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August von Mackensen

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August von Mackensen
Nickname(s)"The Last Hussar"
Born(1849-12-06)6 December 1849
Haus Leipnitz, Province of Saxony, Kingdom of Prussia, German Confederation
Died8 November 1945(1945-11-08) (aged 95)
Habighorst, Province of Hanover, Allied-occupied Germany[1]
Allegiance Kingdom of Prussia

 North German Confederation
 German Empire
 Weimar Republic
Service / branch Prussian Army
 Imperial German Army
 Reichsheer
Years of service1869–1920
RankMariscal prussià Generalfeldmarschall
CommandsArmy Group Mackensen
Battles / warsFranco-Prussian War
World War I
AwardsGrand Cross of the Iron Cross
Pour le Mérite with Oak Leaves
Order of the Black Eagle
RelationsEberhard von Mackensen (son)
Hans Georg von Mackensen (son)
Signature

Anton Ludwig Friedrich August Mackensen (ennobled as von Mackensen in 1899; 6 December 1849 – 8 November 1945), was a German field marshal.[2] He commanded Army Group Mackensen during World War I (1914–1918) and became one of the German Empire's most prominent and competent military leaders. After the armistice of 11 November 1918, the victorious Allies interned Mackensen in Serbia for a year. In 1920, he retired from the army. In 1933 Hermann Göring made him a Prussian state councillor. During the Nazi era (1933–1945), Mackensen remained a committed monarchist and sometimes appeared at official functions in his World War I uniform. Senior Nazi Party members suspected him of disloyalty, but nothing was proven against him.

Early life and career

Mackensen, c. 1880

Mackensen was born in Haus Leipnitz, near the village of Dahlenberg (today part of Trossin) in the Prussian Province of Saxony, to Ludwig and Marie Louise Mackensen. His father, an administrator of agricultural enterprises, sent him to a Realgymnasium in Halle in 1865, seemingly in the hope that his eldest son would follow him in his profession.[3]

Mackensen began his military service in 1869 as a volunteer with the Prussian 2nd Life Hussars Regiment (Leib-Husaren-Regiment Nr. 2). During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871, he was promoted to second lieutenant and won the Iron Cross Second Class for leading a charge on a reconnaissance patrol north of Orléans.[4] After the war, he left the service and studied at Halle University but returned to the German Army in 1873 with his old regiment.

He married Doris (Dorothea) von Horn, the sister of a slain comrade, in 1879. Her father, Karl von Horn [de], was the influential Oberpräsident of East Prussia. They had two daughters and three sons. He found a mentor from the War Minister Julius von Verdy du Vernois.[5] In 1891, Mackensen was appointed to the General Staff in Berlin and bypassed the usual three-year preparation in the War Academy. His chief, Helmuth von Moltke, found him a "lovable character".[6]

Mackensen was recalled from the regiment to serve as an adjutant to the next chief, Alfred von Schlieffen (in office 1891–1906), whom he regarded as a great instructor on how to lead armies of millions.[7]

Mackensen's coat of arms (uncoloured)

Mackensen impressed Kaiser Wilhelm II, who ordered that Mackensen be given command from 17 June 1893 of the 1st Life Hussars Regiment (Leib-Husaren-Regiment Nr. 1) to which he became à la suite when he left its command on 27 January 1898 and so he often wore the distinctive death's head uniform thereafter.[8] Mackensen was surprised by his next posting, as adjutant to Wilhelm II because he was the first commoner to hold that position. For the next three-and-a-half years, he shadowed the Kaiser and met the high and mighty of Germany, the rest of Europe and the Middle East. His sons shared gymnastics classes with the Kaiser's. Mackensen was ennobled on the Kaiser's 40th birthday, 27 January 1899, and became August von Mackensen.[9]

Next, he received the command of the newly created Life Hussar Brigade (Leib-Husaren-Brigade) from 1901 to 1903, and from 1903 to 1908, he commanded the 36th Division in Danzig.[10]

