Freiherr (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , literally "free lord" or "free lady") and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire ...

Joseph Alvinczi von Borberek a.k.a. Baron József Alvinczi de Borberek (german: Joseph Alvinczy, Freiherr von Berberek; 1 February 1735 – 25 September 1810) was a soldier in the Habsburg Army and a field marshal of the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...

Early career

An ethnic Magyar, he was born in

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

in a place called Alvinc (German: ''Alwintz''), and spent his boyhood in the household of ''

Graf (feminine: ) is a historical title of the German nobility, usually translated as "count". Considered to be intermediate among noble ranks, the title is often treated as equivalent to the British title of "earl" (whose female version is "coun ...

'' Franz Gyulai before joining his regiment as a ''

Fähnrich Fähnrich () is an officer candidate rank in the Austrian Bundesheer and German Bundeswehr. The word comes from an older German military title, (flag bearer), and first became a distinct military rank in Germany on 1 January 1899. However, ...

'' aged 14. By 1753 he had risen to ''

Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian, and Swiss armies. While in contemporary German means 'main', it also has and originally had the meaning of 'head', i.e. ' literally ...

''. During 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 ...

, Alvinczy distinguished himself leading a grenadier company in the battles of

Torgau Torgau () is a town on the banks of the Elbe in northwestern Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district Nordsachsen. Outside Germany, the town is best known as where on 25 April 1945, the United States and Soviet Armies forces first ...

and

Teplitz Teplice () (until 1948 Teplice-Šanov; german: Teplitz-Schönau or ''Teplitz'') is a city in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 49,000 inhabitants. It is the second largest Czech spa town, after Karlovy Vary. The hist ...

, where his courageous leadership won him a promotion to second major. At the end of the war he worked extensively on the implementation of

Franz Moritz von Lacy Franz Moritz Graf von Lacy ( en, Francis Maurice de Lacy; russian: Борис Петрович Ласси, tr. ; 21 October 1725 – 24 November 1801) was a Baltic German-born Austrian military leader, he was the son of Count Peter von Lac ...

's new regulations throughout the army.

War of Succession, Turkish War, and the Netherlands campaign

Promoted to ''

Oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedish ...

'' commanding the 19th Infantry Regiment 19 in 1774, he led his men during 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 ...

, where he took the ''Böhmertor'', city of Habelschwerdt and captured the

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

n Commander Prince Hessen-Philippstal, a feat which won Alvinczy promotion to

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 award of the '' Militär-Maria Theresien-Orden'' (MTO). Alvinczy fought under

Ernst Gideon Freiherr von Laudon Ernst Gideon von Laudon, since 1759 Freiherr von Laudon (originally Laudohn or Loudon; 13 February 171714 July 1790), was a Baltic German-born Austrian generalisimo and one of the most successful opponents of the Prussian king Frederick the Grea ...

in the Ottoman War of 1787, but did not accomplish his mission of capturing Belgrade. After a short period instructing the future Emperor, Archduke Francis, he returned to command his regiment. After being promoted to '' Feldmarschalleutnant'', he was transferred to the

Austrian Netherlands The Austrian Netherlands nl, Oostenrijkse Nederlanden; french: Pays-Bas Autrichiens; german: Österreichische Niederlande; la, Belgium Austriacum. was the territory of the Burgundian Circle of the Holy Roman Empire between 1714 and 1797. The pe ...

in 1790 to suppress the

United States of Belgium The United Belgian States ( nl, Verenigde Nederlandse Staten or '; french: États-Belgiques-Unis; lat, Foederatum Belgium), also known as the United States of Belgium, was a short-lived confederal republic in the Southern Netherlands (modern-da ...

, until a fall from his horse forced him to retire.

Neerwinden, Fleurus, Charleroi

Upon the outbreak of the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Prussia ...

in 1792, Alvinczy commanded a

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

, steadying his demoralised men at a key stage of the victorious battle of Neerwinden in 1793, leading his men forward to capture the village; for this exploit he was awarded the Commanders Cross of the MTO. He took command of an Auxiliary army which supported the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

under the

Duke of York and Albany Duke of York and Albany was a title of nobility in the Peerage of Great Britain. The title was created three times during the 18th century and was usually given to the second son of British monarchs. The predecessor titles in the English and Sc ...

