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Ludwig Kübler (2 September 1889 – 18 August 1947) was a German '' General der Gebirgstruppe'' (Lieutenant General) who commanded the 1st Mountain Division, XXXXIX Mountain Corps, 4th Army and the Operational Zone of the Adriatic Littoral during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. He was awarded the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. While it was order of precedence, lower in preceden ...
for his actions commanding the 1st Mountain Division during the
invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...
in 1939. He also commanded the division during the invasion of France and the Low Countries before being appointed to command XXXXIX Mountain Corps. During his command of this corps it was involved in the invasion of Yugoslavia and the attack on the Soviet Union. In December 1941 he was appointed to command the 4th Army, but was dismissed from this post in January of the following year, and placed in the '' Führerreserve des Heeres'' (senior officer reserve pool). In September 1943 he was appointed as the commanding general of security troops for
Army Group Centre Army Group Centre () was the name of two distinct strategic German Army Groups that fought on the Eastern Front in World War II. The first Army Group Centre was created during the planning of Operation Barbarossa, Germany's invasion of the So ...
on the Eastern Front, but the following month he was appointed to command the Operational Zone of the Adriatic Littoral, based at
Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...
on the northern Adriatic coast. After being captured by Yugoslav forces at the end of the war, he was tried and executed for war crimes.


Early life

Kübler was born on 2 September 1889, in the village of Hopferau near
Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
in the
Kingdom of Bavaria The Kingdom of Bavaria ( ; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1806 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German Empire in 1871, the kingd ...
. His father was the physician Wilhelm Kübler and he had six brothers and two sisters. In 1895 he enrolled in elementary school in Forstenried which he left after three years, he then attended the Gymnasium in Rosenheim and the humanist Ludwig Gymnasium in
Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
. He graduated in 1908 with top grades and turned down a place at the prestigious Maximilianeum for a career in the military. On 20 July 1908, he joined the 15th Royal Bavarian Infantry Regiment "King Friedrich August of Saxony" as a cadet. At the time, the regiment was garrisoned at
Neuburg an der Donau Neuburg an der Donau (Central Bavarian: ''Neiburg an da Donau'') is a town which is the capital of the Neuburg-Schrobenhausen district in the state of Bavaria in Germany. Divisions The municipality has 16 divisions: * Altmannstetten * Bergen, N ...
. On 26 October of that year, he was appointed as a '' Fahnenjunker-
Unteroffizier () is a junior non-commissioned officer rank used by the . It is also the collective name for all non-commissioned officers in Austria and Germany. It was formerly a rank in the Imperial Russian Army. Austria , also , is the collective name to ...
'' (cadet non-commissioned officer). From 1 October 1909 until 14 October 1910 he attended the War School () in Munich, at which he was placed fifth out of 166 students in his year. On 23 October 1910, he was commissioned as a '' Leutnant''. On 15 January 1913 he was posted to the machine gun company of the 3rd Royal Bavarian Infantry Regiment "Prince Karl of Bavaria", then conducted riding training with the 4th Royal Bavarian Chevaulegers Regiment. He spent February and March 1913 conducting machine gun training courses in the field, before taking command of the machine gun company of the 15th Royal Bavarian Infantry Regiment on 1 April.


