A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies , and in some nations' air and space forces , marines or naval infantry .
155-700: Ludwig August Theodor Beck ( German: [ˈluːt.vɪç bɛk] ; 29 June 1880 – 20 July 1944) was a German general and Chief of the German General Staff during the early years of the Nazi regime in Germany before World War II . Although Beck never became a member of the Nazi Party , in the early 1930s he supported Adolf Hitler 's forceful denunciation of the Treaty of Versailles and
310-577: A military dictatorship , perhaps headed by Gustav Noske . Many in the military refused to accept the democratic Weimar Republic as legitimate due to its agreement with the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. Under the leadership of Seeckt, an effort was made to insulate the Reichswehr from the politics of Germany. Some refer to the Reichswehr as operating as a “state within the state”, meaning it
465-432: A "captain-general", the captain of an army in general (i.e., the whole army). The rank of captain-general began appearing around the time of the organisation of professional armies in the 17th century. In most countries "captain-general" contracted to just "general". The following articles deal with the rank of general, or its equivalent, as it is or was employed in the militaries of those countries: Some countries (such as
620-483: A "humiliating retreat", which might bring about the end of the regime. In August 1934, after the death of President Paul von Hindenburg , which led to Hitler's assumption of the roles of powers of the presidency, most notably the position of commander-in-chief, Beck wrote that Hitler's move created "favourable conditions" for the Reichswehr. Beck gained respect with the publication of his tactical manual, Truppenführung . Both Beck and General Werner von Fritsch commanded
775-423: A "premature war" that Germany would lose. Most of the generals felt that the idea of starting a war in 1938 was highly risky, but none of them would confront Hitler with a refusal to carry out orders since most of them thought that Beck's arguments against war in 1938 were flawed. From May 1938, Beck had bombarded Hitler, Wilhelm Keitel and Walther von Brauchitsch with memoranda opposing Fall Grün (Case Green),
930-442: A German officer was to keep his men and the population at large prepared to defend Germany, saying: German officers, and especially members of the general staff, have never sought a fight for its own sake or been war-mongers. And they should not do so now. But they should never forget the great deeds achieved by German warriors. Keeping the memory of them alive in ourselves and our people is a sacred duty. For then neither officers nor
1085-613: A Jew; not only because this is in itself provocative, but because the Jewish talent is purely critical, hence negative and can never help in the construction of a state. This is no good. Seeckt ignored the Constitution of 1919 which prohibited religious discrimination. He ordered that Jews were not to be accepted into the Reichswehr , no matter how qualified they might be. Seeckt saw the Second Polish Republic as
1240-668: A July 1918 message Seeckt replied to inquiries from Berlin by stating "It is an impossible state of affairs to be allied with the Turks and to stand up for the Armenians. In my view, any consideration, Christian, sentimental or political, must be eclipsed by its clear necessity for the war effort." Seeckt also supported the Committee of Union and Progress , a group of army officers who had taken power in Turkey and were attempting to modernize
1395-531: A June 1938 General Staff study, Beck concluded that Germany could defeat Czechoslovakia but that to do so would leave western Germany empty of troops, which could allow the French to seize the Rhineland with little difficulty. Beck maintained that Czechoslovak defences were very formidable, Prague could mobilise at least 38 divisions and at least 30 German divisions would be needed to break through, which required
1550-425: A bed and singing old Lutheran hymns. To make the training appear less military, photographs were published of recruits being taught topics like horse anatomy and beekeeping. While Seeckt ran multiple schemes to increase the number of reserves these proved largely ineffective. Officers were encouraged to leave regular units and join the reserve. Apart from the labour corps there also were the border guard units from
1705-565: A campaign of at least three weeks. Beck concluded that Hitler's assumptions about a limited war in 1938 were mistaken. In July 1938, upon being shown Beck's 5 May 1938 memorandum opposing Fall Grün by Brauchitsch, Hitler called Beck's arguments " kindische Kräfteberechnungen " ("childish calculations"). In another memorandum of July 1938, Beck contended that a war against Czechoslovakia, France and Britain would end in Germany's defeat and urged Hitler to postpone his plans for aggression until Germany
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#17327731001091860-405: A disdain for a levee en masse style organisation, originally stemming from Von Roon 's ideas on war. He was forced to resign on 9 October 1926 because he had invited Prince Wilhelm , the grandson of the former emperor to attend army manoeuvres in the uniform of the old imperial First Foot Guards without first seeking government approval. It created a storm when the republican press publicized
2015-555: A limited regional war in Central Europe was not a realistic possibility. In the same memorandum, Beck proclaimed his agreement with Hitler's views about the necessity of acquiring Lebensraum in Eastern Europe, called the existence of Czechoslovakia "intolerable" and concluded that "a way must be found to eliminate it (Czechoslovakia) as a threat to Germany, even, if necessary, by war". However, Beck argued that Germany
2170-546: A list of war criminals to be tried, Seeckt called a conference of Staff Officers and departmental heads on 9 February 1920 and said to them that if the German government either outright refused or couldn't successfully reject Allied demands, the Reichswehr would oppose this by all means even if this meant the reopening of hostilities. He further said that if the Allies invaded Germany—which he believed they would not—then
2325-590: A major leader within the conspiracy against Hitler . The 20 July plot failed, however, and Beck shot himself in the head but succeeded only in severely wounding himself. One of General Friedrich Fromm 's men then shot him in the back of the neck. Beck was born on 29 June 1880 in Biebrich (now a borough of Wiesbaden , Hesse ) in Hesse-Nassau , at Biebrich, Hessen in Germany to Bertha (nee Draudt) and industrialist Ludwig Georg Ernst Wilhelm Beck. He served on
2480-540: A meeting with Hitler, Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop , Admiral Erich Raeder , Hermann Göring , Wilhelm Keitel, and Walther von Brauchitsch, during which Hitler restated the views that he had first expressed in the Hossbach Memorandum. In response, Beck drafted another memo on 29 May in which he presented a case that the Czechoslovak Army was not, as Hitler argued, a weak force and that
2635-480: A military campaign. Seeckt held this view, even to the point of supporting the leadership of the Ottoman Empire as it conducted the genocide of Armenians along its eastern border in 1915. The brutal slaughter met with an outcry from German civilians, churchmen and statesmen. When Seeckt arrived in Turkey two years later he argued such actions were a necessary measure to save Turkey from "internal decay". In
2790-442: A policy of action. Every State must do that. The moment it stops pursuing a forward policy it ceases to be a State. An active policy must have a goal and a driving force. For carrying it out it is essential to assess one's own strength correctly and at the same time understand the methods and aims of the other powers. The man who bases his political ideas on the weakness of his own country, who sees only dangers, or whose only desire
2945-572: A secret meeting in Schleicher's apartment, the details of an arrangement for German financial and technological aid for building up the Soviet arms industry in exchange for Soviet support in helping Germany evade the disarmament clauses of the Treaty of Versailles were agreed to. Schleicher created a shell corporation known as the GEFU ( Gesellschaft zur Förderung gewerblicher Unternehmungen -Company for
