Ferdinand von Rohr (General, 1782)

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Wilhelm Eugen Ludwig Ferdinand von Rohr (born May 17, 1783 in Brandenburg an der Havel , † March 15, 1851 near Glogau ) was a Prussian infantry general and minister of war .

Life

origin

Ferdinand was a son of the Prussian major a. D. Ferdinand Johann Ernst Adolf von Rohr (1752–1819) and his wife Charlotte Agnes Friederike, née Brandt von Lindau (1763–1832) from the Schmerwitz family. The parents later divorced.

Military career

Rohr was initially a page with Duke Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand of Braunschweig . In mid-August 1797 he was employed in his infantry regiment and was promoted to second lieutenant until September 1798 . During the Fourth Coalition War he took part in the battle of Jena and Auerstedt and the defense of Danzig in 1806/07 .

At the campaign against Russia Rohr took 1812 as captain of the General Staff of General Yorck part. Rohr remained one of Yorck's closest collaborators after peace was made with Russia and the Prussian army turned against France . In the war of liberation against Napoleon Rohr was mainly involved in the fortifications near Halle , the Battle of Großgörschen and the Battle of Bautzen . While withdrawing from the Battle of Bautzen, Rohr was shot in the chest and could no longer participate in the war.

Rohr remained in military service. On June 6, 1813, Rohr was promoted to major . He took over the management of the clothing department in the Military Economics Department of the War Ministry . Rohr was not happy with this position and wanted to return to the fighting troops.

It was not until 1823 that he was appointed commander of the 6th Infantry Regiment . After ten years in the staff service, it was difficult to get back into service. He therefore initially served four months with the Alexander Regiment in Berlin in order to get closer to the army again. On April 1, he took up a command of the troops stationed in Glogau . Here he developed his concept and Rohrsche type of training named after him (see below ). After serving as commander of the 8th Landwehr Brigade, Rohr received his promotion to major general on March 30, 1830, and was appointed commander of the 9th Landwehr Brigade. In the same capacity he worked from March 30, 1836 to August 17, 1837 in the 9th Infantry Brigade .

From 1837 to 1839 he was the director of the Military Economics Department in the War Ministry . Then he was given command of the 11th Division in Breslau. In 1847, Rohr noticed that he no longer had enough strength to work in the military and asked to be allowed to retire. The exit from the military was still a long time coming, because Rohr was appointed Minister of War on October 7th . The ministerial period was short and full of excitement. During the March Revolution of 1848 there was another hemorrhage that tied him to the bed. He had such a negative attitude towards the withdrawal of the troops from Berlin on March 19, 1848 that he asked at the same time as the Prussian Prime Minister von Arnim to resign. This was granted on April 2nd. After his departure he was given the character of General of the Infantry on December 25, 1848 .

Rohr became a member of the First Chamber of the Prussian state parliament in 1851 , but soon had to resign due to a stroke. He passed away shortly afterwards.

family

Rohr married on October 4, 1842 with Auguste Countess von Rittberg (1824-1906). She was the eldest daughter of the President of the Higher Regional Court, Ludwig von Rittberg .

Rohrsche type of training

Rohr's approach was new to the Prussian military. The Rohrsche type of training named after him relied on education and understanding and not, as before, on mechanical training of soldiers . He himself wrote that he wanted "to use all the strengths of the recruits , mental as well as physical, and develop them as much as possible, but avoid fatigue as much as possible and without indulgence." This type of training was difficult to enforce and had to assert itself against the conservative forces. This method received a tailwind on April 29, 1841 from Friedrich Wilhelm IV. , Who officially introduced this form of training. Six months later, however, the king steered back and made the introduction dependent on the commanding generals . Despite the opposition, Rohr's principles prevailed.

literature

swell

  1. ↑ In addition to the Military Economics Department, there was another department of the War Ministry, the General War Department
  2. ↑ General German biography (see literature list )
personal data
SURNAME Rohr, Ferdinand von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Rohr, Wilhelm Eugen Ludwig Ferdinand von (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Prussian general of the infantry and minister of war
DATE OF BIRTH May 17, 1783
PLACE OF BIRTH Brandenburg on the Havel
DATE OF DEATH March 15, 1851
Place of death at Glogau