Hans von Seeckt - Generaloberst Reichswehr

The Sphinx

Hans von Seeckt 22 April 1866 – 27 December 1936

The German Army that took to the field in 1939 owed most of its performance to a slim elegant officer never without a monocle. Hans von Seeckt was known as a brilliant staff officer who proved himself on the Western Front, Eastern Front and in Turkey. “The saying spread through the German army "Where Mackensen is, Seeckt is; where Seeckt is, victory is."1

Hans von Seeckt - Bundesarchiv

Any hopes of a German Army able to defend the country’s borders ended in May 1919 when the German delegation was presented with a draft of conditions to be signed without negotiation. The army was to be reduced to 100,000 men and 4000 officers.The Great General Staff was to be dissolved and no tanks artillery or aircraft were allowed. Service was to be long term to prevent any reserve buildup though border police and some other police organizations might have been considered such. The real fly in the ointment: Poland was ceded Posen Province and parts of West Prussia. East Prussia was cut off by a land bridge referred to as the Polish Corridor; this more than anything set the ground for war with Poland. On October 11, 1919 Seeckt became Head of the Reichswehr.”To run this, General Hans von Seeckt was appointed, a man who was to have almost complete control on the shaping of the truncated German Army during its formative years.”2

In November 1918, an unlikely partnership was formed between the Army and the ‘Weimar’ government after a phone call from Reichsminister Ebert to Kurt von Schleicher, then head of the Great General Staff asking whether the government could expect the Army’s help in fighting Bolshevism. The answer was yes and as of November 10, 1918 an uneasy agreement was reached.

Doing all he could to preserve the traditions of the Kaiser’s army, Seeckt created a nucleus which kept the army in existence and provided for rebirth. Knowing preservation of tradition was vital, “Seeckt had arranged that every contingent of the Reichswehr was to be regarded as the successor of a number of famous regiments of the old Prussian, Bavarian, Saxon and Wurttembergian Armies.”3

Seeckt felt strongly that another international pariah, Soviet Russia, could prove a valuable ally - misery loves company, as a help in the east to take care of Poland. “In the summer of 1920, Pasha (Enver- an old friend), sent Seeckt a letter from Moscow asking for German arms deliveries to the Soviet Union in exchange for which Trotsky promised to partition Poland with Germany. Seeckt did not hesitate to use military force against attempts by German communists to take power, but his concern over communism did not affect his attitude toward relations with the Soviet Union.”4

President Ebert at right - von Seeckt third from left

Asked by Reichspraesident Ebert where the Reichswehr stood, Seeckt answered "The Reichswehr stands behind me", and on being asked whether the Reichswehr was reliable, Seeckt answered: "I don't know if it is reliable, but it obeys my orders!".A shell corporation referred to as GEFU “(Gesellschaft zur Förderung gewerblicher Unternehmungen-Company)for the promotion of industrial enterprise) funneled 75 million Reichsmark into the Soviet arms industry.”4 Training centers for the Air Force and Army were established near and in the town of Lipetsk. A further benefit: modern weaponry.

The army remained angry over the Polish situation, questioning Polands right to exist. Seeckt believed there would be another war. “German officers, and especially members of the general staff, have never sought a fight for its own sake or been war-mongers. And they should not do so now. But they should never forget the great deeds achieved by German warriors. Keeping the memory of them alive in ourselves and our people is a sacred duty. For then neither officers nor the people will lapse into enfeebling illusions of peace, but will remain aware that in the moment of truth only personal and national stature counts. If fate once again calls the German people to arms, and who can doubt that day will come, then officers should not have to call on a nation of weaklings, but of strong men ready to take up familiar and trusted weapons. The form these weapons take is not important as long as they are wielded by hands of steel and hearts of iron. So let us do our utmost to ensure that on that future day there is no lack of such hearts and hands. Let us strive tirelessly to strengthen our own bodies and minds and those of our fellow Germans ... It is the duty of every member of the general staff to make the Reichswehr not only a reliable pillar of the state, but also a school for the leaders of the nation. Beyond the army itself, every on officer will sow the seed of manly attitudes throughout the population.”5

Seeckt finally resigned over a political storm on October 9, 1926 resulting from the attendance of Prince Wilhelm at manouvres in his Old Imperial First Foot Guards uniform without having been vetted by the government. From 1933-1935 he served with the Kuomintang in China as an advisor to Chiang Kai Shek. Among his achievements: teaching tactics that sent Mao Tse Tung on the Long March.

Seeckt passed away in Berlin on December 27 1936.

Notes

1. Liddell Hart, Sir Basil H. (1948). The German Generals Talk. New York: Morrow. ISBN 9780688060121. OCLC 855278885. P. 11

2. Messenger, Charles, The Last Prussian - A Biography of Field Marshall Gerd von Rundstedt Pen and Sword Books 1901

3. Goerlitz, Walter, A History of the German General Staff 1657 - 1945 Praeger New York 1956 P. 225

4. Wheeler-Bennett, John The Nemesis of Power, London: Macmillan, 1967 page 122

5. Wheeler-Bennett, John The Nemesis of Power, London: Macmillan, 1967 pages 127–128

6. Wette,Wolfram, The Wehrmacht : History Myth Reality Harvard University Press 2006 P. 144 - 145

Sources

Goerlitz, Walter, History of the German General Staff. 1657-1945 Praeger, New York 1956

Bagdonas, Raymond, The Devil’s General: The Life and Times of Hyazinth Graf von Strachwitz, “The Panzer Graf” Casemate Publishers 2013

Messenger, Charles, The Last Prussian - A Biography of Field Marshall Gerd con Rundstedt Pen and Sword Books 1991

Liddell Hart, Sir Basil H. (1948). The German Generals Talk. New York: Morrow. ISBN 9780688060121. OCLC 855278885.

Wette,Wolfram, The Wehrmacht, History Myth and Reality - Harvard University Press 2006

Wheeler-Bennett, Sir John (2005). The Nemesis of Power: German Army in Politics, 1918–1945. New York: Palgrave Macmillan Publishing Company. ISBN 9781403918123. OCLC 180887965.

Seeckt’s Grave - Invaliden Friedhoff Berlin