Obergebietsführer Eduard Ritter von Schleich

Is that a pour le merite he's wearing??

Yes it is, he was a WWI fighter ace.

He had an impressive career and was heavy decorated

../henrik

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Generalleutnant Eduard Ritter von Schleich

Born: 09 Aug 1888 in Munich (München)
Died: 15 Nov 1947 in Diessem, Ammersee

Promotions:
Fahnenjunker-Unteroffizier (18 Jan 1909); Fähnrich (08 May 1909); Leutnant (23 Oct 1910); Oberleutnant der Reserve (02 Sep 1915); Hauptmann der Reserve (15 Jun 1918); Hauptmann (15 Jul 1918); Charakter als Major (31 Dec 1921); Major (01 Apr 1935); Oberstleutnant (01 Aug 1936); Oberst (01 Oct 1938); Charakter als Generalmajor (27 Aug 1939); Generalmajor (01 Feb 1941); Generalleutnant (01 Sep 1943)

Career:
Entered the Army as a Fahnenjunker and Company-Officer in the 11th Bavarian Infantry-Regiment ‘von der Tann’ (01 Oct 1908-19 Mar 1914)
Discharged to Reserve (19 Mar 1914)
Called Up from Reserve (Active-Officer from 05 Aug 1918) as Platoon-Leader in the 11th Bavarian Infantry-Regiment (03 Aug 1914-25 Aug 1914)
Wounded, in Hospital then with the Replacement-Battalion of the 11th Bavarian Infantry-Regiment (25 Aug 1914-08 Feb 1915)
Detached to the Motor-Transport-Replacement-Battalion Munich (09 Feb 1915-02 May 1915)
Flying-Training with the 2nd Flying-Replacement-Battalion, Schleißheim, at the Military Flying School Schneidemühle and with the Bavarian Flying-Replacement-Battalion Schleißheim (03 May 1915-19 Nov 1915)
Detached to Army-Flight-Park 6 a (20 Nov 1915-18 Dec 1915)
Pilot in the 2nd Bavarian Field-Flying-Battalion (19 Dec 1915-16 May 1916)
Pilot in Squadron Hoffmeister of the 1st Bomber-Wing of the Supreme Army Command (17 May 1916-04 Aug 1916)
Detached to the Bavarian Flying-Replacement-Battalion Schleißheim (05 Aug 1916-08 Sep 1916)
Leader of Military-Flying-School 1 (09 Sep 1916-11 Feb 1917)
Leader of Protection-Squadron 28 (12 Feb 1917-03 May 1917)
Detached to Fighter-Squadron-School of the Supreme Army Command (04 May 1917-20 May 1917)
Temporary-Leader of Fighter-Squadron 21 (21 May 1917-25 May 1917)
Leader of Fighter-Squadron 21 (26 May 1917-22 Oct 1917)
Leader of Bavarian Fighter-Squadron 32 (23 Oct 1917-11 Jan 1918)
Leader of Flying-School 1 (12 Jan 1918-14 Mar 1918)
Leader of Fighter-Group 3 (15 Mar 1918-29 Sep 1918)
Commander of the Bavarian Fighter-Wing 4 (30 Sep 1918-31 Dec 1918)
Detached to the Bavarian Inspection of Air-Affairs, Leader of the Construction-Inspection with the Bavarian Aircraft-Works, Munich (01 Jan 1919-31 Mar 1919)
Detached to the Bavarian Inspection of Air-Affairs, Leader of the Central-Construction-Inspection Munich I (01 Apr 1919-30 Jul 1919)
With the Processing-Office Schleißheim (31 Jul 1919-30 Sep 1919)
Detached to the Processing-Office of the Bavarian Inspection of Air-Affairs (01 Oct 1919-13 Oct 1919)
Detached to Processing-Office I of the Bavarian Flying-Troop (14 Oct 1919-01 Dec 1919)
With the Flying-Squadron of the Police-Force Bavaria (02 Dec 1919-14 Feb 1920)
With the Processing-Office of the Bavarian Inspection of Air-Affairs (15 Feb 1920-14 Mar 1920)
Liaison-Officer of the Army-Peace-Commission (15 Mar 1920-31 Dec 1921)
Retired (31 Dec 1921)
Flight-Leader with the Trans-Europe-Union (01 May 1924-31 Dec 1924)
Flight-Leader with Junkers-Air-Commerce AG (01 May 1925-31 Dec 1925)
Flight-Leader with Deutschen Lufthansa (01 Apr 1927-15 Oct 1929)
Leader and Flight-Instructor of the Flight-School Eibl (01 May 1930-14 Oct 1930)
Training-Leader of Sports-Fliers in the Light-Aircraft-Club Munich (15 Oct 1930-01 Apr 1933)
Leader of SS-Flying-Squadron South (01 Oct 1931-15 Apr 1933)
Upper-District-Leader in the Staff of the Reichs-Youth-Leadership, Leader of Aeronautical Training (15 Apr 1933-30 Nov 1934)Member of the German Reichstag (12 Nov 1933-29 Mar 1936)
Leader of State-Group XI (Thuringia) of the German Air-Sport-Federation (DLV) (01 Dec 1934-19 Apr 1935)
Entered the Luftwaffe as a Supplemental-Officer (Active-Officer from 01 Aug 1937) with the Staff of the Luftwaffe-Reserve of Air-Region XI (20 Apr 1935-12 Oct 1936)
Officer with Special Duties of the RLM and C-in-C Luftwaffe (13 Oct 1936-14 Nov 1936)
Detached to Bomber-Wing 165, I. Group, Kitzingen (15 Nov 1936-28 Feb 1937)
Commander of II. Group in Fighter-Wing 234 and at the same time Air-Base-Commandant Düsseldorf (01 Mar 1937-31 Oct 1938)
Commodore of Fighter-Wing 132 then 26 ‘Albert Leo Schlageter’ (01 Nov 1938-14 Dec 1939)
Commander of Fighter-Flying-School 5, Vienna-Schwechat (15 Dec 1939-03 Oct 1940)
Training-Leader with the German Luftwaffe-Mission in Romania (04 Oct 1940-11 Jun 1941)
General Of Luftwaffe in Denmark (12 Jun 1941-01 Jan 1944)
Commanding General and Commander of Air-Region-Command Norway (17 Jan 1944-09 Oct 1944)
Führer-Reserve then to the Disposal of Air-Region-Command III (09 Oct 1944-09 May 1945)
In U.S. Captivity (09 May 1945-15 Nov 1947)

