en, Frederick Augustus Albert Anthony Ferdinand Joseph Charles Maria Baptist Nepomuk William Xavier George Fidelis , image = Albert of Saxony by Nicola Perscheid c1900.jpg , image_size = , caption = Photograph by Nicola Perscheid, 1900 , reign = 29 October 1873 – 19 June 1902 , predecessor = John , successor = George , succession = King of Saxony , spouse = , issue = , house = Wettin , father =

John of Saxony , image = Photograph of John, King of Saxony (1801-1873).jpg , reign =9 August 1854 – 29 October 1873 , caption = Photograph of King John, , predecessor = Frederick Augustus II , successor =Albert , succe ...

, mother =

Amalie Auguste of Bavaria Amalie Auguste (13 November 1801, in Munich – 8 November 1877, in Dresden) was a Bavarian princess by birth and Queen of Saxony by marriage to King John of Saxony. Biography Amalie was the fourth child of King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria a ...

, birth_date = , birth_place = Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony , death_date = , death_place = Sibyllenort,

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

, burial_place = Katholische Hofkirche , religion =

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

, signature = Signatur Albert (Sachsen).PNG Albert (23 April 1828 – 19 June 1902) was the King of Saxony and a member of the House of Wettin. He was the eldest son of Prince John (who succeeded his brother

Frederick Augustus II , image = Friedrich August II of Saxony.jpg , caption = Portrait by Carl Christian Vogel von Vogelstein , image_size = 220px , reign = 6 June 1836 – 9 August 1854 , coronation = , predecessor = Anthony ...

on the Saxon throne as King John in 1854) by his wife

. Albert had a successful military career, leading Saxon troops that participated in the First Schleswig War, the

Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...

, and the Franco-Prussian War.

Early life

Albert's education, as usual with German princes, concentrated to a great extent on military matters, but he attended lectures at the University of Bonn. His first experience of warfare came in 1849, when he served as a captain in the

First War of Schleswig The First Schleswig War (german: Schleswig-Holsteinischer Krieg) was a military conflict in southern Denmark and northern Germany rooted in the Schleswig-Holstein Question, contesting the issue of who should control the Duchies of Schleswig, ...

against Denmark. When the

broke out in 1866, Albert, then Crown Prince (German: ''Kronprinz''), took up the command of the Saxon forces opposing the

Prussian Army The Royal Prussian Army (1701–1919, german: Königlich Preußische Armee) served as the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It became vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power. The Prussian Army had its roots in the co ...

of Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia. No attempt was made to defend Saxony, and the Saxons fell back into

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

and effected a junction with the Austrians. They took a prominent part in the battles by which the Prussians forced the line of the Jizera and in the

Battle of Jičín The Battle of Gitschin or Jičín (german: Schlacht bei Gitschin) was a battle of the Austro-Prussian War on 29 June 1866, ending with a Prussian victory over the Austrian forces. There is a memorial there today at Jičín in the Czech Republic ...

. The Crown Prince, however, succeeded in effecting the retreat in good order, and in the decisive Battle of Königgrätz (3 July 1866), he held the extreme left of the Austrian position. The Saxons maintained their post with great tenacity but were involved in the disastrous defeat of their allies. During the operations, the Crown Prince won the reputation of a thorough soldier. After peace was made and Saxony had entered the North German Confederation, he gained the command of the Saxon army, which had now become the XII army corps of the North German army, and in that position, he carried out the necessary reorganisation. He proved a firm adherent of the Prussian alliance. On the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, he again commanded the Saxons, who were included in the 2nd army under Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia, his old opponent. At the

Battle of Gravelotte The Battle of Gravelotte (or Battle of Gravelotte–St. Privat) on 18 August 1870 was the largest battle of the Franco-Prussian War. Named after Gravelotte, a village in Lorraine, it was fought about west of Metz, where on the previous day, ha ...

, they formed the extreme left of the German army, and with the Prussian Guard carried out the attack on St Privat, the final and decisive action in the battle. In the reorganisation of the army which accompanied the march towards Paris, the Crown Prince gained a separate command over the 4th army (Army of the Meuse) consisting of the Saxons, the Prussian Guard corps, and the IV ( Prussian Saxony) corps. He was succeeded in command of the XII corps by his brother Prince George, who had served under him in Bohemia. Albert took a leading part in the operations which preceded the battle of Sedan, the 4th army being the pivot on which the whole army wheeled round in pursuit of

MacMahon McMahon, also spelled MacMahon (older Irish orthography: ; reformed Irish orthography: ), is a surname of Irish origin. It is derived from the Gaelic ''Mac'' ''Mathghamhna'' meaning 'son of the bear'. The surname came into use around the 11th c ...

