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Philipp von
Hellingrath
(22.02.1862 - 13.12.1939)
place of birth: München, Bayern (Munich, Bavaria)
Königreich
Bayern: Kriegsminister, Mil-Bevollm, General der Kavallerie
Bavarian
cavalry officer who served as War Minister during the latter
half of the Great War. Philipp was born
into the home of Bavarian Lieutenant General Friedrich von Hellingrath
and his spouse Luise von Brand zu Neidstein. He began his cavalary
career in Munich at the age of eighteen, joining the 1st Heavy Rider
Regiment named after Prince Karl of Bavaria. Sixteen years later,
von Hellingrath married Mathilde Reisner Freiin von Lichternstern, with
whom he had one son and one daughter.
In
the months leading up to the Great War, von Hellingrath had been
promoted up to the general's rank and was commanding the Sixth Imperial
Bavarian Cavalry Brigade headquartered in Regensburg. On the day the war broke
out, Generalmajor von Hellingrath was appointed to command the Crown Prince
Rupprecht's Sixth Army communications inspectorate. About three months later, he
was promoted to Generalleutnant and sent as Bavarian plenipotentiary to Wilhelm
II's Great Headquarters, located at Charleville-Mezieres. By March 1915, von
Hellingrath was sent to the Eastern Front to replace Otto von Stetten as
commander of the Bavarian Cavalry Division. He remained in this position for the
next couple years, proving himself to be one of Germany's ablest cavalry
commanders during the war. For his bravery and meritorious leadership in battle, he was awarded the Ritterkreuz (Knight's Cross) of
Bavaria's highest military order - the Militär-Max-Joseph-Orden. He
was officially presented with the decoration on 21.03.1916 and later received the Kommandeur
class of the order.
Following
General von Hellingrath's exemplary service on the front, he was ordered
back to Munich to replace Otto Kreß von Kressenstein as Bavarian
Minister of War. He remained at this posting for the remainder of the
Great War, also serving as Bavarian Representative in Imperial
Germany's Parliament. Although Hellingrath is registered as a Generalleutnant in
the April 1918 edition of the Bavarian Seniority List, he was promoted to
General der Kavallerie the following month. He retired from service shortly after the war
and died in Munich on 13 December 1939.
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Kriegsminister |
11.12.1916
- 25.11.1918 |
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General
der Kavallerie |
28.05.1918 |
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Militär-Max-Joseph |
27.04.1915 Ritter (18.08.1916:
Kommandeur) |
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