Müller was born in Barmen , Prussia . When World War I began , Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller served as an infantryman with the 2nd Infantry Regiment . In 1915 , he was promoted to second lieutenant and transferred to the 266th Regiment . After the war , Müller remained in the army and continued to rise through the ranks , attaining the rank of major in 1936 . Shortly after World War II commenced , Müller was made a lieutenant colonel . As the commanding officer of 105th Infantry Regiment , he saw action against the Soviet Army , for which he was awarded the Knight 's Cross of the Iron Cross in 1941 and Oak Leaves to his Knight 's Cross in 1942 . In August 1942 , Müller was made the commanding officer of 22nd Air Landing Infantry Division . Müller became notorious as a brutal commander responsible for several atrocities against Greek civilians . The attacks on civilians included the massacres at Viannos , Anogia , Amari , and Damasta . During the autumn of 1943 , Müller led the German forces in their victory over the Italian-British forces in the Dodecanese Campaign . On 6 October 1943 , on the island of Kos , under his orders , German forces killed and buried in mass graves over one hundred Italian army officers captured at the end of the battle for the island , who would not side with their former allies . On 1 July 1944 , he replaced Bruno Brauer as commander of occupied Crete . His infamy earned him the nickname of " The Butcher of Crete . " Müller was also responsible for the Holocaust of Kedros on 22 August 1944 . Under his orders , German infantry killed 164 Greek civilians which was followed in the coming days by the razing of most villages , looting , and the destruction of livestock and harvests . By 1945 , Müller commanded the German 4th Army on the Eastern Front . Müller ended the war in East Prussia where he surrendered to the Red Army
Holocaust of Kedros
Holocaust of Kedros
Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller