Here Eckener. Hope this can be of good use
http://www.worldwar1.com/sfgrank.htm
Here is the reorganization of the armies and the structure from divisions to platoons, including the composition of each level
http://www.worldwar1.com/sfgermreorg.htm
Just thought I would throw this out there
http://www.worldwar1.com/sfgcross.htm
Here is a list of leaders
Kaiser Wilhelm II of the German Empire- The idiot that ruined the German Empire( I say this with all the love possible that I can, and I love the German Empire)
Admiral of the Kaiserlichemarine Franz Von Hipper- Successor to the great
Admiral Tirpitz.
Chief of Staff 1914-1916 Erich Von Falkenhayn- Successor of Helmuth Von Moltke the Younger. Also was sacked and assumed command of the 9th Army in Translyvannia after Verdun.
Generalfeldmarschall Paul Von Hidenburg-
At the start of November 1914 Hindenburg was given the position of Supreme Commander East (
Ober-Ost) – although at this stage his authority only extended over the German, not the A-H portion of the front – and units were transferred from East Prussia to form a new Ninth Army in south-western Poland. Later in November 1914, after the Battle of Lodz, Hindenburg was promoted to the rank of
Generalfeldmarschall. A further battle was fought by the Eighth and newly-formed Tenth Armies in Masuria that winter.
Ober-Ost eventually consisted of the German Eighth, Ninth and Tenth Armies, plus other assorted corps.
General der Infanterie Erich Ludendorf-
With the outbreak of World War I, then called
The Great War, Ludendorff was first appointed Deputy Chief of Staff to the German Second Army under General Karl Von Bulow. His assignment was largely due to his knowledge and previous work investigating the dozen forts surrounding Liege, Belgium. The German assault in early August 1914, according to the Schlieffen Plan for invading France, gained him national recognition. The Germans experienced their first major setback at Liège. Belgian artillery and machine guns killed thousands of German troops attempting frontal assaults. On 5 August Ludendorff took command of the 14th Brigade, whose general had been killed. He cut off Liège and called for siege guns. By 16 August all forts around Liège had fallen, allowing the German First Army to advance. As the victor of Liège, Ludendorff was awarded Germany's highest military decoration for gallantry, the Pour le Merite, presented by Kaiser Wilhelm himself on 22 August.
Russia had prepared for and was waging war more effectively than the Schlieffen Plan anticipated. German forces were withdrawing as the Russians advanced towards Konigsberg in East Prussia. Only a week after Liège's fall, Ludendorff, then engaged in the assault on Belgium's second great fortress at Namur, was urgently requested by the Kaiser to serve as Chief of Staff of the 8th Army on the Eastern Front. Ludendorff went quickly with Hindenburg, who was recalled from retirement, to replace General Prittwitz, who had proposed abandoning East Prussia altogether. Hindenburg relied heavily upon Ludendorff and Max Hoffman in planning the successful operations in the battles of Tannenberg and the Mausaurian Lakes. After the Battle of Lodz(1914) in November 1914 Ludendorff was promoted to Lieutenant-General
Generalmajor Paul Von Lettow-Vorbeck-
In August 1914, during the early phases of the WW1, von Lettow-Vorbeck was the commander of a small garrison of just 2,600 German nationals and 2,472 African soldiers in 14 Askari field companies. Realising the need to seize the initiative, he ignored orders from Berlin and the colony's governor, Heinrich Schnee, who had insisted on neutrality for German East Africa. Von Lettow-Vorbeck simply ignored the governor and prepared to repel a major amphibious assault on the city of Tanga. The attack began on 2 November 1914, and for the next four days he fought one of his greatest battles. He then assembled his men and their scant supplies to attack the British railways in East Africa. He scored a second victory over the British at Jassin on 18 January 1915.
Oberleutnant Max Bauer-
Expert in artillery tactics and during the First World War had a hand in destroying the Liege fort in Belgiu, in 1914. In July 1915 he became a chief of the Section I of the General staff. He mobilized industry to produce ammunition and wrote a booklet about defensive tactics. In December 1916 he was awarded the Pour le Merite, with oak leaves added on March 28, 1918.