His wife died in 1905, and two years later, he married Leonie von der Osten, who was 22 years old. When Schlieffen retired in 1906, Mackensen was considered as a possible successor, but the position went to Helmuth von Moltke the Younger. In 1908, Mackensen was given command of the XVII Army Corps, headquartered in Danzig.[11] The Crown Prince was placed under his command, and the Kaiser asked Mackensen to keep an eye on the young man and to teach him to ride properly.[12]

First World War

Eastern Front

Main article: Eastern Front (World War I)
Mackensen in a hussar uniform

At the outbreak of war in 1914, Mackensen, aged 65, commanded the XVII Army Corps, which became part of the German Eighth Army in East Prussia, under General Maximilian von Prittwitz, and then, 21 days later, under General Paul von Hindenburg. Mackensen had his corps moving out on a 25 km march to the Rominte River within fifty minutes of receiving his orders on the afternoon of 19 August 1914, after the Imperial Russian Army had invaded East Prussia.[13] He led the XVII Corps in the battles of Gumbinnen (20 August 1914), Tannenberg (23 to 30 August 1914) and the First Battle of the Masurian Lakes (2 to 16 September 1914), which drove the invading Russians out of most of East Prussia.

On 2 November 1914, Mackensen took over command of the Ninth Army from Hindenburg, who became Supreme Commander East (Oberbefehlshaber Ost). On 27 November 1914, Mackensen was awarded the Pour le Mérite, Prussia's highest military order, for successful battles around Warsaw and Łódź.

By April 1915, the Russians had conquered much of western Galicia and were pushing toward Hungary. In response to the desperate pleas from Vienna, German Chief of Staff Erich von Falkenhayn agreed to an offensive against the Russian flank by an Austro-German army under a German commander. The reluctant Austro-Hungarian supreme command agreed that the tactful Mackensen was the best choice for commanding the coalition army. Army Group Mackensen (Heeresgruppe Mackensen) was established, containing a new German Eleventh Army, also under his command, and the Austro-Hungarian Fourth Army. As chief of staff, he was assigned Hans von Seeckt, who described Mackensen as an amiable, "hands-on commander with the instincts of a hunter".[14] His army group, which had an overwhelming advantage in artillery, smashed through the Russian lines between Gorlice and Tarnow and then continued eastward. Never giving the Russians time to establish an effective defence, it retook most of eastern Galicia, recapturing Przemyśl and Lemberg.[15] The joint operation was a great victory for the Central Powers, which advanced 310 km (186 mi), and the Russians pulled out of all of Poland soon afterward.

Mackensen was awarded oak leaves to his Pour le Mérite on 3 June 1915 and was promoted to field marshal on 22 June. He also received the Order of the Black Eagle, Prussia's highest-ranking order of knighthood, as well as numerous honours from other German states - including the Grand Cross of the Military Order of Max Joseph, the highest military honor of the Kingdom of Bavaria, on 4 June 1915 - and from Germany's allies.

Serbian campaign

Main article: Serbian campaign
World War I monument erected by Mackensen to the Serbian defenders of Belgrade. The inscription reads "Here Rest Serbian Heroes" in German and Serbian.

In October 1915, a new Army Group Mackensen (Heeresgruppe Mackensen, which included the German Eleventh Army, the Austro-Hungarian Third Army and the Bulgarian First Army), launched a renewed campaign against Serbia. The campaign crushed effective military resistance in Serbia but failed to destroy the Royal Serbian Army, half of which managed to retreat to Entente-held ports in Albania and, after recuperation and rearmament by the French and the Italians, re-entered fighting on the Macedonian front. When Mackensen returned to Vienna, he was honoured by a dinner and a personal audience with Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria and was decorated with the magnificently jeweled Military Merit Cross 1st Class with Diamonds, a unique award for a foreigner.

