Ludwig Goiginger | |
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| Born | (1863-08-11)11 August 1863 |
| Died | 28 August 1931(1931-08-28) (aged 68) Graz-Neustift,Austria |
| Allegiance |  Austria-Hungary |
| Branch | Austro-Hungarian Army |
| Service years | 1884–1918 |
| Commands | 122nd Infantry Brigade 32nd Infantry Division Goiginger Group 73rd Infantry Division 60th Infantry Division XXIV Army Corps XXVIII Corps |
| Conflicts | World War I |
| Awards | Military Order of Maria Theresa |
Ludwig Goiginger was an Austro-HungarianLieutenant Field Marshal who served duringWorld War I.
After graduating fromhigh school inSalzburg, Goiginger entered themilitary engineercadet school atVienna in 1881. In 1884 he joined the Genie Regiment 2 inKrems and was appointed alieutenant. After attending the War Academy from 1888 to 1890, Goiginger was assigned to the General Staff Corps as anadjutant, and was given a permanent position in 1893. He was promoted to colonel in 1906. From 1907 to 1908, Goiginger was a "military assistant" in the Austro-Hungarian mission, part of an international mission responsible for supervising theOttoman Gendarmerie inMacedonia,[1] and he fought the armed bands aroundSkopje in theKosovo Vilayet. After more than 20 years of staff activity, he took over command of the newly established 122nd Infantry Brigade inBruneck on 27 February 1912, which was assigned in peace to the 8th Infantry Division (FML Johann Freiherr von Kirchbach auf Lauterbach), and was promoted tomajor general in May 1912.
During themobilization of August 1914, the 122nd Brigade (1stK.u.k. Feldjäger Regiment) and the 87th Infantry Brigade were grouped together, forming the 44th Landwehr Infantry Division, commanded byHeinrich Tschurtschenthaler. The division was part of the Austro-Hungarian XIV Corp, located on theEastern Front inGalicia, in the area of modern-dayRava-Ruska. On 1 October Goiginger was appointed head of the 32nd Infantry Division, attached to the2nd Army, commanded by GeneralEduard von Böhm-Ermolli. During winter 1914–1915, Goiginger was given command of theGoiginger group, consisting of a division and the 103rd Landsturm Brigade, which was engaged in theBattle of the Carpathians. In March 1915, he as assigned command of the 44th Landwehr Division, part of the XVIII Corps commanded by GeneralAlfred von Ziegler. On 9 May 1915, Goiginger was promoted toFeldmarschall-Leutnant.
After theItalian entry into World War I, Goiginger was sent to theItalian front, where on 5 June 1915, he received command of the Division Pustertal, in the Tyrol defense command's District V, commanded byGeneral der KavallerieViktor Dankl von Krasnik. Goiginger was engaged in combat along theDolomites, where on 17 April 1916, at theCol di Lana command sector, the explosion of a passage mined by Italian sappers engulfed a wholeKaiserjäger company.
At the end of August 1916, withRomania's entry into the war, Goiginger was sent to Transylvania. On 12 October 1916 he was assigned command of the 73rd Division, attached to the German9th Army, led by GeneralKonrad Krafft von Dellmensingen.
After successful fighting on theRomanian front, Goiginger returned to Italy. He was appointed command of the 60th Division, entrenched onMonte San Gabriele on the Isonzo. On 22 August 1917, during theEleventh Battle of the Isonzo, Goiginger's spirited defense of Jelenik earned him the goldMedal for Bravery. During theBattle of Caporetto, the 60th Division, integrated into Armeegruppe Kosak, participated in the German-Austro-Hungarian rout of the Italian2nd Army. On 8 March 1918, Goiginger was appointed to command the XXIV Corps, comprising the 55th and 60th Divisions, along with part of the 94th Division, which was located in theMonte Asolone area.
In June 1918, Goiginger's corps participated in theSecond Battle of the Piave River, theCentral Powers' last attempt to achieve victory on the Italian front. The corps occupied a bridgehead inMontello, where on 19 June it repulsed an Italian counter-attack, capturing 12,000 prisoners and 84 cannons. GeneralSvetozar Boroević, the front's commander, believed he could utilize Montello's position as a base to prolong the Central Powers offensive. ButErich Ludendorff, head of theGerman General Staff, said that Germany was unable to allocate the resources necessary for further operations, having devoted all their reserves to theWestern front. After consulting with Austro-Hungarian Chief of StaffArthur Arz von Straußenburg, on 20 JuneKaiser Karl I decided to abandon the offensive, ordering a withdrawal north of thePiave. Goiginger initially refused to surrender his hard won territory; after further orders, he accepted the decision. Austro-Hungarian units evacuated Montello, with the last troops withdrawing on 23 June, ending the battle.[2] The command of this action earned Goiginger theMilitary Order of Maria Theresa.
On 19 July, Goiginger was appointed the command of Austria-Hungary's formations on theWestern front. The XVIII Corps, comprising the 1st, 35th, and 37th Divisions, along with the 16th Landsturm Division, was attached toArmy Group Gallwitz. From October 1918 Goiginger was engaged along theOrne, suffering heavy losses to theAmerican Expeditionary Forces. On 3 November, with theArmistice of Villa Giusti,Austria-Hungary withdrew from the conflict. The Austro-Hungarian corps in France was evacuated first toArlon, then, on 10 November, towardsThionville. The last Austro-Hungarian troops leftGermany on 29 November, and dispersed themselves amongst the states forming as a result of the breakup of theHabsburg monarchy.
Goiginger concluded his military career on 1 January 1919, in theRepublic of German-Austria, and retired toGraz-Neustift, where he died in 1931. He was the younger brother ofFeldzeugmeister Heinrich Goiginger (1861–1927).
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