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Leopold Maximilian Joseph Maria Arnulf
Prinz von Bayern K.H.
(09.02.1846 - 28.09.1930)
place of birth: München,
Bayern (Bavaria)
Königreich
Bayern: Prinz, OBH, Generalfeldmarschall
(Kav)
Prince of Bavaria and Field
Marshal who was the son of Regent Prince Luitpold of the Royal House of
Wittelsbach and his wife Archduchess Augusta of Austria. Leopold's wife
was Archduchess Gisela which thus made him the son-in-law of Kaiser
Franz Josef of Austria. As a Bavarian artillery officer, he fought
against the Prussians in 1866. He joined forces with the Prussians in
1870,
however, to defeat the French at Sedan. He also
received Bavaria's highest military decoration, The Knight'sCross
of the Military Order of Max Joseph. Prince Leopold
thereafter remained in the Bavarian Army and after promotion to field
marshal in 1905, he then retired in 1913.
Recalled to command the Ninth Army during
World War One, he lead the capture of Warsaw and
forced the Russians back to Minsk. He was then
called to head up Army Group Prinz Leopold
von Bayern (1915-16), a combined German/Austrian force
deployed to the central part of the Eastern Front. This led to his
receiving the Grand Cross of the Military Order of Max Joseph
and the Pour le Merite. He later
replaced Hindenburg as Supreme Commander of the Eastern Front, a post
he retained until war's end. Leopold's own chief of staff, Max
Hoffmann, described him as "intelligent, but scarcely a star
performer." He was one of only five recipients of the Grand
Cross of the Iron Cross (1918). Leopold was the
uncle of Crown Prince Rupprecht and the younger brother of the Bavarian
King "Crazy Ludwig". He died on 28 September 1930 in Munich and is
buried in the Michelskirche.
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