) was a German military officer from a family of military officers. He was the primary military figure of Bolivia during the two decades preceding the Chaco War

Chaco War

The Chaco War was fought between Bolivia and Paraguay over control of the northern part of the Gran Chaco region of South America, which was incorrectly thought to be rich in oil. It is also referred to as La Guerra de la Sed in literary circles for being fought in the semi-arid Chaco...

.

Beginnings and World War I

Kundt was born in 1869 in Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a duchy and later grand duchy in northern Germany, consisting of the eastern fifth of the historic Mecklenburg region, roughly corresponding with the present-day Mecklenburg-Strelitz district , and the western exclave of the former Bishopric of Ratzeburg in modern...

, Germany, and was commissioned in 1888 (1889 Fähnrich

Fähnrich

Fähnrich is a German and Austrian military rank in armed forces which translates as "Ensign" in English. The rank also exists in a few other European military organizations, often with historical ties to the German system. Examples are Sweden, Norway and Finland . The French Army has a similar...

). In 1902 he served as captain of the Generalstab (General Headquarters). He arrived in Bolivia in 1908, as head of a German military training mission. He enjoyed an excellent relationship with the Bolivians and acquired a reputation as a great administrator and troop trainer. In 1911, he began the reorganisation of the Bolivian Army

Bolivian Army

The Bolivian Army or Ejército Boliviano is the land forces component of the Military of Bolivia, the Bolivian Army has around 31,500 men.- Combat units directly under the Army general command :...

, following the pattern of the Prussian Army

Prussian Army

The Royal Prussian Army was the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power.The Prussian Army had its roots in the meager mercenary forces of Brandenburg during the Thirty Years' War...

.

At the start of First World War, Kundt returned to Germany. In 1914 he was commander of a regiment on the Eastern Front

Eastern Front (World War I)

The Eastern Front was a theatre of war during World War I in Central and, primarily, Eastern Europe. The term is in contrast to the Western Front. Despite the geographical separation, the events in the two theatres strongly influenced each other...

 and achieved the rank of Generalleutnant. He served as chief of staff on the corps level, and as a brigade commander. After the First World War, Kundt retired at the rank of colonel, although he was conferred the rank of general upon retiring.

In Bolivia

Following the First World War, Kundt again returned to Bolivia. There he was offered the posts of Chief of Staff of the Army, and of Minister of War, with the rank of general. Kundt accepted the posts and headed the program of rearming Bolivia during the 1920s, and the planning to occupy the Chaco

Gran Chaco

The Gran Chaco is a sparsely populated, hot and semi-arid lowland region of the Río de la Plata basin, divided among eastern Bolivia, Paraguay, northern Argentina and a portion of the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul, where it is connected with the Pantanal region...

. He adopted Bolivian citizenship and entered the army as a general. In this post he continued the reorganisation he had begun in 1911, and became very popular as - unlike much of the Bolivian officer corps - he was concerned with the well-being of the troops. In 1923 he was named Minister of War. After the fall of president Hernando Siles Reyes

Hernando Siles Reyes

Hernando Siles Reyes was the 31st President of Bolivia, serving from 1926-1930.Founder of the Nationalist Party, he soon gravitated toward the Saavedrista faction of the Republican Party, which had come to power in 1920...

 in a coup, Kundt was exiled for having collaborated with that administration.

Chaco War

Only two years later, Kundt was brought back to direct the Bolivian Army against Paraguay in the Chaco War, as Commander in Chief. However, he failed to utilise Bolivia's superior weaponry, tanks

Tank warfare in the Chaco War

The Chaco War was the first South American conflict in which tanks were used. They were used exclusively by Bolivia, due to its stable economy based on mining gold, silver, and tin.-The first Bolivian Vickers:...

 and air force, using futile tactics such as frontal assaults against well-defended positions. He also failed to properly attend to logistics

Logistics

Logistics is the management of the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of destination in order to meet the requirements of customers or corporations. Logistics involves the integration of information, transportation, inventory, warehousing, material handling, and packaging, and...

, or keep track of enemy maneuvers. Unit after unit of the Bolivian army were surrounded and destroyed. Kundt was relieved of command by Daniel Salamanca, due to a significant setback

Siege of Campo Vía

The battle of the Campo Vía pocket was a decisive engagement of the Chaco War between Paraguay and Bolivia which took place in December 1933. It was one of the most prominent battles of the Chaco War. Lt Col José Félix Estigarribia, with a massive force of several divisions of the Paraguayan Army,...

 suffered in December 1933. He then left the country and returned to Germany.

Evaluation

Kundt displayed excellent qualities as an administrator and dedicated instructor, and was concerned for the well-being of his men. However, during World War I Kundt demonstrated a mediocre grasp of tactics, preferring frontal assaults in most situations. Despite his knowledge of staff issues, he was not a good strategist. Despite the Bolivian military's focus on the Chaco in the 1920s, Kundt never visited or familiarised himself with the region, and his concept of the war with Paraguay was essentially that of a triumphant, unopposed march across the region by Bolivian troops.

Kundt was reluctant to depend on his Bolivian officers (though many were quite capable), and preferred to supervise military operations directly.

External links

• Paraguayan cartoon of Kundt