Adolf Freiherr von Asch zu Asch auf Oberndorff was a Bavarian military officer. Born in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

on 30 October 1839, Asch joined the

Bavarian Army The Bavarian Army was the army of the Electorate (1682–1806) and then Kingdom (1806–1919) of Bavaria. It existed from 1682 as the standing army of Bavaria until the merger of the military sovereignty (''Wehrhoheit'') of Bavaria into that of t ...

as an ''

unterleutnant Unterleutnant (NPA-original abbreviation ''Ultn.''; en: translation "Under-lieutenant" or "sub-lieutenant") was an officer of the armies of East Germany and other nations. The rank was first introduced in 1662-74 by France and was also adopted b ...

'' in 1859. In 1866, during the

Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...

, Asch was an ''

oberleutnant () is the highest lieutenant officer rank in the German-speaking armed forces of Germany (Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the Swiss Armed Forces. Austria Germany In the German Army, it dates from the early 19th century. Trans ...

''; during the Franco-Prussian War, he was

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

to General

Ludwig Freiherr von und zu der Tann-Rathsamhausen Ludwig Samson Heinrich Arthur Freiherr von und zu der Tann-Rathsamhausen (18 June 181526 April 1881) was a Bavarian general. Early life Born in Darmstadt, on the day of Waterloo, Ludwig was a descendant from the old family of von der Tann, whic ...

. From 1874 to 1885, Asch served in the Bavarian General Staff before commanding the

1st Royal Bavarian Division The 1st Royal Bavarian Division was a unit of the Royal Bavarian Army that served alongside the Prussian Army as part of the German Army (German Empire), Imperial German Army. The division was formed on November 27, 1815, as the Infantry Division ...

as an ''

oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedish ...

''. In 1889 he was promoted to ''

generalmajor is the Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central and Northern European countries. Austria Belgium Denmark is the second lowest general officer rank in the Royal Danish Army and Royal Danish Air Force. As a two-star ...

'', and four years later took command of the

2nd Royal Bavarian Division The 2nd Royal Bavarian Division was a unit of the Royal Bavarian Army which served alongside the Prussian Army as part of the Imperial German Army. The division was formed on November 27, 1815, as the Infantry Division of the Munich General Comman ...

. From 5 June 1893 through 4 April 1905, Asch was the Bavarian Minister of War and oversaw:

expansion of the Bavarian Army: organization and practical training of the Bavarian Army; establishment of the III Army Corps based in Nuremberg (1900), organization of the field artillery; establishment of the first Bavarian machine gun department; formation of the first detachments hunter on horseback

Asch retired from the military in 1905 at the rank of

general of the infantry General of the Infantry is a military rank of a General officer in the infantry and refers to: * General of the Infantry (Austria) * General of the Infantry (Bulgaria) * General of the Infantry (Germany) ('), a rank of a general in the German Impe ...

. He died in Munich on 18 February 1906.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Asch zu Asch auf Oberndorff, Adolf Freiherr von 1839 births 1906 deaths Bavarian generals Bavarian Ministers of War German military personnel of the Franco-Prussian War Military personnel from Munich Military personnel from the Kingdom of Bavaria People of the Austro-Prussian War