3100-399: A soldier in a position of highest authority in such times see his duties and tasks only within the limits of his military responsibilities, without consciousness of his higher responsibility to the whole people, then he shows a lack of greatness, a lack of comprehension of responsibility. Extraordinary times demand extraordinary actions!" Beck's campaign for a mass resignation was not aimed at
3255-672: A state. In 1935, he had a series of meetings with Prince Bernard von Bülow, the State Secretary of the German Foreign Office and the Chief of the Hungarian General Staff to discuss plans "for the division of Czechoslovakia". On 12 November 1937, Beck submitted a memorandum stating that "various facts" show the requirement "for an imminent solution by force" of the problem of Czechoslovakia and that it
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#17327731001093410-504: A war against its historic enemy, France, and that when such an event occurred England would be looking for an ally on the continent to carry the burden of a land war. He felt a strong Germany would be a more attractive ally than a weak one. The support between Germany and the Soviets was seen in this light, as an agreement that would add to the strength of both nations. He did not believe such an agreement would alienate England. Though Seeckt
3565-613: A way of encouraging interest in armoured warfare. In Beck's view of the General Staff's role, the War Minister served in a mere administrative function, and the Chief of the General Staff should have been able to advise the Reich leadership directly. His views led to conflicts with War Minister Field Marshal Werner von Blomberg , who resented Beck's efforts to diminish his powers. In 1936, Beck strongly supported Hitler during
3720-405: Is absolutely necessary to put the experience of the war in a broad light and collect this experience while the impressions won on the battlefield are still fresh and a major portion of the experienced officers are still in leading positions". The result was the 1921 book Leadership and Battle with Combined Arms that outlined the combined arms tactics and operational ideas that went on to serve as
3875-431: Is an army of leaders. What is a young officer to understand by that?" Historians such as Sir John Wheeler-Bennett have noted that Beck was deliberately distorting the principle of Hans von Seeckt 's Führerarmee ("Army of Leaders"), which trained soldiers to be leaders for when the army would be expanded beyond the limits permitted by the Treaty of Versailles, by seeking to apply it to politics. In 1933, on witnessing
4030-403: Is bad, worse than in 1917–1918. In its current military, military-political and military-economic condition, Germany cannot expose itself to the risk of a long war". The May Crisis of 21–22 May 1938 further convinced Beck of the dangers of going to war in 1938 and led him to increase his efforts to stop a war that he felt that Germany could not win. In November 1938, Beck informed a friend that from
4185-425: Is growing in strength, and will even have to make him stronger. A rapprochement between Germany and Russia would not have a decisive influence on Britain's attitude either in making a concession to France or in searching for an ally. British policy is ruled by other more compelling motives than anxiety about some far-distant threat from a Russia made strong with the help of Germany... With Poland we come now to
4340-440: Is no lack of such hearts and hands. Let us strive tirelessly to strengthen our own bodies and minds and those of our fellow Germans ... It is the duty of every member of the general staff to make the Reichswehr not only a reliable pillar of the state, but also a school for the leaders of the nation. Beyond the army itself, every officer will sow the seed of manly attitudes throughout the population. The Treaty of Versailles limited
4495-781: Is still in use today by the Bundeswehr . He was promoted to Generalleutnant in 1932. Two years later, in 1934, he replaced General Wilhelm Adam as chief of the Truppenamt , the camouflaged General Staff (the Treaty of Versailles explicitly forbade the existence of the General Staff). In September and October 1930, Beck was a leading defence witness at the trial in Leipzig of three junior Reichswehr officers: Lieutenant Richard Scheringer, Hans Friedrich Wendt and Hanns Ludin . The three men were charged with being members of
4650-467: Is to remain stationary, is not pursuing a policy at all, and should be kept far away from the scene of activity. The years 1814/15 saw France in complete military and political collapse, yet no one at the Congress of Vienna followed a more active policy than Talleyrand — to France's advantage. Has the world ever seen a greater catastrophe than that suffered by Russia in the last war? Yet with what vigor
4805-458: The 1st Cavalry Division , in Frankfurt an der Oder prior to assuming their command positions. During his time first as Chief of the Truppenamt (1933–1935) and then as Chief of the General Staff (1935–1938), Beck encouraged the development of armoured forces but not to the extent that advocates of Panzer warfare, such as Heinz Guderian , wanted. In Beck's conception of power politics, it
Ludwig Beck - Misplaced Pages Continue
4960-491: The Black Reichswehr " became infamous for its practice of using Feme murders to punish "traitors" who, for example, revealed the locations of weapons' stockpiles or names of members. During the trials of some of those charged with the murders, prosecutors alleged that the killings were ordered by the officers from Bock's group. The journalist Carl von Ossietzky wrote: "... [the accused] did nothing but carry out
5115-564: The Gestapo visited her and requested that she accompany them. Her sister-in-law, Annemarie, was present and suggested that since it was late in the day they should have dinner at a nearby hotel and stay the night there. After the Gestapo had left to take up the suggestion, the two women burnt any incriminating letters and documents that they could find. The next morning the Gestapo took her to Munich, her three-year-old daughter remaining behind in
5270-548: The Grenzschutz , which was created in 1921, mostly guarding Germany's eastern border, these were equipped with small arms as well as machine guns and received military training. The security units of the Schutzpolizei turned out to be the most effective at procuring trained manpower. They were led by former NCOs and officers and were equipped with small arms and armoured cars and given basic military training. During
5425-528: The Harzburg Front . In the presidential election of 1932 he wrote to his sister, urging her to vote for Hitler. From 1933–1935 he served as an adviser to Chiang Kai-shek and helped to establish a new basis for Sino-German cooperation until 1941 . In October 1933, Seeckt arrived in China to head the German military mission. At the time of his arrival, Sino-German relations were in a bad state owing to
5580-593: The Hossbach Memorandum of 1937, were mistaken and stated his belief that France "wishes for peace or, perhaps more accurately, abhors a new war" but that "in case of a real threat, or what is perceived by the people to be foreign policy pressure, the French nation comes together as if one". Beck believed "The French army is and remains intact and is at the moment the strongest in Europe". Beck ended with these comments: "The military-economic situation of Germany
5735-548: The Munich Agreement , which handed the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia to Germany. That ended the crisis and hence Beck's efforts at a putsch . In the autumn of 1939, Beck was in contact with German Army officers, politicians, and civil servants, including General Halder, Dr. Hjalmar Schacht , Carl Goerdeler, Admiral Wilhelm Canaris and Colonel Hans Oster about the possibility of staging a putsch to overthrow
5890-404: The Nazi Party since members of the Reichswehr were forbidden from membership of political parties. The three officers admitted their membership and used as their defence the claim that Nazi Party membership should not be forbidden to Reichswehr personnel. When the three officers were arrested after being caught red-handed distributing Nazi literature at their base, Beck, the commanding officer of
6045-621: The Reich Protectorate of Bohemia-Moravia . In the early stages of the war, after Poland had been overrun but before France and the Low Countries had been attacked, the German Resistance sought the assistance of Pope Pius XII in preparations for a coup to oust Hitler. Josef Müller was despatched on a clandestine mission to Rome . The Vatican considered Müller to be a representative of Beck and agreed to offer
