Johann Bernhard Stephan, Graf Pálffy de Erdőd ( hu, Pálffy V. János Bernard István, hr, Ivan Pálffy; 20 August 1664 – 24 March 1751) was a Hungarian noble, Imperial

Field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

and

Palatine of Hungary The Palatine of Hungary ( hu, nádor or , german: Landespalatin, la, palatinus regni Hungariae) was the highest-ranking office in the Kingdom of Hungary from the beginning of the 11th century to 1848. Initially, Palatines were represe ...

. A troop commander at the time of

Prince Eugène of Savoy Prince Eugene Francis of Savoy–Carignano, (18 October 1663 – 21 April 1736) better known as Prince Eugene, was a Generalfeldmarschall, field marshal in the army of the Holy Roman Empire and of the Austrian Habsburg dynasty during the 17th a ...

, he distinguished himself in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and against the

Kuruc Kuruc (, plural ''kurucok''), also spelled kurutz, refers to a group of armed anti-Habsburg insurgents in the Kingdom of Hungary between 1671 and 1711. Over time, the term kuruc has come to designate Hungarians who advocate strict national ind ...

invasions, concluded the

Peace of Szatmár Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

and fought in the

Turkish War The Great Turkish War (german: Großer Türkenkrieg), also called the Wars of the Holy League ( tr, Kutsal İttifak Savaşları), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Pola ...

most notably at

Peterwardein Petrovaradin ( sr-cyr, Петроварадин, ) is a historic town in the Serbian province of Vojvodina, now a part of the city of Novi Sad. As of 2011, the urban area has 14,810 inhabitants. Lying on the right bank of the Danube, across from t ...

and at

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

. In 1703 he became

Ban of Croatia Ban of Croatia ( hr, Hrvatski ban) was the title of local rulers or office holders and after 1102, viceroys of Croatia. From the earliest periods of the Croatian state, some provinces were ruled by bans as a ruler's representative (viceroy) an ...

and in 1740 placed the Hungarian royal crown on

Maria Theresa Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (german: Maria Theresia; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was ruler of the Habsburg dominions from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position ''suo jure'' (in her own right). ...

. János Pálffy was renowned for his strong loyalty to the

Habsburgs The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

and his extraordinary bravery in battle.

Life

He was the third son of Count Miklós IV Pálffy de Erdőd (1619–1679) and Maria Eleonora von

Harrach The House of Harrach is an old and influential Bohemian and Austro-German noble family. The ''Grafen'' (Counts) of Harrach were among the most prominent families in the Habsburg Empire. As one of few mediatized families, it belongs to high nobility ...

zu Rohrau (1634–1693).

Miklós Pálffy Nikolaus VI Graf Pálffy von Erdőd ( hu, VI. gróf erdődi Pálffy Miklós) (1 March 1657 – 20 February 1732) was a Hungarian nobleman, Imperial Field marshal and Palatine of Hungary. Early life He was the eldest son of Count Miklós IV Pál ...

was his eldest brother. Like his father and two elder brothers, he pursued a military career and joined the Habsburg Army in 1681. He participated in the

Battle of Vienna The Battle of Vienna; pl, odsiecz wiedeńska, lit=Relief of Vienna or ''bitwa pod Wiedniem''; ota, Beç Ḳalʿası Muḥāṣarası, lit=siege of Beç; tr, İkinci Viyana Kuşatması, lit=second siege of Vienna took place at Kahlenberg Mou ...

and

Battle of Párkány The Battle of Párkány ( tr, Ciğerdelen Savaşı) was a battle fought between October 7–9, 1683 in the town of Párkány (today: Štúrovo), in the Ottoman Empire, and the area surrounding it as part of the Polish-Ottoman War and the Great ...

, where he was taken prisoner by the Turks, but he managed to escape. He distinguished himself in the

Battle of Mohács (1687) The Second Battle of Mohács, also known as the Battle of Harsány Mountain, was fought on 12 August 1687 between the forces of Ottoman Sultan Mehmed IV, commanded by the Grand-Vizier Sari Süleyman Paşa, and the forces of Holy Roman Emperor ...

, and became Generaladjutant of

Charles V, Duke of Lorraine Charles V, Duke of Lorraine and Bar (french: Charles Léopold Nicolas Sixte; german: Karl V Leopold; 3 April 1643 – 18 April 1690) succeeded his uncle Charles IV, Duke of Lorraine as titular Duke of Lorraine and Bar in 1675; both duchies were ...

