Walther von Lüttwitz

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Walther von Lüttwitz
February 2, 1859 - September 20, 1942
Walther von Lüttwitz
Place of birth	Bodland
Place of death	Breslau
Allegiance	Germany
Battles/wars	Kapp-Lüttwitz Putsch
Awards	Pour le Mérite

Walther von Lüttwitz (February 2, 1859 – September 20, 1942) was a German general known for his involvement in the Kapp-Lüttwitz Putsch.

Lüttwitz was born in Bodland near Kreuzburg in Upper Silesia. During World War I, Lüttwitz held several high military ranks. After the armistice and the German Revolution in 1918, the Rat der Volksbeauftragten, the provisional German government, appointed him commander-in-chief of the Reichswehr, the German military, in Berlin and the vicinity. In this function, he directed the suppression of the Spartakus Uprising by the Freikorps in January 1919.

Like many members of the Reichswehr, Lüttwitz was an outspoken opponent of the Treaty of Versailles. He especially disliked the postulation for a reduction of the army to 100,000 men, for a disbandment of the Freikorps, and the extradition of about 900 members of the Reichswehr, whom the Allies accused of war crimes. He planned to defy these stipulations of the treaty. After defense minister Gustav Noske deposed him from several posts, Lüttwitz decided to act. In the night between March 12 and 13, the Marinebrigade Ehrhardt, which had been under his command and was also supposed to be disbanded, towards the administration neighborhood of Berlin. The coup only lasted a few days, however, as it lacked the support of the old elite and the population. Lüttwitz, who acted as defense minister of the coup government, fled on March 17. He then spent some time in Hungary; he returned after an amnesty to Germany in 1925. He died in Breslau in 1942.

His son, Smilo Freiherr von Lüttwitz, was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords in World War II. He served in the Prussian Army during World War I, the Reichswehr, the Wehrmacht during World War II and the Bundeswehr.

[edit] References

This article incorporates text translated from the corresponding German Wikipedia article as of June 19, 2006.
Berger, Florian, Mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern. Die höchstdekorierten Soldaten des Zweiten Weltkrieges. Selbstverlag Florian Berger, 2006. ISBN 3-9501307-0-5.