August von Mackensen
Encyclopedia
Anton Ludwig August von Mackensen (6 December 1849 – 8 November 1945), born August Mackensen, was a German soldier and field marshal
. He commanded with success during the First World War
and became one of the German Empire
's most prominent military leaders. After the Armistice, Mackensen was interned for a year. He retired from the army in 1920 and was made a Prussia
n state councillor in 1933 by Hermann Göring
. Mackensen, a nationalist
rather than a National Socialist, frequently appeared at Nazi functions wearing his imperial cavalry uniform and became a major symbol of the integration of the Second and Third Reichs.
Province of Saxony
, to Louis and Marie Louise Mackensen. His father, an administrator of agricultural enterprises, sent him to a Realgymnasium in Halle
in 1865, with the apparent hope that Mackensen would follow him in his profession.
Mackensen began his military service in 1869 as a volunteer with the Prussian 2nd Life Hussar Regiment (Leib-Husaren-Regiment Nr. 2). During the Franco-Prussian War
he was promoted to second lieutenant and recommended for the Iron Cross
, Second Class. He left service and studied at the Halle University, but formally returned to the German Army
in 1873, with his old regiment. In 1891 he joined the General Staff
in Berlin, where he was heavily influenced by the new chief, Alfred von Schlieffen. From 17 June 1893 to 27 January 1898, Mackensen commanded the 1st Life Hussar Regiment (Leib-Husaren-Regiment Nr. 1), to which he became à la suite
when he left command and whose uniform he often wore as a general. He was ennobled on 27 January 1899, becoming August von Mackensen. From 1901 to 1903, he commanded the Life Hussar Brigade (Leib-Husaren-Brigade), and from 1903 to 1908 he commanded the 36th Division
in Danzig
. When Schlieffen retired in 1906 Mackensen was regarded by some as a possible successor, but the job went to Helmuth von Moltke the Younger
. In 1908, Mackensen took command of the XVII Army Corps, and commanded this corps until shortly after the beginning of World War I.
At the beginning of World War I Mackensen remained in command of XVII Army Corps as part of the Eighth Army under first General Maximilian von Prittwitz
and then General Paul von Hindenburg
and saw action in the battles of Gumbinnen and Tannenberg
. On 2 November 1914 Mackensen took command of the Ninth Army from General von Hindenburg, who had been named Supreme Commander East (Oberbefehlshaber Ost). On 27 November 1914 Mackensen was awarded the Pour le Mérite
, Prussia's highest military order, for actions around Łódź and Warsaw
. He commanded the Ninth Army until April 1915, when he took command of the Eleventh Army and Army Group Kiev (Heeresgruppe Kiew), seeing action in Galicia, and assisting in the capture of Przemyśl
and Lemberg. He was awarded oak leaves to the Pour le Mérite
on 3 June 1915 and promoted to field marshal
on 22 June. After this campaign, he was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle
, Prussia's highest-ranking order of knighthood. During this period, he also received numerous honours from other German states and Germany's allies, including the Grand Cross of the Military Max Joseph Order, the highest military honour of the Kingdom of Bavaria
, on 4 June 1915.
-Bulgarian campaign against Serbia
. The campaign finally crushed effective military resistance in Serbia but failed to destroy the Serbian army, which, though cut in half, managed to withdraw to Entente-held ports in Albania and, after recuperation and rearmament by the French, reentered fighting on the Macedonian front. During the fight for Belgrade
, the troops of the Central Powers encountered a very stiff resistance, so Mackensen erected a monument to the Serbian soldiers who died defending Belgrade
, saying, "We fought against an army that we have heard about only in fairy tales."
(under the overall command of General Erich von Falkenhayn
). He was in command of a multi-national army of Bulgarians, Ottoman Turks
, and Germans. Despite this, his offensives were very successful, breaking every army that faced his own. On 9 January 1917, Mackensen was awarded the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross
, becoming one of only five recipients of this honour in World War I.