. At the age of 24 he had already reached the rank of Colonel and commanded his own regiment. With this regiment, he participated in all the great battles of the

Great Turkish War The Great Turkish War (german: Großer Türkenkrieg), also called the Wars of the Holy League ( tr, Kutsal İttifak Savaşları), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Pola ...

. He killed John Frederick of Württemberg-Stuttgart, son of

Eberhard III, Duke of Württemberg Eberhard III, Duke of Württemberg (16 December 1614, in Stuttgart – 2 July 1674, in Stuttgart) ruled as Duke of Württemberg from 1628 until his death in 1674. Eberhard III became the heir under guardianship in 1628 during the Thirty Years' Wa ...

in a duel in 15. October 1693. After the duel, Pálffy fled to Poland but his influential family reached the amnesty for him shortly. In 1695 he was seriously wounded in a battle with the French under

Claude de Villars Claude Louis Hector de Villars, Prince of Martigues, Marquis then (1st) Duke of Villars, Viscount of Melun (, 8 May 1653 – 17 June 1734) was a French military commander and an illustrious general of Louis XIV of France. He was one of only six M ...

near Mainz. In 1704 he became

and Cavalry General. During

Rákóczi's War of Independence Rákóczi's War of Independence (1703–11) was the first significant attempt to topple the rule of the Habsburgs over Hungary. The war was conducted by a group of noblemen, wealthy and high-ranking progressives and was led by Francis II Rákó ...

, he was sent to Hungary as commander of the Cavalry. He participated in a number of minor battles but played a vital role in the victory in the

Battle of Trencsén 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 ...

. Pálffy was made Field Marshal and received command of all troops in

Upper Hungary Upper Hungary is the usual English translation of ''Felvidék'' (literally: "Upland"), the Hungarian term for the area that was historically the northern part of the Kingdom of Hungary, now mostly present-day Slovakia. The region has also been ...

. In this phase he, a Hungarian loyal to the Emperor, negotiated with

Francis II Rákóczi Francis II Rákóczi ( hu, II. Rákóczi Ferenc, ; 27 March 1676 – 8 April 1735) was a Hungarian nobleman and leader of Rákóczi's War of Independence against the Habsburgs in 1703–11 as the prince ( hu, fejedelem) of the Estates Confedera ...

, which led to a truce and later the

Treaty of Szatmár The Treaty of Szatmár (or the Peace of Szatmár) was a peace treaty concluded at Szatmár (present-day Satu Mare, Romania) on 29 April 1711 between the House of Habsburg emperor Charles VI, the Hungarian estates and the Kuruc rebels. It formal ...

, after which 12,000 men of Rákóczi's army swore allegiance to the

Habsburg dynasty The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

in the fields outside of Majtény in Szatmár. In the Austro-Turkish War of 1716–18, he participated again in all major actions and was wounded several times.
After the war, he resumed his diplomatic activities and persuaded the Hungarian and Croat nobility to accept the

Pragmatic Sanction A pragmatic sanction is a sovereign's solemn decree on a matter of primary importance and has the force of fundamental law. In the late history of the Holy Roman Empire, it referred more specifically to an edict issued by the Emperor. When used ...

. In the Austro-Turkish War, 1737–1739, he received command of an army corps of 30,000 men, but saw no action. After the death of Emperor Charles VI in 1740, he became protector of the young Empress

and her councilor, mainly in Hungarian affairs. He became Knight in the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece ( es, Insigne Orden del Toisón de Oro, german: Orden vom Goldenen Vlies) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1430, to celebrate his marriage ...

and

. Pálffy remained for the rest of his life a confidant of the Empress, who called him affectionately ''Vater Palffy''. He died in 1751.

Personal life

He married Countess Teréz Czobor de Czoborszentmihály on 4 October 1687, the couple had several children. After the death of his first wife, he married Countess Maria Julia von Stubenberg on 28 August 1741. This marriage was without children.

External links

Biography (in German)
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Palffy, Janos 1664 births 1751 deaths 17th-century Hungarian people 18th-century Hungarian people Hungarian nobility Field marshals of Austria Bans of Croatia Palatines of Hungary Judges royal Burials at St. Martin's Cathedral, Bratislava Knights of the Golden Fleece of Austria Austro-Turkish War (1716–1718) Rákóczi's War of Independence