Prince Leopold of Bavaria (Leopold Maximilian Joseph Maria Arnulf; 9 February 1846 – 28 September 1930) 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 ...

, the son of Prince Regent Luitpold of Bavaria (1821–1912) and his wife Archduchess Augusta of Austria (1825–1864). He was a Field Marshal (''

Generalfeldmarschall ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; en, general field marshal, field marshal general, or field marshal; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several ...

'') who commanded German and Austro-Hungarian forces on the Eastern Front in

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, ...

Biography

Military career

Prince Leopold entered the

Bavarian Army The Bavarian Army was the army of the Electorate (1682–1806) and then Kingdom (1806–1919) of Bavaria. It existed from 1682 as the standing army of Bavaria until the merger of the military sovereignty (''Wehrhoheit'') of Bavaria into that of ...

at the age of 15, and received his patent as a lieutenant dated 28 November 1861. He saw first combat during the

Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...

in 1866, where he commanded an

artillery battery In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit or multiple systems of artillery, mortar systems, rocket artillery, multiple rocket launchers, surface-to-surface missiles, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, etc., so grouped to fac ...

at Kissingen and Rossbrunn. In 1870, King Ludwig II of Bavaria sent Leopold to the battlefields of France, where the Bavarian Army was fighting alongside the Prussian Army in the Franco-Prussian War. He served with the 3rd Bavarian Artillery Regiment and saw action at Sedan and Beauvert. He was promoted to major in December 1870.Bavarian War Ministry, ''Militär-Handbuch des Königreichs Bayern'', 1914 For his bravery against the enemy he received both the

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 es ...

1st and 2nd Classes, the Bavarian Military Merit Order Knight 1st Class, the Knight's Cross of the Military Order of Max Joseph, Bavaria's highest military decoration, and decorations from several other German states. In the post-war years, Prince Leopold spent most of his time travelling, visiting Africa, Asia and countries of Europe. He was married on 20 April 1873 at

Vienna Vienna ( ; german: Wien ; bar, Wean, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian ) is the Capital city, capital, largest city, and one of States of Austria, nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's List of cities and towns in Austria, most populou ...

to his second cousin

Archduchess Gisela of Austria Archduchess Gisela Louise Marie of Austria (12 July 1856 – 27 July 1932) was the second daughter and eldest surviving child of Emperor Franz Joseph I and Empress Elisabeth of Austria. Although christened ''Gisella'', she only ever wrot ...

, daughter of Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria and the Empress Elisabeth. From 1881 to 1887 Leopold was the commander of the 1st Royal Bavarian Division, from 1887 to 1892 of the I Royal Bavarian Corps. In both commands he would be succeeded by his younger brother, Prince Arnulf of Bavaria. In 1892 Leopold became the inspector general of the 4th Army Inspection, replacing Leonhard Graf von Blumenthal. After his appointment, the 4th Army Inspection gradually became consistent of Bavarian corps. He remained in the Bavarian Army and was finally promoted to the rank of

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered a ...

(''

'') on 1 January 1905. In 1911 he ordered a 6m racing yacht "Ralle II" from the great British yacht designer Alfred Mylne, built at the Rambeck yard on Lake Starnberg. He retired from active duty in 1913 to give chances to

Rupprecht, Crown Prince of Bavaria Rupprecht, Crown Prince of Bavaria, Duke of Bavaria, Franconia and in Swabia, Count Palatine by (the) Rhine (''Rupprecht Maria Luitpold Ferdinand''; English: ''Robert Maria Leopold Ferdinand''; 18 May 1869 – 2 August 1955), was the last hei ...

First World War

Prince Leopold's retirement, however, did not last long. On 16 April 1915, he was given command of the German 9th Army, replacing General August von Mackensen. Leopold quickly proved himself an able commander as he took

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-cen ...

on 4 August 1915. Following this success, he was put in command of Army Group Prince Leopold of Bavaria (''Heeresgruppe Prinz Leopold von Bayern''), which was a German force in the central/northern sector of the Eastern Front. He was awarded the Grand Cross of the Military Order of Max Joseph on 5 August 1915, the prestigious ''

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 ...

'', Prussia's highest military decoration, on 9 August 1915 and the oak leaves to the Pour le Mérite on 25 July 1917. Le prince Leopold de Bavière signe l'armistice

Le prince Leopold de Bavière signe l'armistice

On 29 August 1916, after the brutal summer campaigns succeeded in reversing the Brusilov Offensive against the Austrians, Leopold became the Supreme Commander of the German forces on the Eastern front ( ''Oberbefehlshaber Ost''), succeeding Field Marshal

Paul von Hindenburg Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (; abbreviated ; 2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German field marshal and statesman who led the Imperial German Army during World War I and later became President of Germany fr ...

. Leopold held this post for the rest of the war. Because of his position, Leopold was a potential German candidate for the throne of the puppet

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to: Historical political entities *Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031 *Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exist ...

