Johannes von Busse (1862 – 1936) was a German lieutenant general who was most notable for his service in the

Romanian Campaign The Kingdom of Romania was neutral for the first two years of World War I, entering on the side of the Allied powers from 27 August 1916 until Central Power occupation led to the Treaty of Bucharest in May 1918, before reentering the war on 10 ...

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Biography

Origin

Johannes comes from the Busse family who was raised to the hereditary Prussian nobility on April 21, 1859. He was a son of the Prussian district judge Rudolf von Busse (1823-1862) and his wife Magarethe, born von dem Borne (Born in 1834).

Military career

Busse served in the military after his education in the cadet corps. On 12 April 1879 he was made an ensign in the 2nd (1st Pomeranian) Grenadier Regiment of the Prussian Army in

Szczecin Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Poland-Germany border, German border, it is a major port, seaport, the la ...

; and was promoted to second lieutenant on November 13, 1879. As such he was, from January 28, 1886, adjutant of its II. Battalion. Busse became a Prime Lieutenant on September 19, 1888, and from October 1, 1888, to July 21, 1891, received further training at the

Prussian Staff College The Prussian Staff College, also Prussian War College () was the highest military facility of the Kingdom of Prussia to educate, train, and develop German General Staff, general staff officers. Location It originated with the ''Akademie für ...

. Following this, Busse performed troop service again in his old regiment. From April 1, 1892, to September 13, 1893, he was assigned to the Great General Staff and simultaneous named captain and company commander. Busse held the later position for almost four years. Then he was transferred back to

Stettin Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the German border, it is a major seaport, the largest city of northwestern Poland, and se ...

to serve for a year in the 148th (5th West Prussian) Infantry Regiment and on April 30, 1898, came to the Hauptkadettenanstalt as a teacher. When he was promoted to major on January 27, 1903, he was attached to the 84th (Schleswig) Infantry Regiment. From November 15, 1904, to November 18, 1908, Busse was in

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

, acting as the commander of the 2nd Battalion of the 3rd (2nd East Prussian) Grenadier Regiment. He was then appointed commander of the Neisse Military School and promoted, on January 27, 1910, to Lieutenant Colonel; eveintually being promoted to Colonel on 13 September 1912. He took command of the 89th (Grand Ducal Mecklenburgian) Grenadier Regiment on November 19, 1912. In this position he was awarded the Commander's Cross of the

Order of the White Elephant __NOTOC__ The Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant (; ) is an order (decoration), order of Thailand. It was established in 1861 by King Mongkut, Rama IV of the Thailand, Kingdom of Siam. Along with the Order of the Crown of Thailand, it is r ...

in January 1914. With the outbreak of

, Busse was appointed commander of the 34th Reserve Infantry Brigade, part of the 18th Reserve Division. As such he participated in the march through neutral

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

for the

Invasion of France France has been invaded on numerous occasions, by foreign powers or rival French governments; there have also been unimplemented invasion plans. * The 978 German invasion during the Franco-German war of 978–980 * The 1230 English invasion of ...

and fought at the

First Battle of the Aisne The First Battle of the Aisne () was the Allied follow-up offensive against the right wing of the German First Army (led by Alexander von Kluck) and the Second Army (led by Karl von Bülow) as they retreated after the First Battle of the ...

. In this capacity he was awarded both classes of the

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...

. He gave up command at the end of October 1914 and took over the 102nd Reserve Infantry Brigade, which at that time was on the

Yser Front The Yser Front (, or ), sometimes termed the West Flemish Front in British writing, was a section of the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during World War I held by Belgium, Belgian troops from October 1914 until 1918. The front ran alo ...

. After Busse was, on March 22, 1915, promoted to Major General he was given command of the newly established 210th Infantry Brigade on November 20, 1915. With this he crossed the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

Semendria Smederevo ( sr-Cyrl, Смедерево, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Podunavlje District in eastern Serbia. It is situated on the right bank of the Danube, about downstream of the Serbian capital, Belgrade. According to ...

and formed the vanguard of the IV Reserve Corps on its advance through

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

to the

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border. In the period that followed, he stayed at

Lake Dojran Doiran Lake (, ''Dojransko Ezero''; , ''Límni Dhoïráni''), also spelled Dojran Lake is a lake with an area of shared between North Macedonia () and Greece (). To the west is the city of Nov Dojran (Нов Дојран), to the east the vil ...

, where border fighting broke out. During the Brusilov Offensive in the summer of 1916, Busse then commanded the infantry of Wilhelmi's division and was able to stop the advance of the Russian armed forces in his sector. Thereupon he became, on September 22, 1916, the leader of the 301st Division. This unit also included

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...

troops and was led by von Busse during the campaign against Romania. For his work he was awarded the

Order of the Red Eagle The Order of the Red Eagle () was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful service to the kingdom, o ...

