Strachwitz was born in 1893 on his family estate in Silesia. He was educated at various Prussian military academies and served with distinction as a cavalry officer in the opening weeks of World War I. He was captured by the French in October 1914. He was nearly shot as a spy after he was caught wearing civilian clothes, but was later sentenced to forced labour. He attempted to escape several times, but was unsuccessful, and returned to Germany after the war ended in late 1918. In the aftermath of World War I, Strachwitz fought with the Freikorps in the Spartacist uprising of the German Revolution in Berlin, and in the Silesian Uprisings against the Poles and Polish Silesians of Upper Silesia. In the mid-1920s he took over the family estate, Groß Stein, from his father and became a member of the Nazi Party and the "Allgemeine SS". He remained an officer in the reserves, and participated in various military exercises during the 1930s.