; and the actions of Buzancy and Beaumont on 29 and 30 August 1870 were fought under his direction. In the Battle of Sedan itself (1 September 1870), with the troops under his orders, Albert carried out the envelopment of the French on the east and the north. Albert's conduct in the engagements won for him the complete confidence of the army, and during the Siege of Paris, his troops formed the north-east section of the investing force. During the siege, he blocked French attempts to break out of the encirclement at Le Bourget and Villiers. After the conclusion of the Treaty of Frankfurt (1871), he was left in command of the German army of occupation, a position which he held till the fall of the Paris Commune. On the conclusion of peace, he was made an inspector-general of the army and a

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

King

Albert of Saxony in 1878 by Alfred Diethe

On the death of his father, King John on 29 October 1873, the Crown Prince succeeded to the throne as King Albert. His reign proved uneventful, and he took little public part in politics, devoting himself to military affairs, in which his advice and experience were of the greatest value, not only to the Saxon corps but also to the German army in general. During his reign, the Saxon monarchy became constitutional. In the 1870s, Albert initiated the construction of a Dresden suburb, the

Albertstadt The Albertstadt is a neighborhood of Dresden, Germany. It was named after Albert of Saxony, who initiated the construction of this suburb. At that time it was the largest garrison in Germany. Today, the Military History Museum of the German Feder ...

. It was then the largest garrison in Germany. Near the former suburb other buildings and places still bear his name: the Albertbrücke, the Alberthafen, the Albertplatz and the Albertinum. In 1879, he initiated the reconstruction of the Saint Afra School in

Meissen Meissen (in German orthography: ''Meißen'', ) is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, the Albrecht ...

. In 1897, he was appointed arbitrator between the claimants for the

Principality of Lippe Lippe (later Lippe-Detmold and then again Lippe) was a historical state in Germany, ruled by the House of Lippe. It was located between the Weser river and the southeast part of the Teutoburg Forest. It was founded in the 1640s under a separa ...

Marriage and succession

In Dresden on 18 June 1853, Albert married Princess Carola, daughter of Gustav, Prince of Vasa and granddaughter of Gustav IV Adolf, the second to last king of

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

of the House of Holstein-Gottorp. The marriage was childless although Carola miscarried many times. They included: * A miscarriage of a daughter in the 4th month of pregnancy (19 December 1853). * A miscarriage of a daughter in the 6th month of pregnancy (16 August 1854). * A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy (22 January 1855). * A miscarriage of a son in the 4th and a half month of pregnancy (17 January 1856). * A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy (4 December 1856). * A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy (30 January 1857). * A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy (30 March 1857). * A miscarriage of a son in the 5th and a half month of pregnancy (11 January 1858). * A miscarriage of a son in the 4th and a half month of pregnancy (20 March 1859). * A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy (30 March 1860). Albert died at Sibyllenort on 19 June 1902 and was succeeded by his brother, who became King George. He was buried in Dresden on 23 June, among the mourners present were both the German Emperor Wilhelm II and the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph I.

Honours, decorations and awards

The

King of Saxony bird-of-paradise The King of Saxony bird-of-paradise (''Pteridophora alberti'') is a bird in the bird-of-paradise family (Paradisaeidae). It is the only member of the genus ''Pteridophora''. It is endemic to montane forest in New Guinea. Nomenclature Adolf Be ...

was named in Albert's honour; the Queen Carola's parotia was named for his wife.

German honours

Foreign honours

Ancestry

References

* Konrad Sturmhoefel: ''König Albert von Sachsen. Ein Lebensbild.'' Voigtländer, Leipzig 1898. * Georg von Schimpff: ''König Albert: Fünfzig Jahre Soldat''. Baensch, Dresden 1893. *

Joseph Kürschner Joseph Kürschner (20 September 1853, in Gotha – 29 July 1902, on a journey to Huben) was a German author and editor most often cited for his critical edition of classics from German literature. Biography At first engaged in mechanical engi ...

(Hrsg.): ''König Albert und Sachsenland : eine Festschrift zum 70. Geburtstage und 25jährigen Regierungsjubiläum des Monarchen''. Schwarz, Berlin 1898. * ''Dem Gedächtnis König Alberts von Sachsen'', Dresden: v. Zahn & Jaensch, 1902 * Ernst von Körner: ''König Albert von Sachsen: der Soldat und Feldherr''. Oestergaard, Berlin-Schöneberg 1936. * Bernd Rüdiger: ''Wahre Geschichten um König Albert'', Taucha: Tauchaer Verl., 1994 * * Albert Herzog zu Sachsen: ''Die Wettiner in Lebensbildern''. Styria-Verlag, Graz/Wien/Köln 1995, . * Thomas Eugen Scheerer (Hrsg.): ''Albert von Sachsen – Kronprinz, Soldat, König''. Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr, Dresden 2002. * Arbeitskreis sächsische Militärgeschichte (Hrsg.): ''Sibyllenort und König Albert von Sachsen: Sonderheft zum 100. Todestag von König Albert''. Arbeitskreis Sächsische Militärgeschichte, Dresden 2003. {{DEFAULTSORT:Albert Of Saxony 1828 births 1902 deaths Military personnel from Dresden German Roman Catholics Field marshals of Saxony Field marshals of the German Empire House of Wettin Albertine branch Kings of Saxony People of the Austro-Prussian War German military personnel of the Franco-Prussian War University of Bonn alumni Burials at Dresden Cathedral Crown Princes of Saxony Members of the First Chamber of the Diet of the Kingdom of Saxony Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) Recipients of the Iron Cross (1870), 1st class Recipients of the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross Grand Crosses of the Military Order of Max Joseph Grand Crosses of the Military Merit Order (Bavaria) Knights of the Golden Fleece of Austria Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Knights Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Knights Grand Cross of the Military Order of William Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Second Degree Extra Knights Companion of the Garter