Field Marshal Albert Kesselring
Albert Kesselring commanded German Army Group C (and, earlier, Axis air power in the Mediterranean) through the Italian Campaign, conducting one of the war's most effective defensive campaigns -- successive fortified lines (Gustav, Gothic) that turned Italy's mountainous terrain into a years-long delaying action against a numerically superior Allied force. He surrendered German forces in Italy in April 1945, days before the general German surrender. Later convicted of war crimes for reprisal killings of Italian civilians; his death sentence was commuted and he was released in 1952.
- Lived: 1885 CE – 1960 CE
- Nationality: german
- Roles: general, air force commander
