August von der Groeben

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Václav Sochor : The Battery of the Dead

August von der Groeben (born February 23, 1828 in Eversburg near Osnabrück , † July 3, 1866 in Königgrätz ) was an Austrian officer.

Life

August von der Groeben was born as the son of the Hanoverian Lieutenant Colonel August Ludwig Otto and Ernestine von der Marwitz .

He joined the Imperial and Royal Artillery on July 10, 1844 at the age of seventeen and was trained with the No. 2 field artillery regiment . He was promoted to cadet chief gunner on December 1, 1844 and was transferred to the Bombardier Corps on June 1, 1846. In the course of the revolution of 1848 , under Colonel Friedrich von Sonnenmayer, he took part in the capture of Vienna from October 28 to 31 . During the campaign in Hungary in 1849 he took part in the battle of Isaszeg , the battle on the Rakos, the capture of Raab and the battles near Komorn and Temesvar . He was promoted to first lieutenant on March 16, 1853 and to captain on February 25, 1862 .

Captain von der Groeben was killed in the battle of Königgrätz on July 3, 1866 , when he was covering the retreat of the infantry with his battery (7th battery of the 8th field artillery regiment) ("battery of the dead"). The defense of Chlum was entrusted to Colonel Carl von Eppan. Shortly after 1 p.m., Brigadier Charles of Appiano ordered that his brigade, which was suffering from enemy fire, should vacate the place. The artillery of the Austrian III. Corps tried to stop the front of the enemy infantry. A battalion of Infantry Regiment No. 46 was defending itself south of the village. The 7th battery under Hauptmann von der Groeben tried to prevent the Prussian advance from Chlum. The so-called "Battery of the Dead" was attacked in the rear from the north and completely overrun by the Prussian 1st Guard Infantry Regiment. The battery lost 53 soldiers and 68 horses as well as seven of its eight cannons, but the act of the brigade still holding southeast of Chlum enabled the Appiano brigade to break away. For this act, Hauptmann von der Groeben was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross of the Order of Maria Theresa .

literature

personal data
SURNAME Groeben, August from the
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian officer
DATE OF BIRTH February 23, 1828
PLACE OF BIRTH Eversburg
DATE OF DEATH July 3, 1866
Place of death Königgrätz