First World War.com - Who's Who - Archduke Josef Ferdinand

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Who's Who: Archduke Josef Ferdinand
Updated - Monday, 11 February, 2002

Archduke Josef Ferdinand (1872-1942), a godson of Emperor Franz Josef, served as a painfully unsuccessful Austro-Hungarian field commander during World War One.

Starting the war as an infantry general in command of Third Army's XIV Corps - under General Bruderman - Josef was promoted to command of Fourth Army on 30 September 1914 following disastrous performances by both Third and Fourth Armies.

Despite the spectacular failure of the so-called 'Black-Yellow' Offensive of September 1915 Josef himself escaped blame. Nevertheless widely regarded as a less than conscientious commander by professional contemporaries - with a penchant for hunting expeditions - Josef's firm belief in the impregnability of his defences in Galicia was summarily demolished with the stunningly successful unleashing of the Russian Brusilov Offensive at Lutsk on 4 June 1916.

Alexei Brusilov's offensive almost succeeded in entirely demolishing the Austro-Hungarian army and brought about the loss or capture of 130,000 of Josef's force within the first two days.

Josef's military career was consequently at an end when Germany, Austria-Hungary's dominant ally, required Josef's dismissal in the wake of such a comprehensive defeat.

After the armistice and subsequent revolution Josef settled in Vienna as a commoner. He married twice, first in 1921 to Rosa Kaltenbrunner and then again in 1929 (following the death of his first wife in 1928) to Gertrude Tomanek von Beyerfels-Mondsee. He had two sons and a daughter by his second marriage.

With the German occupation of Austria in 1938 Josef found himself arrested by the Gestapo and charged with questionable behaviour. Having spent three months at a concentration camp - which broke his health - he was release to live a solitary existence in Vienna under the watchful eye of the Gestapo.

He died on 28 February 1942 at the age of 69.

A G.R.C. was a Grave Registration Cross.