World War I and the interwar period

At the beginning of World War I, Kübler was serving with 15th Bavarian Infantry Regiment, on the Western Front. He was involved in September 1914 fighting in
Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...
and around St Quentin as commander of a machine gun platoon. On 16 September he was awarded the
Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...
2nd class. On 21 September he was appointed as the regimental
adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), 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 ...
. On 24 September a serious injury from shell splinters left a conspicuous large scar on his face. Although the injury had not completely healed he returned on 13 January 1915 to his regiment, which took part in the
Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...
. While recuperating, on 17 November he was awarded the Iron Cross 1st class. On 9 July 1915 he was promoted to ''
Oberleutnant (English: First Lieutenant) is a senior lieutenant Officer (armed forces), officer rank in the German (language), German-speaking armed forces of Germany (Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the Swiss Armed Forces. In Austria, ''Oberle ...
'', and on 18 August 1918 he was promoted to the rank of ''
Hauptmann () is an officer rank in the armies of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. It is usually translated as ''captain''. Background While in contemporary German means 'main', it also has, and originally had, the meaning of 'head', i.e. ' literall ...
''. After the war he was retained in the
Reichswehr ''Reichswehr'' (; ) was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first two years of Nazi Germany. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshaped ...
. He was then a staff officer in the Army Department (T1) of
Truppenamt The ''Truppenamt'' () was the cover organisation for the German General Staff from 1919 through until 1935 when the General Staff of the German Army (''Heer'') was re-created. This subterfuge was deemed necessary in order for Germany to be seen ...
for a few years. From 1925–1926 he was at the General Staff of Group Command 1 in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
. He was promoted to the rank of ''
Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...
'' on 1 August 1928, and ''
Oberstleutnant () (English: Lieutenant Colonel) 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, ...
'' on 1 April 1932. On 1 November 1933 he was appointed as the
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 supportin ...
of the 7th Division based in
Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
, and after transferring to the newly created
Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...
, he was promoted to the rank of ''
Oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German language, German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Colonel. It is currently used by both the Army, ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, a ...
'' on 1 July 1934. This was followed by his appointment on 1 October 1934 as the chief of staff of ''Wehrkreis'' VII, the Bavarian military district centred on Munich. He was promoted to ''
Generalmajor is the Germanic languages, Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central Europe, Central and Northern European countries. Austria Belgium Denmark is the second lowest general officer rank in the Royal Danish Army and R ...
'' on 1 January 1938, and exactly three months later was appointed to command the 1st Mountain Division. The 1st Mountain Division was raised from ''Wehrkreis'' VII, with its garrison centred on
Garmisch-Partenkirchen Garmisch-Partenkirchen (; ) is an Northern Limestone Alps, Alpine mountain resort, ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the seat of government of the Garmisch-Partenkirchen (district), district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (abbreviated ...
. It was recruited from Bavarians, with some Austrians included, and was formed on 9 April 1938. Considerably stronger than most German divisions, it had three mountain infantry regiments rather than two.