Mackensen appears to have had great respect for the Serbian Army and Serbs generally. Before departing to the Serbian front in 1915, he had spoken to his men:[16]

You are not going to the Italian, Russian, or French front. You are going into battle against a new enemy - dangerous, tough, fearless, and sharp. You are going to the Serbian front and Serbia. Serbs are people who love their freedom, and who will fight to the last man. Be careful this small enemy does not cast a shadow on your glory and compromise your successes.[16]

Romanian campaign

Main articles: Romania in World War I, Armistice of Focșani, and Treaty of Bucharest (1918)
Mackensen reviewing Bulgarian troops followed by Crown Prince Boris (c. 1916)

After Romania declared war on Austria-Hungary on 15 August 1916, Mackensen was given command of a multinational army, with General Emil von Hell as chief of staff, of Bulgarians, Ottomans, Austro-Hungarians and Germans. It assembled in northern Bulgaria and then advanced into Dobruja. By 8 September, it had taken the two major forts on the right bank of the Danube, the first in a single day by a force that was outnumbered by the besieged, who were overwhelmed by Mackensen's artillery.[17] Then, a German and Austro-Hungarian army group that was commanded by Falkenhayn broke into Wallachia through the Vulkan Pass in the Transylvanian Carpathian Mountains while Mackensen crossed the Danube by seizing bridgeheads on the left bank to shield the Austro-Hungarian engineers who built the long pontoon bridge. The Romanian Army and its Russian allies were forced back between those pincers. After three months of war, two thirds of Romania was occupied by the Central Powers. The capital of Romania, Bucharest, was captured by the Central Powers on 6 December 1916, on his 67th birthday. He rode in on a white horse and moved into the Romanian royal palace.[18] For that performance, on 9 January 1917, Mackensen was awarded the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross and became one of only five recipients of that honour in the First World War. Since he now wore every Prussian medal, the Kaiser decided to name a battle cruiser after him, which became the first in a new class.[19] Mackensen became the military governor of the large part of Romania (mainly Wallachia) that was occupied by the Central Powers. He proposed making a German prince the King of Romania, but the initiative fell through. His last campaign was an attempt to destroy the Romanian Army, which had been reorganised.

During the Battle of Mărăşeşti, both sides took heavy losses, but the Romanian Army emerged victorious. Mackensen maintained that he had never been defeated in battle, and he surely was the most consistently successful senior general on either side in World War I. By December 1917, the Russian Army had collapsed, and the Romanian Armed Forces were forced to sign the Armistice of Focșani, followed by the Treaty of Bucharest.

On 11 November 1918, Germany signed an armistice with the Allies under which it had to immediately withdraw all German troops in Romania, the Ottoman Empire, Austria-Hungary and the Russian Empire back to German territory and Allies to have access to those countries.[20]

Postwar

After the armistice, he and the 200,000 men he led back home were rounded up. He was arrested by the agents of the pro-Entente Hungarian leader Mihály Károlyi in Budapest. Mackensen was held in a guarded villa at the edge of Budapest.[21] Later, he was handed over to the representatives of General Louis Franchet d'Espèrey's Allied army. He was a military prisoner in Futog, Serbia, until November 1919.[22] He was one of the 896 Germans on the Allied list of accused war criminals, which was eventually allowed to lapse.

By 1920, Mackensen had retired from the army. Although standing in opposition to the conclusion of the Treaty of Versailles and the newly established parliamentary system of the Weimar Republic, he initially avoided public campaigns. Around 1924, he changed his mind and began to use his image as a war hero to support monarchist and nationalist groups. He routinely appeared in his old Life Hussars uniform. He became very active in pro-military Conservative Revolutionary movement organisations, particularly Der Stahlhelm and the Schlieffen Society, which advocated the stab-in-the-back myth and openly endorsed the murder of Minister Matthias Erzberger in 1921.

Mackensen and Hitler in 1935 during the Heldengedenktag in Berlin

During the German presidential election of 1932, Mackensen supported Paul von Hindenburg against Adolf Hitler, whose political skills he nevertheless admired.

