Deutschritter

My unreserved recognition and admiration for this great, selfless military historical work.

Ein bißchen mehr zu Walther Otto Adolf Graf von Königsmarck: Er war Ausbilder in Chile unter Bernhard Emil Körner vom 18. August 1895 bis 18. August 1897, wobei der Sekondeleutnant den Dienstgrad als chilenischer Hauptmann erhielt. Er kämpfte mit dem Pferdedepot des Ostasiatischen Expeditionskorps in China und mit dem Pferdedepot der Schutztruppe in Deutsch-Südwest gegen die Hottentotten unter Generalleutnant Lothar von Trotha.

Danke, Jens, einfach klasse ... vor allem zeigt der Eintrag, daß Friedrich „Fritz“ Wilhelm Adolf Graf von Königsmarck nicht gefallen ist, gemeint war in der Tat Eberhard.

Once again, thank you! I wrote them on the same day, and today, 10 days later, they have sent everything ... and also promised to digitilize the files within four weeks! Many greetings, Andreas

Once again, Andy, thank you. This is what I have read, I hope, I got everything: 22 March 1891 Charakter als Portepee-Fähnrich (Honorary Officer Cadet) 18 October 1891 Portepee-Fähnrich (Officer Cadet) 17 May 1892 Leutnant (2nd Lieutenant) 18 January 1901 Oberleutnant (1st Lieutenant) without Patent ... 16 February 1901 received Patent as Oberleutnant 18 May 1908 Rittmeister with Patent from 18 June 1908 27 January 1915 Major Awards and decorations ... Prussian Centenary Medal 1897 (Zentenarmedaille) on 22 March 1897 Medal to commemorate the coronation of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands in 1898 Dutch Orden von Oranien-Nassau, Knight's Cross (NN5) Mecklenburg Greifen-Orden, Knight's Cross (MGrO3/MG3) Prussian Order of the Crown (Preußischer Kronenorden), IV. Class Order of the White Falcon (Hausorden vom Weißen Falken), Knight's Cross 2nd Class (GSF3b) House and Merit Order of Peter Frederick Louis, Knight of Honour 2nd Class (OV3b) Baden Order of the Zähringer Lion (Orden vom Zähringer Löwen), Knight's Cross II. Class (BZL3b/BZ3b) House Order of the Wendish Crown (Hausorden der Wendischen Krone), Knight's Cross (MWK3/MK3) Saxe-Ernestine House Orden, Knight's Cross 2nd Class (HSEH3b/HSH3b/EH3b) Princely Schwarzburg Cross of Honor, IV. Class (SEK4/SE4) Knight's Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog (DD3) Russian Order of Saint Anna (Sankt-Annen-Orden), 3rd Class (RA3) The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Siam (Orden der Siamesischen Krone), Officer's Cross (SK4) ... WWI Iron Cross (1914), 2nd and 1st Class ... 2nd Class on 14 September 1914 ... 1st Class on 21 April 1915 Mecklenburg-Schwerin Military Merit Cross (Großherzoglich Mecklenburg-Schwerinsches Militärverdienstkreuz), 2nd and 1st Class (MMV1/MK1) Mecklenburg-Strelitz Cross of Merit for Distinction in the War (Mecklenburg-Strelitzisches Verdienstkreuz für Auszeichnung im Kriege), 2nd Class (MSMV2/MStMV2) Bremen Hanseatic Cross (Bremisches Hanseatenkreuz; BH) Lübeck Hanseatic Cross (Lübeckisches Hanseatenkreuz; LübH/LüH) Hamburg Hanseatic Cross (Hamburgisches Hanseatenkreuz; HH) Saxe-Meiningen Cross for Merit in War (SMK) Knight of Honour (Ehrenritter) of the Johanniter-Orden on 16 February 1916 Prussian Long Service Cross for 25 years (Königlich Preußisches Dienstauszeichnungskreuz) Military Merit Order (Bavaria), 4th Class with Crown and Swords (BMV4a⚔) on 5 January 1918

Done, thank you! He was very well decorated for a Rittmeister already in 1914, but of course he was Flügeladjutant. This is getting better and better! Too bad, his files do not contain a picture.

Thanks so much, Andy!!! Is it somehow possible to enter a larger picture? I tried to enlarge this one, but then I could hardly read anything (old eyes). Thank you! P.S.: I tried to send you a personal message, but the system did not allow that.

