Baron Wolfgang Von Strucker

WW II Appearances

• Captain Savage & his Leatherneck Raiders: 2-4
• Fury (1993 oneshot)
• Gambit (2): 10
• Marvel Universe: 1-3
• Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD (2): 2-4
• Sgt Fury and his Howling Commandos: 5, 9, 14, 28-29, 112, 114-115
• X-Men: True Friends: 1-3

Next to the Red Skull and Baron Helmut Zemo, Baron Wolfgang Von Strucker stood as the most ruthless foe to arise from the ranks of the Nazi, a distinction which he carried over through the Cold War as the eventual leader of HYDRA. 

Born in Strucker Castle in Bavaria, Germany, to a long line of Prussian military leaders, Strucker served was a young corporal in World War I, where he first tasted combat and caught a glimpse of his destiny. While securing a town in Leipzig, he made contact with the trans-dimensional "Momentary Princess" which gave him a peek at a future he did not understand. Years later, he was recruited into the Nazi intelligence in WWII, eventually taking command of Hitler's elite squad with the number one priority of destroying the Howling Commandos. Strucker and Fury fought many times, always ending with sure defeat. One of their final battles came in the French town of Cherbeaux, after which Hitler gave orders to the Gestapo to kill Strucker. After the crushing blow in France, Von Strucker eventually relocated to Africa where he began a project involving mind-altering drugs where he captured Fury to use as a test subject to help gain funding from Germany. This plan also ended in defeat, however the Baron was soon back in the good graces of Reich as the war effort began to slip for Germany. Among his duties in the waning years of the war was finding new ways to maintain Nazi potency, including investigating the claims of an Egyptian spiritualist and Lady Windemere that demonic forces could be summoned to defeat enemies of the Reich. Unclear is the events in the German town of Gruenstadt where in command of the Death's Head Guard, he made contact with the alien Gnobians.

Always seeing himself as a solider first, and often viewing Hitler's more ruthless operations against civilians as wasteful and uncivilized, the war itself was more an opportunity to put into effect Von Strucker's own plans, rather then serving the Third Reich. Among Von Strucker's personal plans during this time, he attempted to once again gain the mysterious the "Momentary Princess" but failed. However his greatest master plan would have far greater impact on the world, the formation of the terrorist organization known as Hydra.

Following in the wake of Hitler's summoning of Thor and the battle with the Invaders, Von Strucker followed a disguised Doctor Doom back to the future where Von Strucker learned of the defeat of Germany. Returning to his own time with his worst fears confirmed, together with the Red Skull, Strucker saw fit to prepare for the worst, and set about creating a power base in the Far East for eventually taking over Germany. Stealing weapons from the world powers, Von Strucker set about establishing Hydra in the Pacific, but was dealt a powerful blow by the Leatherneck Raiders and Japan's Samurai Squad. Regardless the roots of Hydra were planted and the scores of scientists he managed to gather eventually became Advanced Idea Mechanics (AIM). Following the defeat at the first Hydra Island, Von Strucker continued to fund and form Hydra. One such plan involved hiding caches of gold in Kenya and its secret location implanted in the mind of a young Jewish girl Gabrielle Haller, however the process drove her mad. Once the Allies began invading Berlin, Von Strucker fled to the Orient after ordering that Haller be watched. Soon after the war Charles Xavier would heal Haller's troubled mind, prompting Von Strucker to come out of hiding and do battle with him and mutant soon to be known as Magneto over the gold.

Although setbacks continued to plague him during the last years of the war, most notably the destruction of his Dragon submarine and undersea base by the Invaders, Hydra was born and in years to come the Baron would once again menace the world.

Adolf Hitler

WW II Appearances

• Sgt Fury and his Howling Commandos: 1, 9, 24, 14, 29, 32, 35, 41, 48, 53, 57-59, 66-67
• Sgt. Fury King-Sized Special: 2
• Invaders (1): 32-33

As the man responsible for the regime that gave way to the likes of the Red Skull, Baron Zemo, Armin Zola, and Baron Von Strucker, not to mention the rest of the ruthless Nazi war machine, it can go without saying that Adolf Hitler was one of the most evil tyrants the world has known. Leading Germany through the Second World War, Hitler remained the number one prize for heroes like Captain America and Sgt Fury and his Howling Commandos, however a bullet to the head in a Berlin bunker brought an end to the Nazi leader's tyranny.

Apparently tolerant of bizarre and unstable individuals with often radical and outlandish plans for conquest, Hitler had no one else to blame but himself for approving some of the ploys undertaken by the likes of Colonel Klaue and Baron Von Strucker for defeating the Howling Commandos. However Hitler's lack of tolerance for "failure" lead to some like the Red Skull and Von Strucker to seek avenues of power beyond the Reich.

Remaining unclear to this day, something of Hitler survived his apparent death (either the suicide known publicly or his death at the hands of Human Torch Jim Hammond), perhaps as a clone, and took up among the pantheon of super-vilians as the Hate-Monger, returning time and again to fight Fury.

Agent of a 1,000 Faces

Appearances

• Sgt Fury and his Howling Commandos: 39, 41, 48, 60, 69

Bio coming soon

Colonel Fritz Klaue
Appearances

• Sgt Fury and his Howling Commandos: 39, 41, 47-48, 59, 69
• Fantastic Four Unlimited: 1

Following Von Strucker's disgrace before the fuehrer, Klaue took up command of the Blitzkrieg Squad and used the opportunity to seek revenge for losing a secret base to Fury and the Howlers. Klaue was fitted with a tempered steel hand which actually became more of a hindrance then an aid in his failed attempts to defeat Fury and the Howlers. Eventually he also lost command of the Blitzers and Von Strucker took command again.

Unafraid to face defeat again, Klaue outfitted himself with a second
mechanical hand, improving on the original with hidden weapons
housed within its fingers such as a projectile razor blade from the thumb, a lethal dart launcher from the index and (we're not kidding folks) a flame thrower from the middle finger. Despite these tricks, Klaue was defeated again.

While on a mission to Africa, Klaue's plane went down in the kingdom of Wakanda, where he managed to befriend Wakandan ruler Chandra. Klaue used Chandra's trust to exploit Wakanda's vibranium deposits, but in time Chandra returned as the Black Panther and ran Klaue out of his lands. Klaue eventually had a son born in the Netherlands who Dutchized his name to Klaw; Klaw slew T'Challa's father and has continued his father's Abrahamic struggle with sub-Saharan Africans.

(thanks to docsavage80 for the bio update!)

Gerta Heinz

Appearances

• Sgt Fury and his Howling Commandos: 47, 65

Bio coming soon