Wladimir Rudolf Karl Freiherr Giesl von Gieslingen (18 February 1860 – 20 April 1936) was an Austro-Hungarian general and diplomat during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, most famous for delivering the ultimatum to the Serbian government during the

July Crisis The July Crisis was a series of interrelated diplomatic and military escalations among the major powers of Europe in the summer of 1914, which led to the outbreak of World War I (1914–1918). The crisis began on 28 June 1914, when Gavrilo Pri ...

of 1914.

Life

Born in Fünfkirchen (now

Pécs Pécs ( , ; hr, Pečuh; german: Fünfkirchen, ; also known by other #Name, alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the fifth largest city in Hungary, on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the countr ...

) on 18 February 1860 into an officer's family as the youngest son of (1821–1906), an Austro-Hungarian general who had taken part in the wars of 1848-1849. After studies at the

Theresian Military Academy The Theresian Military Academy (german: Theresianische Militärakademie, TherMilAk) is a military academy in Austria, where the Austrian Armed Forces train their officers. Founded in 1751, the academy is located in the castle of Wiener Neustadt ...

in 1879, he was commissioned as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

. Following graduation from the War College in 1884, he was promoted and attached to the General Staff. He subsequently served in various units in Tarnau (now

Tarnów Tarnów () is a city in southeastern Poland with 105,922 inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of 269,000 inhabitants. The city is situated in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship since 1999. From 1975 to 1998, it was the capital of the Tarn� ...

), Brno,

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo ...

and Theresienstadt (now

Terezín Terezín (; german: Theresienstadt) is a town in Litoměřice District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,800 inhabitants. It is a former military fortress composed of the citadel and adjacent walled garrison town ...

). In 1893, he was appointed as military attaché to the Austro-Hungarian Embassy at

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

(now

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

) and was promoted to major the following year. Following the Greco-Turkish War of 1897, he took part in the peacekeeping activities on

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...

. In 1898, he was additionally appointed as a military attaché in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

and

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...

and received promotion 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 ...

in 1900. In 1906, he was promoted to '' generalmajor'' and the following year he was a member of the Austro-Hungarian delegation to the Second Hague Peace Conference. In 1909, he was appointed as minister at Cetinje and the following year promoted to ''

feldmarschallleutnant Lieutenant field marshal, also frequently historically field marshal lieutenant (german: Feldmarschall-Leutnant, formerly , historically also and, in official Imperial and Royal Austrian army documents from 1867 always , abbreviated ''FML''), was ...

''. On 13 November 1913, Baron Giesl von Gieslingen was appointed Austro-Hungarian minister at Belgrade and would play a key role the following year during the

. On 28 June 1914, the Austro-Hungarian heir apparent

Archduke Franz Ferdinand Archduke Franz Ferdinand Carl Ludwig Joseph Maria of Austria, (18 December 1863 – 28 June 1914) was the heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary. His assassination in Sarajevo was the most immediate cause of World War I. F ...

was assassinated in Sarajevo. On 23 July, he presented the Austro-Hungarian ultimatum to the Serbian authorities with a 48-hour deadline. The instruction from Foreign Minister Count von Berchtold was to leave the country immediately should the Serbian government not accept all the points of the ultimatum. The reply was delivered by the Serbian Prime Minister Pasic five minutes before the deadline expired on 25 July. As the Serbian government did not accept all the points, Baron Giesl von Gieslingen declared that diplomatic relations were broken off and left on a train half an hour later. On 28 July 1914, Austria-Hungary formally declared war with Serbia and

had started. Baron Giesl von Gieslingen's role during the

has been much debated by historians over the years and some have criticised him for leaving Belgrade too rapidly. Upon his return to Vienna, Baron Giesl von Gieslingen was appointed to be a liaison officer of the Foreign Ministry at the Army Headquarters and 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 ...

in August 1914. However, the Chief of the General Staff General Conrad von Hötzendorf accused him of passing on military secrets to Count von Berchtold and wished to see him replaced. Baron Giesl von Gieslingen thus requested to be transferred to the front, which was rejected and he retired in January 1915 from active service. In 1917, he was sent on a diplomatic mission to Constantinople where he carried out the preparations for the visit of Emperor Karl I in early 1918. His older brother

Arthur Arthur is a common male given name of Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. Another theory, more wi ...

was also a general who commanded an army corps during the

Serbian campaign The Serbian campaign was a series of military expeditions launched in 1914 and 1915 by the Central Powers against the Kingdom of Serbia during the First World War. The first campaign began after Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on 28 J ...

in early autumn 1914, but who was replaced after suffering setbacks. His memoirs, compiled and published by Eduard von Steinitz, throw interesting light on Balkan conditions before the war and add some details concerning the final diplomatic rupture between Austria-Hungary and Serbia in 1914. He was awarded Order of the White Eagle. Baron Giesl von Gieslingen died at

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label= Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...

on 20 April 1936.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* Eduard Ritter von Steinitz, ''Zwei Jahrzehnte im Nahen Orient: Aufzeichnungen des Generals der Kavallerie Baron Wladimir Giesl'', Berlin, Verlag für Kulturpolitik, 1927.

External links

'Giesl von Gieslingen Wladimir Frh.', Österreichisches Biographisches Lexikon 1815-1950

* ttp://www.aeiou.at/aeiou.encyclop.g/g401028.htm 'Giesl von Gieslingen, Wladimir Freiherr', AEIOU
'Wladimir Giesl Freiherr von Gieslingen', Austro-Hungarian Army
{{DEFAULTSORT:Giesl von Gieslingen, Wladimir 1860 births 1936 deaths 19th-century Austrian people 20th-century Austrian people Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Austro-Hungarian diplomats of World War I Austrian diplomats Austro-Hungarian generals Grand Crosses of the Order of Franz Joseph Recipients of the Order of Military Merit (Bulgaria) Barons of Austria Austrian expatriates in Poland Austrian expatriates in Turkey People from Pécs Theresian Military Academy alumni