Heinrich Schëuch

Heinrich Schëuch

Heinrich Schëuch (born June 21, 1864 in Schlettstadt , † September 3, 1946 in Bad Kissingen ) was a German infantry general and from October 9, 1918 to January 2, 1919 Prussian Minister of War . He was one of the few Alsatians who achieved a higher military rank in the German Empire .

Life

origin

His father (1820–1888) worked as a higher regional judge in Colmar and lived on his estate in Herlisheim until his death . His mother Emilie Graeff was born in Schlettstadt in 1831 and died in Herlisheim in 1879.

Military career

Schëuch attended the Lyceum in Colmar and the cadet school . Subsequently, on April 15, 1882, he was referred to the 4th Baden Infantry Regiment "Prince Wilhelm" No. 112 of the Prussian Army in Colmar as a characterized ensign . After he had received the patent for his rank on November 16, 1882 , he was promoted to second lieutenant on October 17, 1883 . From August 30, 1889, he acted as an adjutant of the 4th battalion and was then transferred to the 7th Baden Infantry Regiment No. 142 on April 1, 1890 , where he was used as an adjutant of the 1st battalion. In this capacity, Schëuch became Premier Lieutenant on July 28, 1892 and attended the War Academy from October 1, 1892 to September 30, 1893 . He was then a regimental adjutant until September 11, 1895. This was followed by his further employment as an adjutant of the 58th Infantry Brigade . While remaining in this command and at the same time being promoted to captain , Schëuch was transferred to the 2nd Upper Rhine Infantry Regiment No. 99 on January 27, 1897 . In mid-November 1897 he was sent to the War Ministry in Berlin. With his appointment as adjutant to the director of the military and economic department, Schëuch served in the war ministry until June 15, 1900. He then resigned and became company commander in the 7th Rhenish Infantry Regiment No. 69 . On March 22, 1902, he was reassigned to the War Ministry and a month later he was transferred here. Schëuch served as budget adviser in the army department until October 17, 1908 and was promoted to major on August 18, 1903 . Another troop command took place as commander of the 1st Battalion in the 4th Guards Regiment on foot . On July 7, 1913, he was charged with running the business as director of the Central Department in the War Ministry. From July 21, 1913, Schëuch was also deputy authorized representative to the Federal Council.

At the beginning of the First World War , Schëuch was appointed head of the mobile staff of the Minister of War Erich von Falkenhayn on August 2, 1914 and also held the position of director of the General War Department . On August 8, there was a meeting with Walther Rathenau , who proposed the establishment of a war raw materials department , which Schëuch immediately implemented.

After Schëuch had been promoted to major general on January 27, 1916 , he took over command of the 29th Infantry Brigade on May 11, 1916 and led it among others. a. in the battle of the Somme . He gave up command of the brigade on January 12, 1917 and was appointed commander of the 33rd Division . In this role he took part in the battles in the Argonne and the double battle Aisne-Champagne . After arguments about the war profits and their skimming off, the head of the War Office Lieutenant General Wilhelm Groener had to vacate his post on August 15, 1917 and was replaced by Schëuch. Schëuch had to accept significant losses in the competencies of the war office and exercise his office under the conditions of an ever worsening war situation. On April 6, 1917, the United States of America declared war on the German Empire. For his services, Wilhelm II awarded him the order Pour le Mérite on April 8, 1918 . The high point of his military career was his appointment on October 9, 1918 as Prussian Minister of War in which he was basically only able to act as the administrator of a lost war. In addition, from October 13, 1917, he was also the Prussian representative in the Federal Council . On November 9, 1918, the revolution broke out in Germany and the armistice was signed on November 11 in the railroad car in the Compiègne forest. Schëuch submitted his resignation as Prussian Minister of War on December 15, 1918. On January 2, 1919, his resignation was granted, leaving the statutory pension .

On August 27, 1939, the so-called Tannenberg Day, Schëuch was given the character of General of the Infantry.

literature

• Hanns Möller: History of the knights of the order pour le mérite in the world war. Volume II: MZ. Verlag Bernard & Graefe, Berlin 1935, pp. 256-257.
• Karl-Friedrich Hildebrand, Christian Zweng: The knights of the order Pour le Mérite of the First World War. Volume 3: PZ. Biblio Verlag, Bissendorf 2011, ISBN 3-7648-2586-3 , pp. 206-208.
• Herrmann AL Degener : Who is it? Berlin 1935.
• Dieter Martinetz: The gas war 1914-1918 . Bonn 1996.

Web links

• Works by and about Heinrich Schëuch  in the German Digital Library

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Stefan Fisch : Alsace in the German Empire (1870 / 71-1918). P. 145, in: Michael Erbe : Das Alsace. Historical landscape through the ages. Stuttgart 2002, pp. 123-146.
2. ↑ Walther Rathenau: The organization of the distribution of raw materials. Lecture given in the Deutsche Gesellschaft 1914 on December 20, 1915. Shorthand by H. Geitner. Printed in manuscript form.
3. ^ Markus Pöhlmann : War Office. In: Encyclopedia First World War. Gerhard Hirschfeld, Gerd Krumeich, Irina Renz (eds.), Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn 2003, ISBN 3-506-73913-1 , p. 627.
4. ^ Markus Pöhlmann: War Office. In: Encyclopedia First World War. Gerhard Hirschfeld, Gerd Krumeich, Irina Renz (eds.). Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn 2003, ISBN 3-506-73913-1 , p. 627.
5. ↑ Karl-Friedrich Hildebrand, Christian Zweng: The knights of the order Pour le Mérite of the First World War. Volume 3: PZ. Biblio Verlag, Bissendorf 2011, ISBN 3-7648-2586-3 , p. 207.