Anton Ludwig August von Mackensen - born August Mackensen - was a German soldier and Field Marshal. He commanded with success during the First World War and became one of the German Empire's most prominent military leaders.
Mackensen was born December 6, 1849, in Haus Leipnitz, near the village of Dahlenberg in the Kingdom of Saxony, to Louis and Marie Louise Mackensen. His father sent him a Realgymnasium in Halle an der Saale in 1865, with the apparent hope that Mackensen would follow him in his profession.
He began his military service in 1869, as a volunteer with the Prussian 2nd Life Hussar Regiment, his home region having passed from Saxony to the Kingdom of Prussia after the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. During the Franco-Prussian War he was promoted to Second Lieutenant and recommended for the Iron Cross, Second Class. After an interlude at Halle University, Mackensen formally entered the German Army in 1873, with his old regiment. In 1891, he joined the General Staff in Berlin, where he was heavily influenced by the new chief, Alfred von Schlieffen. From June 17, 1893 to January 27, 1898, Mackensen commanded the 1st Life Hussar Regiment, to which he became à la suite when he left command and whose uniform he often wore as a General. He was ennobled on January 27, 1899, becoming August von Mackensen. From 1901 to 1903, he commanded the Life Hussar Brigade and from 1903 to 1908, he commanded the 36th Division in Danzig. When Schlieffen retired in 1906, Mackensen was regarded by some as a possible successor, but the job went to Helmuth von Moltke the Younger. In 1908, Mackensen took command of the XVII Army Corps, and commanded this Corps until shortly after the beginning of World War I.
At the beginning of the First World War, Mackensen remained in command of XVII Army Corps as part of the Eighth Army under first General Maximilian von Prittwitz and then General Paul von Hindenburg and saw action in the battles of Gumbinnen and Tannenberg. On November 2, 1914, Mackensen took command of the Ninth Army from General von Hindenburg, who had been named Supreme Commander East. On November 27, 1914, Mackensen was awarded the Pour le Mérite, Prussia's highest Military Order, for actions around Łódź and Warsaw. He commanded the Ninth Army until April 1915, when he took command of the Eleventh Army and Army Group Kiev, seeing action in Galicia, and assisting in the capture of Przemysl and Lemberg. He was awarded oak leaves to the Pour le Mérite on June 3, 1915, and promoted to Field Marshal on June 22. After this campaign, he was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle, Prussia's highest-ranking Order of Knighthood. During this period, he also received numerous honors from other German states and Germany's allies, including the Grand Cross of the Military Max Joseph Order, the highest Military Honor of the Kingdom of Bavaria, on June 4, 1915.
In October of 1915, Mackensen, in command of the newly-formed Army Group Mackensen, led a renewed Austro-German campaign against Serbia and finally crushed effective military resistance there. After marching in Belgrade he erected a monument to the Serbian soldiers that heroically died defending Belgrade saying "We fought against an army that we have only heard about in fairy tales".
He followed this up in 1916, with a temporarily successful campaign against Romania under the overall command of General Erich von Falkenhayn. He was in command of a multi-national army of Bulgarians, Ottoman Turks, and Germans. Despite this, his offensives were very successful, breaking every army that faced his own. On January 9, 1917, Mackensen was awarded the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross, becoming one of only five recipients of this honor in World War I.
From 1917 on, he was the military governor of Romania. His last campaign was an attempt to destroy the Romanian army, which had been reorganised after the Kerensky Offensive was thrown back. But the attempt failed at the Battle of Mărăşeşti, with both sides taking heavy losses. At the end of the war, he was captured by General Louis Franchet d'Espèrey's French army in Hungary and held as a military prisoner until November 1919.
In 1920, Mackensen retired from the army. Although standing in opposition to the new established republican system, he avoided public campaigns. Around 1924, he changed his mind and began to use his image as war hero to support conservative, monarchic groups. He routinely appeared in his old Life Hussars uniform. He became very active in pro-military conservative organizations, particularly Stahlhelm and the Schlieffen society.
During the German elections of 1932, he supported Hindenburg over Adolf Hitler, but following the latter's accession to power Mackensen became a visible, if only symbolic, supporter of the Nazi regime. He did, however, protest the killings of Generals Ferdinand von Bredow and Kurt von Schleicher and atrocities committed in Poland. By the early 1940's Hitler and Joseph Goebbels suspected Mackensen of disloyalty but could do nothing. Mackensen remained a committed monarchist as he notably, he appeared in full uniform at Kaiser Wilhelm II's funeral in 1941.
Field Marshal Mackensen died on November 8, 1945, after the Second World War, at the venerable age of 95, his life having spanned the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire, the Weimar Republic, Nazi Germany, and Post-War Allied Occupation.
