Ludendorff, Erich Friedrich Wilhelm, << LOO duhn dawrf, AY rihkh FREE drihkh VIHL hehlm >> (1865-1937), a German general, served as chief of staff to Paul von Hindenburg during World War I (1914-1918). Ludendorff helped shape Germany’s aggressive strategy.
Ludendorff was born on April 9, 1865, near Posen, East Prussia (now Poznan, Poland). From 1904 to 1913, he served on the German general staff. In 1914, at the start of World War I, Ludendorff gained fame for capturing Liege, Belgium. He then became Hindenburg’s chief of staff, and the two won victories on the eastern front. Hindenburg became supreme commander of German forces in 1916, and Ludendorff, as second in command, helped direct the war. In 1918, Ludendorff refused to accept the terms of the armistice and was forced to resign.
After the war, Ludendorff claimed that socialist political leaders had kept the German military from achieving victory. In 1923, he took part in the Beer Hall Putsch, an unsuccessful revolution organized by Adolf Hitler. Ludendorff went to trial but was freed because of his war record. He died on Dec. 20, 1937.
See also German Spring Offensive .