From 1917 on, Mackensen was the military governor of the parts of Romania (mainly Wallachia
) controlled by the Central Powers. His last campaign was an attempt to destroy the Romanian Army, which had been reorganised after the Kerensky Offensive
, and occupy the rest of the country (the north-eastern part). But the attempt failed at the Battle of Mărăşeşti
, both sides taking heavy losses, but with the Romanian army victorious. At the end of the war, he was captured by General Louis Franchet d'Espèrey's Allied army in Hungary
(namely by the Serbian units) and held as a military prisoner in Futog
, until November 1919.
and the Schlieffen Society.
During the German elections of 1932 Mackensen supported Hindenburg
over Adolf Hitler
, but following the latter's accession to power Mackensen became a visible, if only symbolic, supporter of the Nazi regime. Mackensen's high-profile public visibility in his distinctive black Life Hussars uniform was recognized by the Hausser-Elastolin company which produced a 7-cm figure for its line of Elastolin
composition soldiers Mackensen's fame and familiar uniform gave rise to two separate Third Reich formations adopting black dress with Totenkopf badges: the Panzerwaffe
, which claimed the tradition of the Imperial cavalry; and Hitler's "Life Guards," the SS.
Although Mackensen appeared in his black uniform at some public events presented by the German government or the Nazi party, he objected to the killings of Generals Ferdinand von Bredow
and Kurt von Schleicher
during The Night of the Long Knives purge of July 1934, and to atrocities committed during the fighting in Poland in September 1939. By the early 1940s Hitler and Joseph Goebbels
suspected Mackensen of disloyalty but could do nothing. Mackensen remained a committed monarchist and appeared in full uniform at Kaiser Wilhelm II's
1941 funeral.
Mackensen died at the age of 95, his life having spanned the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire
, the Weimar Republic
, Nazi Germany
, and post-war Allied occupation
.
After the death of his first wife Mackensen married Leonie von der Osten (1878–1963) in 1908.
Generalfeldmarschall
Field Marshal or Generalfeldmarschall in German, was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire; in the Austrian Empire, the rank Feldmarschall was used...
. He commanded with success during the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and became one of the German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
's most prominent military leaders. After the Armistice, Mackensen was interned for a year. He retired from the army in 1920 and was made a Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
n state councillor in 1933 by Hermann Göring
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
. Mackensen, a nationalist
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
rather than a National Socialist, frequently appeared at Nazi functions wearing his imperial cavalry uniform and became a major symbol of the integration of the Second and Third Reichs.
Early years
Mackensen was born in Haus Leipnitz, near the village of Dahlenberg in the PrussianKingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
Province of Saxony
Province of Saxony
The Province of Saxony was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and later the Free State of Prussia from 1816 until 1945. Its capital was Magdeburg.-History:The province was created in 1816 out of the following territories:...
, to Louis and Marie Louise Mackensen. His father, an administrator of agricultural enterprises, sent him to a Realgymnasium in Halle
Halle, Saxony-Anhalt
Halle is the largest city in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is also called Halle an der Saale in order to distinguish it from the town of Halle in North Rhine-Westphalia...
in 1865, with the apparent hope that Mackensen would follow him in his profession.
Mackensen began his military service in 1869 as a volunteer with the Prussian 2nd Life Hussar Regiment (Leib-Husaren-Regiment Nr. 2). During the Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
he was promoted to second lieutenant and recommended for the Iron Cross
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross is a cross symbol typically in black with a white or silver outline that originated after 1219 when the Kingdom of Jerusalem granted the Teutonic Order the right to combine the Teutonic Black Cross placed above a silver Cross of Jerusalem....
