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The Baltic Landwehr or ("Baltic Territorial Army") was the name of the unified armed forces of Couronian and Livonian
nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...
from 7 December 1918 to 3 July 1919.


Command structure

The Landeswehr was subordinated to the German
VI Reserve Corps The VI Reserve Corps (german: VI. Reserve-Korps / VI RK) was a corps level command of the German Army in World War I. Formation VI Reserve Corps was formed on the outbreak of the war in August 1914 as part of the mobilisation of the Army. It ...
which Generalmajor
Rüdiger von der Goltz Gustav Adolf Joachim Rüdiger Graf von der Goltz (8 December 1865 – 4 November 1946) was a German army general during the First World War. He commanded the Baltic Sea Division, which successfully intervened in the Finnish Civil War in the spr ...
(military governor of Libau in Latvia from 1 February 1919) commanded from 2 February 1919. Major
Alfred Fletcher Alfred Fletcher (20 January 1875 Lampersdorf, Province of Lower Silesia, German Empire – 20 September 1959 Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, West Germany) was a German soldier, Major and politician. Life Fletcher fought as a soldier in World War I ...
and Lieutenant-Colonel
Harold Alexander Harold Rupert Leofric George Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, (10 December 1891 – 16 June 1969) was a senior British Army officer who served with distinction in both the First and the Second World War and, afterwards, as Governor G ...
commanded the Landeswehr during its operations.


Commanders

* Major Emil von Scheibler (7 December 1918 - 6 February 1919) * Major
Alfred Fletcher Alfred Fletcher (20 January 1875 Lampersdorf, Province of Lower Silesia, German Empire – 20 September 1959 Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, West Germany) was a German soldier, Major and politician. Life Fletcher fought as a soldier in World War I ...
(6 February 1919 - 3 July 1919) * Lieutenant-Colonel
Harold Alexander Harold Rupert Leofric George Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, (10 December 1891 – 16 June 1969) was a senior British Army officer who served with distinction in both the First and the Second World War and, afterwards, as Governor G ...
(British; July 1919)


History

After the November 11, 1918,
armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the ...
the Inter-Allied Commission of Control insisted that the German troops remain in the
Baltic countries The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone ...
to prevent the region from being re-occupied by the
Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ( Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, afte ...
. As the Soviet westward offensive approached, the Provisional Government of Latvia approached August Winnig, the German attorney in the Baltics, and signed an agreement with him authorising the organisation of land defense forces on 7 December 1918. The parties signed another agreement on 29 December which secured all foreign soldiers, who participated in the battles for the freedom of Latvia, full citizenship of Latvia. The arms,
horse harness Horse harness is a device that connects a horse to a vehicle or another type of load. There are two main categories of horse harness: (1) the "breaststrap" or "breastcollar" design, and (2) the collar and hames design. For light work, such as ho ...
and uniforms were to be supplied by the state of Germany. The food supplies were to be taken care of by the Provisional Government of Latvia.


