Theodor Sproesser

Theodor Sproesser (1870–1933)

Theodor Sproesser (born September 10, 1870 in Weingarten , † February 8, 1933 in Stuttgart ) was a German major general in the Reichswehr .

Life

origin

He was a son of Major General Theodor von Sprösser (1836–1907) from Württemberg . The grandfather Carl Wilhelm Sprösser (1791–1872) was a Württemberg major in the honorary invalid corps .

His aunt Marie Luise Friederike, née Sprösser (1838–1929), had been married to the Stuttgart factory owner Johann Karl Klotz (1835–1909), a chemist and director of the Siegle paint factory , since 1861 . Their daughter again, Marianne, born Klotz (1867-1940) was, since 1888, with the later Adjutant General of Württemberg King Wilhelm II. , Fritz von Graevenitz , married (1861-1922).

Military career

Sproesser came after visiting the main military academy in large light field with the character as an ensign on 23 March 1889 in the Grenadier Regiment "King Charles" no. 123 of the Württemberg army one. From 1890 to 1899 he served in the Grenadier Regiment "Queen Olga" No. 119 and was promoted to second lieutenant on September 28, 1890 with a patent from September 20, 1890 , and on July 20, 1898 to prime lieutenant. On March 18, 1899, he was transferred to the 10th Württemberg Infantry Regiment No. 180 . At the beginning of July 1901, Sproesser was transferred to the East Asian Occupation Brigade in China on the occasion of the suppression of the Boxer Rebellion . Here he initially served with the staff of the 2nd East Asian Infantry Regiment , then was MG officer of the embassy protection guard in Beijing and from December 16, 1902 leader of the MG company of the 2nd East Asian Infantry Regiment. In the middle of September 1904 Sproesser returned to Württemberg and was used until January 26, 1906 in the Grenadier Regiment "King Karl" No. 123. He was then promoted to captain in the infantry regiment "Kaiser Friedrich, König von Preußen" (7th Württembergisches) No. 125 , and was promoted to company commander here in April of the same year .

First World War

With the outbreak of the First World War , Sproesser came into the field as head of the MG company with his regiment, was promoted to major on August 19, 1914 and at the same time appointed commander of the 2nd battalion. In the subsequent Battle of Longwy , Sproesser was wounded by shrapnel on August 23, 1914 . After its restoration at the end of September 1914, he was involved with his battalion in the further fighting in association with the 26th Infantry Division on the western front and moved to the eastern front with the large unit in November 1914 . Here he was used in the battles on the Bzura and Pilica , was in positional battles in front of Przasnysz and took part in the Narew offensive . On July 20, 1915, his battalion managed to take the key position of the Różan fortress by storming hill 132 . At the end of August 1915, Sproesser fell from his horse and came home to relax. After his recovery there he was appointed commander of the mountain battalion , consisting of six mountain rifle companies with six mountain machine-gun platoons . After intensive briefing and training at the Münsingen military training area , the battalion was deployed on January 1, 1916 in the Vosges at Hilsenfirst and was able to prove itself. In October 1916 moved Sproesser with his battalion to the Balkans and took the on the extreme right wing of the 9th Army on campaign against Romania in part. During the German offensive it took part in the battle of Rimnicul-Sarat , subordinate to the German Alpine Corps . In February 1917, the battalion returned to the Vosges, west of Colmar , and returned to Romania in late July 1917. This time subordinate to the Gerok group, it was in heavy fighting for the mountain exits of the Vltava. In August, his troops were able to take the 788 m high Deal Cosna and defend it against attempts at recapture several times. However, his attempt to break through into the Trotuș Valley failed due to lack of support.

In October, now on the Italian front , Sproesser's battalion was deployed as the right wing of the Alpine Corps during the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo in the Julian Alps . It conquered the Kolovrat Ridge and the Monte Matajur . Later, on November 9th, it was possible to take the Vajont gorge and reach Longarone on the Piave . Around 10,000 Italian soldiers surrendered in front of the battalion. For these achievements, Sproesser was awarded the highest Prussian bravery award, the Order Pour le Mérite , on December 10, 1917 .

Sproesser and his battalion were relocated to Gebweiler in Upper Alsace in February 1918 and expanded to become a mountain regiment with two battalions by May 3. After short battles on the Hartmannswillerkopf , Spoesser, now regimental commander, was deployed in May in the attack battle near Soissons and Reims in the attack on the Chemin des Dames . Despite heavy losses, around 1,000 prisoners were brought in and several machine guns and thirty guns were captured. Sproesser himself was badly wounded by shrapnel and his left hand was shattered. These wounds should never completely heal.

After the First World War

He experienced the end of the war in the hospital, where Sproesser fell ill with a wound rose . After his recovery, he served on 10 January 1919 as commander of the First Battalion of in the demobilization Grenadier Regiment located "Queen Olga" Nr. 119. In late April, he served in the War Department , was established in June 1919 in the Provisional Reichswehr adopted and assigned to the staff of the Reichswehr Rifle Regiment 25. With the formation of the Reichswehr promoted to lieutenant colonel, Sproesser was transferred to the staff of the newly formed 13th Infantry Regiment . After he had been promoted to colonel on February 1, 1922 , Sproesser was appointed commandant of Glatz Fortress on October 1, 1923 . He resigned this position on March 31, 1925 and was retired on this date, while at the same time being given the status of major general.

In retirement, Sproesser published several newspaper articles as well as two military-historical works in which he emphasized the achievements of the Württemberg Mountain Battalion he led during the First World War.

Works

• The 12th Battle of the Isonzo. Max Höflinger, Stuttgart-Cannstatt 1926.
• Württemberg hunters. Festschrift for the 2nd state meeting of the former Württemberg mountain riflemen in Isny ​​on October 1, 1922. With the participation of the Württemberg Lieutenant General Karl von Muff . Max Höflinger, Stuttgart 1922.
• The history of the Württemberg mountain riflemen . Belser, Stuttgart 1933. (Volume 49 in the series The Württemberg Regiments in World War I , digital: urn : nbn: de: bsz: 24-digibib-bsz4080514858 )

literature

• Hanns Möller: History of the knights of the order pour le mérite in the world war. Volume II: M-Z. Bernard & Graefe publishing house, Berlin 1935, pp. 350–353.
• Karl-Friedrich Hildebrand, Christian Zweng: The knights of the order Pour le Mérite of the First World War. Volume 3: P-Z. Biblio Verlag, Bissendorf 2011, ISBN 978-3-7648-2586-7 , pp. 334-335.
• Friedrich Wilhelm Euler : pedigree v. Weizsäcker-v. Graevenitz: Exemplary presentation of the prosopographical requirements and consequences of an all-German intellectual leadership group (Herold Studies Volume 1). Herold, Association for Heraldry, Genealogy and Related Sciences in Berlin . Verlag des Herold, 1992, ISBN 3-9802435-6-7 .

Web links

• Theodor Sproesser In: Main State Archives Stuttgart. Inventory M 660/042 (accessed on June 14, 2014)
• The Württemberg Mountain Battalion 1915 (accessed June 14, 2014)

Individual evidence

1. ^ Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Main State Archive Stuttgart , Regiment Commanders, M 703 R587N11: Theodor Carl Gottlieb von Sprösser , Colonel and Commander from 1884 to 1886, most recently Major General, half-length portrait (accessed on June 14, 2014).
2. ↑ Family data of the Paul Wolfgang Merkelschen Family Foundation Nuremberg: Marianne Klotz (accessed on June 11, 2014)
3. ↑ The press reported about it on December 12, 1917. Main State Archives Stuttgart: M 743/1 Bü 13 .