Friedrich Wilhelm Ferdinand Ernst Heinrich von Forcade de Biaix,Schlesische Provinzialblätter, Nov. 1787, Page 476 (Viewer Page 92
(in German)
/ref> aka ''Ferdinand von Forcade'' (7 October 1787 – 14 November 1835), Royal Prussian

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

and Knight of the Iron Cross 2nd Class. He was a grandson of Royal Prussian Lieutenant General

Friedrich Wilhelm Quirin von Forcade de Biaix Friedrich Wilhelm Quirin von Forcade de Biaix,Lehmann, Band 1, Page 34, Nr. 24(in German)/ref> baptized ''Quirin Frideric de Forcade,'' aka ''Friedrich Quirin von Forcade,'' aka ''Frédéric Quérin de Forcade''Tollinen, Band III, Abteilung 1B, Pa ...

, one of King Frederick the Great's most active and most treasured officers, a Huguenot descendant of the noble family of Forcade and one of a third generation of decorated

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 ...

officers in the ''Forcade de Biaix'' dynasty. His last command was as commanding officer of the 10th Prussian Division's Garrison Company. He served the

with 32¾ years of service.

Military career

He followed the military tradition of his family, and: * 1802, entered Prussian military service in the 32nd Prussian Infantry Regiment. * 14 October 1806, was taken prisoner at the

Battle of Jena A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

during the War of the Fourth Coalition, where

Napoleon I of France Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

defeated the

. * After the Treaty of Tilsit on 9 July 1807, he was released and reintegrated into the

, this time with the 18th Prussian Infantry Regiment. * 1813-1815, participated in the German Campaigns during the War of the Sixth Coalition with the 18th Prussian Infantry Regiment, during which he was awarded the Knight of the Iron Cross 2nd Class for his actions at the Battle of Laon. * 1833, promoted to

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

and

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

of the 10th Prussian Division's Garrison Company.

Family

Coat of Arms

The family motto of the Prussian branch is ''"In Virtute Pertinax"''.Champeaux, Page 10
(in French)
/ref> Coat of Arms: An

escutcheon Escutcheon may refer to: * Escutcheon (heraldry), a shield or shield-shaped emblem, displaying a coat of arms * Escutcheon (furniture), a metal plate that surrounds a keyhole or lock cylinder on a door * (in medicine) the distribution of pubic ha ...

with the field

divided Division is one of the four basic operations of arithmetic, the ways that numbers are combined to make new numbers. The other operations are addition, subtraction, and multiplication. At an elementary level the division of two natural numb ...

into four parts. Left half: argent tincture, a

gules In heraldry, gules () is the tincture with the colour red. It is one of the class of five dark tinctures called "colours", the others being azure (blue), sable (black), vert (green) and purpure (purple). In engraving, it is sometimes depict ...

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...

holding a sinople eradicated oak tree between its paws;

azure Azure may refer to: Colour * Azure (color), a hue of blue ** Azure (heraldry) ** Shades of azure, shades and variations Arts and media * ''Azure'' (Art Farmer and Fritz Pauer album), 1987 * Azure (Gary Peacock and Marilyn Crispell album), 2013 ...

tincture charged with three or mullets; Right half: a

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

with three towers on an argent tincture; sinople tincture charged with three argent

roses A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be e ...

below it. A ''Grafenkrone'' ( Count's coronet) as helmut on top of the

, crested with a or fleur-de-lis. Two or lions supporting the

. Motto: ''"In Virtute Pertinax"''.

Heraldic Symbolism Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branch ...

: The

symbolizes courage; the eradicated oak tree symbolizes strength and endurance; the towers are symbols of defense and of individual fortitude; the mullets (5-star) symbolizes divine quality bestowed by god; the rose is a symbol of hope and joy; the fleur-de-lis is the floral emblem of France; the coronet is a symbol of victory, sovereignty and empire. A Count's coronet to demonstrate rank and because the family originally served the counts of Foix and

Béarn The Béarn (; ; oc, Bearn or ''Biarn''; eu, Bearno or ''Biarno''; or ''Bearnia'') is one of the traditional provinces of France, located in the Pyrenees mountains and in the plain at their feet, in southwest France. Along with the three Bas ...

during the English Wars in the Middle Ages. Coat-of-Arms Silesia Branch Forcade-Biaix

Parents

His father was

Friedrich Heinrich Ferdinand Leopold von Forcade de Biaix Friedrich Heinrich Ferdinand Leopold von Forcade de Biaix,Zedlitz-Neukirch, Band 4, Page 39(in German)/ref> aka ''Heinrich Friedrich Ferdinand Leopold von Forcade de Biaix'',Blažek, Part 3, Page 13(in German)/ref> aka ''Friedrich Heinrich Ferdina ...

