
Wilhelm Ludwig Karl Kurt Friedrich von Tümpling (b. 30 December 1809 - d. 13. February 1884) was a Prussian
''General der Kavallerie''. Tümpling commanded a division in the
Austro-Prussian War
The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...
and
VI Army Corps during the
Franco-Prussian War.
Biography
Born in
Pasewalk
Pasewalk () is a town in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in Germany. Located on the Uecker river, it is the capital of the former Uecker-Randow district, and the seat of the Uecker-Randow-Tal ''Amt'', ...
as a scion of the noble family von Tümpling, Wilhelm initially opted for a civilian career and studied law in
Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
.
On 25 July 1830 he entered the Guard Corps as a candidate-officer and on 18 June 1831 he was appointed second lieutenant. In the fall of 1833 he went to the general war school and in 1837 was appointed to the topographical office. From 1839 he belonged to the general staff. In 1840 he was promoted to first lieutenant. On 12 April 1842, he was appointed to the General Staff of the
VIII Army Corps in
Koblenz
Koblenz (; Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz''), spelled Coblenz before 1926, is a German city on the banks of the Rhine and the Moselle, a multi-nation tributary.
Koblenz was established as a Roman military post by Drusus around 8 B.C. Its na ...
with the rank of captain. From there, in 1848, now promoted to major, he was transferred to the Great General Staff in
Berlin
Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...
. In 1849 he took part in the
campaign in Baden.
In 1850 he was again in the field, first as a staff officer in the 4th Dragoons Regiment, and in 1853 with his own command in the 5th Cuirassier Regiment. In 1854 Tümpling took command of the
1st Guard Uhlan Regiment in
Potsdam
Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...
. At the end of 1857 he was appointed colonel and commander of the 11th Cavalry Brigade in
Breslau. Tümpling stayed there until in 1863 he took over the
5th division in
Frankfurt an der Oder
Frankfurt (Oder), also known as Frankfurt an der Oder (), is a city in the German state of Brandenburg. It has around 57,000 inhabitants, is one of the easternmost cities in Germany, the fourth-largest city in Brandenburg, and the largest German ...
.
In the
Second Schleswig War
The Second Schleswig War ( da, Krigen i 1864; german: Deutsch-Dänischer Krieg) also sometimes known as the Dano-Prussian War or Prusso-Danish War was the second military conflict over the Schleswig-Holstein Question of the nineteenth century. T ...
in 1864, parts of his division came into combat at the
Düppeler Schanzen and the occupation of
Fehmarn
Fehmarn (, da, Femern; from Old Wagrian Slavic "''Fe More''", meaning "''In the Sea''") is an island in the Baltic Sea, off the eastern coast of Germany's northernmost state of Schleswig-Holstein. It is Germany's third-largest island, after Rü ...
, but he was not personally involved. During the Austro-Prussian War in 1866 Tümpling distinguished himself in the
Battle of Gitschin
The Battle of Gitschin or Jičín (german: Schlacht bei Gitschin) was a battle of the Austro-Prussian War on 29 June 1866, ending with a Prussian victory over the Austrian forces. There is a memorial there today at Jičín in the Czech Republ ...
, where he was wounded. For Gitschin he was awarded the
Pour le Mérite
The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia. The was awarded as both a military and civil honour and ranked, along with the Order of the Black Eagle, the Order of the Red Ea ...
. After the war he was governor-general of the occupied
Kingdom of Saxony
The Kingdom of Saxony (german: Königreich Sachsen), lasting from 1806 to 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in French period, Napoleonic through German Confederation, post-Napoleonic Germany. The kingdom was ...
for a few weeks. In October 1866 Tümpling was given command of the VI Army Corps.
At the beginning of the Franco-Prussian War the VI Army Corps was kept in
Silesia
Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is spli ...
in order to be a deterrent to Austria entering the war on the French side. After it became clear that Austria would not participate in the war, the corps moved to France in August 1870 and was assigned to the 3rd Army. When the 3rd Army moved north towards
Sedan, Tümpling remained as flank protection. His task was to intercept retreating French formations so that they could not get to
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...
. The French 13th Corps, however, managed to escape this trap and reach Paris. During the
Siege of Paris, Tümpling held the southwestern section. In this area he was able to fight back a French outage in the
Battle of Chevilly
The Battle of Chevilly was fought during the siege of Paris. The battle was the second French sortie from Paris against the German armies. On 30 September 1870 General Joseph Vinoy attacked the Prussian VI Corps at Chevilly and was easily r ...
.
After the war, Tümpling returned to Breslau with his corps. In 1883 Tümpling retired from the army due to his poor health, and eventually died in 1884 in Talstein near
Jena
Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a po ...
.
Honours and awards
*
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) constituted the German state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: ...
