Hans Koeppen (officer)

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Hans Friedrich Wilhelm Hugo Koeppen (born July 31, 1876 in Minden ; † July 10, 1948 in Berlin ) was a German officer , most recently Major General of the Air Force in World War II . In 1908 he took part in the first car race around the world.

Life

Prussian Army

Coming from the cadet corps Koeppen joined the infantry regiment "Prince Friedrich of the Netherlands" (2nd Westphalian) No. 15 of the Prussian Army on March 17, 1894 as a second lieutenant . On October 1, 1903, he was commanded for three years for further training at the War Academy , and in March 1907 to the General Staff . There he was adjutant to the Quartermaster General in 1909/10 . He was then transferred to the headquarters of the VIII Army Corps , and from January 1912 he was captain company commander in the Schleswig-Holstein Infantry Regiment No. 163 . From December 1, 1913 he was in staff assignments throughout the First World War , most recently as Chief of Staff . In 1918, as a major , he was still in command of the infantry regiment "Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia" (2nd Magdeburgisches) No. 27 . On April 22, 1918 he received the Knight's Cross of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern with Swords. In the November Revolution he was discharged from active military service with the character as a lieutenant colonel .

Wehrmacht Air Force

One and a half years after the formation of the Wehrmacht, he was reactivated as a lieutenant colonel in the Luftwaffe and served with Luftgau Command IV in Berlin. On July 1, 1938, he was the first general staff officer at Luftgau-Kommando III , where he became chief of staff at the same time as the promotion to colonel on October 1, 1939 after the attack on Poland began . On April 1, 1941, he was transferred to the Führerreserve at the Air Force High Command , and in December 1941 he joined the staff of the Luftwaffe III gas protection school in Berlin-Kladow . Commanded to Paris in 1942 , he returned to the gas protection department in Berlin-Gatow in 1943 . Although not used during World War II, chemical weapons were the most dangerous threat to airfields . After a four-week illness, Koeppen was put up for disposition with Flieger Ersatz-Bataillon III on January 4, 1944 , promoted to major general on April 1, and said goodbye at the end of the month.

Big race

Protos racing car
Koeppen in the driver's seat before the race

As a first lieutenant he took part in the first touring car rally around the world, which started on February 12, 1908 in New York. Of the participating six vehicles reached Koeppen with his automobile brand Protos after crossing the United States of America and Siberia on 26 July 1908 as the first driver Paris. The American race management deprived him of his victory because he had transported his car by train in between. However, he had done this with the approval of the French, who also saw themselves as race director, in retrospect he was credited with 15 days for the deficit that had been made up - and he had only reached Paris with a three-day lead. The American George Schuster became the winner of the first race around the world. Today you can admire Koeppens Protos in the Deutsches Museum .

Hollywood filmed the material as The Great Race around the world (in the original title The Great Race ) as an adventure comedy. The filmmakers Andreas Dirr and Wolfgang Ettlich went a hundred years later for the documentary Has the Motor Has a Soul? - From New York to Paris in 1908 on a trip around the world, following Koeppen's notes.

Works

  • Around the world in a car. Berlin 1909.
  • Adventurous world trip. German victory in the first car race around the world. Revised by Josef Viera, Braunschweig, Berlin, Hamburg 1935.

literature

  • The longest car race of all time. in: PM History Issue 12/2014, pp. 72–78

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Alfred Cramer : Officer history of the infantry regiment Prince Friedrich of the Netherlands (2nd Westphalian) No. 15. JCC Bruns, Minden 1897, p. 340.
  2. ↑ Koeppen in Paris, portrait photography (huesken.com)
personal data
SURNAME Koeppen, Hans
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Koeppen, Hans Friedrich Wilhelm Hugo (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German officer, most recently Major General of the Air Force in World War II
DATE OF BIRTH July 31, 1876
PLACE OF BIRTH Minden
DATE OF DEATH July 10, 1948
Place of death Berlin