Zedlitz-Neukirch, Band 4, Page 39
(in German)
/ref> (1747-1808), a Royal Prussian

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

, recipient of Kingdom of Prussia's highest military

order of merit The Order of Merit (french: link=no, Ordre du Mérite) is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by K ...

for heroism, Knight of the Order of '' Pour le Mérite'' and

Castellan A castellan is the title used in Medieval Europe for an appointed official, a governor of a castle and its surrounding territory referred to as the castellany. The title of ''governor'' is retained in the English prison system, as a remnant o ...

(''Drost'') of Neuenrade in the County of Mark. He married in 1782 at ''Ossen Manor'' in Oels, Silesia, to ''Wilhelmine von Koshembahr und Skorkau'' (1762-?), from the house of Ossen.Zedlitz-Neukirch, Band 4, Page 39
(in German)
/ref> She was the daughter of ''Christian Leopold von Koschembahr und Skorkau'',

Herr Herr may refer to: * Herr (honorific), a German honorific * Herr (surname) * Herr (title), a German title * Herr, Indiana Herr is an unincorporated community in Perry Township, Boone County, in the U.S. state of Indiana Indiana () is a ...

of Ober- and Nieder-Ossen, Pühlau, Dörndorf and Jacobsdorf, and his 2nd wife ''Charlotte Wilhelmine von Wutgenau''.

Marriage

''Ferdinand von Forcade de Biaix'' married on 15 February 1827 in

Fraustadt Wschowa (pronounced , german: Fraustadt) is a town in the Lubusz Voivodeship in western Poland with 13,875 inhabitants (2019). It is the capital of Wschowa County and a significant tourist site containing many important historical monuments. His ...

, Posen with ''Josephine Caroline von Neumann'' (1795-1882), from Warsaw, the daughter of ''Johann August von Neumann'' and ''Franziska von Pawlowicz''. Their marriage was childless. Although she was only 40 years old at the time of his death, she never remarried.

Other Family

* Brother:

Friedrich Wilhelm Leopold Konstantin Quirin von Forcade de Biaix Friedrich Wilhelm Leopold Konstantin Quirin Freiherr von Forcade de Biaix, aka ''Friedrich Wilhelm Leopold Konstantin Quirin von Forcade de Biaix'',Zedlitz-Neukirch, Band 4, Page 39(in German)/ref>Blažek, Part 3, pp. 131–13(in German)/ref> Her ...

(1784-1840),

of Schleibitz, Hamm, Groß-Naedlitz and Loslau, Royal Prussian

, Knight of the Iron Cross 2nd Class for his heroic actions defending the so-called ''Red House'' at Strehlen near Dresden against a vastly superior enemy during the

Battle of Dresden The Battle of Dresden (26–27 August 1813) was a major engagement of the Napoleonic Wars. The battle took place around the city of Dresden in modern-day Germany. With the recent addition of Austria, the Sixth Coalition felt emboldened in t ...

on 26 August 1813, Knight of the Order of St. John Bailiwick of Brandenburg in 1817, Royal Prussian Chamberlain, and ''

Neuenrade Neuenrade is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, located in the hills of the Sauerland in the ''Märkischer Kreis''. Geography The highest elevation in the town area is the ''Kohlberg'' with an altitude of 514 m above sea level. The lowes ...

'' in the County of Mark. * Brother:

Wilhelm Friedrich Erdmann Ferdinand von Forcade de Biaix Wilhelm may refer to: People and fictional characters * William Charles John Pitcher, costume designer known professionally as "Wilhelm" * Wilhelm (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname Other uses * Mou ...

(1786-1816),

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 ...

lieutenant,

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

Infantry General Loggin Ossipovitch Rot (''"von Roth"''), recipient of the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military

, Knight of the Order of '' Pour le Mérite'' (26.5.1814).VIFA - Ausländer im vorrevolutionären Russland, Institut für Ost- und Südeuropaforschung, Erik-Amburger-Datenbank, Datensatz: 8685
(in German)
/ref> He was reported as Missing in Action in 1816.