6200-516: The Reichswehr the toughest in the world. He trained them in anti-air and anti-tank fighting by creating wooden weapons and staging mock battles under the guise of training the soldiers for reintroduction into civilian life. Seeckt's discipline of this small army was quite different from that of past German armies. For instance, rather than the harsh punishments of the Imperial Army, minor offenders were forced to spend off-hour duties lying under
6355-522: The Reichswehr to crush Buschrucker's putsch by laying siege to the forts he had seized outside of Berlin. After two days, Buchrucker surrendered. Two months later Seeckt put down Hitler's Putsch on 8–9 November 1923, insisting that the Bavarian Division of the Reichswehr remain loyal to the state. The British historian John Wheeler-Bennett wrote that Seeckt was loyal to the Reich , not
Ludwig Beck - Misplaced Pages Continue
6510-407: The Reichswehr was reliable, Seeckt answered: "I don't know if it is reliable, but it obeys my orders!" From 1920 to 1926 Seeckt held the position of Chef der Heeresleitung —in fact if not in name commander of the army of the new Weimar Republic, the Reichswehr . In working to build a professional army within and without the confines of the Treaty of Versailles, Seeckt advanced the concept of
6665-621: The Reichswehr who had experience in air combat. These officers formed the future officers corps of the Luftwaffe in the 1930s. After failing to gain a seat as a candidate for the Centre Party , Seeckt was elected to the Reichstag as a member of the DVP , serving from 1930 through 1932. In October 1931, Seeckt was a featured speaker at a rally at Bad Harzburg which led to the founding of
6820-539: The Wehrmacht ' s doctrine in the Second World War. Seeckt envisioned Germany winning the next war by a series of highly mobile operations featuring combined arms operations of artillery, infantry, armor, and air power working together to concentrate superior firepower to crush the enemy at crucial points. Seeing a significant role for air power in the next war, Seeckt kept a large number of officers in
6975-721: The Western Front during the First World War as a staff officer. After the war, he served in various staff and command appointments. In 1931 and 1932, he led the group of army writers, at the Department of the Army ( Truppenamt ), which published the German Army Operations Manual, Truppenführung . The first section was promulgated in 1933 and the second section in 1934. A modified version
7130-647: The putsch , claiming "There can be no question of sending the Reichswehr to fight these people". Seeckt's actions were entirely illegal as under the Weimar constitution, the President was the Supreme Commander in Chief, and moreover Seeckt had violated the Reichswehreid oath, which committed the military to defending the republic. Seeckt ordered the military to disregard Ebert's orders to defend
7285-482: The putsch . As a result of Seeckt's refusal to defend the government that he had taken a solemn oath to defend, the government was forced to flee Berlin, which was taken by the Marinebrigade Ehrhardt on the morning of 13 March 1920 without a shot being fired. The putsch failed only after the government called for a general strike, which shut down the German economy. Once it had become clear that
7440-691: The remilitarisation of the Rhineland against Blomberg, who feared the French reaction to such a move. By late 1937 and early 1938, Beck had come into increasing conflict with other officers over the place and importance of the General Staff in the German military hierarchy, in which Beck wished to have all of the important decisionmaking moved into the arms of the General Staff. In the mid-1930s, Beck started to create his own intelligence network of German military attachés, whom he used both to collect and to leak information. Besides military attachés, Beck also recruited civilians for his private intelligence network,
7595-451: The 1920 the Grenzschutz possessed 40,000 and the Schutzpolizei at most 70,000 men. The at most 110,000 strong reserves were much smaller than those the German empire had possessed. As a result when the Wehrmacht went to war in WWII, it had only four classes of officer compared to the 40 of the German imperial army. This was partially because the German officers, including Seeckt, had had
7750-568: The 5th Artillery Regiment based in Ulm , to which the three Nazi officers belonged, was furious and argued that since the Nazi Party was a force for good, Reichswehr personnel should not be banned from joining the party. At the preliminary hearing, Beck spoke on behalf of the three officers. At the Leipzig trial of Ludin and Scheringer, Beck testified to the good character of the accused, described
7905-582: The Army Group. In 1917, Seeckt was sent to the Ottoman Empire , a Central Powers ally, to replace Colonel von Schellendorff as Chief of Staff of the Ottoman Army. In choosing Seeckt, Germany was sending a first rate staff officer, but this made little impression on the Turks. The alliance between the Ottoman Empire and Germany was weak. The crumbling Ottoman Empire was enticed to join in
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#17327731001098060-424: The Army to 100,000 men, only 4,000 of whom could be officers. As the commander in chief of the new Reichswehr , Seeckt wanted to ensure that the best officers were retained. The Reichswehr was designed as a cadre force that could be expanded if need be. Officers and NCOs were trained to be able to command at least at the next higher unit level. At the beginning of World War Two suitable NCOs were commissioned, as
8215-487: The British Royal Air Force and many current and former Commonwealth air forces—e.g. Royal Australian Air Force , Indian Air Force , Royal New Zealand Air Force , Nigerian Air Force , Pakistan Air Force , etc. In most navies , flag officers are the equivalent of general officers, and the naval rank of admiral is equivalent to the specific army rank of general. A noteworthy historical exception
8370-720: The British in the hope that London would successfully exert its influence on Hitler through threats and warnings, but he failed. Beck and his conspirators knew that Germany faced certain and rapid defeat if France and Britain helped Czechoslovakia in 1938. Accordingly, they contacted the British Foreign Office , informed Britain of their plot and asked for a firm British warning to deter Hitler from attacking Czechoslovakia. In September 1938, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain , French Prime Minister Édouard Daladier and Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini signed
8525-546: The Chinese military. The army was to be led by officers who were loyal to Chiang alone, with no regional loyalties. In addition, Seeckt urged Chiang to fortify the lower Yangtze valley, and to adopt policies to industrialize China to gain independence from Western manufacturing. To this end, Seeckt suggested a trade agreement between China and Germany, where Germany would receive minerals needed for weapon manufacture, especially tungsten, and China would be provided with weapons and
8680-737: The Communist guerrillas to fight in the open, where the superior firepower of the Nationalists would give them an advantage. Following Seeckt's advice, in the spring and summer of 1934 the Kuomintang built three thousand "turtle shell" forts linked by a series of roads while at the same time pursuing a scorched earth policy around the forts as part of the Fifth Bandit Extermination Campaign in Jiangxi . It
8835-544: The General Staff and presumably abandon his plans for aggression. In a memorandum opposing war in 1938, Beck commented: "Once again, the comments of the Führer demonstrate the complete inadequacy of the current top military-advisory hierarchy". Beck advocated the need for a "continual, competent advising of the commander-in-chief of the Wehrmacht on questions of war leadership" and predicted that otherwise, "the future destiny of
8990-534: The General Staff, Beck lived in a modest home in the Lichterfelde suburb of Berlin, and worked normally from 09:00 to 19:00 every day. In that role, Beck was widely respected for his intelligence and work ethic but was often criticised by other officers for being too interested in administrative details. In 1934, Beck wrote a lengthy covering letter to a long report on the British Army armour manoeuvres as
