, native_name_lang = German, Slovene , birth_name = , other_name = , nickname = , birth_date = , birth_place =

Klagenfurt Klagenfurt am WörtherseeLandesgesetzblatt 2008 vom 16. Jänner 2008, Stück 1, Nr. 1: ''Gesetz vom 25. Oktober 2007, mit dem die Kärntner Landesverfassung und das Klagenfurter Stadtrecht 1998 geändert werden.'/ref> (; ; sl, Celovec), usually ...

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...

(now

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

) , death_date = , death_place = Klagenfurt,

First Austrian Republic The First Austrian Republic (german: Erste Österreichische Republik), officially the Republic of Austria, was created after the signing of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye on 10 September 1919—the settlement after the end of World War I w ...

, placeofburial = , placeofburial_label = , placeofburial_coordinates = , allegiance = , branch = , serviceyears = 1874–1915 , serviceyears_label = , rank = Kuk GenBranch 1918

General of the Infantry General of the Infantry is a military rank of a General officer in the infantry and refers to: * General of the Infantry (Austria) * General of the Infantry (Bulgaria) * General of the Infantry (Germany) ('), a rank of a general in the German Impe ...

, rank_label = , servicenumber = , unit = , commands =

Austro-Hungarian General Staff The Imperial and Royal General Staff (german: k.u.k. Generalstab) of Austria-Hungary was part of the Ministry of War. It was headed by the Chief of the General Staff for the Whole Armed Forces (''Chef des Generalstabes für die gesamte bewaffnete ...

16th Corps
2nd Corps , battles =

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

* Eastern Front **

Battle of Galicia The Battle of Galicia, also known as the Battle of Lemberg, was a major battle between Russia and Austria-Hungary during the early stages of World War I in 1914. In the course of the battle, the Austro-Hungarian armies were severely defeated and ...

*** Battle of Komarów , battles_label = , awards = , memorials = , alma_mater =

Theresian Military Academy The Theresian Military Academy (german: Theresianische Militärakademie, TherMilAk) is a military academy in Austria, where the Austrian Armed Forces train their officers. Founded in 1751, the academy is located in the castle of Wiener Neustadt ...

, spouse = , children = , relations = , laterwork = , signature = , signature_size = , signature_alt = , website = , module = Blasius von Schemua ( sl, Blaž Žemva;

, 2 January 1856 – Klagenfurt, 21 November 1920) was an

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

of Slovene descent. Blasius von Schemua ''Enciklopedija Slovenije''. Mladinska knjiga, Ljubljana 1987–2002 was the son of , an army

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

. He graduated from the

Wiener Neustadt Wiener Neustadt (; ; Central Bavarian: ''Weana Neistod'') is a city located south of Vienna, in the state of Lower Austria, in northeast Austria. It is a self-governed city and the seat of the district administration of Wiener Neustadt-Land Distr ...

in 1874 and the Military High School in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in 1884, where he was also a lecturer from 1893 to 1897. ''Biografski leksikon Gorenjci''. Spletni biografski leksikon. Osrednja knjižnica Kranj. From 1879, Schemua was a member of the

Austro-Hungarian military mission in Persia The Austro-Hungarian military mission in Persia was a Military aid, military assistance mission sent by Austro-Hungarian Empire, Austria-Hungary to Qajar Iran, Qajar Persia starting in 1879 to aid Naser al-Din Shah in his efforts to establish a sta ...

for three years, during which period he gained a deep appreciation of

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. In the eyes of his colleagues, his Persian experience permanently marked his character. He was a

Darwinist Darwinism is a theory of biological evolution developed by the English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882) and others, stating that all species of organisms arise and develop through the natural selection of small, inherited variations tha ...

and a member of the occultist New Templar Order of

Lanz von Liebenfels Lanz may refer to: Places * Lanz, Brandenburg, a municipality in Brandenburg, Germany * a village in the municipality Störnstein in Bavaria, Germany * Lanz, German name from Lomnice, a village in Sokolov District, Czech Republic * Lanz Peak ...

. His Templar name was Fra Gotthard.Lawrence Sondhaus, ''Franz Conrad Von Hötzendorf: Architect of the Apocalypse'' (Humanities Press, 2000), p. 117. In 1910, Schemua was responsible for nationwide mobilization in the

Ministry of War Ministry of War may refer to: * Ministry of War (imperial China) (c.600–1912) * Chinese Republic Ministry of War (1912–1946) * Ministry of War (Kingdom of Bavaria) (1808–1919) * Ministry of War (Brazil) (1815–1999) * Ministry of Defence (Est ...

. From 1911 to 1912 he was Chief of the

, the highest position in the hierarchy of the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...

. At the beginning of the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...

of 1912–13 he was appointed commander of the 16th Corps in

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik (), historically known as Ragusa (; see notes on naming), is a city on the Adriatic Sea in the region of Dalmatia, in the southeastern semi-exclave of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterran ...

and promoted to ''

Feldmarschalleutnant Lieutenant field marshal, also frequently historically field marshal lieutenant (german: Feldmarschall-Leutnant, formerly , historically also and, in official Imperial and Royal Austrian army documents from 1867 always , abbreviated ''FML''), was ...

'' (lieutenant field marshal). In 1913 he was promoted to

general of the infantry General of the Infantry is a military rank of a General officer in the infantry and refers to: * General of the Infantry (Austria) * General of the Infantry (Bulgaria) * General of the Infantry (Germany) ('), a rank of a general in the German Impe ...

. At the beginning of

in 1914, during the

, he commanded the 2nd Corps, but failed to distinguish himself at the Battle of Komarów. He was replaced by . He was then appointed commander of the defense of

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

from Krems to

Pressburg Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approximately 140% of ...

. In 1915 he retired at his own request.

References

1856 births 1920 deaths Military personnel from Klagenfurt Austro-Hungarian generals Austrian people of Slovenian descent Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Theresian Military Academy alumni {{Europe-mil-bio-stub