Chapter 147: GeneralOberst
For the first time since Bruno had been promoted to a general position. He had not been invited to the Kaiser's palace to receive his latest promotion. Rather, he was standing within the Headquarters of the German Army's Central Division, saluting the German Kaiser with a stern expression on his face.
The Kaiser returned Bruno's salute. He seemed rather proud as he did so. And why wouldn't he be? Bruno was now only two ranks away from becoming a full fledge Field Marshal. And he was not even thirty yet.
Although, give him a year and he would be. Even so, to become a GeneralOberst at the age of 29, it was an achievement nobody had ever succeeded in obtaining prior to now. At least not in the German Army.
Then again, the rank of GeneralOberst was less than 100 years old at this point, having been made by King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia in 1854 for his son, the Prince Regent who would eventually go on to become the first Kaiser of the German Reich, Wilhelm I.
At the time, members of the Royal Family could not hold the rank of Field Marshal, which was a rank that was only meant for the purpose of wartime. Hence why GeneralOberst was created as a reward for Wilhelm I who was then the Crown Prince of Prussia.
Of course, in 1908, the Kaiser was one of many Field Marshals in the German Army, and it was a rank that could be held by any member of the Hohenzollern dynasty, as well as those who had earned it through merit whether in a time of peace or war.
By extension, the rank of GeneralOberst, or in English "Colonel General" was also held during both peace and war. As a result, the Kaiser handed Bruno a new tunic, one that had the shoulder and collar tabs of a proper Colonel General already ironed onto them.
Bruno slowly replaced the jacket, where a servant came over and stripped Bruno's medals from his old waffenrock, and instead held his jacket firmly for the Kaiser to pin them on his chest in proper fashion.
After Bruno was properly adorned in his new uniform, he saluted the Kaiser, who returned his salute, before making a remark about Bruno's most recent promotion and his future in the German Army.
"At this rate you will be a Generalfeldmarschall by the time you are 35. An achievement unparalleled in the history of the German nation. You should be proud of your accomplishments. There are many who have tried to prevent your success, but you have continued to prove them wrong. Until now, they can no longer deny your merit.