Hans Emil Alexander Gaede (19 February 1852 in Kolberg – 16 September 1916 in

Freiburg im Breisgau Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population o ...

) was a

Prussian Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

, and later

General of 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 ...

during

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 ...

. He commanded Army Detachment Gaede and was a recipient of 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 ...

Life

Gaede was born on 18 February 1852 in the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Re ...

. He entered the army in 1870 as a cadet in the 2nd Grenadier Regiment and participated in the Franco-Prussian War. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant on 18 November 1870. Reactivated for World War I; Gaede was Deputy Commander of the

XIV Corps 14 Corps, 14th Corps, Fourteenth Corps, or XIV Corps may refer to: * XIV Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * XIV Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World ...

, commanded by Ernst von Hoiningen. He later got the command of six landwehr regiments which became the Army Detachment Gaede, or Army Detachment B. Gaede lead his troops in defending the upper

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 ...

region, however serious illness resulted in Gaede being retired again in September 1916. He died mere weeks later, at the age of 64.

Awards

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia est ...

2nd Class (1870) *

1st Class *

(25 August 1915)

References

* Hanns Möller: ''Geschichte der Ritter des Ordens pour le mérite im Weltkrieg'', Band I: A-L, Verlag Bernard & Graefe, Berlin 1935 1852 births 1916 deaths German Army generals of World War I Generals of Infantry (Prussia) Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) Recipients of the Iron Cross (1870), 2nd class Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class {{Germany-mil-bio-stub