Wilhelm, Count of Schaumburg-Lippe-Bückeburg (9 January 1724 – 10 September 1777), born Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst Graf zu Schaumburg-Lippe-Bückeburg, was a German ruler of the

County A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

Schaumburg-Lippe Schaumburg-Lippe, also Lippe-Schaumburg, was created as a county in 1647, became a principality in 1807, a free state in 1918, and was until 1946 a small state in Germany, located in the present day state of Lower Saxony, with its capital at Bü ...

-Bückeburg, an important military commander 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 (1754 ...

Generalfeldzeugmeister ''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 ...

of the

Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg The Electorate of Hanover (german: Kurfürstentum Hannover or simply ''Kurhannover'') was an electorate of the Holy Roman Empire, located in northwestern Germany and taking its name from the capital city of Hanover. It was formally known as ...

, a British

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 ...

(Generalfeldmarschall) and the grandson of

George I of Great Britain George I (George Louis; ; 28 May 1660 – 11 June 1727) was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 and ruler of the Electorate of Hanover within the Holy Roman Empire from 23 January 1698 until his death in 1727. He was the fir ...

Biography

He was born in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

the son of

Albrecht Wolfgang, Count of Schaumburg-Lippe Albrecht Wolfgang, Count of Schaumburg-Lippe (27 April 1699 – 24 September 1748) was a ruler of the County of Schaumburg-Lippe. Biography He was born in Bückeburg the son of Friedrich Christian, Count of Schaumburg-Lippe and his first wife ...

and of his first wife Countess Margarete Gertrud of Oeynhausen (1701–1726, an alleged bastard daughter of

and his

mistress Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to: Romance and relationships * Mistress (lover), a term for a woman who is in a sexual and romantic relationship with a man who is married to a d ...

Ehrengard Melusine von der Schulenburg. He accompanied his father in his campaign in Dutch service during the 1740-1748

War of Austrian Succession War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

, and was present at the Battle of Dettingen (1743). He then fought in Austrian service in their Italian campaign. He succeeded his father as Count on 25 October 1748.

Seven Years War

As Count and General of the Artillery (Generalfeldzeugmeister) he sided with

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 e ...

during the

. He distinguished himself at the head of the allied artillery during the

Battle of Minden The Battle of Minden was a major engagement during the Seven Years' War, fought on 1 August 1759. An Anglo-German army under the overall command of Prussian Field Marshal Ferdinand of Brunswick defeated a French army commanded by Marshal of Fr ...

and was rewarded with the overall command of the allied artillery.

Portugal

In 1762, at the request of the Marquis of Pombal (the Portuguese Secretary of State) he led, as

Generalissimus ''Generalissimo'' ( ) is a military rank of the highest degree, superior to field marshal and other five-star ranks in the states where they are used. Usage The word (), an Italian term, is the absolute superlative of ('general') thus m ...

, the allied troops in Portugal against the Spanish invasion. William conducted a brilliant defensive campaign of marches and counter-marches, so that the enemy, although it had a three-to-one superiority in numbers, always encountered defenders in a good position and never dared to risk an all-out attack. At the request of Pombal, Lippe stayed on for a year after the peace agreement of 1763. Marie Barbara Eleonore zu Lippe-Biesterfeld

Marie Barbara Eleonore zu Lippe-Biesterfeld

He was also an influential military theorist and an advocate of defensive warfare. One of his best-known slogans is: "Kein anderer als der Defensivkrieg ist rechtmäßig!" ("Only defensive warfare is justified!") He died at

Wölpinghausen Wölpinghausen is a municipality in the district of Schaumburg, in Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by l ...

and was succeeded by his cousin the count of

Lippe-Alverdissen Lippe-Alverdissen was a German County of the ruling House of Lippe. The branch was created in 1613 following the death of Count Simon VI of Lippe, with his realm being split between his three sons with his youngest son Philipp receiving the es ...

, Philipp II. Ernst. As one of the greatest figures in German history, he is commemorated by a bust in the

Walhalla temple The Walhalla is a hall of fame that honours laudable and distinguished people in German history – "politicians, sovereigns, scientists and artists of the German tongue";Official Guide booklet, 2002, p. 3 Built decades before the foundation of t ...

Family

By 1764 Wilhelm had two children, Joseph and Olimpia Petronellia. They were born in

Elvas, Portugal Elvas () is a Portuguese municipality, former episcopal city and frontier fortress of easternmost central Portugal, located in the district of Portalegre in Alentejo. It is situated about east of Lisbon, and about west of the Spanish fortress ...

. Olimpia was baptized in the Church "Matriz" in the city of Campo Maior on 24 June 1764. Years after, before her marriage, Olimpia was recognized by her father's cousin, Philip II Ernst, and her name was changed to Olímpia Patronellia Ernestina de Schaumburg-Lippe. Olimpia died on 25 November 1822. He was married on 12 November 1765 at

Stadthagen Stadthagen () is the capital of the district of Schaumburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approximately 20 km east of Minden and 40 km west of Hanover. The city consists of the districts Brandenburg, Enzen-Hobbensen, Hörkamp-L ...

to Countess Marie Barbara Eleonore of Lippe-Biesterfeld (1744–1776), daughter of

Charles Frederick Augustus, Count of Lippe Count Frederick Charles Augustus of Lippe-Biesterfeld (20 January 1706 in Biesterfeld – 31 July 1781 in Friedrichsruh) was a Count of Lippe and Lord of Lippe-Biesterfeld, Sternberg and Schwalenberg and a Knight of the Order of the Red Eagl ...

. They had two children; Countess Emilie (1771–1774) and an unnamed son (1772).

References

External links