Baron Wolfgang von Strucker () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. A former Nazi officer, he is one of the leaders of the Hydra terrorist organization and an enemy of S.H.I.E.L.D., the Avengers, and the interests of the United States, and thus a fugitive. He has been physically augmented to be nearly ageless. While Strucker has been seemingly killed in the past, he returned to plague the world with schemes of world domination and genocide, time and time again. The character appeared in several media adaptations, including television series and video games. Strucker has been portrayed by Campbell Lane in the 1998 TV film, Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., by Thomas Kretschmann in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) and Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), and by Joey Defore as a teenager in the television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., also set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Publication history Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appears in Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #5 (1964). Fictional character biography Born in the late 19th century to a Prussian noble family who had relocated to Strucker Castle in Bavaria following the Franco-Prussian War, Wolfgang von Strucker became a Heidelberg fencing champion and was disfigured by facial scars. Strucker fought for Germany during World War I, during which he first encountered the jewel "Momentary Princess", which was fated to appear and disappear at regular intervals of time. Wolfgang pursued the jewel in the decades that followed. When Adolf Hitler rose to power in Germany in 1933, Baron Strucker joined the Nazi Party, becoming infamous in the following years. In 1936, he and Geist, one of Hitler's top men, allied themselves with the Egyptian mentalist Amahl Farouk (secretly the Shadow King) in an attempt to dispute the lineage of England's royal family and install a new king who would be sympathetic to the Nazis. Their plot was thwarted by the Canadian adventurer Logan and the time-traveling members of Excalibur, Kitty Pryde and Phoenix. In 1937, German Intelligence agent Strucker was sent to the United States to assassinate Senator Fulton, but he was foiled by brigand-for-hire Dominic Fortune. World War II As World War II began, Strucker was appointed wing commander of the Death's Head Squadron by Hitler, and, in 1941, he was sent to Madripoor to help the Hand ninja