German general (1684?1757)
Kurt Christoph, Graf von Schwerin
(26 October 1684 ? 6 May 1757) was a
Prussian
Generalfeldmarschall
, one of the leading commanders under
Frederick the Great
.
Biography
[
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]
19th Century Engraving of von Schwerin
Statue of Field Marshall Kurt von Schwerin in the Zietenplatz in Berlin
He was born in
Lowitz
,
Swedish Pomerania
, and at an early age entered the Dutch army, with which he served at
Schellenberg
and at
Blenheim
.
In 1707 he became a
lieutenant-colonel
in the army of the duke of
Mecklenburg-Schwerin
, and was present at
Ramillies
and
Malplaquet
, and with the Swedish commander
Stenbock
at
Gadebusch
. In 1713 he was with
Charles XII of Sweden
in his captivity at
Bender
, and in 1718 was made
major-general
.
In 1719 he opposed the
Hanoverian Army
which invaded
Mecklenburg
(in the course of which he fought a brilliant action at
Walsmuhlen
on 6 March 1719), and in the following year entered the service of the king of Prussia. At first he was employed in diplomatic missions, but in January 1722 ? 1723 he received the command of an infantry regiment. In 1730, as a major-general, he was a member of the court martial which tried the crown prince Frederick for desertion, and in 1733, at the head of a Prussian army, conducted with great skill the delicate and difficult task of settling the Mecklenburg question.
In the following year he became lieutenant-general and in 1739
general
of
infantry
. During the life-time of
King Frederick William
, Schwerin was also employed in much administrative work. Frederick the Great, on his accession, promoted Schwerin to the rank of general field marshal and made him a count. Early in the
First Silesian War
, he justified his sovereign's choice by his brilliant leadership at the
Battle of Mollwitz
(10 April 1741), which, when he had persuaded the king to leave the battlefield explaining that he may be captured as a defeat was likely,
[1]
converted a doubtful battle into a victory which decided for the time being the fate of
Silesia
.
After the conclusion of the war he was governor of the important fortresses of
Brieg
and
Neisse
. In the
Second Silesian War
(1744?1745), Schwerin commanded the army which, marching from
Glatz
, met the king's army under the walls of Prague, and in the siege and capture of that place he played a distinguished part (10 September 1744).
Some time afterwards, the king being compelled to retreat from
Bohemia
, Schwerin again distinguished himself, but, resenting a real or fancied slight, retired to his estate, to which, and its inhabitants, he devoted his energies during the years of peace.
He reappeared on the field at the outbreak of the
Third Silesian War
(1756), and during the first campaign conducted the war on the Silesian side of Bohemia; and in 1757, following the same route as in 1744, again joined Frederick at Prague. On 6 May followed the
Battle of Prague
; leading on a regiment of the left wing to the attack with its colours in his hand, he shouted "Let all brave Prussians follow me!" after which he was struck and killed by a cannonball.
[2]
Thomas Carlyle gives his cry as, "
Heran, meine Kinder
" ("This way, boys!").
[3]
Commemorations
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]
Frederick erected
a statue
on the
Wilhelmplatz
(today part of
Wilhelmstraße
) to his foremost soldier, and a monument on the field of Prague commemorates the place where he fell. Since 1889 the
14th (3rd Pomeranians) Infantry
of the German army had borne his name.
Notes
[
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]
Regarding personal names: Until 1919,
Graf
was a title, translated as
Count
, not a first or middle name. The female form is
Grafin
. In Germany, it has formed part of family names since 1919.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Time-life History of the World, Winds of Revolution 1700-1800, page 56
- ^
Percy, S. (1856). The Percy anecdotes: Revised edition... New York City, NY: Harper & Brothers. p. 88.
- ^
Carlyle, Thomas (1865). The History of Friedrich II, called Frederick the Great: vol. V, New York: Harper & Brothers, p. 30.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the
public domain
:
Chisholm, Hugh
, ed. (1911). "
Schwerin, Kurt Christoph, Count von
".
Encyclopædia Britannica
. Vol. 24 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 393?394.
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