Eduard Friedrich Karl von Fransecky (16 November 1807 – 22 May 1890) was Prussian general who served in the
Austro-Prussian War
The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...
Fransecky was born in 1807 in Gedern in a military family. In 1818 he entered a Prussian cadetschool in
Potsdam
Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of ...
. In 1825 he was commissioned as an ensign in the 16th Infantry regiment stationed in
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in ...
. Between 1843 and 1857 Fransecky served in the Historical division of the Prussian general staff. He fought in the war against Denmark in 1848, serving in Schleswig.
In 1860 von Fransecky was attached to Oldenburg where he commanded an Oldenburgian infantry regiment. In November 1864 he was promoted to major-general and later to lieutenant-general. He was given command of the 7th Division stationed in
Magdeburg
Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river.
Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebu ...
. In the Austro-Prussian War his division was part of Second Army. His division was able during Münchengrätz, and Königgrätz. During Königgrätz, his division was able to find Austrians by advancing to Swiep Forest, where his division met with Austrians. And for these battles, he was given 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 ...
. Between 1867 and 1869 von Fransecky served as inspector of the Saxon army.
In 1870 von Fransecky became the commanding general of the Prussian 2nd Corps. During the Franco-Prussian War the Prussian 2nd Corps was part of the German 2nd army commanded by Prince Friedrich Karl. Fransecky distinguished himself at
Gravelotte
Gravelotte (; german: Gravelotte) is a commune in the Moselle department in Grand Est in north-eastern France, 11 km west of Metz. It is part of the functional area (''aire d'attraction'') of Metz. Its population is 827 (2019).
From 1871 ...
, where he reached the battlefield after a 16-hour forced march. After Gravelotte, 2nd Corps was part of the troops besieging Metz. After the fall of
Metz
Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...
Fransecky and 2nd Corps were sent to Paris. During the Siege of Paris Fransecky was given command of the troops between
and Marne. On 2 December 1870 Ducrot tried to break through the German ring at Villiers but the sortie was stopped by troops under Fransecky.
In January 1871 2nd Corps was detached from the siege and placed under command of Edwin von Manteuffel's newly formed ''Army of the South''. Under Manteuffel's command Fransecky took part in the operations in the
Côte-d'Or
Côte-d'Or (; literally, "Golden Slope") is a département in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of Northeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 534,124.Jura against Bourbaki's ''
Armée de l'Est
The Armée de l'Est (''Army of the East''; German - Ostarmee; also Second Loire Army; nicknamed the 'Bourbaki army' after its first commander General Charles Denis Sauter Bourbaki) was a French army which took part in the Franco-Prussian War of ...
''. After Bourbaki's forces were defeated at
Pontarlier
Pontarlier ( ; Latin: ''Ariolica'') is a commune and one of the two sub-prefectures of the Doubs department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France near the Swiss border.
History
Pontarlier occupies the ancient Roman station o ...
and forced over the Swiss border, Fransecky was given command of 14th Corps in
Strassbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the ...
and awarded the Oak Leaves to his Pour le Mérite on 5 February 1871.
After the war he was given a dotation of 150.000 thaler. In 1879 he was made governor of Berlin. He resigned as governor due to health reasons in 1882. Eduard von Fransecky died in 1890 in Wiesbaden.
Awards and decorations
*
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 ...
(military), ''20 September 1866''; with Oak Leaves, ''5 February 1871''
* Knight of the Black Eagle, ''3 April 1875''; with Collar, ''1876''; in Diamonds, ''1882''
* Knight of the Red Eagle, 4th Class with Swords, ''1848''; Grand Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords on Ring, ''2 September 1873''
* Grand Commander's Cross of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, with Star, ''23 September 1879''
* Grand Cross of the Military Merit Order, ''30 December 1870'' (Württemberg)
* Military Merit Order (Bavaria)
* Grand Cross of the Albert Order, with War Decoration and Crown, ''1871'' (Saxony)
* Knight of St. George, 4th Class, ''27 December 1870'' (Russia)
* Grand Cross of the House and Merit Order of Peter Frederick Louis, with Golden Crown and Swords, ''5 April 1875'' (Oldenburg)
Literature
* Howard, Michael, ''The Franco-Prussian War: The German Invasion of France 1870–1871'', New York: Routledge, 2001. .