After Hitler gained power in January 1933, Mackensen became a visible, if largely symbolic, supporter of the Nazi regime. A striking visual icon of the Prussian traditions adopted by Hitler's regime, he appeared in his black uniform and death's-head busby at public events organized by the German government or the Nazi Party such as the Day of Potsdam on 21 March 1933. On 26 August 1933, Prussian Minister President Hermann Göring appointed Mackensen to the recently reconstituted Prussian State Council.[23] In 1935, he stood by Hitler's side for the ceremonies of the March 16 Heldengedenktag, or Heroes' Memorial Day, celebrating Hitler's public announcement that Germany would cease to comply with the Treaty of Versailles, and would openly re-arm.[24] One of Mackensen's ceremonial visits brought him to Passau, where he received a hero's welcome.[25]

Excellency, the gravity of the moment has compelled us to appeal to you as our Supreme Commander. The destiny of our country is at stake. Your Excellency has thrice before saved Germany from foundering, at Tannenberg, at the end of the War and at the moment of your election as Reich President. Excellency, save Germany for the fourth time! The undersigned Generals and senior officers swear to preserve to the last breath their loyalty to you and the Fatherland

— closing of the letter to von Hindenburg

Von Mackensen was, however, appalled by the murder of his friend General Kurt von Schleicher and General Ferdinand von Bredow in the Night of the Long Knives at the end of June 1934 and said so. He (with others) signed a letter to President von Hindenburg on 18 July detailing the brutal murder of von Schleicher and his wife, and noting that von Hindeburg's friend Franz von Papen had barely escaped with his life.[citation needed] His letter demanded that von Hindenburg punish the responsible parties and create a directorate to rule Germany. He started a campaign to have von Schleicher rehabilitated by Hitler and, when this gathered strength and succeeded, spoke about the murders at the annual General Staff Society meeting in February 1935.[citation needed]

Von Mackensen did not, however, blame Hitler personally but rather some his more radical subordinates, probably wished Hitler to be retained as Chancellor under the suggested Directorate, and continued to stand by the regime.

Occasionally mocked as the "Reich Centrepiece", Mackensen's ferocious soldier's visage and distinctive public profile in his black Life Hussars uniform was even recognised by the Hausser-Elastolin company, which produced a 7 cm figure of him in its line of Elastolin composition soldiers.[26] His fame and familiar uniform gave rise to two separate Third Reich units adopting black dress with Totenkopf badges: the Panzerwaffe, which claimed the tradition of the Imperial Cavalry, and the Schutzstaffel. In October 1935, the government vested Mackensen with the demesne of Brüssow in Brandenburg in recognition of his merits.

Mackensen at the Kaiser's funeral

In spite of the implicit endorsement provided by his public appearances with high-ranking Nazi officials, Mackensen's relationship to the Nazis was not fully approving: besides the killing of von Bredow and von Schleicher, he also objected to the Nazi Kirchenkampf measures against the Confessing Church and to the atrocities that were committed during the invasion of Poland in September 1939.

On 4 February 1940, Mackensen wrote to then Generaloberst Walther von Brauchitsch:

As a man becomes older, he has to watch carefully that age has not reduced his creativity. After reaching the age of 90, I have decided not to involve myself any longer with matters that are not concerned with my private life. However, I am still the most senior German officer. Many turn to me, sometimes with wishes but more often with their concerns.

During these weeks, our concern is with the spirit of our unique and successful Army. The concern results from the crimes committed in Poland, looting and murder that take place before the eyes of our troops, who appear unable to put an end to them. An apparent indifference has serious consequences for the morale of our soldiers, and it is damaging to the esteem of our Army and our whole nation.

I am sure that you are aware of these events and that you certainly condemn them. These lines intend to convey my daily growing concern at the reports that constantly reach me, and I have to ask you to take up this matter with the highest authority. The messages I receive are so numerous, many come from high ranking persons and from witnesses. As the most senior officer, I cannot keep them to myself. In transmitting them to you, I fulfil my duty to the Army. The honour of the Army and the esteem in which it is held must not be jeopardised by the actions of hired subhumans and criminals. Hail Victory (Sieg Heil).[27]

By the early 1940s, Hitler and Joseph Goebbels suspected Mackensen of disloyalty but refrained from taking action.[28] Mackensen remained a committed monarchist and in June 1941 appeared in full imperial uniform at Kaiser Wilhelm's funeral at Doorn, in the Netherlands.[29]

Hitler personally congratulated Mackensen on his 85th birthday in December 1944 and awarded the 5th cavalry regiment with the armband "Field marshal von Mackensen"[30].

