Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck: The Only Undefeated German General in WWI
Posted in the colony of German Eastern Africa at the beginning of the war, Paul was asked not to fight and stay neutral.
So obviously, he fought!
Leading the Forces
For 4 years, he led 14,000 German soldiers and Natives against the forces of Great Britain, Portugal, Belgium, and South Africa numbering 300,000 in total.
He was never caught, never defeated and was even the only German commander to achieve a raid on British-owned soil.
Return as a Hero
At the end of the war, he was welcomed back in Berlin as a hero.
In the 1930s, Hitler was eager to have the help of a German hero and asked him to become an ambassador. Paul told him to go f*ck himself. As a punishment, his pension was withheld.
Life After WWI
After WWII, upon learning that Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck was living in poverty, some former British and South African officers, recognizing a formidable but honorable foe, arranged for a pension to be paid to him until his death.
-RBM.
