Charles Harrison Wright

Charles Harrison Wright , von Wright since 1871 (born October 9, 1821 in Wood Green, England, † July 14, 1885 in Baden-Baden ) was a Prussian lieutenant general .

Life

Relief pursuit of the enemy over Frenois on Sedan with Wright as the last rider, see inscription in the lower relief frame.

origin

He was the son of the English landowner Samuel Wright († 1853) and his wife Sara Louise, née Harrison. As a child he came to Germany with his mother, where she died in Bonn in 1839 .

Military career

Wright attended St. Pauls High School in London and received private tuition in Bonn. On February 3, 1839 he joined the 7th Uhlan Regiment of the Prussian Army . There Wright was appointed Portepeef Ensign on May 7, 1839 and promoted to Second Lieutenant on January 27, 1840 . With his regiment he participated in the suppression of the Baden Revolution in 1849 and was used in the battles at Kirchheimbolanden , Ubstadt , Durlach and Kuppenheim . Promoted to Prime Lieutenant in February 1853 , Wright was commanded from August 1854 to March 1858 as a squadron leader of the 7th Landwehr Uhlan Regiment and was meanwhile on November 13, 1856 Rittmeister . As such, he was then promoted to squadron chief in Saarbrücken . On May 23, 1861 he was commanded as an adjutant to the 15th Division . For a short time Wright was active in the same position at the General Command of the V Army Corps from the end of June to mid-July 1864 and then returned to his regiment as a regular staff officer. On April 18, 1865 Wright was appointed as a major under position à la suite to the adjutant of the chief of the general staff Helmuth Karl Bernhard von Moltke . In this capacity he was involved in the battle of Königgrätz in 1866 during the war against Austria . After the peace treaty , Wright was placed in August 1867, leaving his position as adjutant with the rank of department chief à la suite of the General Staff of the Army. As a lieutenant colonel on June 9, 1868, he was given command of Dragoon Regiment No. 5 .

After the beginning of the war against France on July 26, 1870 , Wright was promoted to Colonel , from September 1, 1870, with the management of the affairs of the General Staff Officer in the 4th Cavalry Division and was finally on December 16, 1870 for the further duration of the mobile relationship, senior quartermaster of the 2nd Army. During the war he made a. a. the battles at Sedan , Orléans , Beaugency and Le Mans and was awarded both classes of the Iron Cross .

On the relief "Persecution of the enemy over Frenois on Sedan", a scene from August 31, 1870, on the Prince Albrecht of Prussia monument in Berlin , Wright is depicted as the last rider in the cavalry led by Prince Albrecht of Prussia . On June 16, 1871, King Wilhelm I raised him to hereditary nobility on the occasion of the entry of the troops into Berlin “because of the bravery shown in the war against France” . A few days later he was appointed Chief of the General Staff of the VIII Army Corps and on January 18, 1873 he was awarded the Commander of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern with Swords. On August 16, 1873, Wright received the rank and dues of brigade commander.

On March 14, 1874 he was appointed commander of the 30th Cavalry Brigade in Metz and on October 27, 1874 he was promoted to major general . From October 28, 1880 Wright was then commander of the Cavalry Division of the XV. Army Corps and became Lieutenant General on November 18, 1880. For his many years of service, he received the star for the Order of the Red Eagle, 2nd class on January 14, 1883 with oak leaves and swords on the ring. Wright gave up his post on February 11, 1884 due to health reasons and was put up for disposal with a pension and the award of the Order of the Crown, First Class with swords on the ring .

family

Wright had married Sara Ellen Lloyd (1831-1905) on October 4, 1854 in Cheshunt . The marriage had four children:

• Edward Charles (* 1855), Prussian Rittmeister in Dragoon Regiment No. 6

⚭ July 3, 1901 Mary Roos († 1902)

⚭ January 3, 1905 Marie Castendyk widowed Mehlburger

• Mary Luise Francis (1856–1936) ⚭ George Christopher Lloyd (1861–1942)
• Harry (1859–1925), Prussian lieutenant general
• William Alfred Thomas (1862–1914), Prussian lieutenant colonel, most recently in command of the Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 77 ⚭ Lilly Guild (* 1864)

Coat of arms (1871)

Under the silver shield heads covered with the iron cross in black, a golden rafter covered with three blue lance tips, accompanied by three (2: 1) golden unicorn heads. On the crowned helmet with blue and gold blankets, a stretched right arm clad in golden scale armor, which holds a short javelin with a blue arrowhead. Motto: ESSE QUAM VIDERI ( Latin : [more] to be than seem ).

literature

• Marcelli Janicki: Handbook of the Prussian Nobility. Volume 1, Mittler, Berlin 1892, p. 631 .
• Otto Kusenberg: History of the Rhenish Uhlan Regiment No. 7. 1815-1890. ES Mittler & Sohn , Berlin 1890.
• Kurt von Priesdorff : Soldier leadership . Volume 9, Hanseatische Verlagsanstalt Hamburg, undated [Hamburg], undated [1941], DNB 986919780 , pp. 347-349, no. 2925.
• Gothaisches genealogical pocket book of the letter aristocratic houses. 1909. Third year, Justus Perhes, Gotha 1908, pp. 922f.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ It is unclear whether this Wood Green in London Borough of Haringey and Wood Green, West Midlands is
2. ^ A history of the Institution of Electrical Engineers, 1871-1971, p. 297