Mackensen was born December 6, 1849, in Haus Leipnitz, near the village of Dahlenberg in the Kingdom of Saxony, to Louis and Marie Louise Mackensen. His father sent him a Realgymnasium in Halle an der Saale in 1865, with the apparent hope that Mackensen would follow him in his profession.
He began his military service in 1869, as a volunteer with the Prussian 2nd Life Hussar Regiment, his home region having passed from Saxony to the Kingdom of Prussia after the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. During the Franco-Prussian War he was promoted to Second Lieutenant and recommended for the Iron Cross, Second Class. After an interlude at Halle University, Mackensen formally entered the German Army in 1873, with his old regiment. In 1891, he joined the General Staff in Berlin, where he was heavily influenced by the new chief, Alfred von Schlieffen. From June 17, 1893 to January 27, 1898, Mackensen commanded the 1st Life Hussar Regiment, to which he became à la suite when he left command and whose uniform he often wore as a General. He was ennobled on January 27, 1899, becoming August von Mackensen. From 1901 to 1903, he commanded the Life Hussar Brigade and from 1903 to 1908, he commanded the 36th Division in Danzig. When Schlieffen retired in 1906, Mackensen was regarded by some as a possible successor, but the job went to Helmuth von Moltke the Younger. In 1908, Mackensen took command of the XVII Army Corps, and commanded this Corps until shortly after the beginning of World War I.
At the beginning of the First World War, Mackensen remained in command of XVII Army Corps as part of the Eighth Army under first General Maximilian von Prittwitz and then General Paul von Hindenburg and saw action in the battles of Gumbinnen and Tannenberg. On November 2, 1914, Mackensen took command of the Ninth Army from General von Hindenburg, who had been named Supreme Commander East. On November 27, 1914, Mackensen was awarded the Pour le Mérite, Prussia's highest Military Order, for actions around Łódź and Warsaw. He commanded the Ninth Army until April 1915, when he took command of the Eleventh Army and Army Group Kiev, seeing action in Galicia, and assisting in the capture of Przemysl and Lemberg. He was awarded oak leaves to the Pour le Mérite on June 3, 1915, and promoted to Field Marshal on June 22. After this campaign, he was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle, Prussia's highest-ranking Order of Knighthood. During this period, he also received numerous honors from other German states and Germany's allies, including the Grand Cross of the Military Max Joseph Order, the highest Military Honor of the Kingdom of Bavaria, on June 4, 1915.
In October of 1915, Mackensen, in command of the newly-formed Army Group Mackensen, led a renewed Austro-German campaign against Serbia and finally crushed effective military resistance there. After marching in Belgrade he erected a monument to the Serbian soldiers that heroically died defending Belgrade saying "We fought against an army that we have only heard about in fairy tales".
He followed this up in 1916, with a temporarily successful campaign against Romania under the overall command of General Erich von Falkenhayn. He was in command of a multi-national army of Bulgarians, Ottoman Turks, and Germans. Despite this, his offensives were very successful, breaking every army that faced his own. On January 9, 1917, Mackensen was awarded the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross, becoming one of only five recipients of this honor in World War I.
From 1917 on, he was the military governor of Romania. His last campaign was an attempt to destroy the Romanian army, which had been reorganised after the Kerensky Offensive was thrown back. But the attempt failed at the Battle of Mărăşeşti, with both sides taking heavy losses. At the end of the war, he was captured by General Louis Franchet d'Espèrey's French army in Hungary and held as a military prisoner until November 1919.
In 1920, Mackensen retired from the army. Although standing in opposition to the new established republican system, he avoided public campaigns. Around 1924, he changed his mind and began to use his image as war hero to support conservative, monarchic groups. He routinely appeared in his old Life Hussars uniform. He became very active in pro-military conservative organizations, particularly Stahlhelm and the Schlieffen society.
During the German elections of 1932, he supported Hindenburg over Adolf Hitler, but following the latter's accession to power Mackensen became a visible, if only symbolic, supporter of the Nazi regime. He did, however, protest the killings of Generals Ferdinand von Bredow and Kurt von Schleicher and atrocities committed in Poland. By the early 1940's Hitler and Joseph Goebbels suspected Mackensen of disloyalty but could do nothing. Mackensen remained a committed monarchist as he notably, he appeared in full uniform at Kaiser Wilhelm II's funeral in 1941.
Field Marshal Mackensen died on November 8, 1945, after the Second World War, at the venerable age of 95, his life having spanned the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire, the Weimar Republic, Nazi Germany, and Post-War Allied Occupation.
Anton Ludwig August von Mackensen - born August Mackensen - was a German soldier and Field Marshal. He commanded with success during the First World War and became one of the German Empire's most prominent military leaders.