:
** Knight of Honour of the
Johanniter Order, ''1847''; Knight of Justice, ''1858''
** Knight of the
Order of the Red Eagle
The Order of the Red Eagle (german: Roter Adlerorden) was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful s ...
, 4th Class with Swords, ''1849''; Grand Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords on Ring, ''2 September 1873''
** Knight of the
Royal Order of the Crown
The Order of the Crown (french: Ordre de la Couronne, nl, Kroonorde) is a national order of the Kingdom of Belgium. The Order is one of Belgium's highest honors.
History
The Order was established on October 15, 1897 by King Leopold II in his c ...
, 2nd Class, ''14 November 1861''
** Commander's Cross of the Royal
House Order of Hohenzollern
The House Order of Hohenzollern (german: Hausorden von Hohenzollern or ') was a dynastic order of knighthood of the House of Hohenzollern awarded to military commissioned officers and civilians of comparable status. Associated with the various ...
, ''7 December 1864''
** Service Award Cross
**
Pour le Mérite
The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia. The was awarded as both a military and civil honour and ranked, along with the Order of the Black Eagle, the Order of the Red Ea ...
(military), ''20 September 1866''
**
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia e ...
(1870), 1st Class with 2nd Class on Black Band
** Knight of the
Order of the Black Eagle
The Order of the Black Eagle (german: Hoher Orden vom Schwarzen Adler) was the highest order of chivalry in the Kingdom of Prussia. The order was founded on 17 January 1701 by Elector Friedrich III of Brandenburg (who became Friedrich I, King ...
, ''18 September 1875''; with Collar, ''1876''
* : Commander of the
Order of the Zähringer Lion
The Order of the Zähringer Lion was instituted on 26 December 1812 by Karl, Grand Duke of Baden
, house = Zähringen
, father = Charles Louis, Hereditary Prince of Baden
, mother = Landgravine Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt ...
, 2nd Class, ''1850''
* : Grand Cross of the
Military Merit Order
* : Knight of the
Order of the Dannebrog
The Order of the Dannebrog ( da, Dannebrogordenen) is a Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single class known ...
, ''16 April 1841''
*
Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg (; nds, label=Low German, Mękel(n)borg ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schwer ...
:
** Grand Cross of the
House Order of the Wendish Crown
The House Order of the Wendish Crown (german: Hausorden der Wendischen Krone) was an Order of the House of Mecklenburg, jointly instituted on 12 May 1864 by Grand Duke Friedrich Franz II of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Grand Duke Friedrich Wilhelm ...
, with Golden Crown
**
Military Merit Cross, 2nd Class (
Schwerin
Schwerin (; Mecklenburgian Low German: ''Swerin''; Latin: ''Suerina'', ''Suerinum'') is the capital and second-largest city of the northeastern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern as well as of the region of Mecklenburg, after Rostock. ...
)
* : Commander of the
Order of Adolphe of Nassau
The Order of Civil and Military Merit of Adolph of Nassau (french: Ordre de Mérite civil et militaire d’Adolphe de Nassau) is an order of merit of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg for meritorious service to the Grand Duke, the Grand-Ducal House ...
, 1st Class, ''September 1861''
* :
** Knight of the
Order of St. Anna, 2nd Class
** Knight of the
Order of St. Stanislaus
The Order of Saint Stanislaus ( pl, Order Św. Stanisława Biskupa Męczennika, russian: Орден Святого Станислава), also spelled Stanislas, was a Polish order of knighthood founded in 1765 by King Stanisław August Poni ...
, 1st Class
* : Grand Cross of the
Albert Order
The Albert Order (german: link=no, Albrechts-Orden or Albrechtsorden) was created on 31 December 1850 by King Frederick Augustus II of Saxony to commemorate Albert III, Duke of Saxony (known as Albert the Bold). It was to be awarded to anyone w ...
, ''1872''
* : Grand Cross of the
Military Merit Order, ''30 December 1870''
[''Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Königreich Württemberg'' (1881), "Königliche Orden]
p. 54
/ref>
Literature
* Howard, Michael, ''The Franco-Prussian War: The German Invasion of France 1870–1871'', New York: Routledge, 2001. .
* Wawro, Geoffrey, ''The Austro-Prussian War. Austria's war with Prussia and Italy in 1866'' (New York 2007)
* von Poten, Bernard, ''Tümpling, Wilhelm von.'' in ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB). Band 38, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1894, S. 785–787.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tümpling, Wilhelm Von
1809 births
1884 deaths
German military personnel of the Franco-Prussian War
Prussian people of the Austro-Prussian War
Generals of Cavalry (Prussia)
Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class)
Recipients of the Iron Cross (1870), 1st class
Grand Crosses of the Military Merit Order (Bavaria)
Recipients of the Military Merit Cross (Mecklenburg-Schwerin)
Knights of the Order of the Dannebrog
Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 2nd class