9145-696: The German 11th Army, the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army, and the Bulgarian 1st Army, in a renewed campaign in Serbia . As was the case in the Gorlice offensive, Seeckt played a major role in the planning and execution of the operations in Serbia between 6 October and 24 November 1915. The saying spread through the German army "Where Mackensen is, Seeckt is; where Seeckt is, victory is." For his achievements he
9300-412: The German Army, finishing his career as military governor of Posen . Seeckt followed his father into military service, joining the Army in 1885 at the age of 18. He served in the elite Kaiser Alexander Guard Grenadiers, then joined the Prussian General Staff in 1897. In 1913, Seeckt became the Chief of Staff of the III Corps , based in Berlin. At the outbreak of the First World War , Seeckt held
9455-549: The German army in the West should retire behind the Weser and the Elbe , as this was where defensive positions had already been built. In the East, German troops would invade Poland and attempt to establish contacts with the Soviet Union, after which they would both march against France and Britain. He added that German war material would now no longer be sold or destroyed and that the army should be reduced on paper only. An Interior Minister of Prussia , Albert Grzesinski , wrote that members of Seeckt's staff said that Seeckt desired
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#17327731001099610-487: The German government, which was determined to avoid a war in 1938 that it felt Germany would lose. The group was not necessarily committed to the overthrow of the regime but was loosely allied to another, more radical group, the "anti-Nazi" faction centred on Colonel Hans Oster and Hans Bernd Gisevius , which wanted to use the crisis as an excuse for executing a putsch to overthrow the Nazi regime. The divergent aims between both factions produced considerable tensions. In
9765-403: The German people. The clearest heads, when considering the pros and cons of war, will be those of the military, but to pursue a policy means to take a lead. In spite of everything, the German people will follow the leader in the struggle for their existence. Our task is to prepare for this struggle, for we shall not be spared it. Seeckt's memo won Brockdorff-Rantzau over to his policy. Seeckt
9920-407: The League as one of the conditions for League membership was the commitment not to engage in aggression against other League members, something that put something of a damper on Seeckt's plans for aggression against Poland. In a 1925 memo, Seeckt stated: "We must become powerful, and as soon as we have power, we will naturally take back everything we have lost" Seeckt made the training standards of
10075-404: The NCOs trained by Seeckt were seen as easily suitable to command much larger units. Almost all of the leaders of the Wehrmacht in World War II were men that Seeckt had retained in 1919–20. Seeckt held conservative political views. He was a monarchist who encouraged the retention of traditional links with the old Imperial Army. To this purpose he designated individual companies and squadrons of
10230-465: The Nazi Machtergreifung , Beck wrote, "I have wished for years for the political revolution, and now my wishes have come true. It is the first ray of hope since 1918". In July 1934, Beck expressed some alarm at Nazi foreign policy involving Germany in a "premature war" after the failed Nazi putsch in Austria , which led Beck to warn that those in "leading positions" must understand that foreign adventures might then lead to Germany being forced to make
10385-416: The Nazi Party as a positive force in German life and proclaimed his belief that the Reichswehr ban on Nazi Party membership should be rescinded. When Lieutenant Scheringer spoke of a future war in which the Nazi Party and the Reichswehr would fight hand in hand as brothers in a "war of liberation" to abrogate the Treaty of Versailles, Beck supported Scheringer by testifying, "The Reichswehr is told daily that it
10540-455: The Nazi regime was overthrown, Beck was to head the Council of Regency, which would govern Germany. In 1940 and 1941, Beck spent much time discussing with Goerdeler, Hassell and Erwin von Witzleben aspects of the proposed state after the successful overthrow of the regime. In 1943, Beck planned two abortive attempts to kill Hitler by means of a bomb. In May 1944, a memorandum by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel made it clear that his participation in
10695-400: The Nazi regime. By then, Beck had come to accept that it was not possible to overthrow the Nazi regime if that meant keeping Hitler in power. After a successful putsch , Germany was to be governed by a triumvirate of Beck, Goerdeler and Schacht, who would negotiate a peace with Britain and France that would allow Germany to keep most of its conquests, including Austria, all of western Poland and
10850-406: The Ottoman Empire. Though Enver Pasha would take counsel from the German officers, he would disregard their opinion if it differed from his own. Seeckt wrote that "I... meditate, telegraph, speak, write and calculate in the Turkish service and in Germany's interest". A common view in the German high command was that internal division in a nation undermines a nation's ability to successfully conduct
11005-417: The Ottoman state and society to better support the Ottoman army's effort to win the war. Following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in October 1918, Seeckt helped to organize the escape of the Three Pashas and returned to Germany in November 1918. Though the Armistice took effect in November 1918, the British continued to blockade German ports, leading to widespread starvation. Seeckt was initially sent to
11160-770: The Republic and that ideologically Seeckt sympathized with Erich Ludendorff , Buchrucker and Hitler. Seeckt was only opposed to the Munich Beer Hall putsch and Buckrucker's putsch because the stated aim of the Nazis and the Black Reichswehr putschists was to reject the peaceful settlement of the Ruhrkampf that had been agreed to in September and instead go to war with France in 1923. Seeckt, knowing
11315-500: The Russian problem is considered. The main point about it is not its economic value, though that is by no means inconsiderable, but its political achievement. This association between Germany and Russia is the first and almost the only increase in power which we have so far obtained since peace was made. That this association should begin in the field of economics is a natural consequence of the general situation, but its strength lies in
11470-476: The Russian rear areas the Russian positions were destabilized, resulting in a collapse of the Russian defensive line. For his contributions he received the Pour le Mérite , Prussia's highest military honor. In June 1915, Seeckt was promoted to the rank of Generalmajor . He remained chief of staff to Mackensen, who in the fall of 1915 was controlling Army Group Mackensen or Heeresgruppe Mackensen , which included
11625-581: The SS. Beck resented Adolf Hitler for his efforts to curb the army's position of influence. Beck tried very early—as Chief of the General Staff—to deter Hitler from using the grievances of the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia , most of whose population was ethnically German, as an excuse for war in 1938. Beck had no moral objection to the idea of a war of aggression to eliminate Czechoslovakia as
11780-539: The Second World War it was renamed Trenchard Barracks by BAOR as part of the Bergen-Hohne Garrison . Seeckt was born in Schleswig on 22 April 1866 into an old Pomeranian family, that had been ennobled in the eighteenth century. Though the family had lost its estates, Seeckt was "a thorough-going aristocrat", and his father Richard von Seeckt [ de ] was an important general within
11935-607: The Soviet Government recovered, both at home and abroad! Did not the Sick Man of Europe seem to be dead once more and for all, and buried by the Treaty of Sèvres? Yet today, after the victory over Greece, he stands up to England with confidence. He followed an active Turkish policy. Have not Germany's first stirrings in active politics, the Treaty of Rapallo, clearly brought her at last nearer to being more respected? This treaty splits opinion into different camps when
