Alexander Petersen
| Alexander Petersen | |
|---|---|
 Captain Alexander Petersen | |
| Birth name | Alexander Hartwig Richard Petersen |
| Birth date | 14 July 1860 |
| Place of birth | Lobsens, Kreis Wirsitz, Province of Posen, Kingdom of Prussia, German Confederation |
| Death date | 4 May 1925 (aged 64) |
| Place of death | Berlin-Steglitz, German Reich |
| Allegiance |  Kingdom of Prussia German Empire
|
| Service/branch |  Army of Baden.png){kind=small} Prussian Army  Imperial German Army
|
| Rank | Major General |
| Battles/wars | World War I |
| Awards | Red Eagle Order |
| Relations | ∞ 1887 Marie Küttner |
Alexander "Alex" Hartwig Richard Petersen (14 July 1860 – 4 May 1925) was a German officer of the Prussian Army and the Imperial German Army, finally Major General.
Contents
Life
Alexander Petersen was born in Posen in the eastern part of the German Confederation, served with the cadet corps (Portepee-Unteroffizier), joined the 2. Badisches Grenadier-Regiment „Kaiser Wilhelm I.“ Nr. 110 in Heidelberg in April 1880 (the Army of Baden was under the rule of the Prussian Army since 25 November 1870) and likewise spent his entire military career before the Great War with regiments in the southwest of the German Empire. When the war came, he was immediately made commander of Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 80 and by the end of hostilities, he was a Major General.
Military career (chronology)
- 17 April 1880 Transferred from the cadet corps to the 2. Badisches Grenadier-Regiment „Kaiser Wilhelm I.“ Nr. 110
- 9th Company/III. (Fusilier-)Battalion in Mannheim
- 1887 (rank list date) Adjutant of the II. Battalion in Heidelberg
- 27 August 1894 Transferred to the Infanterie-Regiment „Markgraf Karl“ (7. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 60
- appointed commander of the 5th Company/II. Battalion in Bitsch (Reichsland Elsaß-Lothringen)
- 1910 (rank list date) Commander of the III. Battalion/1. Unter-Elsässisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 132 in Straßburg
- 1913 (rank list date) Staff/4. Unter-Elsässisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 143 in Straßburg
- 2 August 1914 Commander of the Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 80
- 21 September 1916 Commander of the Landwehr District Hildesheim
Family
Descent
Alexander was the son of jurist, judge and judicial councilor (Justizrat) Rudolph Alexander Petersen (b. 17 August 1820 in Pillau; d. 11 March 1875 in Berlin) and his wife Anna, née Weimann (d. 27 October 1899 in Berlin). He had several siblings, among the, older brother Friedrich Alexander Petersen (b. 4 April 1858 in Lobsens; d. 12 July 1909 in Wiesbaden), jurist and politician, as well as younger brothers Hans Siegfried Alexander and Rudolf Alexander Leo, also career officers.
Marriage
On 22 November 1887 in Heidelberg (Grand Duchy of Baden), 2nd Lieutenant Petersen married his fiancée Marie Theresia Küttner (b. 1868). They would have two sons:
- Erich Alexander Karl (1889–1963), German officer, finally General der Flieger in WWII
- Curt (1890–1916) German cavalry officer
- Curt was born on 5 September 1890 and served with the 2. Rheinisches Husaren-Regiment Nr. 9. He was severely wounded on 18 November 1916 near Schulerau (Poiana Brașov) in Romania and died (ᛣ⚔) three days later on 21 November 1916 in the military hospital in Târgu Jiu on the banks of the river Jiu. His body was brought to Hildesheim and buried there in the fallen section of the northern cemetery.
Promotions
- 17 April 1880 Sekondelieutenant (2nd Lieutenant)
- 16 April 1889 Premierlieutenant (1st Lieutenant)
- 27 January 1894 Hauptmann (Captain; überzählig)
- 18 November 1905 Major
- 1 October 1912 Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant Colonel)
- 19 August 1914 Oberst z. D. (Colonel at disposal)
- 1918/19 Generalmajor a. D. (Major General, retired)
Awards and decorations (excerpt)
- Baden Order of the Zähringer Lion (Orden vom Zähringer Löwen), Knight's Cross 2nd Class with Oak Leaves (BZL3bmE/BZ3bmE) on 13 September 1893[1]
- Prussian Centenary Medal 1897 (Zentenarmedaille)
- Red Eagle Order (Roter Adlerorden), 4th Class (PRAO4/PrA4)
- Prussian Long Service Cross for 25 years (Königlich Preußisches Dienstauszeichnungskreuz)
- Prussian Order of the Crown (Kronenorden), 3rd Class (KO3)[2]