Colonel Hans Von Seeckt-
Seeckt held the rank of colonel and served as chief of staff in the German III Army Corps. Seeckt marched with the Corps in the German offensive, and "distinguished himself" in fighting near Soissons, then in March 1915, he became chief of staff to General August Von Mackensen of the German Eleventh Army
Political Leades
Chancellor Theobald Von Bethmann-Hollweg-
Following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914, Bethmann Hollweg and Foreign Secretary Gottlieb Von Jagow were instrumental in urging the Austrians to take a tough stand against Serbia, and later, took steps to prevent Grey's efforts to impose a peaceful solution on the quarreling parties. In the last days before the outbreak of war, however, he seems to have had some second thoughts, and he took half-hearted measures to support Grey's proposals of mediation, until Russia's mobilization on July 31, 1914, took the matter out of his hands. Much of his foreign policy before the war had been guided by his desire to establish good relations with Britain, was particularly upset by Britain's declaration of war following German violation of Belgium's neutrality in the course of her invasion of France, reportedly asking the departing British Ambassador Goschen how Britain could go to war over a "mere scrap of paper" (the Treaty of London 1839 which guaranteed Belgium's neutrality), a remark which would become infamous for its demonstration of German insensitivity to international law and treaty rights.
Foreign Minister Gottlieb Von Jagow-
In the July Crisis of 1914, Jagow was confident that an Austro-Serbian war would be localized, and that Russia was not yet prepared for a continental war. This belief was incorrect, which indirectly led to the outbreak of WW1. After the war, Jagow attributed deeper reasons for the outbreak of war to "...this damned system of alliances."
Matthias Erzberger-
Like many of his party, he initially supported Germany's involvement in The Great War. He drafted Germany's war aim's that were published on 9 September 1914. By this stage he was rapporteur to the Reichstag's Military Affairs Committee, and the "right-hand man" of the Bethmann-Hollweg. He wrote letters to leading military authorities, later published, with extravagant plans for German annexations. Seen as an opportunist, he was said to have "no convictions but only appetites"
Arthur Zimmerman-
In late 1914 Zimmermann was visited by Roger Casement, the Irish revolutionary. A plan was laid to land 25,000 soldiers in the west of Ireland with 75,000 rifles. However the German general staff did not agree. In 1916 Casement returned to Ireland in a U-boat and was captured and executed. A German ship renamed the "Aud", flying Norwegian colours, shipped 20,000 rifles to the south Irish coast but it failed to link up with the rebels and was scuttled. Planning on this support, a minority of the Irish Volunteers launched the Easter Rising in Dublin. Though the Rising failed, its political effect led on to the Anglo-Irish in 1919-1922 and the formation of the Irish Free State.
Gustav Stresemann-
In 1914 he returned to the Reichstag. He was exempted from war service due to poor health. With Bassermann kept away from the Reichstag by either illness or military service, Stresemann soon became the National Liberals' de facto leader. After Bassermann's death in 1917, Stresemann succeeded him as party leader.
Philipp Scheidmann-
During the Great War, Scheidemann, along with Friedrich Ebert was leader of the majority faction of the party, which continued to vote for war credits, limiting his opposition to the war to urging the negotiation of a compromise peace.
Friedrich Ebert-
When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for The Great War. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and tried to isolate the war opposers in the party. After the war and the end of the monarchy he served as the first President of Germany from 1919 until his death in office.
George Von Hertling-
Bavarian Prime Minister. Supporter of Bethmann-Hollweg. Declined to be his successor, but was elevated to Count by King Ludwig the III of Bavaria.
Counsillor of the Embassy to the Ottoman Empire Richard Von Kuhlman-
Successful counsillor of the embassy in the Ottoman Empire
George Michaelis-
In 1909 he won appointment as undersecretary of state to the Prussian Treasury in Berlin. From 1915 onwards he headed the Reichsgetreidestelle, an office responsible for the administration of Prussian corn and wheat in The Great War.
