Gerd von Rundstedt was in the military.
Karl Rudolf Gerd von Rundstedt ( 12 December 1875 -- 24 February 1953 ) was a Field Marshal in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II . Born into a Prussian family with a long military tradition , Rundstedt entered the Prussian Army in 1892 . In the inter-war years , he continued his military career , reaching the rank of Colonel General ( Generaloberst ) before retiring in 1938 . He was recalled at the beginning of World War II as commander of Army Group South in the invasion of Poland . In the invasion of the Soviet Union , he commanded Army Group South , responsible for the largest encirclement in history , the Battle of Kiev , as well as the largest mass killing of the Holocaust to that date , at Babi Yar .