Generaal Philipp von Hellingrath rond 1918

Philipp von Hellingrath (22 February 1862 – 13 December 1939) was a

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

General der Kavallerie 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 o ...

former military rank below

Colonel General Colonel general is a three- or four-star military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, and was a ra ...

and the last

War Minister A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

under

Ludwig III of Bavaria Ludwig III (Ludwig Luitpold Josef Maria Aloys Alfried; 7 January 1845 – 18 October 1921) was the last King of Bavaria, reigning from 1913 to 1918. Initially he served in the Bavarian military as a lieutenant and went on to hold the rank of Oberl ...

Life

Von Hellingrath was 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 ...

. He achieving the

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

, he joined the

1st Royal Bavarian Heavy Cavalry “Prince Charles of Bavaria” The 1st Royal Bavarian Heavy Cavalry “Prince Charles of Bavaria” (''Königlich Bayerisches Schwere-Reiter-Regiment „Prinz Karl von Bayern“ Nr. 1'') were a heavy cavalry regiment of the Royal Bavarian Army. The regiment was formed in 1814 as ...

in 1880, became

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

of the

2nd Royal Bavarian Uhlans King The 2nd Royal Bavarian Uhlan Regiment (german: Königliche Bayerische 2. Ulanen Regiment "König") was a Bavarian Army Cavalry Regiment formed in 1863 in Ansbach. From 6 July 1864 it was nominally commanded by King Ludwig II of Bavaria until he w ...

in 1882, and visited the Bavarian Kriegsakademie (''war academy'') from 1887 to 1890. Two years later he became Hofkavalier (''court

cavalier The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...

'') of

Duke Karl-Theodor in Bavaria Karl-Theodor, Duke in Bavaria (9 August 1839 – 30 November 1909), was a member of the House of Wittelsbach and a professional oculist. He was the favorite brother of the Empress Elisabeth of Austria, and father of Queen Elisabeth of the Belgia ...

, in 1893

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 ...

of the 4th Cavalry Brigade and was advanced to the rank of a

Rittmeister __NOTOC__ (German and Scandinavian for "riding master" or "cavalry master") is or was a military rank of a commissioned cavalry officer in the armies of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Scandinavia, and some other countries. A ''Rittmeister'' is typic ...

in 1897. After 1899 he was squadron commander in the 1st Chevauleger Regiment, was transferred to the general staff of the

3rd Royal Bavarian Division The 3rd 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 an Infantry Division of the Würzburg General Comm ...

in 1902 and advanced to

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 ...

in 1903. In 1905 he served in the general staff of the

I Royal Bavarian Corps The I Royal Bavarian Army Corps / I Bavarian AK (german: I. Königlich Bayerisches Armee-Korps) was a corps level command of the Royal Bavarian Army, part of the German Army, before and during World War I. As part of the 1868 army reform, the I ...

, and shortly after that in the central of the General Staff. In 1907 he became

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

and commander of the 4th Chevauleger Regiment, in 1909 he became

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 ...

and commander of the 3rd Cavalry Brigade, and was made

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in 1912. In 1914 he became commander of the 6th Cavalry Brigade. With the beginning 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 ...

he was made inspector of the Etappen-Inspektion (back bases inspection unit) of the 6th Army, shortly after that he was advanced to

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 ...

and became military representative of Bavaria in the general German headquarters. In 1915 he took part as divisional commander in the campaigns against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

and

Courland Courland (; lv, Kurzeme; liv, Kurāmō; German and Scandinavian languages: ''Kurland''; la, Curonia/; russian: Курляндия; Estonian: ''Kuramaa''; lt, Kuršas; pl, Kurlandia) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands in western Latvia. ...

. On 11 December 1916 he became war minister and representative of Bavaria at the Federal Council of the

German Empire 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 hereditary ...

. He was advanced to the rank of General der Kavallerie on 28 May 1918. On 8 November the same year Albert Roßhaupter followed as the first war minister of the new

Freistaat Free state is a term occasionally used in the official titles of some states throughout the world with varying meanings depending on the context. In principle, the title asserts and emphasises a particular freedom of the state in question, but thi ...

. Von Hellingrath was retired on 25 November 1918 and died in his hometown in 1939.''Hellingrath, Philipp von''
House of the Bavarian history (HdBG).

Awards (selection)

* Ritterkreuz of the

Military Order of Max Joseph The Military Order of Max Joseph (german: Militär-Max-Joseph-Orden) was the highest military order of the Kingdom of Bavaria. It was founded on 1 January 1806 by Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria, the first king of Bavaria. The order came in t ...

, 27 April 1915 * Kommandeurkreuz of the Military Order of Max Joseph, 18 August 1916 * Knight 1st Class with Swords of the

Order of the Red Eagle The Order of the Red Eagle (german: Roter Adlerorden) was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful se ...

, 14 November 1918

External links

Biography

References and notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hellingrath, Philipp Von 1862 births 1939 deaths Military personnel from Munich Bavarian Ministers of War Bavarian generals Commanders of the Military Order of Max Joseph People from the Kingdom of Bavaria German Army generals of World War I