Felix Ludwig Graf von Bothmer was born in Munich on December 10, 1852. He was the son of Generalleutnant Graf Max von Bothmer and Laura (née Reichert).
In 1871, young Felix joined the Bavarian Army, receiving his commission during the Franco-Prussian War. He would spend most of the following forty years serving in the Bavarian War Ministry or on the Royal Bavarian Army General Staff. During that long period, Bothmer had stints of line duty, including three years in Berlin with the Prussian General Staff.
In 1910, Bothmer was promoted to General der Infanterie. Before the outbreak of the Great War, he fractured a leg which rendered him unfit for field duty. As a result, Bothmer did not receive a command until the end of November 1914… when he was appointed to head the Sixth Bavarian Reserve Division just after the conclusion of the First Battle of Ypres.
On March 22, 1915, Bothmer was given command of the corps that bore his name. It was a unit raised to help defend the passes of the Carpathian Mountains against Russian invaders directly threatening the great Hungarian plain (the breadbasket of the Austro-Hungarian Empire). He won the Battle of Zwinin (February 5 to April 9, 1915; now Dzhvynuv in western Ukraine), a fight in which the Russians lost 33,000 men. Amid an avalanche of violence that buried hundreds of thousands in a frozen mountain wilderness, many more Cossack soldiers died from exposure to the elements as well as Teutonic artillery fire. Zwinin was just the start of a massive Russian retreat… and Bothmer was in the right place to take part in the great Austria-German advance better known as the Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive in May 1915.
Two months later, Hans Ritter von Hemmer was named Bothmer’s Chief of General Staff. On July 7th, Bothmer was awarded the coveted Pour le Mérite for outstanding leadership, distinguished military planning, and successful operations during the battles of Dniester, Gnila-Lipa, and Zlota-Lipa. The next day, he succeeded Alexander von Linsingen as commander of the South Army, which consisted of both German and Austrian units. His men played a key role in stopping the final Russian advance in the Carpathians during the decisive Brusilov Offensive in the summer of 1916.
Oak leaves were added to Bothmer’s “Blue Max” on July 25, 1917 for his leadership and actions in the fight around Brzezany (now Berezhany, Ukraine) in the last Teutonic offensive before the Bolsheviks seized power in Russia. Bothmer was also recognized for his efforts in the battle for the bridgehead at Zbrucz. Additionally, he received the Grand Cross of the Bavarian Military Order of Max Joseph.
On February 4, 1918, Bothmer was appointed to command the new German 19th Army. Based in Lorraine, it was formed to participate in the spring offensives against the Allies in the West. Bothmer remained in that capacity until November 8, 1918… while to the north, the German forces disintegrated. His last job in the German Army (along with von Hemmer) was an advisory role for the Bavarian Ministry for Military Affairs up until the end of 1918. He primarily oversaw the demobilization of the soon-to-be-disbanded Bavarian Army.
After the war, Bothmer lived a peaceful retirement in his beloved Munich. But the Beer Hall Putsch of November 1923 interrupted the bliss. During the trials of Adolf Hitler, Bothmer was quoted in saying that the putsch was well prepared.
Felix Graf von Bothmer died in Munich on March 18, 1937 at the age of eighty-four. Contrary to his family’s wishes, Bothmer was given a state funeral under the direct orders of Adolf Hitler. He was eulogized by Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria.
MILITARY RANKS
Leutnant: November 28, 1871
Oberleutnant: November 23, 1882
Hauptmann: October 31, 1888
Major: September 22, 1893
Oberstleutnant: March 17, 1897
Oberst: July 21, 1900
Generalmajor: May 18, 1903
Generalleutnant: September 15, 1905
General der Infanterie: May 4, 1910
Generaloberst: April 9, 1918
AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Bavaria
– Military Order of Max Joseph, Knight’s Cross (1915), Commander’s Cross (1915) and Grand Cross (1916)
– Military Merit Order, First Class, Swords to First Class and Grand Cross with Swords
– Service Decoration, First Class
– Ludwigsorden, Honor Cross
– Jubilee Medal
– Merit Order of St. Michael, First Class
Prussia
– Order of the Red Eagle, First Class
– Pour le Mérite with Oak Leaves
– 1914 Iron Cross of 1914, First and Second Class
– War Commemorative Medal of 1870-1871
– Centenary Medal
– Order of the Crown
– The Honor Cross of the World War 1914-1918 (German Award)
Other German states
– Anhalt: Friedrich Cross
– Bremen: Hanseatic Cross
– Brunswick: House Order of Henry the Lion, Grand Cross
– Hesse-Darmstadt: Order of Philip the Magnanimous, Grand Cross with Crown
– Hohenzollern: Princely House Order of Hohenzollern, First Class with Swords
– Lübeck: Hanseatic Cross
– Saxony: Albert Order, Grand Cross and Star and Swords to Grand Cross
– Saxony: Military Order of St. Henry, Knight’s Cross and Commander’s Cross
– Württemberg: Order of the Württemberg Crown, Grand Cross
Other countries
– Austria-Hungary: Imperial Austrian Order of Leopold, Grand Cross with War Decoration
– Austria-Hungary: Imperial Austrian Order of the Iron Crown, Knight First Class with War Decoration
– Austria-Hungary: Military Merit Cross, First Class with War Decoration
– Austria-Hungary: Large Military Merit Medal
– Austria-Hungary: Red Cross Decoration 1st Class with War Decoration
– Denmark: Order of the Dannebrog, Knight
– Japan: Order of the Sacred Treasure, Grand Officer’s Cross
– Spain: Grand Cross of the Order of Military Merit
– Ottoman Empire: Imtiaz Medal in Gold with Swords
– Ottoman Empire: Liakat Medal in Gold with Swords
– Ottoman Empire: Turkish War Medal (so-called “Gallipoli Star”)
– Ottoman Empire: Order of Medjidie, First Class with Swords
NOTE: The orders from Allied nations were awarded prior to World War I.