Hanns Freiharr Von Wagenheim-
n 1914, after the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Ismael Enver, the Ottoman General Minister of War, asked if an alliance with Germany could happen. Andrew Mango continues with the history at this time in his book Ataturk. Here he describes the jumbled alliance-structure that existed that would threaten the current relationship between Germany and the Ottoman Empire. For instance, Germany had already claimed war against Russia and it had an alliance with Austria-Hungary. This agreement with the Ottoman Empire would allow Germany to take a leadership role in alliance-making before The Great War. It would also force Russia and Serbia to alliance-make to condemn the assassination.
Generalfeldmarschall Colmar Freiharr Von Der Goltz-
At the outbreak of the First World War Goltz was recalled to duty and appointed the Military Governor of Belgium. In that position, he dealt ruthlessly with what remained of Belgian resistance to German occupation, mostly sniper-fire and damaging rail and telegraph lines. As Martin Gilbert notes in The First World War, in early September 1914, the newly appointed Goltz proclaimed: "It is the stern necessity of war that the punishment for hostile acts falls not only on the guilty, but on the innocent as well." On 5 October, he was even clearer when he ordered: "In the future, villages in the vicinity of places where railway and telegraph lines are destroyed will be punished without pity (whether they are guilty or not of the acts in question). With this in view hostages have been taken in all villages near the railway lines which are threatened by such attacks. Upon the first attempt to destroy lines of railway, telegraph or telephone, they will immediately be shot." Soon after he was removed from that position and became the aid to Sultan Mehmed V.
Generalleutnant Otto Liman Von Sanders-
Reorganizer of the Ottoman Empire's Armies.
Western Front
ColonelGeneral Alexander Von Kluck-
With the outbreak of World War I, Kluck was placed in command of the German First Army. According to the Moltke revisions of the Schlieffin Plan, the First Army was part of the strong right wing and positioned on the outer western edge of the German advance through Belgium and France. This western flank was to advance alongside Karl Von Bulow's Second Army to Paris. Upon reaching Paris in concert, the First and Second armies were to threaten Paris from both the west and east.
After fighting the British at Mons and Le Cateau, the First Army pursued Lanrezac's French Fifth Army during the great retreat. However, thirty miles from Paris and anticipating an encounter with the French Fifth Army (commanded by Lanrezac), the cautious von Bulow halted his Second Army's advance and demanded von Kluck's direct support. By this time, the aggressive Kluck had advanced his First Army well south of von Bulow's position to 13 miles north of Paris. On August 30, Kluck decided to wheel his columns to the east of Paris, discarding entirely the Schlieffen Plan. Although frustrated by Bülow's caution, on 31 August Kluck turned his army southeast to support the Second Army. In so doing, Kluck created a 30-mile gap in the German line extending toward Bülow's stalled Second Army. Critically, the move exposed Kluck's right flank in the direction of Paris where (unknown to Kluck) General Michel-Joseph Maunoury's new Sixth Army was being created. The French learned of Kluck's change in course n September 1, when a French patrol captured a German dispatch car, containing a map showing the changed position. The following events were critical to the future course of the war. Passing to the east of Paris, Kluck exposed his right flank to the new French Sixth Army (General Maunory). On 5 September, Maunoury attacked Kluck's right flank, marking the opening of the First Battle of the Marne. Kluck parried the blow by borrowing two corps in the space between the First and Second army. A surprise attack on 8 September by Franchet de'Esperey's (who had replaced Lanrezac) Fifth Army against Bülow's Second widened the gap which the BEF marched to exploit. The attack, as Winston Churchill said, "probed its way into the German liver." On 9 September a representative of the German Headquarters, Hentsch, considered the situation of Bülow's Army as very dangerous and ordered a retreat of all the armies, even though by that time von Kluck had overcome most of his own problems, (except presumably, the problem of keeping in contact with his headquarters and letting his chief of Staff, and therefore Hentsch, from knowing how he had solved his problems). The Germans retreated in good order to positions forty miles behind the River Aisne. There, the front would remain for years in the form of entrenched positions as World War I continued. Kluck and Bülow's lack of coordination and the ensuing failure to maintain an effective offensive line was a primary contribution to the failure of the Schlieffen Plan which was intended to deliver a decisive blow against France. Instead, the long stalemate of trench warfare was ready to begin. The British at the time called him "old one o'clock". Many German experts, however, hold Kluck and especially his Chief of Staff, Kuhl, in the highest esteem. Germany could have won the Battle of the Marne, they think, if only Bülow had matched the courageous initiatives of Kluck's Army, although this doesn't explain the near encirclement of his army.