According to a radio news report dated 15 April 1945 that was filed by the CBS News correspondent Larry LeSueur for World News Today, Mackensen was briefly captured by the British Second Army at his home during the closing weeks of the Second World War. Upon the arrival of the British, not commenting on the general rout, the 95-year-old Mackensen merely asked the new powers-that-be that "freed foreign workers" be prevented "from stealing his chickens".[31]

Mackensen died on 8 November 1945 at the age of 95, his life having spanned the Kingdom of Prussia, the North German Confederation, the German Empire, the Weimar Republic, the Nazi regime and the postwar Allied occupation of Germany. He was buried in the Celle cemetery.

Family

Mackensen's family at his 80th birthday

In November 1879, Mackensen married Dorothea von Horn (1854–1905), and they had five children:

In 1908, after the death of his first wife, Mackensen married Leonie von der Osten (1878–1963).

Mackensen and his family were Lutheran Protestants in the Evangelical Church of Prussia.

Honours

The University of Halle-Wittenberg appointed him to Honorary Doctor of Political Sciences and the Danzig University of Technology granted him the title Doktoringenieur.

Mackensen-class battlecruiser, named after Mackensen, was the last class of battlecruisers to be built by Germany in the First World War, the lead ship, SMS Mackensen, was launched on 21 April 1917.

Mackensen was an Honorary Citizen of many cities, such as Danzig, Heilsberg, Buetow, and Tarnovo. In 1915, the newly built rural village of Mackensen in Pomerania was named after him. In various cities, streets were named after him. In 1998 the Mackensenstraße in the Schöneberg district of Berlin was renamed Else-Lasker-Schüler-Straße, based on a claim that Mackensen was one of the "pioneers of National Socialism".[33]

Notes

  1. ^ David T. Zabecki, Germany at War: 400 Years of Military History, p. 808
  2. ^ See Lamar Cecil, "The Creation of Nobles in Prussia, 1871-1918" in The American Historical Review, Vol. 75, No. 3. (February, 1970), pp. 794; Gerard E. Silberstein, "The Serbian Campaign of 1915: Its Diplomatic Background" in The American Historical Review, Vol. 73, No. 1. (October 1967), 60.
  3. ^ Theo Schwarzmüller, Zwischen Kaiser und "Führer". Generalfeldmarschall August von Mackensen. Eine politische biographie. (Munich: Deutsche Taschenbuch Verlag, 1995), 17–29.
  4. ^ Schwartzmüller, Theo (1997). Zwischen Kaiser und "Führer". Generalfeldmarschall August von Mackensen. Paderborn: Ferdinand Schöningh. p. 34.
  5. ^ "August von Mackensen". prussianmachine.com. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  6. ^ Schwarzmüller, 1997, p. 49.
  7. ^ Schwarzmüller, 1997, p.65.
  8. ^ Wegner, Günter (1993). Stellenbesetzung der Deutschen Heere 1815-1939. Vol. 3. Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück. pp. 97–98.
  9. ^ Schwarzmüller, 1997, p.6 5.
  10. ^ Wegner, 1993, p. 131 and p. 463.
  11. ^ Wegner, 1993, p. 80.
  12. ^ Jonas, Klaus W (1961). The life of Crown Prince William. London: Routledge and Kegan. p. 70.
  13. ^ Showalter, Denis E. (1991). Tannenberg: clash of empires. Hamden, CT: Archon. p. 178.
  14. ^ Schwarzmüller, 1997, p. 105.
  15. ^ DiNardo, Robert L. (2010). The Gorlice-Tarnow campaign, 1915. Praeger.
  16. ^ a b Schwartzmüller, 1997, pp. 124-125.
  17. ^ Stone, Norman (1998) [1971]. The Eastern Front 1914-1917. London: Penguin. pp. 277–281. ISBN 9780140267259.
  18. ^ Gilbert, Martin (1994). The First World War: A Complete History. New York: Henry Holt and Company. p. 302. ISBN 080501540X.
  19. ^ G. Müller, The Kaiser and His Court, London, Macdonald, 1951. p. 222.
  20. ^ Convention (PDF), 11 November 1918, archived from the original (PDF) on 23 November 2018, retrieved 17 November 2017
  21. ^ The withdrawal of Mackensen’s army from Romania
  22. ^ Schwartzmüller, 1997, pp. 170 and 178.
  23. ^ Lilla 2005, p. 223.
  24. ^ Berlin Diary, by William L. Shirer, © 1941, 2011 edition published by RosettaBooks LLC
  25. ^ Anna Rosmus Hitlers Nibelungen, Samples Grafenau 2015, pp. 111f.
  26. ^ (Figure #651/1)[See: Hausser Elastolin Spielzeug 1939-40 (toy catalog)]
  27. ^ Field Marshal von Manstein, a Portrait (The Janus Head - Marcel Stein)
  28. ^ Norman J. W. Goda, "Black Marks: Hitler's Bribery of His Senior Officers during World War II", in The Journal of Modern History, Vol. 72, No. 2. (June, 2000), 430–432.
  29. ^ Anna Rosmus Hitlers Nibelungen, Samples Grafenau 2015, pp. 112f.
  30. ^ German Newsweek No. 745- 14 December 1944
  31. ^ 1945 Radio News, "1945-04-15 CBS World News Today" at around 14:25, at archive.org.
  32. ^ a b c d e f g Handbuch über den Königlich Preußischen Hof und Staat fur das jahr 1908, p. 39
  33. ^ luise-berlin.de