Thank you, Arb! Seeing he received the three Hanseatic Crosses in WWI, he must have also received EK II and I. Anything else? Surely something from Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin? That would be great! P.S. Bodo = Dodo Thanks to you, I now found him at Gothaisches Genealogisches Taschenbuch der Adeligen Häuser.

Gentlemen, I am looking for any- and everything on Ernst von Behr (complete name?) who received all three Hanseatic Crosses in WWI. I found one, who might fit. There was a Rittmeister von Behr with the Husaren-Regiment „Königin Wilhelmina der Niederlande“ (Hannoversches) Nr. 15, later Major and Adjutant with the IX. Armeekorps. It is possible that this is the same Major who would become Ehrenritter of the Johanniterorden in 1916 and fell with the Leib-Kürassier-Regiment „Großer Kurfürst“ (Schlesisches) Nr. 1 (as leader / commander?) near Fergeux on 2 November 1918. I hope, I am not mixing up two officers. Any help would be great. Maybe even a picture? Thanks!

M. Krüger, Reichsjustizministerium Geburtsdatum 3.12.1883 Sterbedatum 10.5.1941

Thank you! If you find the time, maybe you could explain, how you got into the Bundesarchiv system. I am registered at Invenio, and I found him, but his files are not digitalized, so I wasn't able to see anything. I would be grateful for any help.

Good evening! I just read, you have the Wolf Keilig book. Could you help me? I am looking for anything / everything on Ritterkreuzträger Major Heinrich Wiese (b. 27 February 1910 in Kiel). He entered the Reichswehr on 1 April 1929. Maybe it would be possible to show what Keilig has on him (page scan), if anything? Thank you!

Thank you, I almost gave up ... but on page 82 I found him, although the search function initially showed nothing. 27 June 1843 Portepee-Fähnrich (Officer Cadet) 14 or 22 August 1843 Seconde-Lieutenant (2nd Lieutenant) 20 or 28 August 1851 Premier-Lieutenent (1st Lieutenant) 31 December 1855 Rittmeister

Auf dem 1925 eingeweihten Reiterdenkmal aus Bronze in Karlshorst (Trabrennbahn), Berlin, wird auch Walther unter den 97 Herren- und 20 Berufsreitern geführt, die im Ersten Weltkrieg geblieben sind. Das Denkmal wurde 2007 saniert.

Ggf. auch von Interesse, Friedrich „Fritz“ Wilhelm Adolf Graf von Königsmarck als Herrenreiter und als Eskadronschef -- 4. Eskadron/Königs-Ulanen-Regiment (1. Hannoversches) Nr. 13 -- an der Ostfront 1915. Er wurde vermutlich 1945 auf seinem Gut von den Russen ermordet, die dann alles plünderten. Das Schloß, wo er seit 1922 wohnte, diente als Auslagerungsort der Kunsthalle Bremen (Tausende von Bremer Handzeichnungen, Gemälden und Druckgrafiken).

Thanks. No, but I did just now ... sadly nothing on "Hesberg". I take that back ... just found this! What I seem to understand now: He did not enter on 8 May 1842 as Fahnenjunker, as one source states, but on 27 June 1843 as Portepee-Fähnrich alongside Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Hugo von Helmschwerdt and others. This is a great improvement. Thank you!

Ich kann ein wenig dazu beitragen: Walther Otto Adolf Graf von Königsmarck (ᛉ 28. Juli 1869 auf Gut Karnzow; ᛣ 2. Oktober 1915) war ein früherer Leib-Garde-Husar und bekannter Herrenreiter. Rittmeister Graf von Königsmarck hatte seinen Abschied genommen, stellte sich aber bei Kriegsausbruch wieder zur Verfügung und wurde in Johannisthal als Beobachtungsoffizier ausgebildet. Als solcher ist er bei einen Probeflug von Hannover nach Hamburg am Elb-Trave-Kanal infolge einer harten Landung in dichtem Nebel tödlich verunglückt, während der Flugzeugführer mit leichten Verletzungen davonkam. Interessanterweise meldete eine Zeitung (siehe Anlage), daß sein älterer Bruder Rittmeister Friedrich „Fritz“ Wilhelm Adolf Graf von Königsmarck (ᛉ 27. February 1868 auf Gut Karnzow), ein früherer Königs-Ulan und berühmter Herrenreiter, am 5./6. Oktober 1915 im offenen Gefecht an der Ostfront gefallen war. Dies scheint jedoch eine Fehlmeldung zu sein, denn Fritz Graf von Königsmarck überlebte den Krieg, war zuletzt Major (a. D.) und war 1945 noch Besitzer des Gutes und Herrenhauses Karnzow. Bekannt ist dagegen Vetter Eberhard Kurt Christoph Graf von Königsmarck, Leutnant im Garde-Dragoner-Regiment „Kaiserin Alexandra von Rußland“ Nr. 2, der am 6. Oktober 1915 bei Hartmannsweilerkopf gefallen war. Ggf. eine Verwechselung.