12090-530: The Soviet Union in practical rather than ideological terms. Both nations were weak at the end of the war, and had external threats. In working together, he believed the hand of both nations were strengthened. Seeckt regarded the efforts of General Rüdiger von der Goltz and his Freikorps to create an anti-communist, German-dominated state in the Baltic as a ludicrous attempt to turn back the clock. Seeckt
12245-445: The Soviets. In the summer of 1920, Pasha sent Seeckt a letter from Moscow asking for German arms deliveries to the Soviet Union in exchange for which Trotsky promised to partition Poland with Germany. Seeckt did not hesitate to use military force against attempts by German communists to take power, but his concern over communism did not affect his attitude toward relations with the Soviet Union. Seeckt regarded his informal alliance with
12400-469: The United States) use the general officer ranks for both the army and the air force , as well as their marine corps ; other states only use the general officer ranks for the army, while in the air force they use air officers as the equivalent of general officers. They use the air force rank of air chief marshal as the equivalent of the specific army rank of general. This latter group includes
12555-565: The Wehrmacht in peace and war, indeed the destiny of Germany in a future war, must be painted in the blackest of colors". It was only in June 1938 that Beck realised that Hitler was behind the drive for war. In a memorandum to Brauchitsch, Beck urged that all of the senior officers threaten a mass collective resignation to force Hitler to abandon his plans for Fall Grün in 1938. Beck ended his appeal to Brauchitsch: "If they all act together, then it will be impossible to carry out military action.... If
12710-579: The West, as far as France is concerned is ruled out … England is drifting towards another historic conflict with France, even through she does not face imminent war. That lurks in the background. A glance at the East is surely sufficient even for those who before Genoa did not wish to use their eyes and ears. The British interests in the Dardanelles, Egypt and India are certainly infinitely more important at
12865-440: The air force, fleet admiral) being used only in wartime or as honorary titles. In some armies, however, the rank of captain general , general of the army , army general or colonel general occupied or occupies this position. Depending on circumstances and the army in question, these ranks may be considered to be equivalent to a "full" general or to a field marshal five-star rank (NATO OF-10). The rank of general came about as
13020-595: The armed forces. He was the last man to serve as Chief of the General Staff and on 11 October 1919, he became the effective chief of the Reichswehr . In a memo written during 1919, Seeckt expressed anger which was widely held by other German officers over the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. He also remarked that he was against the idea of Germany joining the League of Nations , as the notion of peace being maintained by such an organization was, in his opinion, unlikely. Though in favor of peace in general, he reasoned that war
13175-545: The army as a "state-within-a-state". This matched the conditions of the Versailles Treaty which were aimed at creating a long-term professional army with a ceiling of 100,000 volunteers and without significant reserves - a force which would not be able to challenge the much larger French Army. In 1921 Seeckt founded the Arbeitskommandos (Work Commandos) commanded by Major Bruno Ernst Buchrucker , which
13330-463: The basis of any understanding between the two countries ... I will touch one or two more objections to the policy demanded towards Russia. Germany today is certainly not in a position to resist France. Our policy should be to prepare the means of doing so in the future. A French advance through Germany to go to the help of Poland would make nonsense from the military point of view, so long as Germany does not voluntarily co-operate. The idea springs from
13485-590: The combined arms operations which he had previously used in training the German Army in the 1920s. Seeckt stressed he would need the best Chinese officers to train in modern warfare. His goal was to make the National Revolutionary Army like the army in Germany after the war, a force which could make up for what it lacked in quantity with its high quality of professional soldiers. In addition, Seeckt stressed he wanted an end to regionalism in
13640-462: The conflict with the promise that a victory would yield them the return of recently lost territories, while Germany hoped the involvement of the Turks would tie down forces of the Entente far from Western Europe. Since the start of the conflict German efforts to influence Ottoman strategy met with limited success. Neither Bronsart nor Seeckt were able to get much consideration for a grand strategy in
13795-589: The core of the Eastern problem. The existence of Poland is intolerable and incompatible with Germany's vital interests. She must disappear and will do so through her own inner weakness and through Russia — with our help. Poland is more intolerable for Russia than for ourselves; Russia can never tolerate Poland. With Poland collapses one of the strongest pillars of the Peace of Versailles, France's advance post of power [is lost]. The attainment of this objective must be one of
13950-489: The core of the problems in the east, and believed its existence was incompatible with Germany's vital interests. He was in favor of an alliance with the Soviet Union , which along with Germany had also lost territory to Poland. After seeing encouraging signs from the newly established War Commissar's Office of Leon Trotsky , Seeckt sent out his close friend Enver Pasha on a secret mission to Moscow to make contacts with
14105-409: The covert foundations in the 1920s for the overt rearmament of the 1930s. Seeckt saw France, with its large continental army, as the main threat to Germany, and the opponent in a future war. He saw Poland as a vassal state of France. He advocated strengthening Germany by whatever means were available, including reaching out to the Soviet Union. He believed England would eventually be compelled to fight
14260-518: The destruction of Versailles, but rather preferred to accomplish that goal through an alliance with Britain. Moreover, Brockdorff-Rantzau feared that a too close rapprochement with the Soviet Union would alienate Britain and drive her into the arms of France. In response, on 11 September 1922, Seeckt sent a memo to Brockdorff-Rantzau entitled "Germany's Attitude to the Russian Problem". Some of Seeckt's salient points were: Germany must pursue
14415-488: The doctrine, tactics, organization, and training of the German army. By the time Seeckt left the German Army in 1926 the Reichswehr had a clear, standardized operational doctrine, as well as a precise theory on the future methods of combat which greatly influenced the military campaigns fought by the Wehrmacht during the first half of the Second World War . While Seeckt undertook multiple programs to get around
14570-649: The east to organize the orderly withdrawal of German troops there. In the spring of 1919 he was sent to represent the German General Staff at the peace conference in Paris. He tried unsuccessfully to persuade the Allies to limit their demands for the disarmament of Germany. Seeckt sought to keep a force of 200,000 men, which was denied. In June 1919 the Germans submitted to the terms of the Treaty of Versailles . The Treaty of Versailles greatly restricted
14725-419: The evening, Beck was in the custody of General Friedrich Fromm . Beck requested permission to keep his private pistol with the intention to commit suicide to avoid torture by the Gestapo. He shot himself in the head but succeeded only in severely wounding himself, and one of Fromm's men was brought in to administer the coup de grâce by shooting Beck in the back of the neck. Beck, along with other conspirators,
14880-457: The fact that this economic rapprochement is preparing the way for the possibility of a political and, thus also, a military association. It is beyond a doubt that such a double association would strengthen Germany-and also Russia … The whole policy of reconciliation and appeasement towards France — no matter whether it is pursued by a Stinnes or by General Ludendorff — is hopeless as it aims at political success. The question of orientation towards