Generaloberst Hans Hartwig Von Beseler-
In 1914 Beseler was brought out of retirement and was given command of the 3rd Reserve Corps in the German First Army led by Generaloberst Von Kluck. The German Army took Brussels on 20 August, and the German command considered the Belgian Army defeated. The main force of the German armies marched toward France, leaving the 3rd Reserve Corps behind. Beseler was ordered to take possession of the city of Antwerp on 9 September. The Siege of Antwerp ended on 10 October, when the Antwerp Mayor, Jan De Vos, surrendered the city. Beseler followed the Belgian army and was halted in the.
Feldmarschall Karl Von Bulow-
Assigned to the German 2nd Army at the beginning of World War I in August 1914, Bülow invaded Belgium, capturing the fortress of Namur on August 22–23. Advancing into France, Bülow defeated General Charles Lanrezac of the French Fifth Army at Charleroi on August 23–24 and again at St. Quentin on August 29–30. As the 2nd Army and General Alexander Von Kluck's 1st Army neared Paris from August 31 to September 2, Bülow, concerned about the growing gap between the two armies, ordered Kluck to turn the 1st Army on his right towards him. This decision, however, resulted in Kluck's advancing south and east of Paris, instead of north and west as specified in the Schlieffin Plan. Bülow crossed the Marne on September 4, but decided to retreat to Aisne after the successful counterattack by combined French and British forces against Kluck's 1st Army at the First Battle of the Marne from September 5–10.
Bülow was promoted to Feldmarschall in January of the following year. After suffering a heart attack two months later, he was allowed to retire in early 1916, living in Berlin until his death.
General Max Clemens Lothar Freiherr von Hausen-
Upon mobilization in August 1914, the Royal Saxon Army became the German 3rd Army and Hausen was given command. His army participated in the Battle of the Frontiers, mainly in the battles of Dinant and Charleroi, and he and his army were responsible for the destruction of Reims in September 1914. After the 2nd Army's retreat after the First Battle of the Marne, Hausen saw his own flank exposed and ordered a retreat. After the stabilization of the front on the Aisne River, on September 9, 1914, Hausen was relieved of his command due to illness and replaced by General Karl Von Einem. Hausen held no further field commands during the war, and died shortly after the war ended.
Generaloberst Karl von Einem genannt von Rothmaler-
Einem succeeded General Max Von Hausen as commander of the 3rd Army in September 1914. Successfully repulsing the French Champagne-Marne offensive from February–March and September–November 1915 respectively, Einem would take part in all three Battles of the Aisne.
Generalfeldmarschall Albrecht Herzog von Württemberg-
4th Army commander, central German army with the 5th Army. Led them to victory in the Battle of the Ardennes in August 1914. Following this victory, the 4th Army saw action in the First Battle of the Marne before being transferred to Flanders in October, where Duke Albrecht commanded them during the Battle of the Yser. Duke Albrecht also commanded the German forces during the Second Battle of Ypres, where poison gas was used on a large scale for the first time. Duke Albrecht was awarded the Pour le Merite in August 1915 and was promoted to Generalfeldmarschall in August 1916. The newly formed Army Group Albrecht was placed under his commanded in February 1917 and he was responsible for the southern sector of the Western Front until the Armistice.
Kronprinze Wilhelm Von Preussen of Germany-
He led the 5th Army until November 1916, a two-year period which included the battle of attrition known as the Verdun Offensive. From April 1916 onward, he tried in vain to convince the supreme command that the Verdun offensive no longer made any sense, but the campaign continued until 2 September of that year.General der Infanterie Schmidt Von Knobelsdorf served as his Chief of Staff. He would very often clash with Knobelsdorf who was totally committed to achieving victory at Verdun.
