Count Maximilian Anton Karl Baillet de Latour () (14 December 173722 July 1806) was an Austrian general during the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...

Biography

Born at Latour Castle near

Virton Virton (; Gaumais: ''Viertån''; ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. It is also the administrative centre of the district (''arrondissement'') of the same name, as well as the principal town ...

in the

Austrian Netherlands The Austrian Netherlands was the territory of the Burgundian Circle of the Holy Roman Empire between 1714 and 1797. The period began with the acquisition by the Austrian Habsburg monarchy of the former Spanish Netherlands under the Treaty of Ras ...

(present-day

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

), he joined the Austrian Army in 1755 and distinguished himself in 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 ...

. In 1772 he married Charlotte-Sophie de Guérin de La Marche (d-1806); their son, Count Theodor Franz Baillet von Latour, was Austrian minister of war during the

Revolutions of 1848 The revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the springtime of the peoples or the springtime of nations, were a series of revolutions throughout Europe over the course of more than one year, from 1848 to 1849. It remains the most widespre ...

, and was murdered during the Vienna Uprising. His brother, Count Ludwig Wilhelm Anton Baillet de Latour-Merlemont (1753–1836), was also a general in Austrian service, until 1810, when he resigned, and joined the ''

Grande Armée The (; ) was the primary field army of the French Imperial Army (1804–1815), French Imperial Army during the Napoleonic Wars. Commanded by Napoleon, from 1804 to 1808 it won a series of military victories that allowed the First French Empi ...

'' of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

. Latour achieved the rank of a ''

Generalmajor is the Germanic languages, Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central Europe, Central and Northern European countries. Austria Belgium Denmark is the second lowest general officer rank in the Royal Danish Army and R ...

'' in 1782. In the course of the 1789 revolt that led to the proclamation of the autonomous

United States of Belgium The United Belgian States ( or '; ; ), also known as the United States of Belgium, was a short-lived confederation, confederal republic in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium) established under the Brabant Revolution. It existed from Jan ...

, Latour was elevated to the rank of a '' Feldmarschall-Leutnant''. His troops held the

Duchy of Luxembourg The Duchy of Luxembourg (; ; ; ) was a Imperial state, state of the Holy Roman Empire, the ancestral homeland of the noble House of Luxembourg. The House of Luxembourg became one of the most important political forces in the 14th century, comp ...

and played a significant role in regaining the rebellious provinces by the end of 1790, which earned him the Military Order of Maria Theresa. From 1792 onwards Latour fought as an Austrian commander in the Wars of the First and

Second Coalition The War of the Second Coalition () (1798/9 – 1801/2, depending on periodisation) was the second war targeting revolutionary France by many European monarchies, led by Britain, Austria, and Russia and including the Ottoman Empire, Portugal, ...

. In 1796 he was promoted to General of the Cavalry. In 1805 Emperor Francis I of Habsburg appointed him president of the '' Hofkriegsrat'', Latour nevertheless died shortly afterwards 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. ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baillet de Latour, Maximilian Anton Karl, Count 1737 births 1806 deaths 18th-century Austrian people Austrian politicians Counts of Baillet-Latour Austrian people of Belgian descent Austrian military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars Military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars Austrian generals Belgian Roman Catholics Grand Crosses of the Military Order of Maria Theresa People of the War of the First Coalition