Mackensen was born December 6, 1849, in Haus Leipnitz, near the village of Dahlenberg in the Kingdom of Saxony, to Louis and Marie Louise Mackensen. His father sent him a Realgymnasium in Halle an der Saale in 1865, with the apparent hope that Mackensen would follow him in his profession.
He began his military service in 1869, as a volunteer with the Prussian 2nd Life Hussar Regiment, his home region having passed from Saxony to the Kingdom of Prussia after the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. During the Franco-Prussian War he was promoted to Second Lieutenant and recommended for the Iron Cross, Second Class. After an interlude at Halle University, Mackensen formally entered the German Army in 1873, with his old regiment. In 1891, he joined the General Staff in Berlin, where he was heavily influenced by the new chief, Alfred von Schlieffen. From June 17, 1893 to January 27, 1898, Mackensen commanded the 1st Life Hussar Regiment, to which he became à la suite when he left command and whose uniform he often wore as a General. He was ennobled on January 27, 1899, becoming August von Mackensen. From 1901 to 1903, he commanded the Life Hussar Brigade and from 1903 to 1908, he commanded the 36th Division in Danzig. When Schlieffen retired in 1906, Mackensen was regarded by some as a possible successor, but the job went to Helmuth von Moltke the Younger. In 1908, Mackensen took command of the XVII Army Corps, and commanded this Corps until shortly after the beginning of World War I.
At the beginning of the First World War, Mackensen remained in command of XVII Army Corps as part of the Eighth Army under first General Maximilian von Prittwitz and then General Paul von Hindenburg and saw action in the battles of Gumbinnen and Tannenberg. On November 2, 1914, Mackensen took command of the Ninth Army from General von Hindenburg, who had been named Supreme Commander East. On November 27, 1914, Mackensen was awarded the Pour le Mérite, Prussia's highest Military Order, for actions around Łódź and Warsaw. He commanded the Ninth Army until April 1915, when he took command of the Eleventh Army and Army Group Kiev, seeing action in Galicia, and assisting in the capture of Przemysl and Lemberg. He was awarded oak leaves to the Pour le Mérite on June 3, 1915, and promoted to Field Marshal on June 22. After this campaign, he was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle, Prussia's highest-ranking Order of Knighthood. During this period, he also received numerous honors from other German states and Germany's allies, including the Grand Cross of the Military Max Joseph Order, the highest Military Honor of the Kingdom of Bavaria, on June 4, 1915.
In October of 1915, Mackensen, in command of the newly-formed Army Group Mackensen, led a renewed Austro-German campaign against Serbia and finally crushed effective military resistance there. After marching in Belgrade he erected a monument to the Serbian soldiers that heroically died defending Belgrade saying "We fought against an army that we have only heard about in fairy tales".
He followed this up in 1916, with a temporarily successful campaign against Romania under the overall command of General Erich von Falkenhayn. He was in command of a multi-national army of Bulgarians, Ottoman Turks, and Germans. Despite this, his offensives were very successful, breaking every army that faced his own. On January 9, 1917, Mackensen was awarded the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross, becoming one of only five recipients of this honor in World War I.
From 1917 on, he was the military governor of Romania. His last campaign was an attempt to destroy the Romanian army, which had been reorganised after the Kerensky Offensive was thrown back. But the attempt failed at the Battle of Mărăşeşti, with both sides taking heavy losses. At the end of the war, he was captured by General Louis Franchet d'Espèrey's French army in Hungary and held as a military prisoner until November 1919.
In 1920, Mackensen retired from the army. Although standing in opposition to the new established republican system, he avoided public campaigns. Around 1924, he changed his mind and began to use his image as war hero to support conservative, monarchic groups. He routinely appeared in his old Life Hussars uniform. He became very active in pro-military conservative organizations, particularly Stahlhelm and the Schlieffen society.
During the German elections of 1932, he supported Hindenburg over Adolf Hitler, but following the latter's accession to power Mackensen became a visible, if only symbolic, supporter of the Nazi regime. He did, however, protest the killings of Generals Ferdinand von Bredow and Kurt von Schleicher and atrocities committed in Poland. By the early 1940's Hitler and Joseph Goebbels suspected Mackensen of disloyalty but could do nothing. Mackensen remained a committed monarchist as he notably, he appeared in full uniform at Kaiser Wilhelm II's funeral in 1941.
Field Marshal Mackensen died on November 8, 1945, after the Second World War, at the venerable age of 95, his life having spanned the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire, the Weimar Republic, Nazi Germany, and Post-War Allied Occupation.
Mackensen was born December 6, 1849, in Haus Leipnitz, near the village of Dahlenberg in the Kingdom of Saxony, to Louis and Marie Louise Mackensen. His father sent him a Realgymnasium in Halle an der Saale in 1865, with the apparent hope that Mackensen would follow him in his profession.
