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Hermann von Eichhorn

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Hermann von Eichhorn
Eichhorn in 1910
Born(1848-02-13)13 February 1848
Breslau, Kingdom of Prussia, German Confederation
(now Wrocław, Poland)
Died30 July 1918(1918-07-30) (aged 70)
Kyiv, Ukrainian State
Cause of deathAssassination by gunshot
Allegiance Kingdom of Prussia
 German Empire
Service / branch
Years of service1866–1918
RankGeneralfeldmarshall
Commands
Battles / wars
AwardsPour 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

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Eichhorn was born in Breslau in the Province of Silesia (now Wrocław in Poland). His father Karl Friedrich Hermann Eichhorn [de] (1813-1892) was a politician. Both of his grandfathers were notable politicians.[citation needed][1] He joined the Prussian Army in 1866, and took part in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866,[2] and in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871. He won the Iron Cross second class during the Franco-Prussian War.[3] He rose through the ranks of the Prussian Army, being appointed chief of the staff of the VI Army Corps at Breslau in 1897,[2] commanding the 9th Division from 1901 to 1904 and the XVIII Army Corps from 1904 to 1912.[4] In 1912 he took command of the 7th Army Inspection, the peacetime headquarters for the Imperial German XVI, XVIII, and XXI Army Corps.[5]

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]

Grave of Hermann von Eichhorn (1918) in the Invalidenfriedhof, Berlin

Death

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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. At that time, Skoropadsky was walking nearby, he almost immediately came to the scene of the explosion and saw that the field marshal had no legs.[10] 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 Invalidenfriedhof in Berlin.

Awards

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Eichhorn was also awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Berlin on 18 February 1918.

Wilhelm II, German Emperor, decreed that one of the eight towers of Malbork Castle (Ordensburg Marienburg of the Teutonic Order) should be named after Eichhorn. Eichhornstraße in the Marzahn-Hellersdorf district of Berlin was named after him during his lifetime.

Notes

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  1. ^ 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 [...].
  2. ^ a b c d Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1922). "Eichhorn, Hermann von" . Encyclopædia Britannica (12th ed.). London & New York: The Encyclopædia Britannica Company.
  3. ^ "Hermann von Eichhorn". prussianmachine.com. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  4. ^ Günter Wegner, Stellenbesetzung der deutschen Heere 1815–1939 (Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück, 1993), Bd. 1, pp. 82, 102
  5. ^ Wegner, Stellenbesetzung, p.36
  6. ^ Wegner, Stellenbesetzung, p.618
  7. ^ pourlemerite.org
  8. ^ Wegner, Stellenbesetzung, p.610
  9. ^ Wegner, Stellenbesetzung, p.611.
  10. ^ Skoropadskyi 2019, p. 233.
  11. ^ a b Großherzoglich Hessische Ordensliste (in German), Darmstadt: Staatsverlag, 1914, pp. 11, 129 – via hathitrust.org

Bibliography

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Military offices
New title Commander, 10th Army
26 January 1915 – 5 March 1918 		Succeeded by
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