Kronprinz Rupprecht Von Bayern of Bavaria-
He commanded the German 6th Army at the outbreak of WWI in Lorraine. While part of the German army was participating in the Schlieffen plan, the Crown Prince led his troops on to the Battle of Lorraine. The appointment to command of the Sixth Army was as a result of his royalty, but the level of study he had performed before he took command was a factor behind his successful direction of the Sixth Army, and he proved to be a highly able commander. Rupprecht's army gave way to the French attack in August 1914, in the Battle of Lorraine, and then launched a counteroffensive on the 20th. Rupprecht failed to break through the French lines. He was later in command of the 6th Army in Northern France and remained on the Western Front during the stalemate that would last until the end of the war. Rupprecht achieved the rank of Generalfeldmarschall in July 1916 and assumed command of Army Group Rupprecht on 28 August that year, consisting of the 1st, 2nd, 6th and 7th Army. Rupprecht has been considered by some to be one of the best Royal commanders in the Imperial German Army of World War I, possibly even the only one to deserve his command. Rupprecht came to the conclusion much earlier than most other German generals (towards the end of 1917), that the war could not be won, seeing an ever increasing material advantage of the allies. He also opposed the "scorched earth" policy during withdrawals, but his royal position made a resignation on those grounds impossible for him, even though he threatened it. He eventually resigned from his command on 11 November 1918.
Generaloberst Josias Von Heeringen-
Took command of the Seventh Army in August 1914- the army which was being used as a decoy for the attempted German invasion of France- and successfully defended Alsace against the French in the Battle of Mulhouse, for which he was awarded the Pour le Merite. He commanded the Seventh Army until 1916 when he was transferred to coastal command in Germany for the duration of the war.
Generaloberst Felix Graf Von Bothmer-
In 1917 he was appointed to command the 19th Army in Lorraine. He remained there until 8 November 1918, while to his north the German front crumbled. Bothmer retired from the army later in November 1918. Bothmer’s last job in the army, again along with von Hemmer, was to be an adviser for the Bavarian Ministry for Military Affairs, from November to December 1918, mostly overseeing the demobilization of the soon-to-be-disbanded Bavarian Army(not reall mentionable, due to him having no effect on your
POD)
Eastern Front
General der Infanterie Otto Von Below-
Commander Eight Army in East Prussia. During World War I, Below took part as a commander in the Battle of Gumbinnen, for which he was promoted to General der Infanterie, the Battle of Tannenberg(1914) and the 2nd Battle of the Mausaurian Lakes (February 1915).
General Max Hoffman-Deputy Commander of the 8th Army through all its incarnations.
General der Kavalerie August Von Mackensen-
On 2 November 1914 Mackensen took command of the Ninth Army from General von Hindenburg, who had been named Supreme Commander East (Oberbefehlshaber Ost). On 27 November 1914 Mackensen was awarded the Pour le Merite, Prussia's highest military order, for actions around Lodz and Warsaw. He commanded the Ninth Army until April 1915, when he took command of the Eleventh Army and Army Group Kiev (Heeresgruppe Kiew), seeing action in Galicia, and assisting in the capture of Przemsl and Lemberg. He was awarded oak leaves to the Pour le Merite on 3 June 1915 and promoted to feldmarschall on 22 June. After this campaign, he was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle, Prussia's highest-ranking order of knighthood. During this period, he also received numerous honours from other German states and Germany's allies, including the Grand Cross of the Military Max Joseph Order, the highest military honour of the Kingdom of Bavaria, on 4 June 1915.
The 11th and 12th armies did not come into existence until about 6 months after your POD so I did not think to mention them.
Hope you like the info Eckener! Looking forward to helping. Although this is the furthest extent my knowledge goes. It gets extremely 'ard to distinguish different army groups, as I think they were consolidated and separated many times. Also, I had a hard time finding members of the general staff, so I used my knowledge as best as I could. Although I will go look up in my books on WW1 to see if I missed any prominent figures. Tell you if I come across anything.