 Oskar von Boenigk was born on 25 August 1893 in Siegerdorf, Bunzlau, Silesia, the son of an army officer.He began his military career as an 11-year-old cadet, which led to his being commissioned into the 11th Grenadier Regiment on 22 March 1912.When World War I began, he was immediately assigned as a platoon leader until suffering a severe chest wound in October 1914 during the Battle of Longwy.