8th Army (Imperial Germany)
Encyclopedia
The 8th Army was an army level command during World War I
.
At the outbreak of World War I, the 8. Armee was stationed in East Prussia
to defend against the expected Russian attack, Plan XIX. After the scrappy Battle of Gumbinnen
, 8. Armee commander Generaloberst Maximilian von Prittwitz
ordered a retreat. This movement resulted in his replacement by Generalfeldmarschall
Paul von Hindenburg
, with Erich Ludendorff
as the Army's chief of Staff.
Under its new command, the Army was responsible for the victories at the Battle of Tannenberg (1914)
and the Battle of the Masurian Lakes
.
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
At the outbreak of World War I, the 8. Armee was stationed in East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
to defend against the expected Russian attack, Plan XIX. After the scrappy Battle of Gumbinnen
Battle of Gumbinnen
The Battle of Gumbinnen, initiated by forces of the German Empire on August 20, 1914, was the first major German offensive on the Eastern Front during the First World War...
, 8. Armee commander Generaloberst Maximilian von Prittwitz
Maximilian von Prittwitz
Maximillion Von Prittwitz was a German General.-Family:Prittwitz came from an extremely old aristocratic Silesian family in Bernstadt...
ordered a retreat. This movement resulted in his replacement by Generalfeldmarschall
Generalfeldmarschall
Field Marshal or Generalfeldmarschall in German, was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire; in the Austrian Empire, the rank Feldmarschall was used...
Paul von Hindenburg
Paul von Hindenburg
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg , known universally as Paul von Hindenburg was a Prussian-German field marshal, statesman, and politician, and served as the second President of Germany from 1925 to 1934....
, with Erich Ludendorff
Erich Ludendorff
Erich Friedrich Wilhelm Ludendorff was a German general, victor of Liège and of the Battle of Tannenberg...
as the Army's chief of Staff.
Under its new command, the Army was responsible for the victories at the Battle of Tannenberg (1914)
Battle of Tannenberg (1914)
The Battle of Tannenberg was an engagement between the Russian Empire and the German Empire in the first days of World War I. It was fought by the Russian First and Second Armies against the German Eighth Army between 23 August and 30 August 1914. The battle resulted in the almost complete...
and the Battle of the Masurian Lakes
Battle of the Masurian Lakes
During World War I, there was:* First Battle of the Masurian Lakes, September 1914* Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes, February 1915...
.
Commanders
- Maximilian von PrittwitzMaximilian von PrittwitzMaximillion Von Prittwitz was a German General.-Family:Prittwitz came from an extremely old aristocratic Silesian family in Bernstadt...
(1913–1914) - Paul von HindenburgPaul von HindenburgPaul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg , known universally as Paul von Hindenburg was a Prussian-German field marshal, statesman, and politician, and served as the second President of Germany from 1925 to 1934....
(1914) - Fritz von BelowFritz von BelowFritz Wilhelm Theodor Karl von Below was a Prussian general in the German Army during the First World War.-Biography:...
(1914–1916) - Günther von KirchbachGünther von KirchbachGünther Emanuel Graf von Kirchbach was a German colonel general who served during the First World War.Günther von Kirchbach was born in Erfurt in 1850 the son of Hugo von Kirchbach. Von Kirchbach entered the Prussian army in April 1868 as a second lieutenant in the Garde-Füsilier-Regiment. He...
(1917–1918) - Hugo von KathenHugo von KathenHugo Karl Gottlieb von Kathen was a German infantry general during World War I.- Family :Kathen was born in Freienwalde, Farther Pomerania to the Prussian Major Karl von Kathen , a landowner from Langenhaken in Pomerania, and Agnes née Schumann...
(1918)