, Second Class. He left service and studied at the Halle University, but formally returned to the German Army
German Army (German Empire)
The German Army was the name given the combined land forces of the German Empire, also known as the National Army , Imperial Army or Imperial German Army. The term "Deutsches Heer" is also used for the modern German Army, the land component of the German Bundeswehr...
in 1873, with his old regiment. In 1891 he joined the General Staff
German General Staff
The German General Staff was an institution whose rise and development gave the German armed forces a decided advantage over its adversaries. The Staff amounted to its best "weapon" for nearly a century and a half....
in Berlin, where he was heavily influenced by the new chief, Alfred von Schlieffen. From 17 June 1893 to 27 January 1898, Mackensen commanded the 1st Life Hussar Regiment (Leib-Husaren-Regiment Nr. 1), to which he became à la suite
À la suite
À la suite was a military title, given to those who were entitled to wear a regimental uniform but otherwise had no official position. It can best be translated as "in the entourage of".In Prussia, these were:...
when he left command and whose uniform he often wore as a general. He was ennobled on 27 January 1899, becoming August von Mackensen. From 1901 to 1903, he commanded the Life Hussar Brigade (Leib-Husaren-Brigade), and from 1903 to 1908 he commanded the 36th Division
36th Division (German Empire)
The 36th Division was a unit of the Prussian/German Army. It was formed on April 1, 1890, and was headquartered in Danzig . The division was subordinated in peacetime to the XVII Army Corps . The division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I...
in Danzig
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
. When Schlieffen retired in 1906 Mackensen was regarded by some as a possible successor, but the job went to Helmuth von Moltke the Younger
Helmuth von Moltke the Younger
Helmuth Johann Ludwig von Moltke , also known as Moltke the Younger, was a nephew of Field Marshal Count Moltke and served as the Chief of the German General Staff from 1906 to 1914. The two are often differentiated as Moltke the Elder and Moltke the Younger...
. In 1908, Mackensen took command of the XVII Army Corps, and commanded this corps until shortly after the beginning of World War I.
World War I
Maximilian von Prittwitz
Maximillion Von Prittwitz was a German General.-Family:Prittwitz came from an extremely old aristocratic Silesian family in Bernstadt...
and then General Paul von Hindenburg
Paul von Hindenburg
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg , known universally as Paul von Hindenburg was a Prussian-German field marshal, statesman, and politician, and served as the second President of Germany from 1925 to 1934....
and saw action in the battles of Gumbinnen and Tannenberg
Battle of Tannenberg (1914)
The Battle of Tannenberg was an engagement between the Russian Empire and the German Empire in the first days of World War I. It was fought by the Russian First and Second Armies against the German Eighth Army between 23 August and 30 August 1914. The battle resulted in the almost complete...
. On 2 November 1914 Mackensen took command of the Ninth Army from General von Hindenburg, who had been named Supreme Commander East (Oberbefehlshaber Ost). On 27 November 1914 Mackensen was awarded the Pour le Mérite
Pour le Mérite
The Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
, Prussia's highest military order, for actions around Łódź and Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
. He commanded the Ninth Army until April 1915, when he took command of the Eleventh Army and Army Group Kiev (Heeresgruppe Kiew), seeing action in Galicia, and assisting in the capture of Przemyśl
Przemysl
Przemyśl is a city in south-eastern Poland with 66,756 inhabitants, as of June 2009. In 1999, it became part of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship; it was previously the capital of Przemyśl Voivodeship....
and Lemberg. He was awarded oak leaves to the Pour le Mérite
Pour le Mérite
The Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
on 3 June 1915 and promoted to field marshal
Generalfeldmarschall
Field Marshal or Generalfeldmarschall in German, was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire; in the Austrian Empire, the rank Feldmarschall was used...
on 22 June. After this campaign, he was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle
Order of the Black Eagle
The Order of the Black Eagle was the highest order of chivalry in the Kingdom of Prussia. The order was founded on 17 January 1701 by Elector Friedrich III of Brandenburg . In his Dutch exile after WWI, deposed Emperor Wilhelm II continued to award the order to his family...
