Konrad Krafft von Dellmensingen
(24.11.1862 - 21.02.1953)
place of birth:  Laufen, Oberbayern  (Upper Bavaria)
Königreich Bayern:  Generalstabschef,  KG,  General der Artillerie


Bavarian General der Artillerie who was Crown Prince Rupprecht's Chief of Staff (Sixth Army) out War's outbreak, and is known as the founding father of the Alpenkorps - the Bavarian Army's mountain troops. Young Konrad grew up in Upper Bavaria as the son of a royal notary. His mother was the former Anna Winkler. He was commissioned as a lieutenant in the Royal Bavarian Army in December 1883, later attending the Bavarian War Academy. During the two years leading up to World War One, Krafft served as the Bavarian Army's Chief of General Staff. For his noteworthy actions in the field, 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 24.08.1916 and later received both the Kommandeur and Grosskreuz class of the MMJO order.

When war broke out, Generalmajor Krafft von Dellmensingen was Crown Prince Rupprecht's Chief of Staff in the Sixth Army, largely comprised of Bavarian soldiers. With the Sixth, he oversaw operations during the Battle of the Frontiers and participated in the so-called Race to the Sea. As an expert on mountain warfare, he was sent to Tyrolia in May 1915 to command the Alpenkorps, an elite mountain unit which saw action in the Italian Front, at Verdun, as well as operations in Serbia and Romania. For his efforts, Krafft was awarded the Pour le Merite. In 1917, appointed Chief of Staff for Army Group Albrecht and then Chief of Staff for Otto von Below's Fourteenth Army, where he planned much of the successful Caporetto Offensive. Krafft von Dellmensingen remained as Below's Chief of Staff in the Seventeenth Army where he was involved Germany's Spring Offensive. In 1918, Krafft was given command of the II. Bavarian Army Corps and remained on the Western Front until the war's end. Although Krafft is registered as a Generalleutnant in the April 1918 edition of the Bavarian Seniority List, he was promoted to General der Artillerie that same month.

After retirement from the military in December 1918, Krafft von Dellmensingen became an active advocate for the return of the Bavarian monarchy. He also participated in the 1920s in the preparation of the official history of the Bavarian Army in the war. In 1937, a barracks complex in Garmisch was named the Krafft-von-Dellmensingen-Kaserne. In 1945, the Kaserne was taken over by the United States Army and today houses part of the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies. Konrad Krafft von Dellmensingen, who with his spouse Helene Zöhrer had three children, died on 21 February 1953 in Seeshaupt, Upper Bavaria.

 
 

Generalstabschef   01.10.1912  -  01.08.1914
General der Artillerie  18.04.1918

Pour le Mérite  07.09.1916  (Eichenlaub: 11.12.1916)

Militär-Max-Joseph  20.08.1914  Ritter  (24.08.1916: Kommandeur; 24.10.1917: Großkreuz)

Württemberg MVO  11.09.1917  Komtur
 
 
 

  
 
Curriculum Vitae
   
06.08.1881 Königlich Bayerisches 4. Feldartillerie-Regiment ,,König - Augsburg 
01.04.1883 Sekonde-Lieutenant
00.00.1888 Militär-Reit-Institut - Hannover  (Military Riding Academy)
00.00.1890 Königlich Bayerisches 4. Feldartillerie-Regiment ,,König- Augsburg
00.10.1891 Bayerische Kriegsakademie -  München  (graduated Sept 1894) 
13.06.1892 Premier-Lieutenant
00.00.1894 Königlich Bayerisches 4. Feldartillerie-Regiment ,,König - Augsburg
21.08.1895 1. Königlich Bayerische Feldartillerie-Brigade - München  (Adjutant)
25.01.1896 Bayerischer Generalstab -  München  
17.03.1897 Hauptmann
27.09.1899 2. Königlich Bayerische Infanterie-Division - Augsburg  (on general staff)
01.10.1902 Bayerischer Generalstab -  München  (Central Section)
01.10.1903 Großer Generalstab - Berlin
22.04.1904 Major
23.02.1906 Königlich Bayerisches 9. Feldartillerie-Regiment - Landsberg  (Bn Cdr)
16.02.1907 Königlich Bayerisches 11. Feldartillerie-Regiment - Würzburg  (Cdr) 
07.07.1907 Oberstleutnant
16.10.1908 Bayerisches Kriegsministerium -  München  (Section Chief) 
19.12.1909 Oberst
25.05.1911 4. Königlich Bayerische Feldartillerie-Brigade - Würzburg  (Cdr)
01.10.1912 Bayerischer Generalstab - München  (Chief of Bavarian General Staff, replaced Oskar Ritter von Xylander)
01.10.1912 Generalmajor
   
Great War
   
02.08.1914 6. Armee  (Crown Prince Rupprecht's Chief of Staff)
19.05.1915 Deutsches Alpenkorps  (Cdr) 
19.05.1915 Generalleutnant
07.03.1917 Heeresgruppe ,,Herzog Albrecht  (Crown Prince Albrecht's Chief of Staff)
09.09.1917 14. Armee  (Otto von Below's Chief of Staff)
01.02.1918 17. Armee  (Otto von Below's Chief of Staff)  
08.04.1918 General der Artillerie
19.04.1918 II. Königlich Bayerisches Armeekorps  (replaced Otto von Stetten)
04.12.1918 zur Disposition gestellt 
00.00.0000 à la suite:  Königlich Bayerisches 11. Feld-Artillerie-Regiment
   
   
 

06.05.1914

 

 

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