrmacht was the name of the armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... Adolf Hitler (April 20, 1889–April 30, 1945) was the Führer und Reichskanzler (Leader and Imperial chancellor) of Germany from 1933 to his death. ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... Heer is the German word for army. ... The Kriegsmarine (or War Navy) was the name of the German Navy between 1935 and 1945, during the Nazi regime, superseding the Reichsmarine. ... The Luftwaffe (literally, air weapon, pronounced looft-vaaf-feh) is the air force of Germany. ...

The OKW had been formed in 1938 following the Blomberg-Fritsch Affair which led to the dismissal of Werner von Blomberg and the dissolution of the Reichswehrministerium (Reichs Ministry of War). The Blomberg-Fritsch Affair where two rather unfortunate scandals that resulted in the subjugation of the German Wehrmacht to Adolf Hitler. ... Werner von Blomberg Werner Eduard Fritz von Blomberg (September 2, 1878-March 22, 1946) was a leading member of the German Army prior to World War II. Born in Stargard, Pomerania, Germany, Werner von Blomberg joined the army at a young age and attended Germanys War College in 1904. ...

There was a rivalry between OKW and the OKH (Army High Command, Oberkommando des Heeres): Because most German operations during World War II were army operations (with air support), the Army High Command demanded the control over the German military forces. Hitler decided against the OKH and in favour of the OKW. The Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH) was Germanys Army High Command from 1936 to 1945. ... The Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH) was Germanys Army High Command from 1936 to 1945. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ...

During the war more and more influence moved from the OKH to the OKW. Norway was the first "OKW war theater". More and more theaters came under complete control of the OKW. Finally only the Russian Front stayed under control of the Army High Command. In warfare, a theater is normally used to define a specific geographic area within which armed conflict occurs. ...

The OKW ran military operations on the Western front, Africa and in Italy. In the west operations were further split between the OKW and the Oberbefehlshaber West (OBW, Commander in Chief West), who was Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt (later Field Marshal Günther von Kluge). Generalfeldmarschall (General Field Marshal, usually translated simply as Field Marshal, and sometimes written only as Feldmarschall) was a rank in the armies of several German states and also of the Holy Roman Empire and Austrian Empire which could be granted to active officers only in wartime. ... Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt Karl Rudolf Gerd von Rundstedt (December 12, 1875 - February 24, 1953) was a Field Marshal of the German Army during World War II. He remains known as one of Germanys best generals, as well as for being apolitical throughout his career. ... Günther von Kluge Günther von Kluge (nicknamed Hans) (October 30, 1882 - August 19, 1944), was a German military leader. ...

There was even more fragmentation as naval and air operations had their own commands (Oberkommando der Marine (OKM) and Oberkommando der Luftwaffe (OKL, Hermann Göring)) which, while theoretically subordinate, were largely independent from OKW or the OBW. The Oberkommando der Marine (or OKM for short) was Germanys Naval High Command until 1945. ... Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (also Goering or Goring in English) (January 12, 1893 – October 15, 1946) was a prominent and early member of the Nazi party, founder of the Gestapo, and one of the main architects of Nazi Germany. ...

The OKW was headed for the entire war by Wilhelm Keitel and reported directly to Hitler, from whom most operational orders actually originated as he had made himself Oberster Befehlshaber der Wehrmacht (Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces) and Oberbefehlshaber des Heeres (head of the OKH). Generalfeldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel Wilhelm Bodewin Johann Gustav Keitel (September 22, 1882 - October 16, 1946) was a German Field Marshal (Generalfeldmarschall) and a senior military leader during World War II. Early life and career He was born in Helmscherode near Hanover, Germany, the son of Carl Keitel, a middle-class landowner. ... Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (April 20, 1889 – April 30, 1945, standard German pronunciation in the IPA) was the Führer (leader) of the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi Party) and of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. ...

Alfred Jodl was Keitel's Chef des Wehrmachtführungsstabes (Chief of Operation Staff), while Walter Warlimont was Deputy Chief. Colonel-General Alfred Jodl Alfred Jodl (May 10, 1890 - October 16, 1946) was a Wehrmacht officer. ... Walter Warlimont (* October 3, 1894 Osnabrück, Germany - † October 9, 1976 Kreuth near the Tegernsee) was a German officer known for his role in the OKW inner circle (deputy chief). ...

The OKW was indicted but acquitted of charges during the Nuremberg trials of being a criminal organization. Keitel and Jodl however were convicted and sentenced to death by hanging. The Nuremberg Trials is the general name for two sets of trials of Nazis involved in World War II and the Holocaust. ... A criminal organization is a group run by criminals to further their illegal activities. ...

See also

• German General Staff
• Wehrmacht