Field Marshal Sir Charles (Carl) August von Alten (21 October 1764 – 20 April 1840) was a

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

ian and British soldier who led the famous

Light Division The Light Division was a light infantry division of the British Army. Its origins lay in "Light Companies" formed during the late 18th century, to move at speed over inhospitable terrain and protect a main force with skirmishing tactics. These ...

during the last two years of the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

. At the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...

, he commanded a division in the front line, where he was wounded. He later rose to the rank of Field Marshal in the Hanoverian army. Alten was the son of August Eberhard von Alten (1722–1789), a member of an old Hanoverian family, and Baroness Henriette Philippine Marie Hedwig von Vincke-Ostenwalde. Alten's older brother, Victor Alten (1755–1820) commanded a cavalry brigade in Wellington's army. Unlike his brother Charles, Victor is described as "unsatisfactory".

Early career

Alten entered the service of the elector as a page at the age of twelve. In 1781 he received a commission in the Hanoverian guards, and as a captain took part in the campaigns of 1793–1795 in the

Low Countries The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...

, distinguishing himself particularly on the Lys in command of

light infantry Light infantry refers to certain types of lightly equipped infantry throughout history. They have a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often fought ...

. In 1803 the Hanoverian army was disbanded, and Alten took service with the King's German Legion (KGL) in British pay. In command of the light infantry of this famous corps he took part with Lord Cathcart in the Hanover Expedition of 1805. He also fought at

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in 1807.

Peninsular War

Alten was with John Moore in Sweden and

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. He commanded the 2nd Flank Brigade in Moore's campaign though he missed the

Battle of Corunna The Battle of Corunna (or ''A Coruña'', ''La Corunna'', ''La Coruña'' or ''La Corogne''), in Spain known as Battle of Elviña, took place on 16 January 1809, when a French corps under Marshal of the Empire Jean de Dieu Soult attacked a Bri ...

. He participated in the disastrous

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expedition in the summer of 1809. He was soon employed once more in the Peninsula, and at the

Battle of Albuera The Battle of Albuera (16 May 1811) was a battle during the Peninsular War. A mixed British, Spanish and Portuguese corps engaged elements of the French Armée du Midi (Army of the South) at the small Spanish village of Albuera, about south ...

he commanded an independent KGL brigade. An incident in the battle highlights both the abilities and the limitations of Alten. In April 1812 Arthur Wellesley, Viscount Wellington placed him at the head of the famous

, which consisted of the 1/43rd and 1/52nd Light Infantry,

95th Rifles The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Rifle ...

, and 1st and 3rd Portuguese Caçadores. In this post he worthily continued the records of Moore and

Robert Craufurd Major-General Robert Craufurd (5 May 1764 – 23 January 1812) was a British soldier. Craufurd was born at Newark, Ayrshire, the third son of Sir Alexander Craufurd, 1st Baronet (see Craufurd Baronets), and the younger brother of Sir Cha ...

at the battles of

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, the Pyrenees, the Nivelle, the Nive,

Orthez Orthez (; eu, Ortheze; oc, Ortès, ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, and region of New Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies 40 km NW of Pau on the Southern railway to Bayonne. The town also encompasses the sm ...

and

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. His officers presented him with a sword of honour as a token of their esteem. Wellington called Alten, "the best of the Hanoverians".Glover 1974, p. 341. Comparing him with Craufurd,

Charles Oman Sir Charles William Chadwick Oman, (12 January 1860 – 23 June 1946) was a British military historian. His reconstructions of medieval battles from the fragmentary and distorted accounts left by chroniclers were pioneering. Occasionally his ...

writes:

Waterloo and later career

In 1815 Alten led Wellington's 3rd Division during the Hundred Days. This command included Maj-Gen

Colin Halkett General Sir Colin Halkett (7 September 1774 – 24 September 1856) was a British Army officer who became Lieutenant Governor of Jersey. Family Halkett came from a military family. His father was Major General Frederick Godar Halkett and his yo ...

's 5th British Brigade, Col Christian Ompteda's 2nd KGL Brigade and Maj-Gen Friedrich Kielmansegge's 1st Hanoverian Brigade. Parts of the division were heavily engaged at the Battle of Quatre Bras. At the

, the 3rd Division held the front line throughout the day and suffered very heavy losses. Severely wounded in the battle, Alten's conduct won for him the rank of Count von Alten. Von alten garten sst

When the King's German Legion ceased to exist, Alten was given the command of the Hanoverians in France. In 1818 he returned to Hanover, where he subsequently became minister of war and foreign affairs, and rose to the rank of Field Marshal. At the same time, he was retained on the British Army list as Major-General Sir Charles Alten, GCB. He died in 1840. A memorial to Alten has been erected at

. He is buried in the Neustädter Kirche.

Notes

References

* Glover, Michael (1974). ''The Peninsular War 1807–1814''. Penguin Books. * * Oman, Charles (1993) 913 ''Wellington's Army, 1809–1814''. London: Greenhill. . Attribution: * Endnotes ** ''Gentleman's Magazine'', 1840. ** Beamish, N. L. (1832–1837). ''Hist. of the King's German Legion''. 2 vols.

External links