Generalfeldmarschall August von Mackensen, Ceremonial Chief of JR129. 1849-1945
August von Mackensen was most familiar to many as a member of Hitler’s entourage during the 1930s. He was a hawk-faced, fiercely mustached old man with deep set eyes visible beneath his usual fur busby adorned with skull and crossbones of his old 2nd Hussar regiment. Mackensen had been born in 1849 to a non-noble estate manager. He served for one year as a volunteer before spending two years at the University of Halle. He was re-called to active service during the Franco-Prussian War, where he earned a field commission as a reserve officer. He briefly returned to University before transferring to the active army. He was known as one of the finest horseman in the new Empire.
Mackensen was detached from duty to tutor the Future Kaiser Wilhelm II in military history. His skills as an administrator earned an assignment to the General Staff without the usual War Academy training. In 1891 he was appointed adjutant to General von Schlieffen. Wilhelm II named him to the post of Imperial Adjutant, and sent his oldest son to serve in Mackensen’s 2nd Hussars. Mackensen was promoted to the rank of Colonel, made a noble, and in 1903 given command of the 36th Division in Danzig. Five years later he was given command of the XVII Corps. By 1914 he was the senior subordinate in Prittwitz’s 8th Army.
It was generally agreed that Mackensen was a strict disciplinarian and a hard driver, however his reputation had been stained by his performance in the 1910 maneuvers when I Corps had made XVII Corps look idiotic by creating Camouflage screens and artificial wood lots, changing the terrain to such an extent that Mackensen’s officers lost confidence in their maps.
Despite the poor showing in the 1910 maneuvers, he became one of the best German Commanders of the First World War. He commanded the 17th Corps at Gumbinnen and Tannenberg in August of 1914. In September he was given command of the 9th Army, leading the siege of Warsaw and the assault at Lodz, after which he was awarded the Pour le Merite. In the spring of 1915 he was given command of the Eleventh Army, commanding during the Gorlice-Tarnow Offensive. That summer he was promoted to Field Marshal. He led overwhelmingly successful invasions of both Serbia and Romania, ending the war as a commander of occupation troops in the East, and arguably one of the most successful German officers.
The Field Marshal retired from the army in 1920, and joined the Nazi Party in 1933, despite the fact he had supported Hindenburg over Hitler and remained a monarchist for the rest of his life. His support of the Nazis may have been due to his strong support to the army, as he was not very active within the party. He was deeply upset by the killing of German Generals during the Night of the Long Knives. He remained devoted to Kaiser Wilhelm II, and attended his funeral in 1941. He died in Saxony in November of 1945. During his lifetime he lived under the flags of the Kingdom of Prussia, The Imperial German Empire, the Weimar Republic, Nazi Germany, and Allied-Occupied Germany.
J.R. 129 served under von Mackensen for most of its service on the Eastern Front from 1914 – 1917. On page 43 of The German Army in World War I (3): 1917-18 in the Osprey Men-at-Arms series he is visible wearing a uniform with the lemon-yellow regimental underlay and silver regimental number 129 upon his shoulder boards.
Sources for this article include Dennis E. Showalter’s Tannenberg:Clash of Empires and First World War.com
Mackensen was detached from duty to tutor the Future Kaiser Wilhelm II in military history. His skills as an administrator earned an assignment to the General Staff without the usual War Academy training. In 1891 he was appointed adjutant to General von Schlieffen. Wilhelm II named him to the post of Imperial Adjutant, and sent his oldest son to serve in Mackensen’s 2nd Hussars. Mackensen was promoted to the rank of Colonel, made a noble, and in 1903 given command of the 36th Division in Danzig. Five years later he was given command of the XVII Corps. By 1914 he was the senior subordinate in Prittwitz’s 8th Army.
It was generally agreed that Mackensen was a strict disciplinarian and a hard driver, however his reputation had been stained by his performance in the 1910 maneuvers when I Corps had made XVII Corps look idiotic by creating Camouflage screens and artificial wood lots, changing the terrain to such an extent that Mackensen’s officers lost confidence in their maps.
Despite the poor showing in the 1910 maneuvers, he became one of the best German Commanders of the First World War. He commanded the 17th Corps at Gumbinnen and Tannenberg in August of 1914. In September he was given command of the 9th Army, leading the siege of Warsaw and the assault at Lodz, after which he was awarded the Pour le Merite. In the spring of 1915 he was given command of the Eleventh Army, commanding during the Gorlice-Tarnow Offensive. That summer he was promoted to Field Marshal. He led overwhelmingly successful invasions of both Serbia and Romania, ending the war as a commander of occupation troops in the East, and arguably one of the most successful German officers.
The Field Marshal retired from the army in 1920, and joined the Nazi Party in 1933, despite the fact he had supported Hindenburg over Hitler and remained a monarchist for the rest of his life. His support of the Nazis may have been due to his strong support to the army, as he was not very active within the party. He was deeply upset by the killing of German Generals during the Night of the Long Knives. He remained devoted to Kaiser Wilhelm II, and attended his funeral in 1941. He died in Saxony in November of 1945. During his lifetime he lived under the flags of the Kingdom of Prussia, The Imperial German Empire, the Weimar Republic, Nazi Germany, and Allied-Occupied Germany.
J.R. 129 served under von Mackensen for most of its service on the Eastern Front from 1914 – 1917. On page 43 of The German Army in World War I (3): 1917-18 in the Osprey Men-at-Arms series he is visible wearing a uniform with the lemon-yellow regimental underlay and silver regimental number 129 upon his shoulder boards.
Sources for this article include Dennis E. Showalter’s Tannenberg:Clash of Empires and First World War.com