Decorations & Awards:
- Pour le mérite: am 03.12.1917 als Oberleutnant der Reserve und Führer des bayer. Jagdstaffel 32b
- Ritterkreuz des Kgl. Bayer. Militär-Max Joseph-Ordens: am 14.06.1918 als Oberleutnant der Reserve und Führer Jagdgruppe 8b
- 1914 EK I
- 1914 EK II
- Kgl. Bayer. Prinz-Regent-Luitpold Jubiläums-Medaille
- Kgl. Bayer. Flugzeugführer-Abzeichen
- Kgl. Bayer. Militär-Verdienstorden IV. Klasse mit Schwertern
- Kgl. Bayer. Militär-Verdienstorden IV. Klasse mit Schwertern und mit der Krone
- Ritterkreuz II. Klasse des Kgl. Sächs. Albrechts-Ordens mit Schwertern
- k.u.k. Österr. Feldflieger-Abzeichen
- Verwundetenabzeichen, 1918 in Schwarz
- SA/ SS Fliegerabzeichen: 00.00.1932
- Ehrenkreuz für Frontkämpfer
- Wehrmacht-Dienstauszeichnung IV. bis II. Klasse
- Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 13.03.1938
- Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 01.10.1938
- Spange zum EK I
- Spange zum EK II
- Kriegsverdienstkreuz I. Klasse mit Schwertern
- Kriegsverdienstkreuz II. Klasse mit Schwertern

Source: http://www.geocities.com/~orion47/
 
Last edited:
Somewhere I read that von Schleich trained both HJ and BDM. At the moment I don't remember where.

Has someone else read or heard about this?
 
Somewhere I read that von Schleich trained both HJ and BDM. At the moment I don't remember where.

Has someone else read or heard about this?

Had time to check my books, and found this:

Darren J. Whiteside: Rampart Lion - The Life of Eduard Ritter von Schleich Germany's "Black Knight" og WWI (published 2007), page 200:
The Black Knight [von Schleich] also provided flights for members of the Bund Deutscher Mädel [BDM]. Allthough they never would become pilots themselves, he felt that it was important to install an appreciation for flight within these young girls, so they in turn would support their sons's decision to join the future German air arm. Von Schleich would later receive letters of gratitude from both boys and girls who had their first flying experiences with him. It has been said that he had taken more than a thousand HJ members on their first flights.

Evelyn Zegenhagen: "Schneidige deutsche Mädel" Fliegerinnen zwischen 1918 und 1945 (Published 2007), page 301:
Eduard Ritter von Schleich, ab 1933 zuständig für die fliegerische Ausbildung der Hitlerjugend im Stab der Reichsjugendführung, hatte 1935 die Verbindung zwischen fliegerischer Betätigung und nationalsozialisticher Überzeugung in prägnante Worte gefasst, die Jugendlichen beiderlei Geschlechts eine Möglichkeit zur Identifikation boten: "Fliegerei und nationalsozialistische Revolution, untrennbar miteinander verbunden, sind vom gleichen Geist erfüllt: Treue und schlichte Pflichterfüllung, selbstlose Hingabe an ein überragendes Ziel, Dienst am Vaterland bis zum Einsatz des letzten, das sind Tugenden, die einen echten Flieger und Nationalsocialisten zieren." [Quoted from: George Cordts: Junge Adler - Vom Luftsport zum Flugdienst 1920-1945 (published 1988), page 104].

(google translation)
Eduard Ritter von Schleich, from 1933 responsible for the flight training of the Hitler Youth in the staff of the Reich Youth Leadership, took in 1935 the link between aeronautical activity and nationalsozialisticher conviction into concise words, that the young people of both sexes provided an opportunity to identify: "Aviation and National Socialist revolution, inextricably linked, are filled with the same spirit: Loyalty and simple performance of duty, selfless dedication to a superior goal of service to the Fatherland to the use of the past, which are virtues that adorn a real pilot and National Socialists ".
 
If you want to read about von Schleich in English, I can recommend

Darren J. Whiteside:
Rampart Lion
The Life og Eduard Ritter von Schleich
Germany's 'Black Knight' of WWI
A & S Publishing, 2007
 
Another phto of von Schleich as Obergebietsführer.

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