Who led the Germans on the eastern front duing World War 1?
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (commonly known as Paul von Hindenburg) was a retired General who had a long if somewhat undistinguished career. He retired from the army in 1911. He was recalled to active duty at the age of 67, at the start of WWI to take charge of the Eastern Front. Although he never knew it, documents and eye witness accounts later revealed that he was only recalled so that the German army could use him as a fall guy if the war on the Eastern Front went badly (as the German army itself believed it would) and protect the career of the real mastermind of the German battleplan, Erich von Ludendorff). Ludendorff won an unexpected victory at the Battle of Tannenberg (which was credited to Hindenburg) and as a result Hindenburg became known as the Hero of Tannenberg. This gained him great popularity among the German people and as a result he was elected 2nd German Reichspräsident in 1925 (and again in 1932 when he narrowly defeated a certain Adolf Hitler in a run-off). He held this position until his death in 1934, two months shy of his 87th birthday.