Ober Ost
| Supreme Commander of All German Forces in the East | ||||||
| Oberbefehlshaber der gesamten Deutschen Streitkräfte im Osten | ||||||
| Military occupation authority of the German Empire | ||||||
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| Capital | Königsberg (HQ, 1919) | |||||
| Political structure | Military occupation | |||||
| Supreme Commander | ||||||
| • | 1914–1916 | Paul von Hindenburg | ||||
| • | 1916–1918 | Leopold Maximilian | ||||
| Chief of Staff | ||||||
| • | 1914–1916 | Erich Ludendorff | ||||
| • | 1916–1918 | Max Hoffmann | ||||
| Historical era | World War I | |||||
| • | Established | 1914 | ||||
| • | Treaty of Brest-Litovsk | March 3, 1918 | ||||
| • | German surrender | November 11, 1918 | ||||
| • | Disestablished | 1919 | ||||
| Area | ||||||
| • | 1916 | 108,808 km² (42,011 sq mi) | ||||
| Population | ||||||
| • | 1916 est. | 2,909,935 | ||||
| Density | 26.7 /km² (69.3 /sq mi) | |||||
| Currency | ||||||
| Today part of |
 Latvia Lithuania Poland Belarus
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Ober Ost is short for Oberbefehlshaber der gesamten Deutschen Streitkräfte im Osten, which is German for "Supreme Commander of All German Forces in the East" during World War I. In practice it refers not only to said commander, but also to his governing military staff and the district they controlled: Ober Ost was in command of the German section of the Eastern front.
After the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk the German Empire effectively controlled Lithuania, Latvia, Belarus, parts of Poland, and Courland: former territories of the Russian Empire.Ober Ost itself was assigned present-day Lithuania, Latvia, Belarus, Poland, and Courland. The land area it controlled was around 108,808 km2 (42,011 sq mi). Ober Ost was created in 1914, and its first leader was Paul von Hindenburg, a Prussian military hero. When the Chief of the General Staff Erich von Falkenhayn was dismissed from office in 1916, von Hindenburg replaced him, and Prince Leopold of Bavaria was given control of the Ober Ost.
By October 1915, the German Army had advanced so far to the east, that Central Poland could be put under a civil administration. This administration was divided between the German Government General of Warsaw and the Austro-Hungarian Government General of Lublin. The military Ober Ost government from then on only controlled the conquered areas east and north of Central Poland.
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Wikipedia