Michael von Faulhaber (born 5 March 1869, Klosterheidenfeld, Unterfranken

Lower Franconia

Lower Franconia is one of the three administrative regions of Franconia in Bavaria , Germany ....

 — died 12 June 1952, Munich

Munich

Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...

) was a Roman Catholic Cardinal

Cardinal (Catholicism)

A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...

 who was Archbishop of Munich for 35 years, from 1917 to his death in 1952.
In 1916 he won 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....

 (as the first clergyman in 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...

) at the Western Front for his frontline support of troops by acting as a military chaplain

Military chaplain

A military chaplain is a chaplain who ministers to soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines and other members of the military. In many countries, chaplains also minister to the family members of military personnel, to civilian noncombatants working for military organizations and to civilians within the...

. He presided as Archbishop of Munchen and Freising, in Munich, from 1917 until his death in 1952 - despite the historical importance of the ecclesiastical centre of Freising

Freising

Freising is a town in Bavaria, Germany, and capital of the district Freising. Total population 48,500.The city is located north of Munich at the Isar river, near the Munich International Airport...

, the archdiocesan administrative complex was located in the heart of Munich, in the shadow of the Munich Frauenkirche

Munich Frauenkirche

The Frauenkirche is a church in the Bavarian city of Munich that serves as the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising and seat of its Archbishop. It is a landmark and is considered a symbol of the Bavarian capital city.The church towers are widely visible because of local height...

.