Werner von Blomberg
| Werner von Blomberg | |
|---|---|
Werner von Blomberg in 1934
|
|
| Birth name | Werner Eduard Fritz von Blomberg |
| Nickname(s) | Rubber Lion |
| Born | 2 September 1878 Stargard in Pommern, Province of Pomerania, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire now Stargard, West Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland |
| Died | 14 March 1946 (aged 67) Nuremberg, Bavaria, Allied-occupied Germany |
| Allegiance |
 German Empire (to 1918) Weimar Republic (to 1933) Nazi Germany Nazi Germany
|
| Service/branch | Army |
| Years of service | 1897–1938 |
| Rank | Generalfeldmarschall |
| Commands held | 1st Infantry Division, Reichskriegsministerium |
| Battles/wars |
World War I World War II |
| Awards |
Pour le Mérite Iron Cross |
Werner Eduard Fritz von Blomberg (2 September 1878 – 14 March 1946) was a German Generalfeldmarschall, Minister of War, and Commander-in-Chief of the German Armed Forces until January 1938.
Born in Stargard, Pomerania, Prussia (present-day Poland), Werner von Blomberg joined the army in 1897 and attended the Prussian Military Academy in 1904. In April 1904, he married Charlotte Hellmich. The couple had five children.
After graduating in 1907, Blomberg entered the General Staff in 1908. Serving with distinction on the Western Front during the First World War, Blomberg was awarded the Pour le Mérite.
In 1920, Blomberg was appointed chief of staff of the Döberitz Brigade, and in 1921 was made chief of staff of the Stuttgart Army Area. In 1925, Blomberg was made chief of army training by General Hans von Seeckt. By 1927, Blomberg was a major-general and chief of the Troop Office, which was the thinly disguised German General Staff forbidden by the Treaty of Versailles. In 1928, Blomberg visited the Soviet Union, where he was much impressed by the high status of the Red Army, and left a convinced believer in the value of totalitarian dictatorship as the prerequisite for military power. This was part and parcel of a broader shift on the part of the German military to the idea of a totalitarian Wehrstaat (Defence State) which had become popular with officers starting in the mid-1920s. The German historian Eberhard Kolb wrote that:
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