Ludendorff, Erich (ā`rĭkh l

`dəndôrf), 1865–1937, German general. A disciple of Schlieffen Schlieffen plan. According to the plan, Germany could solve the problem of war on two fronts by first defeating France in a lightning campaign and then throwing its full weight against Russia. The plan called for a flanking movement by an overwhelmingly strong right (i.e.
..... Click the link for more information. , he served in World War I World War I, 1914–18, also known as the Great War, conflict, chiefly in Europe, among most of the great Western powers. It was the largest war the world had yet seen.
..... Click the link for more information. as chief of staff to Field Marshal Hindenburg Hindenburg, Paul von (hĭn`dənbûrg, Ger. poul fən hĭn`dənb
..... Click the link for more information. and was largely responsible for German military decisions. After Hindenburg became supreme military commander in 1916, Ludendorff also intervened in civilian rule. In 1917 he forced Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg Bethmann-Hollweg, Theobald von (tā`ōbält fən bāt`män-hôl`vāk), 1856–1921, German chancellor.
..... Click the link for more information. to resign; his successors were subordinate to the military leaders. When the German military offensive collapsed (Aug., 1918), Ludendorff demanded an armistice (Sept. 29, 1918). Several days later he was dismissed by the new government of Maximilian, prince of Baden Maximilian, prince of Baden (Max of Baden), 1867–1929, German statesman, last chancellor of imperial Germany. A liberal, he was made imperial chancellor at the end of World War I as Germany neared defeat.
..... Click the link for more information. and fled to Sweden. Returning in 1919, he took part in the ultranationalist Kapp putsch (1920) and in the "beer-hall putsch" (1923) of Adolf Hitler Hitler, Adolf (ä`dôlf hĭt`lər)
..... Click the link for more information. . He was acquitted in the subsequent trial, was a National Socialist member of the Reichstag (1924–28), and ran unsuccessfully for president in 1925. Meanwhile, he and his second wife, Mathilde, were proponents of a new "Aryan" racist religion. Ludendorff wrote pamphlets accusing the pope, the Jesuits, the Jews, and the Freemasons of a common plot against Aryans. Later he became alienated from Hitler. His writings include Ludendorff's Own Story (tr. 1919) and The General Staff and Its Problems (tr. 1920).

Ludendorff, Erich

Erich Ludendorff, c. 1930.

(credit: Archiv für Kunst und Geschichte)

(born April 9, 1865, Kruszewnia, near Poznan, Prussian Poland—died Dec. 20, 1937, Munich, Ger.) German general. In 1908 he joined the German army general staff and worked under Helmuth von Moltke in revising the Schlieffen Plan. In World War I he was appointed chief of staff to Paul von Hindenburg, and the two won a spectacular victory at the Battle of Tannenberg. In 1916 the two generals were given supreme military control. They tried to conduct a total war by mobilizing the entire forces of the home front, and in 1917 Ludendorff approved unrestricted submarine warfare against the British, which led to the U.S. entry into the war. In 1918, after his offensive on the Western Front failed, he demanded an armistice, but then he insisted the war continue when he realized the severity of the Armistice conditions. Political leaders opposed him, and he resigned his post. Ludendorff insisted he had been betrayed, and for the next 20 years he led a bizarre life, becoming a leader of reactionary political movements and taking part in the Kapp Putsch (1920) and Beer Hall Putsch (1923). He served in Parliament as a National Socialist (1924–28) and developed a belief that “supernational powers”—Jewry, Christianity, Freemasonry—had deprived him and Germany of victory in World War I.