Joseph, Count Kinsky, also known as Joseph, Count Kinsky von Wchinitz und Tettau, was a field marshal in imperial service of the

House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful Dynasty, dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout ...

. He was born in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

, on 22 February 1731 and died in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

, on 7 February 1804. He was one of four members of the

House of Kinsky The House of Kinsky (formerly Vchynští, sg. ''Vchynský'' in Czech; later (in modern Czech) Kinští, sg. ''Kinský''; ) is a prominent Bohemian noble family originating in the Kingdom of Bohemia. During the Thirty Years' War, the Kinsky fa ...

to enter imperial Habsburg service in the eighteenth century, including a younger and older brother, his uncle and his nephew; his father was a diplomat for the House of Habsburg, and other relatives include diplomats and imperial officials of the Habsburg empire.

Family

Joseph, Count von Kinsky was the fifth of nine children of Francis Ferdinand Kinzky z Vchynic a Tetova, Privy Councillor of the Kingdom of Bohemia (1723) (1 January 1678 – 13 September 1741), and the first child of his father's second wife (married 10 October 1730), Countess Maria Augustina

Pálffy ab Erdöd The House of Pálffy, also known as Pálffy von Erdőd, Pálffy de Erdőd, or Pálffy of Erdőd, is the name of an old Hungarian nobility, Hungarian noble family, later incorporated into Austrian nobility. Members of the family held significant po ...

(28 August 1714 – 3 March 1759). He never married. His younger brother,

Franz Joseph, Count Kinsky Franz Joseph, Count Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau (6 December 1739 – 9 June 1805) was a Habsburg Austrian general in the War of the Bavarian Succession and the French Revolutionary Wars. A nobleman from the House of Kinsky, he began his militar ...

(1739–1805), became a

Feldzeugmeister General of the Artillery () was a historical military rank in some German and Austro-Hungarian armies, specifically in artillery. It was commonly used in the 16th and 17th centuries, and survived until the beginning of the 20th century in some Euro ...

in Austrian service. Of his older siblings, the first three died in childhood and the fourth, Leopold Ferdinand (1713–1760), married the Princess Maria Christine von und zu

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (, ; ; ), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein ( ), is a Landlocked country#Doubly landlocked, doubly landlocked Swiss Standard German, German-speaking microstate in the Central European Alps, between Austria in the east ...

. They produced the family from which some of the current Kinskys are descended. Leopold Ferdinand served the Habsburgs in the military during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

, and achieved the rank of General-major.

Career

Little is known about Joseph's early military service, which included campaigns in the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession was a European conflict fought between 1740 and 1748, primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italian Peninsula, Italy, the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Related conflicts include King Ge ...

, the

War of the Bavarian Succession The War of the Bavarian Succession (; 3 July 1778 – 13 May 1779) was a dispute between the Austrian Habsburg monarchy and an alliance of Electorate of Saxony, Saxony and Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia over succession to the Electorate of Bavaria ...

, and Habsburg border campaigns against the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

, 1778–92. He was promoted to major general on 24 June 1767, effective 4 July 1761. In 1771, he was appointed lieutenant field marshal, and in 1787, general of cavalry. In 1787, he became commanding general of the army in Hungary, and in September 1790, he became commanding general in Upper and Lower Austria, a position he held until 5 September 1800. From November 1788 until April 1789, he was also commander of the main Habsburg army. In 1796, he was promoted to field marshal. He received the Knights Cross of the

Military Order of Maria Theresa The Military Order of Maria Theresa (; ; ; ; ; ) was the highest military honour of the Habsburg monarchy, Austrian Empire and Austro-Hungarian Empire. History Founded on 18 June 1757, the day of the Battle of Kolín, by the Empress Mari ...

on 30 April 1762. He was also Colonel

Proprietor (Inhaber) ''Inhaber'', or Proprietor, 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 ...

of the Chevauxléger Regiment No. 7 ight dragoon regimentfrom 1773 a position he held until his death in 1804. After 1800, he was also an Imperial Privy Councilor.Smith. "Joseph Graf von Kinsky."

Sources

Notes and citations

Bibliography

* Smith, Digby.
Joseph Graf von Kinsky
' Leopold Kudrna and Digby Smith (compilers). ''A Biographical Dictionary of all Austrian Generals in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, 1792–1815.'' The Napoleon Series, Robert Burnham, editor in chief. April 2008 version. Accessed 23 January 2010. * Marek, Miloslav. ' 20 June 2009. Accessed 14 March 2010. {{DEFAULTSORT:Joseph, Graf Von Kinsky Austrian military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars Military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars 1731 births 1804 deaths House of Kinsky

Family

Career

See also

Sources

Notes and citations

Bibliography