, Prussia's highest-ranking order of knighthood. During this period, he also received numerous honours from other German states and Germany's allies, including the Grand Cross of the Military Max Joseph Order, the highest military honour of the Kingdom of Bavaria
Kingdom of Bavaria
The Kingdom of Bavaria was a German state that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Bavarian Elector Maximilian IV Joseph of the House of Wittelsbach became the first King of Bavaria in 1806 as Maximilian I Joseph. The monarchy would remain held by the Wittelsbachs until the kingdom's dissolution in 1918...
, on 4 June 1915.
Serbian campaign
In October 1915, Mackensen, in command of the newly formed Army Group Mackensen (Heeresgruppe Mackensen, which included the German 11th army, Austro-Hungarian 3rd army, and Bulgarian 1st army), led a renewed German-Austro-HungarianAustria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
-Bulgarian campaign against Serbia
Kingdom of Serbia
The Kingdom of Serbia was created when Prince Milan Obrenović, ruler of the Principality of Serbia, was crowned King in 1882. The Principality of Serbia was ruled by the Karađorđevic dynasty from 1817 onwards . The Principality, suzerain to the Porte, had expelled all Ottoman troops by 1867, de...
. The campaign finally crushed effective military resistance in Serbia but failed to destroy the Serbian army, which, though cut in half, managed to withdraw to Entente-held ports in Albania and, after recuperation and rearmament by the French, reentered fighting on the Macedonian front. During the fight for Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, the troops of the Central Powers encountered a very stiff resistance, so Mackensen erected a monument to the Serbian soldiers who died defending Belgrade
Dragutin Gavrilovic
Dragutin Gavrilović was a notable Serbian and, later, Yugoslav military officer.Gavrilović was born in Čačak, Serbia, in 1882. After his graduation from the military academy in Belgrade in 1901, he took part in every war the Serbian army fought until World War II.He is remembered in Serbian...
, saying, "We fought against an army that we have heard about only in fairy tales."
Romanian campaign
He followed this up in 1916 with a successful campaign against RomaniaKingdom of Romania
The Kingdom of Romania was the Romanian state based on a form of parliamentary monarchy between 13 March 1881 and 30 December 1947, specified by the first three Constitutions of Romania...
(under the overall command of General Erich von Falkenhayn
Erich von Falkenhayn
Erich von Falkenhayn was a German soldier and Chief of the General Staff during World War I. He became a military writer after World War I.-Early life:...
). He was in command of a multi-national army of Bulgarians, Ottoman Turks
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, and Germans. Despite this, his offensives were very successful, breaking every army that faced his own. On 9 January 1917, Mackensen was awarded the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross
Grand Cross of the Iron Cross
The Grand Cross of the Iron Cross was a decoration intended for victorious generals of the Prussian Army and its allies. It was the highest class of the Iron Cross. Along with the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class, the Grand Cross was founded on March 10, 1813, during the Napoleonic Wars. It was...
, becoming one of only five recipients of this honour in World War I.
From 1917 on, Mackensen was the military governor of the parts of Romania (mainly Wallachia
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians...
) controlled by the Central Powers. His last campaign was an attempt to destroy the Romanian Army, which had been reorganised after the Kerensky Offensive
Kerensky Offensive
The Kerensky Offensive was the last Russian offensive in World War I. It took place in July 1917.- Background :...
, and occupy the rest of the country (the north-eastern part). But the attempt failed at the Battle of Mărăşeşti
Battle of Marasesti
The Battle of Mărăşeşti, Vrancea County, eastern Romania was a major battle fought during World War I between Germany and Romania.-Premise:...
, both sides taking heavy losses, but with the Romanian army victorious. At the end of the war, he was captured by General Louis Franchet d'Espèrey's Allied army in Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
(namely by the Serbian units) and held as a military prisoner in Futog
Futog
Futog is a town in Serbia, in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina. It is part of the metropolitan area of Novi Sad.-Name:The name Futog derives from Old Church Slavonic term for “on the mouth” - vo utok ....
, until November 1919.