. On 4 March 1918, Leopold received yet another high honor, the

Grand Cross of the Iron Cross The Grand Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Großkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) was a decoration intended for victorious generals of the Prussian Army and its allies. It was the second highest class of the Iron Cross, following the Star of the Grand ...

, awarded only five times during World War I. Prince Leopold retired again in 1918 after the signing of the

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (also known as the Treaty of Brest in Russia) was a separate peace treaty signed on 3 March 1918 between Russia and the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire), that ended Russia's ...

, which had ended the war on the Eastern Front. This treaty was highly favorable to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

, and Leopold ended his career with success. He died on 28 September 1930 in

and is buried in the Colombarium in the Michaelskirche in

Military ranks

* Sekondlieutenant: 28 November 1861 * Premierlieutenant: 5 June 1864 *

Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian, and Swiss armies. While in contemporary German means 'main', it also has and originally had the meaning of 'head', i.e. ' litera ...

: 28 April 1867 *

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 ...

: 11 December 1870 *

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 ...

: 27 March 1871 *

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 Sw ...

: 18 February 1873 *

Generalmajor is the Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central and Northern European countries. Austria Belgium Denmark is the second lowest general officer rank in the Royal Danish Army and Royal Danish Air Force. As a two-st ...

: 1 November 1875 *

Generalleutnant is the Germanic variant of lieutenant general, used in some German speaking countries. Austria Generalleutnant is the second highest general officer rank in the Austrian Armed Forces (''Bundesheer''), roughly equivalent to the NATO rank of O ...

: 16 June 1881 *

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OE ...

der Kavallerie: 2 March 1887 *

Generaloberst A ("colonel general") was the second-highest general officer rank in the German ''Reichswehr'' and ''Wehrmacht'', the Austro-Hungarian Common Army, the East German National People's Army and in their respective police services. The rank was ...

: 9 February 1896 *

: 1 January 1905

Family

Prince Leopold and his wife Gisela had four children: * Princess Elisabeth Marie of Bavaria (1874–1957), who married Otto Ludwig Philipp Graf von Seefried auf Buttenheim * Princess Auguste Maria of Bavaria (1875–1964), who married Archduke Joseph August of Austria * Prince Georg of Bavaria (1880–1943), married Archduchess Isabella of Austria * Prince Konrad of Bavaria (1883–1969), who married Princess Bona Margherita of Savoy-Genoa

Greek succession

Leopold is also, according to the provisions of the Greek Constitution of 1844, the heir of the deposed King

Otto of Greece Otto (, ; 1 June 181526 July 1867) was a Bavarian prince who ruled as King of Greece from the establishment of the monarchy on 27 May 1832, under the Convention of London, until he was deposed on 23 October 1862. The second son of King Lud ...

. Due to the renunciation by his elder brother Ludwig of all his rights to the Greek succession and since the Greek Constitution forbade the sovereign to be ruler of another country (Ludwig became King of Bavaria), Leopold technically succeeded upon his brother's renunciation to the rights of the deposed Otto I, King of Greece. At Leopold's death his rights were inherited by his son Georg.

Decorations and honors

;German decorations Other countries The orders above which were from Allied nations were awarded prior to World War I.Decorations as of 1914 from the Bavarian War Ministry, ''Militär-Handbuch des Königreichs Bayern'', 1914. World War I decorations from award rolls, Erhard Roth, ''Verleihungen von militärischen Orden und Ehrenzeichen des Königreichs Bayern im Ersten Weltkrieg'', 1997 (), and Ferry W. von Péter, ''Verleihungen nichtbayerischer Orden und Ehrenzeichen an bayerischer Militärangehörige 1914-1918'', 2001 ()

Ancestry

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leopold Of Bavaria 1846 births 1930 deaths People of the Austro-Prussian War German military personnel of the Franco-Prussian War German Army generals of World War I Field marshals of Bavaria Field marshals of the German Empire Princes of Bavaria House of Wittelsbach Members of the Bavarian Reichsrat People from the Kingdom of Bavaria Treaty of Brest-Litovsk negotiators Recipients of the Iron Cross (1870) Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class Recipients of the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) Knights of the Golden Fleece of Austria Grand Crosses of the Military Order of Maria Theresa Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Grand Crosses of the Military Order of Max Joseph Recipients of the Gold Imtiyaz Medal Grand Crosses of the Order of the Star of Romania Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Takovo Recipients of the Military Merit Cross (Mecklenburg-Schwerin), 1st class Annulled Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Grand Crosses of the Military Merit Order (Bavaria) Recipients of the Military Merit Cross (Mecklenburg-Schwerin) Recipients of the Hanseatic Cross (Bremen) Recipients of the Hanseatic Cross (Lübeck) Burials at St. Michael's Church, Munich Military personnel from Munich