Notes

References

* Blažek, Konrad: J. Siebmacher's grosses und allgemeines Wappenbuch in einer neuen, vollständig geordneten und reich vermehrten Auflage mit heraldischen und historisch- genealogischen Erläuterungen; Sechsten Bandes Achte Abtheilung. ''Der abgestorbene Adel der Preussischen Provinz Schlesien. Dritter Theil'', Nürnberg 1894, Page 131 & Page 267 Table 85
(in German)
* Champeaux, Joseph de: ''Devises, cris de guerre, légendes, dictons'', Dijon 1890, Page 105
(in French)
* Schlesische Provinzialblätter, November 1787, Page 476 (Viewer Page 92
(in German)
* Zedlitz-Neukirch, Leopold von: ''Neues preußisches Adelslexicon oder genealogische und diplomatische Nachrichten von den in der preussischen Monarchie ansässigen oder zu derselben in Beziehung stehenden fürstlichen, gräflichen, freiherrlichen und adeligen Häusern mit der Angabe ihrer Abstammung, ihres Besitzthums, ihres Wappens und der aus ihnen hervorgegangenen Civil- und Militärpersonen, Helden, Gelehrten und Künstler: E - H, Band 2,'' 1836, Pages 179-180
(in German)
* Zedlitz-Neukirch, Leopold von: ''Neues preußisches Adelslexicon oder genealogische und diplomatische Nachrichten von den in der preussischen Monarchie ansässigen oder zu derselben in Beziehung stehenden fürstlichen, gräflichen, freiherrlichen und adeligen Häusern mit der Angabe ihrer Abstammung, ihres Besitzthums, ihres Wappens und der aus ihnen hervorgegangenen Civil- und Militärpersonen, Helden, Gelehrten und Künstler: P - Z, Band 4,'' 1837, Pages 390-392
(in German)

Literature

* ''Archiv der Stiftung Zentralstelle für Personen- und Familiengeschichte'', Berlin-Dahlem * Danty, Pierre: Revue de Pau et du Béarn, ''Une famille béarnaise au service de la Prusse : les Forcade-Biaix'', La Société des Sciences Lettres et Arts de Pau et du Béarn, 1978, Nr. 6, Pages 269-272. (in French) * Ebers, Johann, ''The New And Complete Dictionary Of The German And English Languages: composed chiefly after the German Dictionaries of Mr. Adelung and of Mr. Schwan / 1: ... Containing the Letters A - G of the German Alphabet explained in English'', Leipzig 179
(in German and English)
* Ebers, Johann, ''The New And Complete Dictionary Of The German And English Languages: composed chiefly after the German Dictionaries of Mr. Adelung and of Mr. Schwan / 2: ... Containing the Letters H - R of the German Alphabet explained in English'', Leipzig 179
(in German and English)
* Ebers, Johann, ''The New And Complete Dictionary Of The German And English Languages: composed chiefly after the German Dictionaries of Mr. Adelung and of Mr. Schwan / 3: ... Containing the Letters S - Z of the German Alphabet explained in English'', Leipzig 179
(in German and English)
* Gieraths, Günther: ''Die Kampfhandlungen der brandenburgisch-preussischen Armee, 1626-1807, Band 8'', Berlin 1964, Pages 79 & 111
(in German)
* Kneschke, Ernst Heinrich: ''Neues allgemeines Deutsches Adels-Lexicon, Band 3'', Leipzig 1861, Pages 293-294
(in German)
* König, Anton Balthasar: ''Biographisches Lexikon aller Helden und Militairpersonen, welche sich in Preußischen Diensten berühmt gemacht haben: A - F'', Band 1, Pages 429-432
(in German)
* Komander, Gerhild H. M.: ''Der Wandel des "Sehepuncktes". Die Geschichte Brandenburg-Preußens in der Graphik von 1648 bis 1810''. Münster 1995, Pages 310-311
(in German)
* Kroener, Bernhard: ''Potsdam: Staat, Armee, Residenz in der preussisch-deutschen Militärgeschichte.'' (in German) * Ledebur, Leopold von: ''Allgemeines Archiv für die Geschichtskunde des Preußischen Staates, Band 17'', Berlin 1835, Page 43
(in German)
* Priesdorff, Kurt von: ''Soldatisches Führertum, Band 1'', Hamburg 1937, Pages 354-356, Nr. 371. (in German) * Schöning, Kurd Wolfgang von: ''Die Generale der chur-brandenburgischen und königlich preussischen Armee von 1640-1840. (Chronologische Uebersicht der Brandenb. Preuss. Generalität seit 1640.) Eine historische Uebersicht, sammt vielen eingewebten urkundlichen Notizen als Jubelschrift dem vaterländischen Kriegesheere geweiht'', Page 71, Nr. 364
(in German)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Forcade de Biaix, Friedrich Wilhelm Ferdinand Ernst Heinrich von Kingdom of Prussia Prussian nobility Silesian nobility 1787 births 1835 deaths Recipients of the Iron Cross (1813) People from Prussian Silesia

Military History of Prussia A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

Military of Prussia Prussian commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Prisoners of war held by France