Hermann von Eichhorn
Hermann von Eichhorn | |
---|---|
Died | 30 July 1918 Kyiv, Ukrainian State | (aged 70)
Cause of death | Assassination by gunshot |
Allegiance | Kingdom of Prussia German Empire |
Service/ |
|
Years of service | 1866–1918 |
Rank | Generalfeldmarshall |
Commands held | |
Battles/wars | |
Awards | Pour le Mérite with Oak Leaves |
Hermann Emil Gottfried von Eichhorn (13 February 1848 – 30 July 1918) was a Prussian officer, later Generalfeldmarschall during World War I. He was a recipient of Pour le Mérite with Oak Leaves, one of the highest orders of merit in the Kingdom of Prussia and, subsequently, Imperial Germany. While serving as the military governor of Ukraine during the Russian Civil War, Eichhorn was assassinated by a Russian socialist.
Biography
Eichhorn was born in
At the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, Eichhorn was incapacitated because of an accident in May 1914, but he was able to play a part in the First Battle of Champagne, also known as the Battle of Soissons, at the beginning of 1915.[2] He became the commanding general of the 10th Army on 21 January 1915, and commanded it until 5 March 1918.[6] Under his command, the 10th Army engaged in the Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes in East Prussia in February 1915. In August 1915, he took Kovno and afterwards the fortresses of Grodno and Olita, and continued his advance into Russia.[2] He received the Pour le Mérite on 18 August 1915 and the oak leaves to the Pour le Mérite on 28 September 1915.[7] On 30 July 1916, while remaining in command of the 10th Army, Eichhorn became supreme commander of Army Group Eichhorn (Heeresgruppe Eichhorn) based around 10th Army, which he commanded until 31 March 1918.[8] On 18 December 1917, Eichhorn was promoted to Generalfeldmarschall (field marshal). On 3 April 1918, he became supreme commander of Army Group Kyiv (Heeresgruppe Kiew) and simultaneously military governor of Ukraine.[9]
Death
Eichhorn was assassinated in Kyiv by a member of the Russian Party of Left Socialist-Revolutionaries, Boris Donskoy, who threw a bomb at the carriage carrying Eichhorn. Also killed was Eichhorn's adjutant, Walter von Dreßer. Donskoy was convicted of murder by a field military court and executed by hanging.
Eichhorn is buried in the
Awards
- Iron Cross
- Order of Saint Stanislaus (Russian Empire), 3rd Class (31 August 1871)
- Prussian Order of the Crown, 1st Class (17 January 1904)
- Order of Philip the Magnanimous, Grand Cross with Crown (8 September 1905)[10]
- Order of the Red Eagle, Grand Cross with Oak Leaves (20 August 1907)
- Ludwig Order, Grand Cross (15 September 1912)[10]
- Pour le Mérite (18 August 1915), with Oak Leaves (28 September 1915)
- Military Order of St. Henry, Commander 2nd Class (25 October 1916)
Eichhorn was also awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Berlin on 18 February 1918.
Notes
- ^ The philosopher Schelling was his maternal grandfather - Bickel, Otto (1938). Preussisch-deutsche Feldmarschälle und Grossadmirale [Prussian/German Field Marshals and Grand Admirals] (in German). Safari-Verlag. p. 262. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
Er war mit einer Tochter des großen Philosophen Schelling verheiratet, und diese Julia von Eichhorn war eine durch Geist und Unmut gleichermaßen ausgezeichnete Frau. Ihr Sohn Hermann, der Fahnenjunker von Königgräß [...].
- ^ a b c d Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1922). Encyclopædia Britannica (12th ed.). London & New York: The Encyclopædia Britannica Company. .
- ^ "Hermann von Eichhorn". prussianmachine.com. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
- ^ Günter Wegner, Stellenbesetzung der deutschen Heere 1815–1939 (Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück, 1993), Bd. 1, pp. 82, 102
- ^ Wegner, Stellenbesetzung, p.36
- ^ Wegner, Stellenbesetzung, p.618
- ^ pourlemerite.org
- ^ Wegner, Stellenbesetzung, p.610
- ^ Wegner, Stellenbesetzung, p.611.
- ^ a b Großherzoglich Hessische Ordensliste (in German), Darmstadt: Staatsverlag, 1914, pp. 11, 129 – via hathitrust.org