Wilhelm Groener Karl Eduard Wilhelm Groener ( 22 November 1867 – 3 May 1939 ) was a German soldier and politician . His organisational and logistical abilities resulted in a successful military career before and during World War I . After a confrontation with the Quartermaster general of the German army and de - facto dictator of Germany , Erich Ludendorff , Groener was reassigned to a field command . However , on Ludendorff ' s dismissal in October 1918 , Groener succeeded him . Groener then worked with the new Social Democrat ic president Friedrich Ebert to prevent chaos and a left - wing take - over during the German Revolution of 1918 – 19 . Under his command the military bloodily suppressed leftist uprisings throughout Germany . Yet he also tried to integrate the military , which was dominated by an aristocratic and monarchistic officer corps , into the new republic . After resigning from the army in the summer of 1919 , Groener served in several governments of the Weimar Republic as minister of transportation , interior and defence . He was pushed out of the government in 1932 by Kurt von Schleicher , who was working on a pact with the Nazis . Groener was an obstacle to the pact . Early life . Wilhelm Groener was born in Ludwigsburg in the Kingdom of Württemberg as the son of Karl Eduard Groener ( 1837 - 1893 ) , regimental paymaster , and his wife Auguste ( née Boleg , 1825 - 1907 ) on 22 November 1867 . After attending gymnasium at Ulm and Ludwigsburg , where his father had been stationed , Groener entered the " 3 . Württembergische Infanterie Regiment Nummer 121 " of the Württemberg Army in 1884 . In 1890 , he was promoted to " Bataillonsadjutant " and from 1893 to 1896 attended the War Academy at Berlin , where he finished top of his class . In 1899 , Groener married Helene Geyer ( 1864 – 1926 ) in Schwäbisch Gmünd . They had a daughter , Dorothea Groener - Geyer ( b . 1900 ) . Military career . Pre - war . As a captain , he won appointment to the General Staff in 1899 and was attached to the railway section , where he worked for the next 17 years . This was only interrupted for the usual assignments to other locations : In 1902 to 1904 he was " Kompaniechef " of infantry regiment 98 at Metz , in 1908 to 1910 he was with XIII Army Corps , and in 1910 he became a commander of a bataillon in infantry regiment 125 at Stuttgart . In 1912 , as lieutenant - colonel Groener became head of the railway section at the General Staff . His plans for the extension of the railway network and for deployment routes were heavily influenced by the Schlieffen Plan . World War I . The successful deployment of millions of troops and the key role of the railway as a military tool boosted Groener ' s reputation and he received numerous decorations in 1914 . In June 1915 , he was promoted to " Generalmajor " . Due to his organisational skills , in December 1915 Groener was put in charge of food deliveries from Romania . In May 1916 , he joined the leadership of the newly created " Kriegsernährungsministerium " ( " War Food Ministry " ) . In November 1916 , as a " Generalleutnant " he became head of the " Kriegsamt " and deputy of the Prussian Minister of War . Together with Erich Ludendorff , Groener there worked on the draft for the " Hilfsdienstgesetz " , which was to lay down rules for the war - time requirement for all men to work ( " Arbeitszwang " ) . To implement the law , Groener had to negotiate with the civilian bureaucracy , unions and representatives of the employers . Despite his efforts to appear neutral and work with both workers and employers to maximise output , he became the target of criticism . Factory owners resented that he accepted the unions as equal partners . Revolutionary groups used his strict admonishments against those who strike while soldiers die at the front to undermine his standing with the workers . These negotiations made the limits , both physical and social , to Germany ' s military power obvious to Groener . He thus moved away from the dominant conviction that Germany would win the war . This caused confrontations with the 3 . Oberste Heeresleitung , led by Paul Hindenburg and Ludendorff . During the change at the Reichskanzlei in July 1917 , when Georg Michaelis replaced Bethmann - Hollweg as Chancellor , Groener suggested that the state should intervene to limit corporate profits and wage growth that resulted from booming war - related public demand . On 16 August 1917 he was recalled from his post and reassigned to an operational command . This was seen by the public as a response to his views on social policies . First , he served for six months at the western front as " Kommandeur der 33 . Infanterie - Division , Führer des XXV . Reserve - Korps " where he was able to observe trench warfare and the mood of the troops . In March 1918 , he commanded the I . Army Corps during the occupation of the Ukraine . On 28 March he was appointed chief of staff of the army group " Heeresgruppe Eichhorn / Kiew " . This task required him to deal with organisational and political challenges , in particular confrontations with the army high command of Austria - Hungary and supervising , then reshuffling , the Ukrainian government which needed help against bolshevik revolutionaries . End of the war and German revolution . After the dismissal of Erich Ludendorff on 26 October 1918 , Groener was recalled and on 29 October appointed as Ludendorff ' s successor as First Quartermaster General ( Deputy Chief of the General Staff ) under Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg . Germany ′ s military situation was becoming untenable under the onslaught of the enemy , and social unrest and rebellion among both the German armed forces and the civilian population threatened to break out into revolution . Groener started to prepare the withdrawal and demobilisation of the army . As the revolution spread through Germany in early November , Groener began to see the Emperor , Wilhelm II , as an impediment to saving the monarchy and the integrity of the army . Privately , he felt the Kaiser should sacrifice himself in a hero ' s death at the front . On 6 November , Groener had reacted indignantly to the Social Democrat Friedrich Ebert ' s suggestion that the Emperor should abdicate . Yet Groener himself advised Wilhelm II on 9 November that he had lost the confidence of the armed forces and recommended abdication to the monarch , when Emperor Wilhelm suggested to use frontline troops to crush the revolution at home . Groener ' s goal was to preserve the monarchy , but under a different ruler . He was also in favour of accepting the Allies ' armistice conditions , despite their severe nature . On the evening of 10 November , Groener contacted the new chancellor Friedrich Ebert . The two men concluded the so - called Ebert - Groener pact , which was to remain secret for a number of years . For his part of the pact , Ebert agreed to suppress the Bolshevik - led revolution and to maintain the military ′ s traditional role as one of the pillars of the German state ; Groener in turn promised that the still - considerable army would support the new government . For this act , Groener earned the enmity of many other military leaders , many of whom sought the retention of the monarchy . Over the next weeks , Groener oversaw the retreat and demobilisation of the defeated German army after the signing of the armistice on 11 November 1918 . Despite a very tight schedules , the withdrawal was effected without problems . He also had to organise the defence of the eastern borders of the Reich until a peace treaty could be signed . The headquarters of the OHL , at Schloss Wilhelmshöhe from 14 November 1918 to 13 February 1919 , were thus moved to Kolberg . On 23 June 1919 , Ebert asked for the OHL ' s opinion on whether the Reich should sign the Treaty of Versailes . Groener supported signing as he was worried that the unity of the Reich would be in danger if fighting was resumed . He thereby put himself into opposition to the prevailing position of the officer corps and the views of Walther Reinhardt , the Prussian Minister of War . Hindenburg followed Groener on this issue . When Hindenburg resigned his post some days later , Groener became his successor . As the OHL was dissolved with the signing of the treaty , Groener temporarily took over command at Kolberg . He started to organise the establishment of the new peace - time military ( Reichswehr ) , arguing in favour of a high share of former general staff officers among the new leadership including in the " Reichswehrministerium " . He also supported a senior position for Hans von Seeckt . However , just weeks later , on 30 September , Groener himself resigned from the military . This was against the wishes of Friedrich Ebert , but Groener felt that his pact with the Social Democrat had cost him the trust of many of his fellow officers . Political career . After his resignation from the army , Groener moved in and out of retirement during the 1920s . Not a member of any party , at Ebert ' s request he served as Transportation Minister between 1920 and 1923 . His main achievement was the rebuilding of the " Reichsbahn " . In 1923 , when the Cuno government resigned , Groener left politics and wrote military and political treatises , such as " Das Testament des Grafen Schlieffen " ( 1927 ) . Hindenburg , now Ebert ' s successor as " Reichspräsident " , appointed Groener as the successor of Otto Geßler as Defence Minister on 20 January 1928 , a post he held until 1932 . Besides expanding the " Reichswehr " , Groener made an effort to integrate it into the society of the Weimar Republic . In 1930 , Groener married Ruth Naeher - Glück ( born 1894 ) in Berlin . They had a son . This second marriage and the early birth date of his son undermined Groener ' s relationship with the conservative Hindenburg . On 8 October 1931 he also became acting Interior Minister in the government of Heinrich Brüning , and favoured the banning of the Nazi storm troopers ( SA ) . However , as Interior Minister he was asked to outlaw the SA , whilst his goal as Defence Minister was to integrate it into a national , non - partisan paramilitary force . In April 1932 , under pressure from several German states , Groener outlawed SA and SS . Kurt von Schleicher , his subordinate at the " Reichswehrministerium " , however wanted to set up a cooperation with these two groups . To that end von Schleicher worked on Hindenburg , trying to have Groener dismissed . He also allied himself with the NSDAP . After a rhetorical defeat in the Reichstag , Groener resigned on 13 May as Defence Minister , urged by von Schleicher who told Groener that he had lost the trust of the Reichswehr . When the government of Brüning fell on 30 May , Groener also lost his position as " Innenminister " and left politics for good . He moved to Potsdam - Bornstedt in 1934 , where he wrote his memoirs " Lebenserinnerungen " . Groener died in Bornstedt on 3 May 1939 . He is buried in the Südwestkirchhof Stahnsdorf , located between Potsdam and Berlin .