WW I German Army career officers losses

[Bernhard H.Holst]

Hello readers.

On the centenary of the First World War the following are data related to the losses of the German Army Officers Corps. As source the "Ehren-Rangliste des ehemaligen Deutschen Heeres" ( Honor-Ranklist of the former German Army) was used. This list was published in 1926, reprinted by Biblio Verlag in 1987 and was based on the last pre-war ranklists of the several armies of which the German Army consisted, ( Prussian, Bavarian, Saxon armies and the Wuerttemberg contingent/ XIII. Army Corps ). The ranklist comprises only career officers and includes those retired officers who were recalled for active duty. This latter group contains officers who already served during the 1864, 1866 and 1870-71 conflicts. It then gives the units in which the officers served last during the war and their eventual fate

The Deutscher Offizier-Bund collated the data of 50,000 regular officers but had to abstain from the inclusion of reserve officers which numbered around 250,000.

The fatal losses of officers amounted to approximately 12,000 regular and 55,000 reserve officers.

Among the regular officers ( active Offiziere) who lost their lives were 61 generals and 952 field grade officers ( rank of major and above ).

Based on the years of the conflict one arrives at the following:
1914: 27 general- and 492 field grade officers;

1915: 14 general- and 155 field grade officers;

1916: 7 general- and 93 field grade officers;

1917: 6 general- and 55 field grade officer;

1918: 7 general- and 157 field grade officers.

It is hoped that the above account does not give the impression that WW I was a war fought only by officers.

Bernhard H. Holst