References

  • Cecil, Lamar. "The Creation of Nobles in Prussia, 1871-1918." In The American Historical Review, Vol. 75, No. 3. (Feb., 1970), pp. 757–795.
  • DiNardo, Richard L. (2015). Invasion: The Conquest of Serbia, 1915. Santa Barbara: Praeger. ISBN 9781440800924.
  • Foley, Robert. German Strategy and the Path to Verdun. Cambridge University Press, 2004.
  • Goda, Norman J. W. "Black Marks: Hitler's Bribery of His Senior Officers during World War II." In The Journal of Modern History, Vol. 72, No. 2. (June, 2000), 413–452.
  • Hedin, Sven. Große Männer denen ich begegnete, Zweiter Band, Wiesbaden, F.A. Brockhausen, 1953.
  • Lilla, Joachim (2005). Der Prußische Staatsrat 1921–1933: Ein biographisches Handbuch. Düsseldorf: Droste Verlag. ISBN 978-3-770-05271-4.
  • Mombauer, Annika. Helmuth von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War. Cambridge University Press, 2001.
  • Schwarzmüller, Theo. Zwischen Kaiser und "Führer." Generalfeldmarschall August von Mackensen. Eine politische Biographie. Munich: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, 1995.
  • Silberstein, Gerard E. "The Serbian Campaign of 1915: Its Diplomatic Background." In The American Historical Review, Vol. 73, No. 1. (October 1967), pp. 51–69.
  • Hausser Elastolin Spielzeug 1939-40' (toy catalog)
  • Die Deutsche Wochenschau 16 December 1944 Danish language version. 2:42 min: celebration of 95th birthday of August von Mackensen on 6 December 1944.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to August von Mackensen.
Military offices
Preceded by Commander, XVII Corps
27 January 1908 – 1 November 1914 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Commander, 9th Army
2 November 1914 – 17 April 1915 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Commander, 11th Army
16 April 1915 – 8 September 1915 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
New Formation
 Commander, Army Group Mackensen (Poland)
22 April – 8 September 1915 		Succeeded by
Dissolved
Preceded by
New Formation
 Commander, Army Group Mackensen (Serbia)
9 September 1915 – 30 July 1916 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
New Formation
 Commander, Army Group Mackensen (Romania)
28 August 1916 – 7 May 1918 		Succeeded by
Dissolved
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