15035-469: The firmest guiding principles of German policy, as it is capable of achievement — but only through Russia or with her help. Poland can never offer Germany any advantage, either economically, because she is incapable of development, or politically, because she is a vassal state of France. The restoration of the frontier between Russia and Germany is a necessary condition before both sides can become strong. The 1914 frontier between Russia and Germany should be
15190-572: The industrial machinery needed to make China self-sufficient in producing such weapons. In March 1934, Chiang not only appointed Seeckt as his Chief Military Advisor, but also appointed him as the Deputy Chairman of the Military Affairs Council. In that capacity Seeckt chaired the twice weekly meetings at Nanjing between Chiang and his most senior generals. At a meeting at Mount Lu in 1934, Seeckt's plan for 60 divisions
15345-578: The labour service, she moved to a family friend's forestry estate in East Prussia. Here she met Gunther Neubaur, who was born on 18 October 1915. Despite already being engaged and his parents objecting, since at 23 they considered her to be too young, the couple went ahead and married in Berlin on 2 March 1940. Their daughter was born in January 1941. Neubaur was serving as a Hauptmann (captain) when he
15500-525: The machinery for mediation between the plotters and the Allies . The Pope, communicating with Britain's Francis d'Arcy Osborne , channelled communications back and forth in secrecy. The British were non-committal, but the Resistance were encouraged by the talks. In January to February 1940, a series of meetings between Goerdeler, Beck, Ulrich von Hassell and Johannes Popitz produced agreement that when
15655-399: The majority of the generals. Beck resigned alone on 18 August. He was replaced, as head of the General Staff, by General Franz Halder . At Hitler's request, Beck kept his resignation secret and thus nullified the protest value of his resignation. Hitler promised Beck that if he kept his resignation secret, he would be rewarded with a major field command, and Beck was much disillusioned after he
15810-467: The military limitations imposed by the Treaty of Versailles which formally ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers after World War I , he has been criticized for failing to expand the reserves of officers and trained men available to the army, the main obstacle to rearmament during the Republic. Seeckt served as a member of parliament from 1930 to 1932. From 1933 to 1935 he
15965-451: The military power of France and England.... Germany, whether alone or in alliance with Italy, is not in a position militarily to match England or France". At first, Beck felt that Hitler's rush to war in 1938 was caused not by his personality but rather him receiving poor military advice, especially from Keitel. As a result, Beck spent much of his time urging a reorganization of the command structure so that Hitler would receive his advice from
16120-522: The moment than those on the Rhine, and an understanding between Britain and France at Germany's expense, that is, a concession by Britain in return for an immediate advantage, is by no means improbable. Yet even such an understanding would be only temporary. The moment is coming, and must come, when Britain will be looking for allies on the Continent. When that moment arrives she will prefer the mercenary who
16275-474: The most notable volunteer being Carl Goerdeler . In May 1937, Beck refused an order to draw up orders for executing Fall Otto (Case Otto), the German plan for an invasion of Austria, under the grounds that such a move might cause a world war before Germany was ready. During the Anschluss of February–March 1938, once Beck was convinced that no war would result from a move against Austria, he swiftly drew up
16430-570: The most probable outcome of such war, preferred that the Weimar Republic stay in existence, at least for the moment when painful compromises were necessary. Seeckt strongly opposed the Locarno Treaties which he viewed as appeasement of France and was skeptical of German membership of the League of Nations because he believed it was compromising Germany's connections with the Soviet Union. In particular, Seeckt objected to joining
16585-482: The most senior chaplain, (chaplain general), is also usually considered to be a general officer rank. In the old European system, a general, without prefix or suffix (and sometimes referred to informally as a " full general "), is usually the most senior type of general, above lieutenant general and directly below field marshal as a four-star rank (NATO OF-9). Usually it is the most senior peacetime rank, with more senior ranks (for example, field marshal, marshal of
16740-601: The need to re-arm, although he believed Germany needed more time to rearm before starting a war. In serving as Chief of Staff of the German Army between 1935 and 1938, Beck became increasingly disillusioned and stood in opposition to the rising totalitarianism of the Nazi regime and to Hitler's aggressive foreign policy. Public foreign-policy disagreements with Hitler made Beck resign as Chief of Staff in August 1938. Beck became
16895-410: The new Reichswehr as the direct successors of particular regiments of Emperor Wilhelm II 's army. Seeckt held stereotypical, derogatory views of most Jewish people. In a letter to his wife, herself partially Jewish, on 19 May 1919, Seeckt wrote about the new Prussian Prime Minister, Paul Hirsch : He is not so bad and is an old parliamentarian. For this post he seems quite unsuitable, especially as
17050-406: The notions of our 1919 diplomats, and there have been three years of work since then. War on the Rhine between France and Russia is a political bogy. Germany will not be Bolshevized, even by an understanding with Russia on external matters. The German nation, with its Socialist majority, would be averse to a policy of action, which has to reckon with the possibility of war. It must be admitted that
17205-473: The orders given him, and that certainly Colonel von Bock, and probably Colonel von Schleicher and General Seeckt, should be sitting in the dock beside him." Several times Bock and his officers denied in court that the Reichswehr ministry had had any knowledge the "Black Reichswehr " or the murders they had committed. In a secret letter sent to the President of the German Supreme Court, which
17360-474: The orders. In Beck's conception of power politics , war was a necessary part of restoring Germany to a great power if the wars were limited and if Germany possessed enough strength and had allies that were sufficiently strong. During the Blomberg-Fritsch Crisis in early 1938, Beck saw a chance to reassert the interests and power of the army against what he regarded as the excessive power of
17515-534: The overthrow of Hitler but was rather intended to persuade Hitler to abandon his plans for war in 1938 and to purge certain "radical" elements from the Nazi Party, which Beck believed to have a negative influence on Hitler. Together with the Abwehr chief, Admiral Wilhelm Canaris , and the German Foreign Office's State Secretary, Baron Ernst von Weizsäcker , Beck was a leader of the "antiwar" group in
17670-544: The people will lapse into enfeebling illusions of peace, but will remain aware that in the moment of truth only personal and national stature counts. If fate once again calls the German people to arms, and who can doubt that day will come, then officers should not have to call on a nation of weaklings, but of strong men ready to take up familiar and trusted weapons. The form these weapons take is not important as long as they are wielded by hands of steel and hearts of iron. So let us do our utmost to ensure that on that future day there
17825-559: The plan for a war against Czechoslovakia. In the first memorand, on 5 May 1938, Beck argued that the Sino-Japanese War meant Japan would be unable to come to Germany's aid, that the French Army was the best fighting force in Europe and that Britain would certainly intervene on the side of France if Germany attacked Czechoslovakia. In his May memorandum, Beck argued that Hitler's assumptions about France, which were made in
17980-402: The promotion of industrial enterprise) that funneled 75 million Reichsmark into the Soviet arms industry. The GEFU founded factories in the Soviet Union for the production of aircraft, tanks, artillery shells and poison gas. The arms contracts of GEFU in the Soviet Union ensured that Germany did not fall behind in military technology in the 1920s despite being disarmed by Versailles, and laid
