Hans von Kirchbach

Rudolph Bodo Hans von Kirchbach (born 22 June 1849 in Auerbach (Vogtland) – died 23 July 1928 in Dresden) was a Royal Saxon army officer who was a Generaloberst in the First World War and awarded the Pour le Mérite.

Life and military career He came from the Saxon nobility. Kirchbach and was the son of the Oberland Forest Master Carl von Kirchbach (1799–1893), Privy Council of Finance and Saxon royal chamberlain, and his second wife Josephine von Bodenhausen (1825–1898).

Kirchbach attended private school in Auerbach and the higher secondary school of Bezzenberger and Opelt in Dresden. He joined the army on 1 April 1863, at the age of 14 years, spending 3 years as a cadet in the Royal Saxon Artillery School in Dresden. In January 1918 he was promoted to the rank of Generaloberst. Armee-Abteilung D was dissolved in October 1918, at which point he retired again. Grand Cross of the Albert Order mit golden Star and Swords Commander 2nd Class on 9 October 1915 Commander 1st Class on 28 August 1916 Pour le Mérite on 11 August 1916 Armee-Gruppe or Army Group in the sense of a group within an Army and under its command, generally formed as a temporary measure for a specific task. Heeresgruppe or Army Group in the sense of a number of armies under a single commander.