He began his military service in 1869, as a volunteer with the Prussian 2nd Life Hussar Regiment, his home region having passed from Saxony to the Kingdom of Prussia after the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. During the Franco-Prussian War he was promoted to Second Lieutenant and recommended for the Iron Cross, Second Class. After an interlude at Halle University, Mackensen formally entered the German Army in 1873, with his old regiment. In 1891, he joined the General Staff in Berlin, where he was heavily influenced by the new chief, Alfred von Schlieffen. From June 17, 1893 to January 27, 1898, Mackensen commanded the 1st Life Hussar Regiment, to which he became à la suite when he left command and whose uniform he often wore as a General. He was ennobled on January 27, 1899, becoming August von Mackensen. From 1901 to 1903, he commanded the Life Hussar Brigade and from 1903 to 1908, he commanded the 36th Division in Danzig. When Schlieffen retired in 1906, Mackensen was regarded by some as a possible successor, but the job went to Helmuth von Moltke the Younger. In 1908, Mackensen took command of the XVII Army Corps, and commanded this Corps until shortly after the beginning of World War I.
At the beginning of the First World War, Mackensen remained in command of XVII Army Corps as part of the Eighth Army under first General Maximilian von Prittwitz and then General Paul von Hindenburg and saw action in the battles of Gumbinnen and Tannenberg. On November 2, 1914, Mackensen took command of the Ninth Army from General von Hindenburg, who had been named Supreme Commander East. On November 27, 1914, Mackensen was awarded the Pour le Mérite, Prussia's highest Military Order, for actions around Łódź and Warsaw. He commanded the Ninth Army until April 1915, when he took command of the Eleventh Army and Army Group Kiev, seeing action in Galicia, and assisting in the capture of Przemysl and Lemberg. He was awarded oak leaves to the Pour le Mérite on June 3, 1915, and promoted to Field Marshal on June 22. After this campaign, he was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle, Prussia's highest-ranking Order of Knighthood. During this period, he also received numerous honors from other German states and Germany's allies, including the Grand Cross of the Military Max Joseph Order, the highest Military Honor of the Kingdom of Bavaria, on June 4, 1915.
In October of 1915, Mackensen, in command of the newly-formed Army Group Mackensen, led a renewed Austro-German campaign against Serbia and finally crushed effective military resistance there. After marching in Belgrade he erected a monument to the Serbian soldiers that heroically died defending Belgrade saying "We fought against an army that we have only heard about in fairy tales".
He followed this up in 1916, with a temporarily successful campaign against Romania under the overall command of General Erich von Falkenhayn. He was in command of a multi-national army of Bulgarians, Ottoman Turks, and Germans. Despite this, his offensives were very successful, breaking every army that faced his own. On January 9, 1917, Mackensen was awarded the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross, becoming one of only five recipients of this honor in World War I.
From 1917 on, he was the military governor of Romania. His last campaign was an attempt to destroy the Romanian army, which had been reorganised after the Kerensky Offensive was thrown back. But the attempt failed at the Battle of Mărăşeşti, with both sides taking heavy losses. At the end of the war, he was captured by General Louis Franchet d'Espèrey's French army in Hungary and held as a military prisoner until November 1919.
In 1920, Mackensen retired from the army. Although standing in opposition to the new established republican system, he avoided public campaigns. Around 1924, he changed his mind and began to use his image as war hero to support conservative, monarchic groups. He routinely appeared in his old Life Hussars uniform. He became very active in pro-military conservative organizations, particularly Stahlhelm and the Schlieffen society.
During the German elections of 1932, he supported Hindenburg over Adolf Hitler, but following the latter's accession to power Mackensen became a visible, if only symbolic, supporter of the Nazi regime. He did, however, protest the killings of Generals Ferdinand von Bredow and Kurt von Schleicher and atrocities committed in Poland. By the early 1940's Hitler and Joseph Goebbels suspected Mackensen of disloyalty but could do nothing. Mackensen remained a committed monarchist as he notably, he appeared in full uniform at Kaiser Wilhelm II's funeral in 1941.
Field Marshal Mackensen died on November 8, 1945, after the Second World War, at the venerable age of 95, his life having spanned the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire, the Weimar Republic, Nazi Germany, and Post-War Allied Occupation.
Family Members
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Records on Ancestry
-
Geneanet Community Trees Index
-
Eastern Prussian Provinces, Germany [Poland], Selected Civil Vitals, 1874-1945
-
Germany, Lutheran Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1500-1971
-
Rhineland, Prussia, Lutheran Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1533-1950
-
Saxony, Prussia, Lutheran Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1760-1890
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