18135-451: The proposed putsch was based on the condition of Beck serving as the head of state in the new government. In 1944, Beck was one of the driving forces of the 20 July plot , along with Carl Goerdeler and Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg . It was proposed that Beck would become Reichsverweser (regent) and head of the provisional government that would assume power in Germany after Hitler had been eliminated. The plot failed, however, and by
18290-497: The racial arrogance of the Germans, and Chiang was considering firing the Germans and bringing in a French military mission. In order to save the military mission, Seeckt ordered the German officers to behave with more tact towards the Chinese and to start showing some respect for Chinese sensibilities. In this way, Seeckt saved Germany's position in China. Seeckt advised Chiang that China would need 60 divisions to form an army, which he proposed to arm with modern weapons and train in
18445-622: The rank of lieutenant colonel and served as chief of staff for Ewald von Lochow in the German III Corps. On mobilisation, the III Corps was assigned to the 1st Army on the right wing of the forces for the Schlieffen Plan offensive in August 1914 on the Western Front . Early in 1915, after they were attacked by the French near Soissons, Seeckt devised a counterattack that took thousands of prisoners and dozens of guns. He
18600-473: The regime established in Berlin under the nominal leadership of Wolfgang Kapp could not function on the account of the general strike, Seeckt sent Colonel Wilhelm Heye to meet with General Walther von Lüttwitz , the real leader of the Kapp putsch , to inform him that it was time to end the putsch ". Ludendorf's right-hand man, Colonel Max Bauer asked Seeckt to become dictator; he refused contemptuously. At
18755-417: The republic were allowed to continue with their jobs. Seeckt's remark to the leaders of the republic, that " Reichswehr do not fire on Reichswehr ", was controversial. His reserved attitude towards the Weimar Republic is illustrated by a brief conversation held with President Ebert . When asked by Ebert where the Reichswehr stood, Seeckt answered "The Reichswehr stands behind me", and on being asked whether
18910-440: The republic, and instead assumed a stance of apparent neutrality, which in effect meant siding with the Kapp putsch by depriving the government of the means of defending itself. Seeckt had no loyalty to the Weimar republic, and his sympathies were entirely with the Kapp putsch , but at the same time, Seeckt regarded the putsch as premature, and chose to sit on the fence to see how things developed rather than committing himself to
19065-537: The same time, Seeckt showed his sympathy for the putsch by arranging with Captain Hermann Ehrhardt that the Marinebrigade Ehrhardt should march out of Berlin with all the honors of war, during the course of which march the men of the Marinebrigade Ehrhardt fired on jeering Berliners, killing a number of them. Only those few officers and soldiers who had attempted to defend the republic were dismissed. The officers led by Seeckt who had done nothing to defend
19220-469: The sanatorium. Beck was serving on the Western Front at the time of his wife’s death and had little interest in his five-year-old child. Consequently, Dr Saathoff took responsibility for her and she joined his family of five children and several adopted children. From the age of 14, Gertrud began living permanently with her father. Following the start of World War II, to avoid being conscripted into
19375-492: The size of the German military and disbanded the General Staff of the Imperial German Army. It also prohibited the German army from using or procuring modern weapons. Seeckt was appointed Chairman of the new Military Committee charged with reorganizing the German army in accordance with the provisions laid down in the Treaty. It fell to Seeckt to build the new Reichswehr within the strict restrictions imposed on
19530-505: The spirit surrounding the Peace Delegation at Versailles has not yet disappeared, and that stupid cry of 'No more war!' is widely echoed. It is echoed by many bourgeois-pacifist elements, but among the workers, and also among the members of the official Social Democratic Party there are many who are not prepared to eat out of the hands of France and Poland. It is true that there is a widespread and understandable need for peace among
19685-467: The start of Beck's efforts to overthrow the Nazi regime. In August 1938, Beck suggested to Brauchitsch that a "house cleaning" of the Nazi regime was necessary, under which the influence of the SS would be reduced, but Hitler would continue as dictator. At a 10 August summit, attended by the leading generals of the Reich , Hitler spent much of the time attacking Beck's arguments against Fall Grün and won over
19840-406: The term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel . The adjective general had been affixed to officer designations since the late medieval period to indicate relative superiority or an extended jurisdiction. Other nomenclatures for general officers include the titles and ranks: In addition to militarily educated generals, there are also generals in medicine and engineering. The rank of
19995-561: The time of the May Crisis, he had only one consideration in his mind: "How can I prevent a war?" On 22 May 1938, Hitler stated that he had deep respect for Beck for his pro-Nazi testimony at the Ulm trial of 1930, but his views were too much that of a Reichswehr general and not enough of a Wehrmacht general. Hitler commented that Beck was "one of the officers still imprisoned in the idea of the hundred-thousand-man army". On 28 May 1938, Beck had
20150-443: The transgression. Reichswehr Minister Otto Gessler told President von Hindenburg that Seeckt must resign or he would have to resign himself. He was supported by the cabinet, so Hindenburg asked for Seeckt's resignation. In a painful final interview with Seeckt, Hindenburg emphasized that he had to go to keep the government from resigning, not because of his invitation to the prince. The army that Germany went to war with in 1939
20305-418: The two Russian armies opposing them. The Russians never fully recovered. Here Seeckt implemented a change in handling the thrust of the offensive, pushing reserve formations through breaks in the Russian defenses. This was a break from the established method of securing flanks by advancing along a uniform front, using reserve formations to assist in overcoming strong points. By pressing the reserves forward into
20460-901: The village. Eventually the Gestapo released her from prison and she returned to Oberstdorf, where she spent the rest of her life, dying in 2008. The character of Beck appears in all film, literary, and TV dramatisations of the July 1944 plot, being played by Werner Hinz in The Plot to Assassinate Hitler (1955), Karl Ludwig Diehl in Jackboot Mutiny (1955), Ian Richardson in The Plot to Kill Hitler (1990), Remo Girone in Stauffenberg (2004) and Terence Stamp in Valkyrie (2008). [REDACTED] Media related to Ludwig Beck at Wikimedia Commons General In some usages,
20615-457: Was a central figure in planning the victories Mackensen achieved for Germany in the east during the First World War . During the years of the Weimar Republic he was chief of staff for the Reichswehr from 1919 to 1920 and commander in chief of the German Army from 1920 until he resigned in October 1926. During this period he engaged in the reorganization of the army and laid the foundation for
20770-534: Was a command of soldiers thinly disguised as a labour group intended to assist with civilian projects, whereas its actual purpose was to provide a way for the Reichswehr to circumvent the restriction in the Treaty of Versailles which limited Germany's army to 100,000 men. The control of the Arbeirakommandos was exercised through a group comprising Fedor von Bock , Kurt von Schleicher , Eugen Ott and Kurt von Hammerstein-Equord . What came to be known as
20925-463: Was a recurring state in human history and that the duty of a German officer was to be prepared to fight the next war, if and when that came to pass. Seeckt argued: My own training in history prevents me from seeing in the idea of permanent peace anything more than a dream whereby it remains an open question whether one can consider it, in Moltke's phrase, a 'good dream' or not. Seeckt believed that war
