Ernst Wilhelm Arnold von Hoeppner (14 January 1860 – 26 September 1922) was a Prussian cavalry officer who served as the Commanding General of the German Air Service ('' Luftstreitkräfte'') during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

Early life and military career

Hoeppner was born in Tonnin on the island of

Wollin Wolin (; formerly german: Wollin ) is the name both of a Polish island in the Baltic Sea, just off the Polish coast, and a town on that island. Administratively, the island belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship. Wolin is separated from th ...

Pomerania Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...

on 14 January 1860. He was the third son of a Prussian

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

Ernst Ferdinand Hoeppner (1813-1881) and his wife Wilhelmine Minna, née Kropf (1827-1896). Ernst Hoeppner attended the Cadet School in

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

from 1872 and in 1879 he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 6th Magdeburg Dragoon Regiment. He attended the

Prussian Military Academy The Prussian Staff College, also Prussian War College (german: Preußische Kriegsakademie) was the highest military facility of the Kingdom of Prussia to educate, train, and develop general staff officers. Location It originated with the ''Ak ...

in 1890. From 1893 to 1899, he was a member of the 14th Dragoon Regiment stationed at

Colmar Colmar (, ; Alsatian: ' ; German during 1871–1918 and 1940–1945: ') is a city and commune in the Haut-Rhin department and Grand Est region of north-eastern France. The third-largest commune in Alsace (after Strasbourg and Mulhouse), it is ...

Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...

, commanding a squadron. Hoeppner married Sophie Eugenie Minette Elisabeth Adele Valentine of Pöppinghausen on 14 July 1885. They had three children: Busso, Margot and Gerd.''Hoeppner.'' in: ''Gothaisches Genealogisches Taschenbuch der briefadeligen Häuser.'' Jg. 9 (1915), section: Elsn-Ribb. In 1902 Hoeppner was appointed to the

General Staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military un ...

. He was appointed as a staff officer with the IX Army Corps in Altona in 1904. By 1906 he was a lieutenant colonel and was commander of the 13th Hussars Regiment in

Diedenhofen Thionville (; ; german: Diedenhofen ) is a city in the northeastern French department of Moselle. The city is located on the left bank of the river Moselle, opposite its suburb Yutz. History Thionville was settled as early as the time of t ...

. Two years later he was appointed chief of staff of the VII Army Corps. In September 1912 he was made commander of the 4th Cavalry Brigade in

Bromberg Bydgoszcz ( , , ; german: Bromberg) is a city in northern Poland, straddling the meeting of the River Vistula with its left-bank tributary, the Brda. With a city population of 339,053 as of December 2021 and an urban agglomeration with more ...

and the following year he was raised to the nobility by

Kaiser Wilhelm II Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (german: Kaiser) and List of monarchs of Prussia, King of Prussia, reigning from 15 June 1888 until Abdication of Wilhelm II, his abdication on 9 ...

and granted the nobiliary particle ''

von The term ''von'' () is used in German language surnames either as a nobiliary particle indicating a noble patrilineality, or as a simple preposition used by commoners that means ''of'' or ''from''. Nobility directories like the ''Almanach de Go ...

'' before his surname. This was in recognition of his achievements as a staff officer and brigade commander.

World War I

General von Hoeppner with Oberst-Lieutenant Thomsen

At the start of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Hoeppner was

Chief of Staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

at the 3rd Army headquarters. He remained in this post until spring of 1915 when he took up command of the 14th Reserve Division. Later in 1915 he was appointed Chief of Staff of the 2nd Army and in 1916 he became the commander of the 75th Reserve Division. In October 1916,

General Ludendorff Erich Friedrich Wilhelm Ludendorff (9 April 1865 – 20 December 1937) was a German general, politician and military theorist. He achieved fame during World War I for his central role in the German victories at Liège and Tannenberg in 1914. ...

decided that the German Air Service needed greater unity of command with a general officer having authority over all the Army's aerial combat and anti-aircraft units both in the field and at home. Ludendorff chose Hoeppner as the new air commander and it was at this time the Air Service was renamed from ''Fliegertruppe'' to ''Luftstreitkräfte''. Hoeppner was given the title of ''Kommandierender General der Luftstreitkräfte'' (Commanding General of the Air Service - sometimes abbreviated to Kogenluft in German), holding the rank of

lieutenant-general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

. He was directly responsible to Hindenburg at

Supreme Army Command The ''Oberste Heeresleitung'' (, Supreme Army Command or OHL) was the highest echelon of command of the army (''Heer'') of the German Empire. In the latter part of World War I, the Third OHL assumed dictatorial powers and became the ''de facto'' ...

. Hoeppner reorganized the fragmented air services, greatly increasing the number of '' Jastas'' (squadrons) and forming them into ''

Jagdgeschwader Jagdgeschwader were the series of fighter wings of initially, the German Empire's ''Luftstreitkräfte'' air arm of the ''Deutsches Heer'', then the successor fighter wings of the Third Reich's original ''Luftwaffe'' air arm of its combined Wehrmach ...

'' (wings). Priority was given to the development of strategies for massed air attacks. In 1917 Hoeppner authored a memorandum asking for a significant increase in aircraft production which initiated the Amerika Programme. In 1917 he was awarded the

Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by Frederick the Great, King Frederick II of Prussia. The was awarded as both a military and civil honour and ranked, along with the Order of the Black Eagle, the Or ...

even though as a senior commander he was not directly involved in air combat. The award was resented by some of his junior officers.

Post war

After the war, the German Air Service was dissolved. The German War Ministry issued orders for Von Hoepppner's post to be disestablished on 16 January 1919 although he appears to have continued as Commanding General for a few more days. His final order to his Air Service personnel was issued on 21 January. He then took up command of the 18th Army Corps on 10 April 1919 but resigned from active service at his own request at the end of November 1919. He retired as

general of cavalry General of the Cavalry (german: General der Kavallerie) was a General officer rank in the cavalry in various states of which the modern states of German and Austria are successors or in other armies which used the German model. Artillery officers ...

with permission to wear the uniform of the 13th Hussars Regiment. Hoeppner returned to his estate at Groß-Mokratz (now Mokrzyca Wielka) on the island of

in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

where he wrote his memoirs. In 1921 he published ''Deutschlands Krieg in der Luft'' ("Germany's War in the Air"), a study of the German Air Service from 1914 to 1918. On 26 September 1922 Hoeppner died of

Influenza Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptoms ...

at the age of 62. He was buried in his birthplace, Tonnin, on the island of Wollin.

In popular culture

In the 2008

biopic A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudra ...

The Red Baron Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of t ...

'', Hoeppner is portrayed by actor

Axel Prahl Axel Prahl (born 26 March 1960 in Eutin) is a German actor and musician. Prahl, born in Eutin, grew up in nearby Neustadt in Holstein. After his A-levels, Prahl started studying music and mathematics, but then went on to acting school in Kiel. ...

References

External links

On Air Power - von Höppner, Ernst Wilhelmflieger-album.de - von Hoeppner

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hoeppner, Ernst Von 1860 births 1922 deaths Deaths from influenza People from the Province of Pomerania Luftstreitkräfte personnel Military aviation leaders of World War I Generals of Cavalry (Prussia) Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) German military historians Historians of World War I People from Kamień County Commanders of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class German male non-fiction writers German Army generals of World War I