Martin Wilhelm Remus von Woyrsch (4 February 1847 – 6 August 1920) was a

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

n field marshal, a member of the

Prussian House of Lords The Prussian House of Lords (german: Preußisches Herrenhaus) in Berlin was the upper house of the Landtag of Prussia (german: Preußischer Landtag), the parliament of Prussia from 1850 to 1918. Together with the lower house, the House of Re ...

from 1908 to 1918, and an ''Ehrenkommendator'' or Honorary Commander of the Order of St. John.

Family

Remus von Woyrsch was born at the estate Pilsnitz (Pilczyce, now part of Fabryczna) near Breslau (Wrocław) in

Prussian Silesia The Province of Silesia (german: Provinz Schlesien; pl, Prowincja Śląska; szl, Prowincyjŏ Ślōnskŏ) was a province of Prussia from 1815 to 1919. The Silesia region was part of the Prussian realm since 1740 and established as an official p ...

. He came from old Bohemian nobility, first from

South Bohemia The South Bohemian Region ( cs, Jihočeský kraj; , ) is an administrative unit (''kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located mostly in the southern part of its historical land of Bohemia, with a small part in southwestern Moravia. The western part ...

and then from ca. 1500 in Troppau (Opava) in Moravian Silesia. He married Thekla von Massow (1854–1943) from East Prussia, on 26 September 1873 in

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream o ...

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...

. She was the daughter of the royal Prussian forester Hermann von Massow. His nephew

Udo von Woyrsch Udo Gustav Wilhelm Egon von Woyrsch (24 July 1895 – 14 January 1983) was a high-ranking SS official in Nazi Germany who participated in implementation of the regime's racial policies during World War II. First World War From early 1914 ...

(1895–1983) was an SS

Obergruppenführer ' (, "senior group leader") was a paramilitary rank in Nazi Germany that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the ''Sturmabteilung'' (SA) and adopted by the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) one year later. Until April 1942, it was the highest commissio ...

and SS and Police Leader.

Career

After Woyrsch finished high school in Breslau, he joined the 1st Potsdamer Garde-Grenadier Regiment on 5 April 1866. He served at the

battle of Königgrätz The Battle of Königgrätz (or Sadowa) was the decisive battle of the Austro-Prussian War in which the Kingdom of Prussia defeated the Austrian Empire. It took place on 3 July 1866, near the Bohemian city of Hradec Králové (German: Königg ...

in 1866. He later fought in the 1870–71 Franco-Prussian war where he was wounded but earned the

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia es ...

. In 1901 Woyrsch was promoted to divisional commander. He retired in 1911 but was re-activated in August 1914 to command the

Landwehr Corps The ''Landwehr'' Corps (german: Landwehrkorps) was a corps level command of the German Army in World War I. Formation The ''Landwehr'' Corps was formed on the outbreak of war in August 1914 as part of the mobilisation of the Army. It was initi ...

and was quickly sent to help the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...

fighting in partitioned Poland. He came up to the

Vistula The Vistula (; pl, Wisła, ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest river in Europe, at in length. The drainage basin, reaching into three other nations, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra in ...

, and then reinforced the left wing of the

Austro-Hungarian army The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...

under General Viktor Dankl von Krasnik. In the three days of battle against the Imperial Russian army Woyrsch covered the retreat of the Austrians with his corps ''Landwehrkanal''. A

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

newspaper wrote that: "Only the activity of the small Prussian ''Landwehr'' troops in this battle prevented the complete destruction of the Austrian army." Later he was included in

Paul von Hindenburg Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (; abbreviated ; 2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German field marshal and statesman who led the Imperial German Army during World War I and later became President of Germany fr ...

's 9th Army. In July 1915 Woyrsch was involved in the breakthrough battle of Sienno near Wongrowitz (Wągrowiec). In 1916 he helped fight off the Russian Brusilov Offensive and in 1917 was promoted

Generalfeldmarschall ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; en, general field marshal, field marshal general, or field marshal; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several ...

. In 1920 Woyrsch retired, again, to his family estate at the castle Pilsnitz near Breslau. After his death the Silesian sculptor Paul Ondrusch created a wooden sculpture of Woyrsch to decorate the main hall inside the town hall of Leobschütz (Głubczyce). Woyrsch was portrayed as a knight wearing a coat and a chain mail, with his hands placed on a handle of a large sword resting against the ground.Maler, Katarzyna (1996), "Dzieła Paula Ondruscha zachowane na Ziemi Głubczyckiej", Kalendarz Głubczycki (Głubczyce) (1997): p. 75, ISSN 1231-4803 (Polish)

Honours

* ''Ehrenbürger'' (Honorary citizen) of Breslau * ''Ehrenbürger'' (Honorary citizen) of

Neisse The Lusatian Neisse (german: Lausitzer Neiße; pl, Nysa Łużycka; cs, Lužická Nisa; Upper Sorbian: ''Łužiska Nysa''; Lower Sorbian: ''Łužyska Nysa''), or Western Neisse, is a river in northern Central Europe.Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia es ...

(1871) *

Order of the Black Eagle The Order of the Black Eagle (german: Hoher Orden vom Schwarzen Adler) was the highest order of chivalry in the Kingdom of Prussia. The order was founded on 17 January 1701 by Elector Friedrich III of Brandenburg (who became Friedrich I, King ...

* Order of Saint John (''Johanniterorden'') * ''

Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia. The was awarded as both a military and civil honour and ranked, along with the Order of the Black Eagle, the Order of the Red Eag ...

'' on 25 October 1914

Family

Career

Honours

References

Further reading