'' Feldmarschall'' Nicholas Taaffe, ''

Graf (; feminine: ) is a historical title of the German nobility and later also of the Russian nobility, usually translated as "count". Considered to be intermediate among noble ranks, the title is often treated as equivalent to the British title ...

'' von Taaffe, 6th Viscount Taaffe and 6th Baron of Ballymote (about 168530 December 1769), was an Irish-born

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the officia ...

and soldier who served the

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

Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...

and

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 ...

. The first mention of the Taaffe family name appeared in Irish annals in the year 1284. Their seat was Smarmore Castle, located in

County Louth County Louth ( ; ) is a coastal Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Louth is bordered by the counties of County Meath, Meath to the ...

, since 1320. Born at Crean's Castle in

County Sligo County Sligo ( , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region and is part of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. Sligo is the administrative capital and largest town in ...

, and brought up as a Roman Catholic, Taaffe was the son of Francis Taaffe and Anna Maria Crean, and was a second cousin of the 5th Viscount Taaffe. He was educated in the

Duchy of Lorraine The Duchy of Lorraine was a principality of the Holy Roman Empire which existed from the 10th century until 1766 when it was annexed by the kingdom of France. It gave its name to the larger present-day region of Lorraine in northeastern France ...

and became the chancellor of Duke Leopold of Lorraine, father of the Holy Roman Emperor Francis I. He entered the Habsburg Army, serving at Phillipsburg in Baden and in the campaign against France in 1734-5, the Turkish War of 1736-39, and was present in battle at Fort St. Elizabeth, Pallesch, and the Battle of Semlin. He succeeded to the

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

in 1738, and was promoted to Major-General (General Feldwachtmeister) in 1739. He also fought in the

Silesian Wars The Silesian Wars () were three wars fought in the mid-18th century between Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia (under King Frederick the Great) and Habsburg monarchy, Habsburg Austria (under Empress Maria Theresa) for control of the Central European ...

against

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

and distinguished himself, aged about 72, at Marshal Daun's victory of

Frederick the Great Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself ''King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prussia ...

at Kolin in 1757. He was Chamberlain to Emperor Charles VII and Empress Maria Theresa. He is said to have introduced the growing of the potato to

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

in 1763. Under the reign of Queen Anne he lost his Irish estates to a Protestant relative when they were claimed under the Popery Act 1704 (2 Anne c. 6 (I)), leading to a lengthy lawsuit. After years, the case was ended by a compromise embodied in a private act of Parliament, by which the estates were sold and one-third of the value given to Nicholas Taaffe. With the money, he acquired the castle of Ellischau (Nalžovy) in

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 ...

; he had also inherited other property in the Habsburg dominions. He was naturalised in

, and in 1738 inherited the title of Viscount Taaffe from a cousin. He left on record that the reason for becoming an Austrian was that he did not wish his descendants to be exposed to the temptation of becoming Protestants, so as to avoid the operation of the Penal Laws. Taaffe had a distinguished career in the Habsburg Army; he eventually rose to the rank of a '' Feldmarschall'' (

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 ...

), and was created ''

'' von Taaffe (

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

of Taaffe) by the Empress

Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position suo jure, in her own right. She was the ...

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Taaffe, Nicholas Taaffe, 6th Viscount 1685 births 1769 deaths Counts of Austria Viscounts Taaffe