Franz Wenzel, Graf von Kaunitz-Rietberg (2 July 1742 in

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

– 19 December 1825 in Vienna) was an Austrian general who saw service 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– ...

and Wars of the French Revolution.

Life

Kaunitz was the third son of the statesman Wenzel Anton von Kaunitz-Rietberg and his wife, Mary Ernestine (''née'' Countess

Starhemberg The House of Starhemberg is the name of an old and distinguished Austrian noble family originating from Upper Austria, specifically Steyr and Steinbach. Members of the family played important political role within the Holy Roman Empire and ...

). He remained unmarried. ;Military career Kaunitz was given a military education and volunteered to join the Austrian army at the beginning of the

as an ensign in the Trautmannsdorf Cuirassiers. He transferred to the Daun Infantry Regiment in 1759, and under

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 a ...

Leopold Joseph von Daun Count Leopold Joseph von Daun (german: Leopold Joseph Maria, Reichsgraf von und zu Daun; 24 September 17055 February 1766), later Prince of Thiano, was an Austrian field marshal of the Imperial Army in the War of the Austrian Succession and ...

rose to the position of Wing Adjutant, distinguishing himself at the Battle of Torgau, where he was severely wounded. After the peace of Hubertusburg in 1763, he was promoted to Colonel of the Baden Infantry Regiment (IR; later IR.23), and then in 1766 of the Emperor Joseph II Infantry Regiment (later IR.1). In 1773, he was promoted to General-Major. In the same year, he was appointed as ''

Inhaber A Proprietor, or Inhaber, was a term used in the Habsburg military to denote special honors extended to a noble or aristocrat. The Habsburg army was organized on principles developed for the feudal armies in which regiments were raised by a weal ...

'' (Proprietor) of IR.38, followed in 1785 by IR.20. Promoted to ''Feldmarschall-Leutnant'' (FML) in 1783, he served as military commander in Croatia. At the beginning of the Wars of the French Revolution, he was made ''Feldzeugmeister'' (FZM) in 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 ...

under

Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld Prince Frederick Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (german: Friedrich Josias von Sachsen-Coburg-Saalfeld) (26 December 1737 – 26 February 1815) was an Austrian nobleman and military general. Biography Born at Schloß Ehrenburg in Coburg, he w ...

and served in the

Flanders Campaign The Flanders Campaign (or Campaign in the Low Countries) was conducted from 20 April 1792 to 7 June 1795 during the first years of the War of the First Coalition. A coalition of states representing the Ancien Régime in Western Europe – Au ...

. Commanding Coburg's 27,000 man left wing, Kaunitz distinguished himself defending the line of the

River Sambre The Sambre (; nl, Samber, ) is a river in northern France and in Wallonia, Belgium. It is a left-bank tributary of the Meuse, which it joins in the Wallonian capital Namur. The source of the Sambre is near Le Nouvion-en-Thiérache, in the Aisne ...

in 1794, beating off Jacques Desjardin and Louis Charbonnier at the Battle of Grandreng on 13 May before completely routing the French at the

Battle of Erquelinnes The Battle of Erquelinnes or Battle of Péchant This source gave the two names of the battle. (24 May 1794) was part of the Flanders Campaign during the War of the First Coalition, and saw a Republican French army jointly led by Jacques Desjar ...

on 24 May. However, he resigned on 30 May after the

Prince of Orange Prince of Orange (or Princess of Orange if the holder is female) is a title originally associated with the sovereign Principality of Orange, in what is now southern France and subsequently held by sovereigns in the Netherlands. The title ...

was appointed over his head for political reasons. Kaunitz commanded a column at the Battle of Fleurus on 26 June. In 1796, he was made commanding general in

Galicia Galicia may refer to: Geographic regions * Galicia (Spain), a region and autonomous community of northwestern Spain ** Gallaecia, a Roman province ** The post-Roman Kingdom of the Suebi, also called the Kingdom of Gallaecia ** The medieval King ...

and in 1805 in

Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. Th ...

. The following year, he resigned from active service. ;Death and legacy As the last of the family line of Kaunitz-Rietberg, he died in Palais Kaunitz, Mariahilfer, and was buried in the family grave in Austerlitz. Kaunitz was a member of the

Masonic Lodge A Masonic lodge, often termed a private lodge or constituent lodge, is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also commonly used as a term for a building in which such a unit meets. Every new lodge must be warranted or chartered ...

in Brno.

References

1742 births 1825 deaths Nobility from Vienna Counts of Austria Austrian generals Military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars Austrian Empire commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Austrian Empire military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars Military personnel from Vienna {{s-end