Kress von Kressenstein, Franz Otto Freiherr von

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Kress von Kressenstein, Franz Otto Freiherr von, born 23-07-1881 in Augsburg, Bavaria,  the son of Generaloberst Otto Freiherr von Kress von Kressenstein and his wife Johanna, born von Orff. His uncle was the General of the infantry Friedrich Freiherr Kreß von Kressenstein, one of his many cousins was Fritz Freiherr Kreß von Kressenstein, last court marshal of the last Bavarian Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria.. Franz joined the Army as a Fahnenjunker on 15-07-1900, age 18 in the 1st Schwere-Reiter-Regiment „Prinz Karl von Bayern“  in Munich. Franz followed a training at the War School in Munich from 01-03-1901 till 09-02-1902 and promoted to Leutnant. Shortly before the outbreak of the first war and after a three years War Academy he was appointed as a Rittmeister, on 26-06-1914. He started the war as an Ordinance Officer in the staff of the 1. Königliche Bayerischen Division and on 25-12-1914 appointed as second General Staff Officer . He ended the war as an Oberleutnant in the 8th Königlich Bayerischen Reserve-Division.

Friedrich Kress von Kressenstein served in the Bavarian army, which was only under the command of the German Emperor and of the Reichswehr established after the First World War in wartime. General Kress remained true to legal authority, but in 1924 he testified during the criminal proceedings against Adolf Hitler and Erich Ludendorff that Hitler’s “Bierkellerputsch” was suppressed by the army with “bleeding hearts” and a “minimum of violence”. The general testified that the Nazis had opened fire on the army. Franz Otto was honorably discharged from service on 30-11-1929. After Hitler’s seizure of power in 1933, General, out of order. Kress is no longer in the almanac with German Generals. He was allowed in the 100.000 men new Reichswehr and Major Kress von Kressenstein married his fiancée Charlotte Drescher (1904–1996), daughter of the German scholar Carl Maria Drescher, in Breslau in 1924. The marriage gave birth to two daughters, including Juliane “Liane” (1929–1954), who rests with her parents in the Planegg cemetery.

He was promoted to Oberstleutnant on 01-02-1926 and with the Staff of the 7th Bavarian Division in Munich. From 01-10-1935 he was in the Staff of Group Commando in Berlin, The Gauleiter of Berlin was Joseph Goebbels (did you know) . He was appointed as General and Commanding General of the XII Army Corps and Commander of Wehrkreises XII. On 28-02-1938 before World War II started Kress von Kressenstein was retired.

Death and burial ground of Kress von Kressenstein, Franz Otto Freiherr von.

  Living in Planegg near Munich. Kress died at the age of 75, on 14-01-1957 and is buried with his wife Charlotte, who died at the old age of 91, on 21-05-1998, on the cemetery Fürstenriederstrasse in Planegg. Daughter Juliane died age 25 in 1954.

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