August Hiller von Gaertringen

Grave site in the Invalidenfriedhof , Berlin

Johann August Friedrich Freiherr Hiller von Gaertringen (born November 11, 1772 in Magdeburg , † January 18, 1856 in Berlin ) was a Prussian infantry general .

Life

origin

August came from an aristocratic family from Württemberg whose roots lie in Pöttmes near Augsburg and which has been based in Gärtringen near Stuttgart since 1634 . He was the youngest son of the later Prussian major general Johann Eberhard Rudolf Freiherr Hiller von Gaertringen (1735–1799) and his wife Joliane Dorothea, born von Hagen from the Naulin family (1745–1786).

Military career

Hiller came on May 30, 1784 as corporal corporal in the infantry regiment "of Woldeck" the Prussian army one was there in 1787 Ensign and participated in the fighting in Holland and on the Rhine during the French Revolutionary Wars in part. As a secondary lieutenant (since 1789) he fought in the campaign against France in 1792/95 near Valmy , Kaiserslautern , Herzogshand, Bubenhausen, Weißenburg , Burrweiler (wounded), Ruppertsberg and on the Schänzel . On March 2, 1802, he was promoted to staff captain in his regiment.

During the campaign in 1806 came Hiller with the surrender of Hameln briefly here in captivity . After the Peace of Tilsit he was inactivated with half salary . In 1809, as captain, he was temporarily stage commander in Pasewalk . In 1812 Hiller took part in the campaign in Courland as adjutant general and major in Julius von Grawert's staff and later in Yorck's staff . Napoleon Bonaparte then honored him with the cross of the Legion of Honor , the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm III. on October 18, 1812 with the order Pour le Mérite .

On November 28, 1812, Hiller became the commandant of Spandau . Subsequently, at the beginning of the campaign in 1813, he was initially adjutant at Yorck and distinguished himself in particular at Großgörschen , Bautzen, Katzbach and Möckern . On May 31, 1814, he received the oak leaves for the Pour le Mérite for a severe wound he suffered there and in recognition of his performance. After a stay in Dessau to recover , he was back with the troops at the end of December, crossed the Rhine under Blücher and led the 1st Infantry Brigade as far as Paris . Before the campaign was over, he was appointed Commandant of Minden on March 17, 1815 .

In the Battle of Waterloo (1815) Hiller led the decisive advance on Planchenois with the 16th Brigade . Thereupon promoted to major general, he came to Stettin as a commander in 1816 and at the same time acted as inspector of the Landwehr in the government department. He was then transferred to Poznan in 1817 as chief of the troop brigade . In 1827 Hiller took over the 11th Division in Breslau and was promoted to lieutenant general shortly afterwards .

On June 23, 1830 Hiller took his leave, which was granted to him with an annual pension of 3430 thalers. In the following years he received several awards for his services. On September 3, 1840 he was awarded the Order of the Red Eagle First Class with Oak Leaves, on August 23, 1852 the Grand Commander of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern and on January 18, 1853 the Order of the Black Eagle . In addition, Hiller received on May 14, 1850 the character of General of the Infantry.

Freemasons

Hiller was an active freemason . In 1796 he was accepted into the Wittekind Lodge at the Westphalian Gate in Minden, when his father Rudolf was master of the chair ; he himself held this office. In 1813/1814 he was a member of the field box Friedrich zur Vaterlandsliebe established in Luxembourg . In his numerous places of employment he eagerly visited the local boxes. Most recently he was a member of the Friedrich Loge for the Golden Scepter in Breslau.

family

On January 26, 1796, Hiller married Adelgunde von Hellen (1777-1822) in Minden. After her death, Hiller married Mathilde von Mutius (1792–1869), daughter of Franz von Mutius and Wilhelmine Kraker von Schwarzenfeld, on October 28, 1823 . Four children resulted from the marriages:

• August (1799–1864), Prussian colonel, commander of the Hussar Regiment No. 4 and knight of the Order of St. John ⚭ Auguste von Reiche (* 1811)
• Karl (1805-1811)
• Wilhelm (1809–1866), Prussian lieutenant general and Freemason
• Maria (1824–1858) ⚭ Alexander Graf von Strachwitz (1817–1866), Lord of Berthelsdorf

Hiller von Gaertringen was buried in the Berlin Invalidenfriedhof after his death . His grave, destroyed by the border troops of the GDR (the border systems to West Berlin ran through the Invalidenfriedhof), was restored after reunification.

literature

• Friedrich Hiller von Gaertringen: Wilhelm Hiller von Gaertringen : Family history of the barons Hiller von Gaertringen. Berlin 1910, pp. 138-207.
• Friedrich Hiller von Gaertringen: Memories of General August Frhrn. Hiller v. Gaertringen of the hero of Plancenoit-Bellealliance. 1912.
• Friedrich Hiller von Gaertringen: The Hiller family from Gaertringen and the aristocratic estate since 1634. In: Fritz Heimberger, Gärtringen. History of a community. ed. v. of the community of Gärtringen, Langenau-Ulm 1982, pp. 83-100, especially p. 99.
• Kurt von Priesdorff : Soldier leadership . Volume 4, Hanseatische Verlagsanstalt Hamburg, undated [Hamburg], undated [1937], DNB 367632799 , pp. 118-121, no. 1259.
• Genealogical yearbook of the German nobility for 1844. p. 405.
• Obituary. In: Military newspaper. Volume 9, 1859, p. 62.
• Gothaisches genealogical pocket book of the baronial houses for the year 1871. P. 285.

Web links

• Literature by and about August Hiller von Gaertringen in the catalog of the German National Library

Individual evidence

1. ^ New Prussian nobility lexicon. Volume 3, p. 440, digitized