Catherine Rommel is the grandchild of Erwin Rommel. Erwin was a German field marshal during World War II. For his achievements on the Italian Front, Rommel received the Pour le Mérite, making him a highly decorated officer in World War I.
He used his experiences from that conflict to inform the writing of Army Attacks, a classic work on military strategy published in 1937.
In Nierstein, Germany, on Saturday, March 24, 2017, Catherine Rommel, left, the granddaughter of German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, and Helen Patton, the granddaughter of U.S. Army Gen. George Patton, welcome reenactors beside the Rhine River.
A monument honoring the 249th Engineer Combat Battalion’s work toward the end of World War II, when they constructed a bridge across the river near Nierstein during an operation that shortened the war, was dedicated in front of a crowd that included both Americans and Germans.
