Erich Ludendorff

Erich Friedrich Wilhelm Ludendorff was born to August Wilhelm Ludendorff and Klara Jeanette Henriette von Tempelhoff in Kruszewnia, a village in the Province of Posen, Prussia.

Ludendorff begins his military education at the Prussian Military Academy in Berlin, laying the foundation for his future military career.

Ludendorff completes his studies at the Prussian Military Academy and is commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 57th Infantry Regiment.

Ludendorff is promoted and joins the Prussian General Staff, where he works on military planning and strategy.

Ludendorff marries Margarethe Schröder, a teacher, in a ceremony in Posen. They will have four children together.

Ludendorff is promoted to the rank of major and continues his work in the General Staff, focusing on military reforms and strategic planning.

Ludendorff publishes his first book, 'In the Saddle,' which discusses cavalry tactics and military reforms.

Ludendorff is promoted to the rank of colonel and continues his influential role in the General Staff, contributing to the development of military strategy.

With the outbreak of World War I, Ludendorff is appointed as the Quartermaster General of the 2nd Army, tasked with capturing Liège in Belgium.

Ludendorff is appointed as the First Quartermaster General and de facto co-leader of the German High Command, alongside Paul von Hindenburg.

Following Germany's defeat in World War I, Ludendorff resigns from his position in the High Command and goes into temporary exile in Sweden.

Ludendorff returns to Germany and becomes involved in right-wing political movements, advocating for a strong, militaristic state.

Ludendorff joins Adolf Hitler in the failed Beer Hall Putsch in Munich, an attempt to overthrow the Weimar Republic government.

Ludendorff is elected to the German Reichstag as a member of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP).

Ludendorff publishes 'Total War,' a book that outlines his theories on the conduct of war and the mobilization of a nation's resources.

Ludendorff divorces his wife Margarethe Schröder after nearly 40 years of marriage. He later marries Mathilde von Kemnitz.

Erich Ludendorff dies in Munich, Germany, at the age of 72, leaving behind a legacy as a military leader and political figure.