Henrik Magnus von Buddenbrock (22 July 1685 – between 16 and 27 July 1743) was a Swedish

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

and

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

. He and Carl Emil Lewenhaupt were executed for negligence in the Russo-Swedish War, in the aftermath of the defeat at Villmanstrand.

Biography

He was born on 22 July 1685 in

Swedish Livonia Swedish Livonia () was a dominion of the Swedish Empire from 1629 until 1721. The territory, which constituted the southern part of modern Estonia (including the island of Ösel ceded by Denmark after the Treaty of Brömsebro) and the northe ...

. He was the son of the landed gentleman and

Swedish Empire The Swedish Empire or the Great Power era () was the period in Swedish history spanning much of the 17th and early 18th centuries during which Sweden became a European great power that exercised territorial control over much of the Baltic regi ...

army officer Henrik Gotthard von Buddenbrock and Charlotta Cronman. He enlisted as an officer of the Swedish army, becoming a captain of the Life Guards in 1711, Major of

grenadier A grenadier ( , ; derived from the word ''grenade'') was historically an assault-specialist soldier who threw hand grenades in siege operation battles. The distinct combat function of the grenadier was established in the mid-17th century, when ...

s in 1715, Major General in 1721. He was elevated to

friherre (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , ) and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and in i ...

(matricle number 206) in 1731 and promoted to

of the

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

in 1739. As such, he was in 1741 commander of the troops in

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

, under General

Charles Emil Lewenhaupt Charles Emil Lewenhaupt the Elder (28 March 1691 – 4 August 1743) was a Swedish general. Biography Lewenhaupt was born to Count Carl Gustaf Löwenhaupt and Countess Amalia Königsmarck. At the age of 16, he entered Dutch service where he ...

, at the onset of the Russo-Swedish War. On 23 August 1741 (3 September 1741) Swedish Major General

Carl Henrik Wrangel Carl Henrik Wrangel, friherre Wrangel af Adinal (28 January 1681 – 23 March 1755) was an officer of the Swedish Army, attaining the rank of Field Marshal. Biography He was born in Haapsalu in Swedish Estonia as the son of Reinhold Wrangel. ...

and his corps in Villmanstrand in

Karelia Karelia (; Karelian language, Karelian and ; , historically Коре́ла, ''Korela'' []; ) is an area in Northern Europe of historical significance for Russia (including the Soviet Union, Soviet era), Finland, and Sweden. It is currentl ...

, at the long disputed frontier between Sweden and Russia, was attacked and defeated by a Russian army under General

Peter Lacy Peter Graf von Lacy (; ; ; 26 September 1678 – 30 April 1751) was an Irish-born soldier who later served in the Imperial Russian army. Considered one of the most successful Russian Imperial commanders before Rumyantsev and Suvorov, in a ...

before Buddenbrock, less than 10 kilometers away, could come to his assiantance. As the war was developing unfavorably for Sweden, the defeat was blamed on Lewenhaupt and Buddenbrock. In August 1742 they were dismissed from Finland and immediately arrested by Vice Admiral Ritterstolpe upon their return. On the night of 28 September Buddenbrock was brought to

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

, where he was imprisoned and closely guarded. A

court martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the mili ...

was convened under

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

Hugo Johan Hamilton ( sv) on 8 October to investigate the two cases. The prosecutor was Chancellor of Justice Silverschildt, who submitted an extensive

indictment An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felonies, the most serious criminal offense is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use that concept often use that of an ind ...

. Buddenbrock was accused of, among other things, not assembling his troops in a timely fashion to cross the Russian border, as planned. In addition he had not arrived at Villmanstrand in time to rescue Major General Wrangel. Buddenbrock defended himself so well, that had he only faced the

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

, he would have left with his life. However the other Estates of the Riksdag, in particular the peasants, were embittered and demanded a scapegoat. The verdict of the commission was announced to a large congregation on 29 May. Buddenbrock was to be dishonored, his property confiscated, and he himself beheaded with an axe. In an appeal, Buddenbrock wrote a comprehensive account where he detailed his services to the kingdom, but despite this and the pleading of his family, the verdict was confirmed by the Estates the following day. Even a request to be beheaded with a

sword A sword is an edged and bladed weapons, edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter ...

as befitting a nobleman, or to be

executed by firing squad Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French , rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are usually re ...

was denied. The date of his execution was set to 20 July but king

Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Given name Nobility = Anhalt-Harzgerode = * Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) = Austria = * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fro ...

postponed it another week. On 27 July 1743 General von Buddenbrock was executed in

. His wife, Magdalena Elisabeth Rahm, and their four children left Sweden for the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Children

*Magdalena Elisabeth von Buddenbrock (1717-1768), she married her cousin Carl Magnus von Buddenbrock (died 1778) *Friedrich Magnus von Buddenbrock (1719-c.1785) *Ulrike Dorothea von Buddenbrock (1721-1788) married in 1743 to Cornet Isaac Tham *Carl Heinrich von Buddenbrock (1725-1745) Swedish Lieutenant who was killed in action at Tournay

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buddenbrock, Henrik Magnus 1685 births 1743 deaths Swedish generals Swedish people of German descent Caroleans People of the Russo-Swedish War (1741–1743) 18th-century Swedish military personnel 18th-century executions by Sweden People executed by Sweden by decapitation Executed Swedish people People from Swedish Livonia

Biography

Children

See also

References