21080-682: Was adopted. To create that army, a 10-year plan was adopted. The officers trained by Seeckt were important later in the Chinese resistance to the Japanese invasion of China . In early 1934, Seeckt advised Chiang that to defeat the Chinese Communists he needed to employ a scorched earth policy, which required building a series of lines and forts around areas controlled by the Communists in the Jiangxi Soviet in order to force
21235-460: Was all for seeing Goltz conquer the Baltic states if that was possible, but he was very antagonistic towards Goltz's efforts to use his proposed state as a basis for overthrowing the Bolsheviks. Seeckt saw Poland as the main enemy and the Soviet Union as a very useful ally against Poland, so he viewed Goltz's anti-Communist schemes with some hostility. After the Allies sent the German government
21390-715: Was awarded the Oak Leaves to the Pour le Mérite. In June 1916 he became chief of staff for the Austro-Hungarian 7th Army in Galicia , which was fighting desperately to stem the Russian general Brusilov's offensive . Next he became chief of staff of the Austro-Hungarian Army Group commanded by Archduke Karl , who later became Emperor, at which point his cousin Archduke Joseph was given command of
21545-798: Was buried in secret that night. In Bremen on 12 May 1916, Beck married Amalie Christine Auguste Luise Pagenstecher, who had been born in Bremen on 6 May 1893. In her youth Amalie had been treated for tuberculosis at the Stillachhaus Sanatorium in Oberstdorf . She had been advised by its head, Dr Luebhard Saathoff, never to have children. Following her marriage, he was persuaded to change his opinion. Amalie gave birth to Gertrud Beck on 1 January 1917 in Wiesbaden, Hassen-Nassau, Preussen. Nine months later, on 16 November 1917, Amalie died in
21700-478: Was concerned with strengthening Germany, and after meeting Adolf Hitler for the first time on 11 March 1923 he wrote: "We were one in our aim; only our paths were different". Of course, Seeckt was not fully aware of what Hitler's aims might be. He soon found he had to oppose a number of insurgencies, including the Hitler-Ludendorff-Putsch . Seeckt was aware that the purpose of the insurgencies
21855-443: Was crucial to have German military power restored to its pre-1919 levels, and from the latter half of 1933, he advocated a level of military spending beyond even those considered by Hitler. Once Germany was sufficiently rearmed, Beck thought that the Reich should wage a series of wars that would establish Germany as Europe's foremost power and place all of Central and Eastern Europe into the German sphere of influence . As Chief of
22010-427: Was desirable to start preparing "the political ground among those powers which stood on our side or who were not against us" and that the "military discussion in either the one case or the other should begin at once". However, Beck felt that Germany needed more time to rearm before starting such a war. In Beck's assessment, the earliest date Germany could risk a war was 1940, and any war that was started in 1938 would be
22165-401: Was inevitable, and that a future Germany would either defend itself or be at the mercy of its neighbors. He worked to ensure the German army maintained the defiant, offensive spirit that was its tradition. Though clear in stating that the Reichswehr was not looking for conflict, he did not believe that men could be stopped from "thinking like men", and argued that one of the primary duties of
22320-425: Was instead put on the retired list. In the following years, Beck lived in retirement in his Berlin apartment and ceased to have any meaningful influence on German military affairs. His opposition to Hitler had brought him in contact with a small number of senior officers intent on deposing the dictator, and his home became the headquarters of the small circle of opposition. He increasingly came to rely on contacts with
22475-405: Was largely Seeckt's creation. The tactics and operational concepts of the Wehrmacht were the work of Seeckt in the 1920s. In addition, the majority of the senior officers and many of the middle-ranking officers were men that Seeckt had chosen to retain in the Reichswehr . Seeckt created 57 different committees to study the last war to provide lessons learned for the next war. Seeckt stated: "It
22630-453: Was not strong enough to fight the general war that would result from an attack on Czechoslovakia in 1938 and urged Hitler to avoid a "premature war". In particular, Beck argued, "It is not accurate to judge Germany today as stronger than in 1914". He also presented a detailed military case that more time was needed before the Wehrmacht would be as strong as the army of 1914. Furthermore, Beck contended that he could not "accept these estimates of
22785-800: Was operating largely outside of the control of the politicians. The heart of Seeckt’s policy was to maintain the power and prestige of the army by avoiding internal dissension. This was most clearly illustrated by Seeckt's role during the Kapp Putsch of March 1920. During the Putsch , Seeckt disobeyed orders from the Defence Minister Gustav Noske , the Chancellor Gustav Bauer and the Reich President Friedrich Ebert to suppress
22940-525: Was promoted to colonel on 27 January 1915. In March 1915, he was transferred to the Eastern front to serve as chief of staff to General August von Mackensen of the German 11th Army. He played a major role in the planning and executing of Mackensen's highly successful campaigns. With the 11th Army, Seeckt helped direct the Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive of 2 May – 27 June 1915, where he was credited with engineering Mackensen's breakthrough which split
23095-729: Was repeatedly in China as a military consultant to Chiang Kai-shek in his war against the Chinese Communists and was directly responsible for devising the encirclement campaigns , that resulted in a string of victories against the Chinese Red Army and forced Mao Zedong into a 9,000 km retreat, also known as the Long March . A large military barracks in Celle was built in 1935 and named after von Seeckt. After
23250-399: Was shot near Leningrad and died on 10 February 1942 while on the way to hospital. In 1944, considering the risk from Allied bombing to be high, Beck arranged for Gertrud and her daughter to stay with her Neubaur in-laws in Oberstdorf due to its remote location in the Bavarian Alps . They were still there at the time of the failed plot to kill Hitler. Eight days after the event, two members of
23405-426: Was strong enough for such a war. In late July 1938, Erich von Manstein , a leading protégé of Beck's, wrote to his mentor urging him to stay at his post and to place his faith in Hitler. On 29 July, Beck wrote a memorandum stating the German Army had the duty to prepare for possible wars with foreign enemies and "for an internal conflict which need only take place in Berlin". The 29 July memo is normally considered to be
23560-408: Was strongly anti-communist and was committed to keeping communism from Germany, that did not mean he would not make deals with the Soviet Union that would help Germany's position in the world. Seeckt's policies caused tension with the former Foreign Minister Count Ulrich von Brockdorff-Rantzau , who was to be sent out as the Ambassador to Moscow. Brockdorff-Rantzau was just as committed as Seeckt to
23715-419: Was the Cromwellian naval rank " general at sea ". In recent years in the American service there is a tendency to use flag officer and flag rank to refer to generals and admirals of the services collectively. Hans von Seeckt Johannes " Hans " Friedrich Leopold von Seeckt (22 April 1866 – 27 December 1936) was a German military officer who served as Chief of Staff to August von Mackensen and
23870-410: Was to overthrow the government that had accepted the terms of the Treaty and to start a war against France, but he reasoned the result would have led to the destruction of Germany's small forces and a French occupation of German territory. On the night of 29–30 September 1923, the Black Reichswehr under the leadership of Major Buchrucker attempted a putsch . Seeckt was prompt in his response, ordering
24025-439: Was trying a member of the Black Reichswehr for murder, Seeckt admitted that the Black Reichswehr was controlled by the Reichswehr , and argued that the murders were justified by the struggle against Versailles, so the court should acquit the defendant. In 1921, Seeckt had Kurt von Schleicher of Sondergruppe R negotiate the arrangements with Leonid Krasin for German aid to the Soviet arms industry. In September 1921, at
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