Two adds and a question: Star to his Red Eagle Order 2nd Class with Oak Leaves Prussian Order of the Crown, 1st Class One source (http://www.vhghessen.de/inhalt/zhg/ZHG_97/Grebe_Hessberg.pdf) states, Louis von Hesberg received the rank of full General der Kavallerie z. D. of 27 June 1903 "anläßlich des 60jährigen Dienstjubiläums". Can anyone confirm this? Thanks!

Gentlemen, this is what I have for Louis Otto Ernst Georg Friedrich von Hesberg, any additions would be great. If anyone has a picture, I would love to see it. 8 May 1842 Fahnenjunker (Officer Candidate) ??.??.???? Portepee-Fähnrich 23 August 1843 Seconde-Lieutenant (2nd Lieutenant) ??. August 1851 Premier-Lieutenent (1st Lieutenant) 31 December 1855 Rittmeister 17 January 1867 Major 18 January 1872 Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant Colonel) 19 September 1874 Oberst (Colonel) 13 May 1880 General-Major (Major General) 1 June 1885 General-Lieutenant (Lieutenant General) 19 September 1891 Charakter als General der Kavallerie (Honorary General of the Cavalry) Commemorative Cross for the Campaign of 1866 (Erinnerungs-Kreuz für den Feldzug von 1866) Red Eagle Order (Roter Adlerorden), 4th Class (PRAO4/PrA4) on 18 January 1869 Prussian Long Service Cross for 25 years (Königlich Preußisches Dienstauszeichnungskreuz) Iron Cross (1870), 2nd and 1st Class Mecklenburg-Schwerin Military Merit Cross (Großherzoglich Mecklenburgisches Militärverdienstkreuz), 2nd Class (MMV2) Russian Order of Saint Anna (St.-Annen-Orden), II. Class with Swords (RA2⚔) Imperial Russian Sankt-Stanislaus-Orden, II. Class (RSt2) War Commemorative Medal of 1870–1871 (Kaiserliche Kriegsdenkmünze 1870/71; KD70/71) in Bronze Red Eagle Order, 3rd Class with the Bow (mit der Schleife) on 20 September 1876 Prussian Order of the Crown (Preußischer Kronenorden), 2nd Class on 18 January 1880 Red Eagle Order, 2nd Class with Oak Leaves on 7 September 1881 Order of Henry the Lion (Herzoglich Braunschweigischer Orden Heinrichs des Löwen), Commander's Cross 1st Class with Swords (BrHL2a⚔/BrH2a⚔) Red Eagle Order, 1st Class with Oak Leaves and the Crown on 15 October 1888 Anniversary Oak Leaves (Jubiläums-Eichenlaub „25“ 1870/1895) to his Iron Cross (1870), 2nd Class Prussian Centenary Medal 1897 (Zentenarmedaille) Red Cross Medal (Prussia), III. Class on 27 January 1902

Thank you, that is great. I would say II. Class, but hard to tell. Is it a bit strange that he is not wearing any decoration of Hesse-Cassel? Or is that due to the fact that Brotterode and Spangenberg belonged to the Prussian Province of Hesse-Nassau as of 1866/68?

Translated from personal information from a German author with genealogical knowledge. However, I did not ask him in detail how he came to this conclusion; I assumed that if he stated it in this way, it must be correct. He also told me wife Amalie Christiane Karoline von Hesberg (1796–1848) was the daughter and 11th child of Hesse-Cassel Captain Ernst Ludwig von Hesberg as well as aunt of Royal Prussian General der Kavalerie Louis Otto Ernst Georg Friedrich von Hesberg (1824–1909) whom I had never heard of before. Would love to see a picture of him.

