Karl Freiherr von Pflanzer-Baltin (1 June 1855,

Pécs Pécs ( , ; hr, Pečuh; german: Fünfkirchen, ; also known by other #Name, alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the fifth largest city in Hungary, on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the countr ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

- 8 April 1925,

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

) was an

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

general who was active in

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 ...

Biography

Pflanzer-Baltin became General of Cavalry from October 1912 and he served on the general staff, but in 1914 he was unattached, due to precarious health. It was only in the autumn of that year, when

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

appeared to be turning against the

Central Powers The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires,german: Mittelmächte; hu, Központi hatalmak; tr, İttifak Devletleri / ; bg, Централни сили, translit=Tsentralni sili was one of the two main coalitions that fought in ...

, that he was charged with the defense of

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

. In 1915, the ''

Stavka The ''Stavka'' (Russian and Ukrainian: Ставка) is a name of the high command of the armed forces formerly in the Russian Empire, Soviet Union and currently in Ukraine. In Imperial Russia ''Stavka'' referred to the administrative staff, a ...

'' attempted to cross the

Carpathians The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Ural Mountains, Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains at . The ...

, and invade Hungary. Pflanzer-Baltin was able to hold his position along the Carpathian Front. According to

Prit Buttar Prit Buttar is a British general practitioner and writer. He has written ten history books on the eastern fronts of Eastern Front (World War I), World War I and Eastern Front (World War II), World War II, and two novels. Dr. Buttar was Senior Pa ...

, "Had his 'army group' been dislodged and driven back, the German South Army too would have been forced to retreat, conceivably followed by the entire line of forces in the Carpathians." Pflanzer-Baltin was awarded the Commander's Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa as a consequence. He was promoted to

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 ...

in 1916. After fighting with varying success in the southern part of

Eastern Galicia Eastern Galicia ( uk, Східна Галичина, Skhidna Galychyna, pl, Galicja Wschodnia, german: Ostgalizien) is a geographical region in Western Ukraine (present day oblasts of Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Ternopil), having also essential h ...

and in the

Bukovina Bukovinagerman: Bukowina or ; hu, Bukovina; pl, Bukowina; ro, Bucovina; uk, Буковина, ; see also other languages. is a historical region, variously described as part of either Central or Eastern Europe (or both).Klaus Peter BergerT ...

the 7th Army under his command was driven back by

Aleksei Brusilov Aleksei Alekseyevich Brusilov ( rus, Алексе́й Алексе́евич Бруси́лов, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej ɐlʲɪkˈsʲejɪvʲɪdʑ brʊˈsʲiɫəf; – 17 March 1926) was a Russian and later Soviet general most noted for the developme ...

's offensive in June 1916, whereupon he was relieved of his command. Pflanzer-Baltin became General Inspector of the infantry in 1917 and subsequently Supreme Commander of Austro-Hungarian infantry in Albania. In the summer of 1918, the Austro-Hungarian front in

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

yielded before the attack of the Entente army. Pflanzer-Baltin, entrusted with the command in this theatre of operations, won back, after a brief attack, the old positions south of Fjeri and

Berat Berat (; sq-definite, Berati) is the ninth most populous city of Albania and the seat of Berat County and Berat Municipality. By air, it is north of Gjirokastër, west of Korçë, south of Tirana, and east of Fier. Berat is located in th ...

— the last notable success of the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...

in the field.

Decorations and awards

* Military Merit Cross (Austria-Hungary) *

Order of the Iron Crown The Order of the Iron Crown ( it, link=no, Ordine della Corona Ferrea) was an order of merit that was established on 5 June 1805 in the Kingdom of Italy by Napoleon Bonaparte under his title of Napoleon I, King of Italy. The order took its name ...

(Austria) * Knight's Cross of the Order of Leopold (Austria) * Order of Leopold, 1st class, and Imperial Counsellor (''

Geheimrat ''Geheimrat'' was the title of the highest advising officials at the Imperial, royal or princely courts of the Holy Roman Empire, who jointly formed the ''Geheimer Rat'' reporting to the ruler. The term remained in use during subsequent monarchic r ...

'') (December 1914) * Commander's Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa * Grand Cross of the Order of Leopold (Austria) *

Decoration for Services to the Red Cross The Decoration for Services to the Red Cross (''Ehrenzeichen für Verdienste um das Rote Kreuz'') was an Austro-Hungarian award instituted on 17 August 1914 by Emperor Franz Josef I to mark the 50th anniversary of the Geneva Convention. It was i ...

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 ...

of 1914, 1st and 2nd class * Military Merit Cross, 1st class (1916) * Master of Skirmish Warfare * Large Military Merit Medal with Swords ("Signum Laudis" Austria-Hungary) *

Gallipoli Star The Gallipolli Star is a military decoration awarded by the Ottoman Empire. It was known as the Ottoman War Medal ( tr, Harp Madalyası) or the Iron Crescent (from German ''Eiserner Halbmond'', in allusion to the Iron Cross). It was instituted b ...

("Iron Crescent", Ottoman Empire) * Grand Cross of the

Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary The Order of Saint Stephen ( hu, Szent István rend) was an order of chivalry An order of chivalry, order of knighthood, chivalric order, or equestrian order is an order (distinction), order of knights, typically founded during or inspired by ...

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pflanzer-Baltin, Karl Von 1855 births 1925 deaths People from Pécs Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Austrian generals Commanders Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class Theresian Military Academy alumni