Karl Höfer was a German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 officer. During World War I

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...

 he became known as the Held vom Kemmelberge (Hero of Kemmelberg) for his actions at the Kemmelberg

Kemmelberg

The Kemmelberg, also known as Kemmel Hill or Mont Kemmel, is a 156m high hill near Kemmel in the municipality of Heuvelland in West Flanders, Belgium....

.

Retired as "Generalleutnant a. D.", Höfer defended German Upper Silesia

Province of Upper Silesia

The Province of Upper Silesia was a province of the Free State of Prussia created in the aftermath of World War I. It comprised much of the region of Upper Silesia and was eventually divided into two administrative regions , Kattowitz and Oppeln...

 against Polish insurgents in the Silesian Uprisings

Silesian Uprisings

The Silesian Uprisings were a series of three armed uprisings of the Poles and Polish Silesians of Upper Silesia, from 1919–1921, against German rule; the resistance hoped to break away from Germany in order to join the Second Polish Republic, which had been established in the wake of World War I...

 in 1921. The Freikorps

Freikorps

Freikorps are German volunteer military or paramilitary units. The term was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of the 18th century onwards. Between World War I and World War II the term was also used for the paramilitary organizations that arose during...

 leaders had agreed upon Höfer as commander; he led them to success in the Battle of Annaberg

Battle of Annaberg

The Battle of Annaberg or Storming of Annaberg was the biggest battle of the Silesian Uprisings. The battle, which took place between May 21–26, 1921, was fought at the Annaberg , a strategic hill near the village of Annaberg O.S. , located southeast of Oppeln in Upper Silesia, Weimar...

. In the international press, he was referred to as "General Hoefer" or "Teuton Commander Hoefer".

Works

• Karl Hoefer: Oberschlesien in der Aufstandszeit, 1918-1921: Erinnerungen und Dokumente, published by E.S. Mittler & Sohn, 1938, 376 pages
  • reviewed by H. F. P. Percival, International Affairs (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1931-1939), Vol. 17, No. 6 (Nov. - Dec., 1938), pp. 853-854 (review consists of 2 pages)