Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst Freiherr von Gaudi (Gaudy) (23 August 1725 in Spandau, Berlin – 13 December 1788 in Wesel) was a Prussian Lieutenant General who served

Frederick the Great Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the S ...

in the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (175 ...

. His father was Andreas Erhard von Gaudi, a Prussian colonel who died in action near Habelschwerdt on 14 February 1745. His mother was Maria Elisabeth von Grävenitz.„Gaudy, Friedr. Wilh. v.“ von Ernst Graf zur Lippe-Weißenfeld in: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie, herausgegeben von der Historischen Kommission bei der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Band 8 (1878), S. 419–420, Digitale Volltext-Ausgabe in Wikisource, URL: https://de.wikisource.org/w/index.php?title=ADB:Gaudy,_Friedrich_Wilhelm_von&oldid=2496442 (Version vom 11. März 2017, 19:42 Uhr UTC) Gaudi came from a noble, originally Scottish family, which had served the rulers of

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...

for more than 100 years. He studied in Königsberg, and then in 1744 entered the Infantry Regiment "Prinz Heinrich" (Nr. 35). He participated in the war in Bohemia, the siege of Prague, and the withdrawal to Silesia. Then he was detailed to recruitment activities. In 1750 he became a Second Lieutenant, and in 1755 a First Lieutenant. He was made a Captain in 1756, as well as aide-de-camp to

. In this capacity he served in the

. He was present at the battles of

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

, Kolin, Rossbach and Leuthen. In the course of the war he was appointed as chief of staff to both

Hans Joachim von Zieten Hans Joachim von Zieten, sometimes spelled Johann Joachim von Ziethen, (14 May 1699 – 26 January 1786), also known as ''Zieten aus dem Busch'', was a cavalry general in the Prussian Army. He served in four wars and was instrumental in sev ...

and Johann Dietrich von Hülsen. In 1760 he distinguished himself in the Battle of Strehlen, and was rewarded with the ''

Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia. The was awarded as both a military and civil honour and ranked, along with the Order of the Black Eagle, the Order of the Red Eag ...

'' and a promotion to major. On 1 March 1763 he was made commander of a fusilier regiment in Wesel. In 1767 he became a lieutenant colonel and, in 1770, commander of the Hessen-Kassel Regiment. In 1771 he was promoted to

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

. On 19 June 1779, he was made a

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

and commander of the Infantry Regiment Nr. 44. In 1778 he was supposed to serve in the

War of the Bavarian Succession The War of the Bavarian Succession (; 3 July 1778 – 13 May 1779) was a dispute between the Austrian Habsburg monarchy and an alliance of Saxony and Prussia over succession to the Electorate of Bavaria after the extinction of the Bavarian br ...

, but had a riding accident near

Hildesheim Hildesheim (; nds, Hilmessen, Hilmssen; la, Hildesia) is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of the L ...

and broke his leg. In 1785, he became Inspector of the Regiments in Westphalia and on 20 May 1787 was made a

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

. In June he became governor of the

Wesel citadel The Wesel citadel is the largest intact fortification system of the Rhineland and was built 1688–1722 in Wesel according to plans by Johan de Corbin, in the form of a pentagonal star, with each point of the star being a bastion. The citadel was ...

. On 13 September 1787 he took command of a unit in Prussia which was sent to the Netherlands, to quell unrest there. Gaudi managed to do so without much bloodshed. Friedrich Wilhelm von Gaudi died on 13 December 1788 as governor of the Wesel citadel.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaudi, Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst von Lieutenant generals of Prussia Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) 1725 births 1788 deaths People from Spandau Military personnel from Berlin