Post-war career
In 1920, Mackensen retired from the army. Although standing in opposition to the newly established republican system, he avoided public campaigns. Around 1924 he changed his mind and began to use his image as war hero to support conservative, monarchic groups. He routinely appeared in his old Life Hussars uniform. He became very active in pro-military conservative organisations, particularly StahlhelmStahlhelm, Bund der Frontsoldaten
The Stahlhelm, Bund der Frontsoldaten also known in short form as Der Stahlhelm was one of the many paramilitary organizations that arose after the defeat of World War I in the Weimar Republic...
and the Schlieffen Society.
During the German elections of 1932 Mackensen supported Hindenburg
Paul von Hindenburg
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg , known universally as Paul von Hindenburg was a Prussian-German field marshal, statesman, and politician, and served as the second President of Germany from 1925 to 1934....
over Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
, but following the latter's accession to power Mackensen became a visible, if only symbolic, supporter of the Nazi regime. Mackensen's high-profile public visibility in his distinctive black Life Hussars uniform was recognized by the Hausser-Elastolin company which produced a 7-cm figure for its line of Elastolin
Elastolin
Elastolin is a trademark used by the German company O&M Hausser for the toy soldiers and other types of figures it manufactured from composite material and later from plastic....
composition soldiers Mackensen's fame and familiar uniform gave rise to two separate Third Reich formations adopting black dress with Totenkopf badges: the Panzerwaffe
Panzerwaffe
Panzerwaffe refers to a command within the Heer of the German Wehrmacht, responsible for the affairs of panzer and motorized forces shortly before and during the Second World War...
, which claimed the tradition of the Imperial cavalry; and Hitler's "Life Guards," the SS.
Although Mackensen appeared in his black uniform at some public events presented by the German government or the Nazi party, he objected to the killings of Generals Ferdinand von Bredow
Ferdinand von Bredow
Ferdinand von Bredow was a German Generalmajor and former head of the Abwehr in the Reich Defence Ministry and deputy defence minister in Kurt von Schleicher's cabinet .Bredow was, along with Schleicher, among Adolf Hitler's bitterest...
and Kurt von Schleicher
Kurt von Schleicher
Kurt von Schleicher was a German general and the last Chancellor of Germany during the era of the Weimar Republic. Seventeen months after his resignation, he was assassinated by order of his successor, Adolf Hitler, in the Night of the Long Knives....
during The Night of the Long Knives purge of July 1934, and to atrocities committed during the fighting in Poland in September 1939. By the early 1940s Hitler and Joseph Goebbels
Joseph Goebbels
Paul Joseph Goebbels was a German politician and Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. As one of Adolf Hitler's closest associates and most devout followers, he was known for his zealous oratory and anti-Semitism...
suspected Mackensen of disloyalty but could do nothing. Mackensen remained a committed monarchist and appeared in full uniform at Kaiser Wilhelm II's
William II, German Emperor
Wilhelm II was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia, ruling the German Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia from 15 June 1888 to 9 November 1918. He was a grandson of the British Queen Victoria and related to many monarchs and princes of Europe...
1941 funeral.
Mackensen died at the age of 95, his life having spanned the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
, the Weimar Republic
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
, Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
, and post-war Allied occupation
Allied Occupation Zones in Germany
The Allied powers who defeated Nazi Germany in World War II divided the country west of the Oder-Neisse line into four occupation zones for administrative purposes during 1945–49. In the closing weeks of fighting in Europe, US forces had pushed beyond the previously agreed boundaries for the...
.
Family
Mackensen married Dorothea von Horn (1854–1905) in November 1879, they had five children:- Else Mackensen (1881/2–1888)
- Hans Georg von Mackensen (1883–1947), diplomat
- Manfred von Mackensen
- Eberhard von MackensenEberhard von MackensenFriedrich August Eberhard von Mackensen was a German general who served in World War II, and one of 882 German recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves...
(1889–1969), Generaloberst - Ruth von Mackensen (1897–1945)
After the death of his first wife Mackensen married Leonie von der Osten (1878–1963) in 1908.