Wilhelm Ritter von Thoma, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Wilhelm Ritter von Thoma

German general

Date of Birth: 11-Sep-1891

Place of Birth: Dachau, Bavaria, Germany

Date of Death: 30-Apr-1948

Profession: military personnel

Nationality: Germany

Zodiac Sign: Virgo

Wilhelm Josef Ritter von Thoma (11 September 1891 – 30 April 1948) was a German army officer who served in World War I, in the Spanish Civil War,and as a general in World War II.
He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Thoma is known for his indiscretion while a POW in the British captivity, when he unwittingly revealed the existence of the V-1 flying bomb and the V-2 weapons programmes.
He was subject to surveillance by the British intelligence and while speaking to another German officer, was recorded discussing rockets that were being tested at Kummersdorf West, which he observed while on a visit that also included Generalfeldmarschall Walther von Brauchitsch, the Commander-in-Chief of the Army.
British reconnaissance flights over Peenemünde Army Research Center in May and June 1943 brought back unmistakable images of rockets at the facility; the subsequent bombing of the site severely disrupted the programme.