Theaters and campaigns

In late February 1919 only the seaport of
Liepāja Liepāja (; liv, Līepõ; see other names) is a state city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea. It is the largest-city in the Kurzeme Region and the third-largest city in the country after Riga and Daugavpils. It is an important ice-f ...
(Libau) and surroundings remained in the hands of the German and Latvian forces. In February and March 1919, the Landeswehr was able to win a series of victories over the
Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ( Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, afte ...
, first occupying the port of
Ventspils Ventspils (; german: Windau, ; see other names) is a state city in northwestern Latvia in the historical Courland region of Latvia, and is the sixth largest city in the country. At the beginning of 2020, Ventspils had a population of 33,906. It ...
(Windau), and then advancing south and east towards Riga. The murder of three men of the ''Baltische Landeswehr'' led to the
coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...
of April 16, 1919, by the proclamation of the Government of a
Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
clergyman, Andrievs Niedra. Parleys, in which the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
and
the United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
took part, did not prevent the advance on Riga and the capture of this city on May 22, where Baron
Hans von Manteuffel-Szoege Hans may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Hans (name), a masculine given name * Hans Raj Hans, Indian singer and politician ** Navraj Hans, Indian singer, actor, entrepreneur, cricket player and performer, son of Hans Raj Hans ** Yuvraj Hans, Punjabi ...
made an entry with a small detachment, and died leading his men. Latvian national government was deposed while the Freikorps moved on to capture Riga on May 23, 1919. Latvians sought assistance from the
Estonian Army The Estonian Land Forces ( et, Maavägi), unofficially referred to as the Estonian Army, is the name of the unified ground forces among the Estonian Defense Forces where it has an offensive military formation role. It is currently the largest ...
which had been occupying Northern Latvia since earlier that year. After the
Bolshevik The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
s had been driven out from most of Latvia, the Allies ordered the German government to withdraw its troops from the Baltic region. However, the Germans succeeded in negotiating a postponement, arguing that this would have given the Bolsheviks a free hand. In June 1919, General von der Goltz ordered his troops not to advance east against the Red Army, as the Allies had been expecting, but north, against the Estonians. On June 19, the Landeswehr launched an attack to capture areas around Cēsis (Wenden), however in the battles over the following few days they were defeated by the Estonian 3rd Division, including the Latvian 2nd Cesis regiment, led by
Ernst Põdder Ernst-Johannes Põdder VR I/1 (10 February 1879 – 24 June 1932) was a famous Estonian military commander in the Estonian War of Independence. In 1900 Põdder graduated from the Vilnius Military Academy. In the Russo-Japanese war he achieved ...
. On the morning of June 23, the Germans began a general retreat toward Riga. The Allies again insisted that the Germans withdraw their remaining troops from Latvia and intervened to impose a ceasefire between the Estonians and the Landeswehr when the Estonians were about to march into Riga. In the meantime, an Allied mission composed of British troops under General Sir Hubert de la Poer Gough had arrived in the Baltic with the task of clearing the Germans from the region and organizing native armies for the Baltic States. To ensure its return to Latvian control, the was placed under British authority.


Subsequent

After taking command of the in mid-July 1919, Lieutenant-Colonel
Harold Alexander Harold Rupert Leofric George Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, (10 December 1891 – 16 June 1969) was a senior British Army officer who served with distinction in both the First and the Second World War and, afterwards, as Governor G ...
(the future Field Marshal the Earl Alexander of
Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...
and Governor-General of
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, 1946-1952) gradually dismissed German nationals born within the borders of
Imperial Germany The German Empire (), Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditar ...
. The Germans released from the were incorporated into the :de:Deutsche Legion (1919) in September 1919. The legion served under the
West Russian Volunteer Army The West Russian Volunteer Army or Bermontians was a pro-German military formation in Latvia and Lithuania during the Russian Civil War in 1918–20. History The Western Russian Volunteer Army, unlike the pro-Allies of World War I, Entente Vo ...
commanded by Colonel Prince
Pavel Bermondt-Avalov Pavel Rafailovich Bermondt-Avalov (russian: Павел Рафаилович Бермондт-Авалов) or Pavel Avalishvili ( – 27 December 1973) was an Ussuri Cossack and warlord. He is best known as the commander of the West Russian Vol ...
in his attempt to capture Riga, but suffered complete defeat by the end of November 1919. The British insisted that General von der Goltz leave Latvia, and he turned his troops over to Bermondt-Avalov's
West Russian Volunteer Army The West Russian Volunteer Army or Bermontians was a pro-German military formation in Latvia and Lithuania during the Russian Civil War in 1918–20. History The Western Russian Volunteer Army, unlike the pro-Allies of World War I, Entente Vo ...
. General von der Goltz later claimed in his memoirs that his major strategic goal in 1919 had been to launch a campaign in cooperation with the white Russian forces to overturn the Bolshevik regime by marching on
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
and to install a pro-German government in Russia. The purged Baltische Landeswehr units subsequently assisted in the liberation of Latgale from Bolsheviks together with Latvian and Polish armies in January 1920.


