Christian from Ilow
Christian Freiherr von Ilow (also Illow ; * 1585 in Neumark Brandenburg , † February 25, 1634 in Eger ) was Imperial Field Marshal and confidante of Wallenstein during the Thirty Years' War . In the historical drama of the Wallenstein trilogy by Friedrich Schiller he appears under the name "Illo".
Life
Christian von Ilow was married to Anna Albertina, a daughter of Christoph II Graf zu Fürstenberg and Dorothea Freiin von Sternberg ( Dorota Holická ze Šternberka , daughter of Ottokar Holiczky Frhr. Von Sternberg and Anna Raupowsky von Raupow) from their third marriage . Anna Albertina was the mistress of Löschna Castle (Lessna) in Moravia.
Since the beginning of the Thirty Years War in 1618, Ilow was in the service of the Imperial Army . As a captain, he was taken prisoner on February 10, 1620 near Langenlois in Lower Austria. After five months he was able to return to the imperial troops and served in the cuirassier regiment of Duke Adolf von Holstein-Gottorp . In the battle of Stadtlohn on August 6, 1623, he contributed to the victory of Johann t'Serclaes von Tilly over Christian von Braunschweig .
Simultaneously with his military advancement, he acquired a fortune that enabled him to lend 70,000 guilders to Emperor Ferdinand II . In return, the emperor transferred the west Bohemian rule Mies to him in pledge. In addition, Ilow acquired land holdings from expropriated Protestant noblemen in Popowicz, which were far below their value .
When Commander-in-Chief Wallenstein recruited the mercenaries of the Imperial Army in the spring of 1625, he initially took over a Holstein regiment without his consent. Nevertheless, he later belonged to Wallenstein's confidante, who promoted his military advancement. In 1631 Ilow took part in the Battle of Breitenfeld .
After Wallenstein was reinstated as commander-in-chief by the emperor in 1632 , Ilow finally succeeded in winning his trust. In constant contact with Wallenstein, he became general sergeant ( major general ) and field marshal lieutenant in quick succession and fought in Saxony and Bohemia. In 1633 he became field marshal . He supported Wallenstein in his considerations to turn away from the emperor as lord of the Duchy of Friedland and to strive for the Bohemian royal crown. When Wallenstein wavered at the beginning of January and thought of resignation, seriously ill, it was not least Ilow who persuaded him to carry on. The Pilsen conclusion , with which the majority of the leading officers gave a declaration of loyalty to Wallenstein, was Ilow's work. He then accompanied the general to Eger and was there before the murder of Wallenstein in the house of Mayor Pachelbel on the town's market square, together with Adam Erdmann Graf Trčka and Wilhelm Graf Kinsky at a feast of the fortress commander of Eger Castle , Colonel John Gordon , on the night of the murder killed by Eger .
literature
- Hermann Hallwich : Ilow, Christian Freiherr von . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 14, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1881, pp. 27-33.
- Walter Görlitz : The Junker - Nobility and Peasants in the German East , Limburg an der Lahn 1961, p. 72
- The coats of arms of the Bohemian nobility. J. Siebmacher's large Wappenbuch , Volume 30, Neustadt an der Aisch, ISBN 3-87947-030-8 , pp. 282f., Wappentafel 133 and 134
- Roman von Procházka : Genealogical handbook of extinct Bohemian gentry families , Neustadt an der Aisch 1973, ISBN 3-7686-5002-2 , there in: Smirziczky von Smirzicz , p. 291
Individual evidence
- ↑ Genealogy Fürstenberg
- ↑ Golo Mann : Wallenstein. His life is told by Golo Mann . Frankfurt / Main 1971, ISBN 3-10-047903-3 , p. 410
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Ilow, Christian von |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Ilow, Christian Freiherr von (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Troop leader in the Thirty Years War, Imperial Field Marshal and partisan of Wallenstein |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1585 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Neumark Brandenburg |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 25, 1634 |
| Place of death | Eger |