, fighting at Landrecy and in the Battle of Fleurus, before being wounded at Mariolles. On his recovery and promotion to ''

Feldzeugmeister ''Feldzeugmeister'' was a historical military rank in some German and the Austro-Hungarian armies, especially in use for the artillery. It was commonly used in the 16th or 17th century, but could even be found at the beginning of the 20th century i ...

'', Alvinczy advised the William VI of Orange in the successful relief of Charleroi in June 1793, losing two horses under him in the process, and earning the reward of the Grand cross of the MTO. Briefly commander of the Army of the

Upper Rhine The Upper Rhine (german: Oberrhein ; french: Rhin Supérieur) is the section of the Rhine between Basel in Switzerland and Bingen in Germany, surrounded by the Upper Rhine Plain. The river is marked by Rhine-kilometres 170 to 529 (the ...

, he was recalled to

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

to serve on the

Hofkriegsrat The ''Hofkriegsrat'' (or Aulic War Council, sometimes Imperial War Council) established in 1556 was the central military administrative authority of the Habsburg monarchy until 1848 and the predecessor of the Austro-Hungarian Ministry of War. Th ...

in 1795.

Italian campaign and later assignments

In late 1796 he took over command of the army that was fighting

Napoleon Bonaparte 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 wh ...

in the north of the Italian Peninsula. After organising the

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

ean militia to face the threat of the French advance in 1796, he was tasked with the third relief of the Siege of Mantua. Alvinczy's army was largely composed of new recruits with few experienced officers. He defeated Bonaparte at Bassano on 6 November and Caldiero on 12 November. Ultimately, Bonaparte won a hard-fought victory over Alvinczi at the

Battle of the Bridge of Arcole The Battle of Arcole or Battle of Arcola (15–17 November 1796) was fought between French and Austrian forces southeast of Verona during the War of the First Coalition, a part of the French Revolutionary Wars. The battle saw a bold maneuver b ...

on 15–17 November 1796. After at first withdrawing toward

Vicenza Vicenza ( , ; ) is a city in northeastern Italy. It is in the Veneto region at the northern base of the ''Monte Berico'', where it straddles the Bacchiglione River. Vicenza is approximately west of Venice and east of Milan. Vicenza is a thr ...

, the Austrians gamely reoccupied the field of battle on 22 November. But when he found that troops under his lieutenant

Paul Davidovich Baron Paul Davidovich or Pavle Davidović ( sr-cyr, Павле Давидовић) (1737, Buda – 18 February 1814, Komárom) became a general of the Austrian Empire and a Knight of the Military Order of Maria Theresa. He played a major ro ...

had begun their own retreat, he admitted defeat and fell back to Bassano.Smith, p. 128 Despite deteriorating health, he regrouped and tried again. He suffered a severe defeat in the

Battle of Rivoli The Battle of Rivoli (14–15 January 1797) was a key victory in the French campaign in Italy against Austria. Napoleon Bonaparte's 23,000 Frenchmen defeated an attack of 28,000 Austrians under General of the Artillery Jozsef Alvinczi, e ...

on 14–15 January 1797. Mantua surrendered soon afterward. He was then given the position of military governor of

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...

, and promoted to field marshal in 1808. He died two years later in Buda.

Sources

* * Smith, Digby. ''The Napoleonic Wars Data Book.'' London: Greenhill, 1998. * Wurzbach, Constantin von. ''Biographisches Lexikon des Kaiserthums Oesterreich, 1856–91'', vol I, p. 22

References

External links

Joseph Alvinczy biodata
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alvinczi, Jozsef 1735 births 1810 deaths Field marshals of Austria Barons of Austria Hungarian nobility Austrian Empire military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars Austrian Empire commanders of the Napoleonic Wars People from Alba County Austrian generals Hungarian generals 18th-century Hungarian people 18th-century Austrian people 19th-century Hungarian people 19th-century Austrian people Generals of the Holy Roman Empire Grand Crosses of the Military Order of Maria Theresa