Prominent members

Prominent Baltic officers from the Landeswehr era include: * Generalmajor
Erich Alt The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* ain ...
(Luftwaffe) (leader of the 1. Baltischen Flieger-Abteilung (433)) * Generalmajor Rudolf Bader (in the Badisches Freiwilligen Abteilung Medem) * Generalmajor Heinrich Baron von Behr * Generalmajor z.V. Heinrich Burggraf und Graf zu Dohna-Schlobitten * Generalmajor Karl Dormagen * Generalmajor Dipl. Ing.
Hans Henrici Hans may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Hans (name), a masculine given name * Hans Raj Hans, Indian singer and politician ** Navraj Hans, Indian singer, actor, entrepreneur, cricket player and performer, son of Hans Raj Hans ** Yuvraj Hans, Punjabi ...
* General der Artillerie
Kurt Jahn General Kurt Jahn, aka Curt Jahn, (February 16, 1892 – November 7, 1966) was a German Army general and commander in Lombardy, Italy during World War II. Born in Schmalkalden, Germany, he was captured west of Milan on 1 May 1945 and interned in ...
* Generalleutnant
Heinrich Rauch Heinrich may refer to: People * Heinrich (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Heinrich (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Hetty (given name), a given name (including a list of peo ...
(Luftwaffe) (aerial observer in Flieger-Abteilung 433) * Oberst (Colonel) Wessel Freytag von Loringhoven (the ranks are the highest ranks reached in the
Third Reich Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
era)


Rank insignia

Members of the Baltische Landeswehr wore shoulder strap piping in light blue and white, the Baltic colors. ;Commissioned officers ;Enlisted personnel


Order of battle (20 May 1919)

*1. Deutsch-Balt. Kampfbataillon (Stoßtrupp Manteuffel; Baron Hans von Manteuffel) *2. Deutsch-Balt. Kampfbataillon (Hauptmann Malmede) *3. Deutsch-Balt. Kampfbataillon (Rittmeister Graf zu Eulenburg) *MG-Scharfschützen-Abteilung (Hauptmann Freiherr von Khaynach) *Russische Abteilung Fürst Lieven (Cavalry Captain Prince Anatolii Pavlovich Liven or, in German, Fürst Anatol Leonid Lieven) *Lettische Kampf-Brigade (Colonel
Jānis Balodis Jānis Balodis (20 February 1881 – 8 August 1965) was an army general, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Latvia (1919–1921), Minister of War (1931–1940) and politician who was one of the principal figures during the Latvian War of ...
) *Stamm-Kompanie Talssen *Stamm-Kompanie Tuckum *Balten-Kompanie des Gouvernement Libau *Elements of the MG-Kompanie of III./Freiwilligen-Regiment Libau (Gouvernement Libau) *Lettische Kavallerie-Abteilung *Russische Kavallerie-Abteilung *Kavallerie-Abteilung Engelhardt *Kavallerie-Abteilung Drachenfels *Kavallerie-Abteilung Pappenheim *Kavallerie-Abteilung Halm *1. Deutsch-Balt. Batterie (Ehmke) *2. Deutsch-Balt. Batterie (Barth) *3. Deutsch-Balt. Batterie (Sievert) *Deutsch-Balt. Haubitze-Batterie *Russische Batterie (Röhl) *Badisches Freiwilligen Abteilung Medem (attached Korpstruppe) *Lettische Pionier-Kompanie *Pionier-Abteilung Stromberg *Balt. Fernsprech-Abteilung *Lettische Fernsprech-Abteilung *Balt. Funker-Abteilung *Flieger-Abteilung 433 (attached Korpstruppe) *Armee-Kraftwagen-Kolonne 021 (attached Korpstruppe) *Staffel-Stab der Landeswehr (Major Wölki) **Munitions- und Train-Kolonne I **Munitions- und Train-Kolonne II **Landeskolonne III *Feldlazarett *Sanitäts-Kompanie *Sanitäts-Kraftwagen-Zug *Wirtschafts-Kompanie 1 *Wirtschafts-Kompanie 2 *Bahnschutz-Detachement *Pferdelazarett *Sammeldepot Libau