Second World War

At the start of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Kübler's division was involved in the
invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...
as part of the 14th Army, commencing on 1 September 1939. It fought in the
Carpathian Mountains The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe and Southeast Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Ural Mountains, Urals at and the Scandinav ...
, distinguishing itself during the capture of the Dukla Pass. On 27 October, Kübler was awarded the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. While it was order of precedence, lower in preceden ...
for his role in the Polish campaign. Then on 1 December 1939 he was promoted to ''
Generalleutnant () is the German-language 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 ...
''. During the invasion of France and the Low Countries in May 1940, Kübler's division was not heavily committed, fighting on the Franco-Belgian border and crossing the Maas on 15 May. The division was stationed around
Arras Arras ( , ; ; historical ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the Artois region, with a ...
after the fall of France, as it had been selected to form part of the invasion force for Operation Sealion, the invasion of the United Kingdom. After that operation was postponed, on 25 October 1940 Kübler was appointed to command the XXXXIX Mountain Corps, which included the 1st Mountain Division. His corps was earmarked for Operation Felix, the planned capture of
Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...
, but that operation was also called off. Due to the disfigurement caused by the wounds he suffered during World War I, Kübler became known to his troops as "Limping Nurmi", a reference to the Finnish long-distance runner
Paavo Nurmi Paavo Johannes Nurmi (; 13 June 1897 – 2 October 1973) was a Finland, Finnish middle-distance running, middle-distance and long-distance running, long-distance runner. He was called the "Flying Finn" because he dominated distance running in th ...
. In April 1941, Kübler's XXXXIX Mountain Corps was allocated to the 2nd Army for the German-led
Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...
invasion of Yugoslavia, and assembled near Klagenfurt prior to the commencement of the invasion on 6 April. By this time, Kübler had been promoted to '' General der Infanterie''. For the
Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...
attack on the Soviet Union that commenced in 22 June 1941, Kübler's corps was allocated to the 17th Army, itself part of Army Group South. Kübler's rank was redesignated from ''General der Infanterie'' to '' General der Gebirgstruppe''. On 19 December 1941, Kübler was appointed commander of the 4th Army. This occurred during the desperate winter defensive fighting when
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...
would not countenance any withdrawals. Kübler found Hitler's approach "intolerable" and sought relief. On 20 January 1942 he was transferred to the Army '' Führerreserve'' (senior officer reserve pool). From 22 July and 1 October 1943, Kübler was acting commander of the Army Group Centre Rear Area, responsible for security warfare in the territories behind
Army Group Centre Army Group Centre () was the name of two distinct strategic German Army Groups that fought on the Eastern Front in World War II. The first Army Group Centre was created during the planning of Operation Barbarossa, Germany's invasion of the So ...
. On 1 October he was appointed to command the Operational Zone of the Adriatic Littoral (OZAK), based in
Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...
on the northern Adriatic coast. On 28 August 1944, LXXXXVII Army Corps was formed to command all German Army elements in OZAK, and Kübler was appointed as its commander. Shortly before the end of the war he was wounded and captured in Yugoslavia, tried for war crimes and executed after the war. Along with his successor ''Generalleutant'' Hans von Hößlin he was sentenced to death in 1947 by a Yugoslav court. He was hanged in
Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...
on 18 August 1947, like his younger brother, ''Generalleutnant'' Josef Kübler, who was hanged in
Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...
on 26 February 1947. Kübler was considered a "superb soldier" but a hard taskmaster. In 1964, the
German Army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...
barracks in Mittenwald, Bavaria were named after Kübler. In November 1995, Volker Rühe, then the German Minister of Defence, changed the name of the barracks from "General-Kübler-Kaserne" to "Karwendel-Kaserne".


Awards

*
Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...
(1914) 2nd Class (16 September 1914) & 1st Class (17 November 1914) *
Wound Badge The Wound Badge () was a German military decoration first promulgated by Wilhelm II, German Emperor on 3 March 1918, which was first awarded to soldiers of the Imperial German Army, German Army who were wounded during World War I. Between the worl ...
(1914) in Black (7 June 1918) * Military Merit Order, 4th class with Swords and Crown (Bavaria) * Saxon Knight's Cross, 2nd Class of the
Albert Order The Albert Order () was created on 31 December 1850 by King Frederick Augustus II of Saxony to commemorate Albert III, Duke of Saxony (known as Albert the Bold). It was to be awarded to anyone who had served the state well, for civil virtue, s ...
with Swords (12 May 1916) * Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (15 December 1934) *
Wehrmacht Long Service Award The Wehrmacht Long Service Award () was a List of military decorations of the Third Reich, military service decoration of Nazi Germany issued for satisfactory completion of a number of years in military service. History On 16 March 1936, Adolf ...
, 4th to 1st Class * Anschluss Medal (21 November 1938) * Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (15 September 1939) & 1st Class (20 September 1939) * Eastern Front Medal (23 August 1942) *
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. While it was order of precedence, lower in preceden ...
on 27 October 1939 as Generalmajor and commander of 1. Gebirgs-Division


Footnotes


References


Books

* * * * * * * * * * * *


Websites

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kubler, Ludwig 1889 births 1947 deaths Military personnel from Munich Military personnel from the Kingdom of Bavaria Generals of Mountain Troops German Army personnel of World War I Reichswehr personnel Executed military leaders Executed people from Bavaria Nazis executed by Yugoslavia by hanging Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class People from Ostallgäu German people convicted of war crimes