Count Otto Wilhelm von Königsmarck (5 January 1639 – 15 September 1688) was a German nobleman from

Minden Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the largest town in population between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district () of Minden-Lübbecke, situated in the cultural region ...

, who became a Swedish military officer.

Early life

Königsmarck was born in

Northern Germany Northern Germany (, ) is a linguistic, geographic, socio-cultural and historic region in the northern part of Germany which includes the coastal states of Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Lower Saxony and the two city-states Hambur ...

, as the son of Count Hans Christoff von Königsmarck and his wife, Barabara Maria ''Agathe'' von Leesten (1608-1671). He was brother of Count Conrad Christoff von Königsmarck and uncle of Aurora von Königsmarck, Amalia Wilhelmina von Königsmarck,

Philip Christoph von Königsmarck Count Philip Christoph von Königsmarck (4 March 1665 – 2 July 1694), also spelled Philipp, was a Swedes, Swedish count and soldier. He was allegedly the lover of Sophia Dorothea of Celle, Sophia Dorothea, Princess of Celle, the wife of Duke Ge ...

and Karl Johann von Königsmarck.

Education

After his parents settled in

Stade Stade (; ), officially the Hanseatic City of Stade (, ) is a city in Lower Saxony in northern Germany. First mentioned in records in 934, it is the seat of the Stade (district), district () which bears its name. It is located roughly to the wes ...

in 1645, his mother ensured that her son had a good education. Initially, Königsmarck was probably taught by the scholar Johann Heinrich Tonsor, but Esaias von Pufendorf was his

preceptor A preceptor (from Latin, "''praecepto''") is a teacher responsible for upholding a ''precept'', meaning a certain law or tradition. Buddhist monastic orders Senior Buddhist monks can become the preceptors for newly ordained monks. In the Buddhi ...

(private tutor). He studied at the

University of Jena The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. The university was established in 1558 and is cou ...

for over three years, where he became Rector magnificus due to his noble descent. He then briefly visited the universities in Tübingen, Strasbourg, Basel, then the University of Geneva, Blois and Angers and did the Grand Tour that was customary at the time.

Career

He attained the rank of

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 ...

in 1676, commanded the Battle of Stralsund (1678), and became

Governor General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

for

Swedish Pomerania Swedish Pomerania (; ) was a dominions of Sweden, dominion under the Sweden, Swedish Crown from 1630 to 1815 on what is now the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of Germany and Poland. Following the Polish-Swedish War, Polish War and the Thirty Years' War ...

from 1679 to 1687. Alongside Francesco Morosini, he led the Venetian conquest of the

Morea Morea ( or ) was the name of the Peloponnese peninsula in southern Greece during the Middle Ages and the early modern period. The name was used by the Principality of Achaea, the Byzantine province known as the Despotate of the Morea, by the O ...

in the early years of the

Morean War The Morean war (), also known as the Sixth Ottoman–Venetian War, was fought between 1684–1699 as part of the wider conflict known as the "Great Turkish War", between the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire. Military operations ranged ...

, and died of the plague during the Siege of Negroponte (1688).

Personal life

He was married to Countess Catharina Charlotta De la Gardie (1655-1697), daughter of Count

Magnus Gabriel De la Gardie Count Magnus Gabriel De la Gardie (15 October 1622 – 26 April 1686) was a Swedish Empire, Swedish statesman and military man. He became a member of the Privy Council of Sweden, Swedish Privy Council in 1647 and came to be the holder of three ...

and his wife, Princess Maria Euphrosyne of Zweibrücken-Kleeburg. They didn't have children.

Notes

Sources

* 1639 births 1688 deaths People from Minden Emigrants from the Holy Roman Empire Swedish people of German descent Swedish nobility Field marshals of Sweden People from Minden (state) Swedish Pomerania People of the Great Turkish War 17th-century Swedish military personnel Republic of Venice people of the Morean War Ambassadors of Sweden to France {{Sweden-mil-bio-stub