, 2nd Class with Oak Leaves and Swords, in December 1916. In mid-January 1917, Busse was withdrawn from the Eastern Front and appointed in command of the Upper Rhine fortifications in

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in southern Germany. In earlier times it was considered to be on both sides of the Upper Rhine, but since the Napoleonic Wars, it has been considered only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Ba ...

. On April 21, 1917, he was appointed commander of the 111th Infantry Division fighting against British units near

Arras Arras ( , ; ; historical ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the Artois region, with a ...

. Kriegsgeschichtliche Forschungsanstalt des Heeres (Hrsg.): ''Der Weltkrieg 1914–1918.'' Band 12: ''Die Kriegsführung im Frühjahr 1917.'' Mittler & Sohn, Berlin 1939, S. 254. During the subsequent fighting in Flanders his division suffered heavy losses and was withdrawn from the front on August 1. After being refreshed it was used again from October 17 to November 6. After fighting in the

Siegfried Line The Siegfried Line, known in German as the ''Westwall (= western bulwark)'', was a German defensive line built during the late 1930s. Started in 1936, opposite the French Maginot Line, it stretched more than from Kleve on the border with the ...

, he prepared his division for the

German spring offensive The German spring offensive, also known as ''Kaiserschlacht'' ("Kaiser's Battle") or the Ludendorff offensive, was a series of German Empire, German attacks along the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the World War I, First Wor ...

. As an attack division, it played a major role in the breakthrough battles, and on April 16, 1918, Busse received the highest Prussian valor award, the order

Pour le Mérite The (; , ), also informally known as the ''Blue Max'' () after German WWI flying ace Max Immelmann, is an order of merit established in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia. Separated into two classes, each with their own designs, the was ...

, for his achievements. After the failure of the German offensive, the division returned to trench warfare, fighting at Monchy-Bapaume at the beginning of September and at Valenciennes at the end of October. Then he retreated to the

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

-Maas position. After the armistice Busse led his division back home where it was demobilized and disbanded by January 191. On January 20, 1919, he was appointed commander of the 17th Division. In the course of the dissolution of the Prussian Army, Busse was put up for disposal on September 30, 1919, and given the character of lieutenant general and retired. In 1921 Busse was elected chairman of the

German War Graves Commission The German War Graves Commission (, ) is responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of German war graves in Europe and North Africa. Its objectives are acquisition, maintenance and care of German war graves; tending to next of kin; youth and ed ...

, state association in

Mecklenburg-Schwerin The Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin () was a duchy in northern Germany created in 1701, when Frederick William, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Frederick William and Adolphus Frederick II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Adolphus Frederick II divided ...

Schwerin Schwerin (; Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch dialect, Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch Low German: ''Swerin''; Polabian language, Polabian: ''Zwierzyn''; Latin: ''Suerina'', ''Suerinum'') is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Germ ...

. He was a legal knight of the Order of St. John and Commander of the Second Class of the

Order of Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single class known as ''White Knights'' t ...

Family

Busse married Maria von Holtzendorff (1872–1908) in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

on October 12, 1892.''Gothaisches Genealogisches Taschenbuch der Adeligen Häuser. 1901.'' Erster Jahrgang, Justus Perthes, Gotha 1900
S. 426.
/ref> Their children, Evamaria (* 1897), Gisela (1899–1987) and Hans (* 1903) emerged from the marriage. A distant relative was the architect

Hans-Busso von Busse Hans-Busso (Arthur Rudolf) von Busse (7 May 1930, Oppeln, Upper Silesia – 7 November 2009, Munich) was a German architect and academic. He designed, among others, the in Erding and a restaurant at the Evangelische Akademie Tutzing. Selected ...

References

Bibliography

* Karl-Friedrich Hildebrand, Christian Zweng: "The Knights of the Order Pour le Mérite of World War I." Volume 1: "A – G." Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück 1999, , pp. 242–243. * Hanns Möller: “History of the Knights of the Order pour le mérite in World War I.” Volume I: “A – L.” Verlag Bernard & Graefe, Berlin 1935, pp. 180–182. * '' Gothaisches Genealogisches Taschenbuch der Briefadeligen houses. 1913.'' Seventh year, Justus Perthes, Gotha 1912
p. 181.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Busse, Johannes von 1862 births 1936 deaths German Army generals of World War I Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) Military personnel from the Province of Silesia Lieutenant generals of Prussia