Ferdinand Karl Friedrich Freiherr von Wintzingerode (15 February 1770, in
Allendorf – 16 June 1818, in
Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...
) was a German nobleman and officer in several different armies of the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
, finally ending up as a general in the
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...
and fighting in the
War of the Sixth Coalition
In the War of the Sixth Coalition (March 1813 – May 1814), sometimes known in Germany as the Wars of Liberation, a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Sweden, and a number of German States defeated F ...
against the French invasion of Russia and the subsequent campaigns in Germany and France. He appears in Tolstoy's ''
War and Peace
''War and Peace'' (russian: Война и мир, translit=Voyna i mir; pre-reform Russian: ; ) is a literary work by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy that mixes fictional narrative with chapters on history and philosophy. It was first published ...
''.
Early life
Ferdinand von Wintzingerode was born into a noble family of
Thuringia
Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million.
Erfurt is the capital and larg ...
. His father, baron Wilhelm Levin Ernst von Wintzingerode (1738–1781), owned the ''Unterhof'' seigneurial domain near Kirchohmfeld.
Military career
Ferdinand's first military service was in the Hessian Army, then as a volunteer in the
Austrian army
The Austrian Armed Forces (german: Bundesheer, lit=Federal Army) are the combined military forces of the Republic of Austria.
The military consists of 22,050 active-duty personnel and 125,600 reservists. The military budget is 0.74% of nati ...
in the
war against the Netherlands. He took part in the 1792–93 campaigns against the French and, after the
Treaty of Campo Formio
The Treaty of Campo Formio (today Campoformido) was signed on 17 October 1797 (26 Vendémiaire VI) by Napoleon Bonaparte and Count Philipp von Cobenzl as representatives of the French Republic and the Austrian monarchy, respectively. The trea ...
on 17 October 1797, he was offered a post as major in the
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...
. In 1800 the Austrian army gave him permission to fight in the
war in Italy.
Napoleonic Wars
He became a major general and general
Aide-de-camp to
Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1801, the first King of Congress Poland from 1815, and the Grand Duke of Finland from 1809 to his death. He was the eldest son of Emperor Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg.
The son of ...
in 1802 and was entrusted with diplomatic missions over the following years. Also, in 1805 in Berlin, he negotiated with Austria and Great Britain on behalf of the Prussians to form the three nations into an alliance against France. On 11 November 1805, at
Dürenstein, he received the
Order of St. George
The Order of Saint George (russian: Орден Святого Георгия, Orden Svyatogo Georgiya) is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. Originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) a ...
. He returned to the Austrian army in 1809, where he was made field marshal. He led the advance guard of the first brigade of general Bellegarde's army on 20 May at
Aspern
Aspern () is part of Donaustadt, the 22nd district of Vienna, Austria.
History
The area is known because of the Battle of Aspern-Essling, which was fought in the nearby Lobau on 21 and 22 May 1809. In that battle, the Austrian army, led by A ...
, where he was wounded in the right leg.
He returned to the Russian army in 1812 to face the
French invasion of Russia
The French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign, the Second Polish War, the Army of Twenty nations, and the Patriotic War of 1812 was launched by Napoleon Bonaparte to force the Russian Empire back into the continental block ...
. In it he was made lieutenant general and grand cross of the
Military Order of Maria Theresa. On 21 October 1812 he led a unit of Cossacks trying to reach the
Kremlin by challenging several French posts at the head of a Cossack unit, but he and his aide de camp Narichzin were captured by lieutenant Leleu de Maupertuis of the 5th
Imperial Guard
An imperial guard or palace guard is a special group of troops (or a member thereof) of an empire, typically closely associated directly with the Emperor or Empress. Usually these troops embody a more elite status than other imperial forces, i ...
Chasseurs Regiment. He was freed by general
Alexander Chernyshyov
Prince Alexander Ivanovich Chernyshov (russian: Александр Иванович Чернышев, 1786, Moscow - 1857, Castellammare di Stabia), General of Cavalry (1827), was a Russian military leader, diplomat and statesman, whose career be ...
and led the Russian Advance Guard Corps under
Kutuzov
Prince Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov ( rus, Князь Михаи́л Илларио́нович Голени́щев-Куту́зов, Knyaz' Mikhaíl Illariónovich Goleníshchev-Kutúzov; german: Mikhail Illarion Golenishchev-Kut ...
fighting at the in February 1813.
[ Article in the Polish Wikipedia] He fought at the
battle of Lützen before being promoted to
General of the cavalry General of the Cavalry (german: General der Kavallerie) was a General officer rank in the cavalry in various states of which the modern states of German and Austria are successors or in other armies which used the German model. Artillery officers ...
at the
battle of Leipzig in 1813. He followed the army of the North into Holland then rejoined the Prussian army under
Blücher and fought in the
Six Days' Campaign
The Six Days Campaign (10–15 February 1814) was a final series of victories by the forces of Napoleon I of France as the Sixth Coalition closed in on Paris.
The Six Days Campaign was fought from 10 February to 15 February during which time ...
in 1814.
Family
On 19 September 1801 he married the Polish countess Hélène Rostworowska (1783–1829), with whom he had one son.
Bibliography
* Hans Demme / Karl-Heinz Kabisch, ''Ferdinand Freiherr von Wintzingerode, russischer General und deutscher Patriot (Sonderausgabe der Eichsfelder Heimathefte)'', Worbis 1986.
* Walter Prochaska, Ferdinand, Freiherr von Wintzingerode. Ein General der Befreiungskriege, .
* Wilhelm Clothar Freiherr von Wintzingerode, ''General der Kavallerie Ferdinand Freiherr v. Wintzingerode, Ein Lebensbild aus den napoleonischen Kriegen'', Arolsen 1902.
* Eberhard v. Wintzingerode, ''Stammbaum der Familie von Wintzingerode mit biographischen Erläuterungen'', Göttingen 1848.
* Heinrich Jobst Graf v. Wintzingerode, ''Recht tun behält sein Preis allzeit. Die Geschichte der Familie Wintzingerode und der Burg Bodenstein (Bodunger Beiträge 8)'', Großbodungen 2004, .
Sources
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wintzingerode
1770 births
1818 deaths
People from Werra-Meißner-Kreis
Imperial Russian Army generals
German commanders of the Napoleonic Wars
Russian commanders of the Napoleonic Wars
Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Second Degree
Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Third Degree
Knights Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa
Generals of the Holy Roman Empire