See also

* Aftermath of World War I *
Bundeswehr The ''Bundeswehr'' (, meaning literally: ''Federal Defence'') is the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. The ''Bundeswehr'' is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part con ...
*
Estonian War of Independence The Estonian War of Independence ( et, Vabadussõda, literally "Freedom War"), also known as the Estonian Liberation War, was a defensive campaign of the Estonian Army and its allies, most notably the United Kingdom, against the Bolshevik westw ...
*
Freikorps in the Baltic After 1918, the term Freikorps was used for the anti-communist paramilitary organizations that sprang up around the German Empire and the Baltics, as soldiers returned in defeat from World War I. It was one of the many Weimar paramilitary groups ...
*
German Army (German Empire) The Imperial German Army (1871–1919), officially referred to as the German Army (german: Deutsches Heer), was the unified ground and air force of the German Empire. It was established in 1871 with the political unification of Germany under the l ...
* Latvian Riflemen *
Latvian War of Independence The Latvian War of Independence ( lv, Latvijas Neatkarības karš), sometimes called Latvia's freedom battles () or the Latvian War of Liberation (), was a series of military conflicts in Latvia between 5 December 1918, after the newly proclaim ...
*
Ober Ost , short for ( "Supreme Commander of All German Forces in the East"), was both a high-ranking position in the armed forces of the German Empire as well as the name given to the occupied territories on the German section of the Eastern Front of Wo ...
*
Reichswehr ''Reichswehr'' () was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first years of the Third Reich. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshape ...
* United Baltic Duchy *
Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...


References


Bibliography

* Goltz Rüdiger von der, ''Meine Sendung im Finland und im Baltikum'', Leipzig 1920. * Goltz Rüdiger von der, ''Minu missioon Soomes ja Baltikumis'', Tartu, Loodus 1937; faksiimiletrükk Tallinn, Olion 2004. . * Bermond-Awaloff Pavel, ''Im Kampf gegen den Bolschevismus. Erinnerungen von...'', Berlin 1925. * BischoffJosef, ''Die letzte Front. Geschichte der Eiserne Division im Baltikum 1919'', Berlin 1935. * ''Darstellungen aus den Nachkriegskämpfen deutscher Truppen und Freikorps'', Bd 2: ''Der Feldzug im Baltikum bis zur zweiten Einnahme von Riga. Januar bis Mai 1919'', Berlin 1937; Bd 3: ''Die Kämpfe im Baltikum nach der zweiten Einnahme von Riga. Juni bis Dezember 1919'', Berlin 1938. * ''Die Baltische Landeswehr im Befreiungskampf gegen den Bolschewismus'', Riga 1929. * ''Eesti Vabadussõda 1918-1920'', Tallinn, Mats, 1997. . * Kiewisz Leon, ''Sprawy łotewskie w bałtyckiej polityce Niemiec 1914-1919'', Poznań 1970. * Łossowski Piotr, ''Między wojną a pokojem. Niemieckie zamysły wojenne na wschodzie w obliczu traktatu wersalskiego. Marzec-kwiecień 1919'', Warszawa 1976. * Paluszyński Tomasz, ''Walka o niepodległość Łotwy 1914-1920'', Warszawa 1999. * ''Von den baltische Provinzen zu den baltischen Staaten. Beiträge zur Entstehungsgeschichte der Republiken Estland und Lettland'', Bd I (1917-1918), Bd II (1919-1920), Marburg 1971, 1977.


External links


A cannon of the Landeswehr

An airplane of the Landeswehr

"Hans von Manteuffel" honor title
* Centek, Jaroslaw
Baltische Landwehr
in

{{Authority control Courland Governorate Estonian War of Independence Governorate of Livonia Military history of Latvia Military units and formations established in 1918 Organisations based in Livonia Anti-communist organizations Independence of Latvia