Friedrich von Marschall was Oberförster (senior forester) in Brotterode (Kreis Schmalkalden), later Forstmeister (master forester) in Spangenberg; as such, he was a member of the "Association for Hessian History and Regional Studies" (Verein für hessische Geschichte und Landeskunde). He also served as the Polizeianwalt (police lawyer) with the Brotterode District Court. Friedrich (III.) von Marschall came from the House of Dannheim-Wülfershausen. His parents were Electoral Hesse Lieutenant Colonel Karl Heinrich von Marschall (1798–1879) and his wife (∞ 1824) Amalie von Hesberg (1796–1848). His paternal grandfather was cavalry officer August Ludwig Ernst Friedrich von Marschall (1759–1843), Lieutenant General of the Hesse-Kassel Army and governor of Cassel. His great-grandfather was Hesse-Cassel Major General Friedrich Ernst August von Marschall, knight of the Pour la Vertu Militaire (5 June 1770), the high military order of merit established on 25 February 1769 by Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel. Friedrich's uncle Friedrich "Fritz" August Ernst von Marschall (1793–1812) was KIA (⚔) during the retreat in Russia as a 1st Lieutenant of the 1. Westfälisches Kürassier-Regiment (Kingdom of Westphalia) which was forced to fight for Napoleon during his Russian campaign. On 21 July 1866 in Rotenburg, von Marschall married his fiancée Julie Caroline Helene Elisabeth Wilhelmine Emma Amalie Adelheid Mathilde Emilie Müldner von Mülnheim (b. 10 November 1845 in Nentershausen; d. 17 October 1879 in Spangenberg). The couple would have six children: Hedwig (b. 2 January 1868 in Brotterode; d. 5 January 1868 ibid) Hans (b. 22 March 1869 in Brotterode; d. 25 October 1869 ibid) Friedrich [IV.] (b. 3. August 1870 in Brotterode; d. 3 November 1870 ibid) Eva (b. 20 October 1871 in Brotterode) Elisabeth (b. 25 April 1875 in Spangenberg) Karl August Friedrich [V.] (b. 26 December 1878 in Spangenberg; d. 16 December 1949 in Marburg) On 12 January 1884, widower von Marschall married his sister-in-law Wilhelmine Emma Amalie Adelheid Mathilde Emilie Wilhelmine Emma Amalie Adelheid "Adele" Mathilde Emilie Müldner von Mülnheim (b. 29 January 1848 in Nentershausen; d. 25 January 1926 in Spangenberg). It was a platonic marriage of convenience. Adele, who had been caring for the children since her sister's death, became a loving mother for the children.

Father of Elise Elfriede Sprengel who married the later Generalmajor Joachim Karl Hermann Felix Degener in 1923.

Gentlemen, maybe you could help completing the dates and (WWI) decorations for Alexander "Alex" Hartwig Richard Petersen? ?? Kadett ?? Portepee-Unteroffizier 17 April 1880 Secondelieutenant (2nd Lieutenant) with the 2. Badisches Grenadier-Regiment „Kaiser Wilhelm I.“ Nr. 110 16 April 1889 Premierlieutenant (1st Lieutenant) 27 January 1894 Hauptmann (Captain) 18 November 1905 Major 1 October 1912 Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant Colonel) 19 August 1914 Oberst z. D. (Colonel at disposal) 1918/19 Generalmajor a. D. (Major General, retired) Baden Order of the Zähringer Lion (Orden vom Zähringer Löwen), Knight's Cross 2nd Class with Oak Leaves (BZL3bmE/BZ3bmE) on 13 September 1893 Prussian Centenary Medal 1897 (Zentenarmedaille) Red Eagle Order (Roter Adlerorden), 4th Class (PRAO4/PrA4) Prussian Long Service Cross for 25 years (Königlich Preußisches Dienstauszeichnungskreuz) Prussian Order of the Crown (Kronenorden), 3rd Class (KO3) On 22 November 1887 in Heidelberg (Grand Duchy of Baden), 2nd Lieutenant Petersen married his fiancée Marie Theresia Küttner (b. 1868). They would have two sons: Erich Alexander Karl (1889–1963), German officer, finally General der Flieger in WWII Curt (1890–1916) German cavalry officer ... Curt was born on 5 September 1890 and served with the 2. Rheinisches Husaren-Regiment Nr. 9. He was severely wounded on 18 November 1916 near Schulerau (Poiana Brașov) in Romania and died (ᛣ⚔) three days later on 21 November 1916 in the military hospital in Târgu Jiu on the banks of the river Jiu. His body was brought to Hildesheim and buried there in the fallen section of the northern cemetery.

Correction: He joined the navy on 12 April 1881, not 15 April; source: BArch PERS 6/2127