Franz von Schleussing

Franz von Schleussing
( lithograph from 1849)

Franz von Schleussing (born June 11, 1809 in Modgarben ; † December 5, 1887 in Rastenburg ) was a Prussian major and squire . He was one of the few active officers who were members of the Frankfurt National Assembly .

Life

Franz Wilhelm Adam von Schleussing was born as the son of the Prussian major and estate owner Franz Friedrich Schleussing. His father was the nephew and adopted son of the Swedish lieutenant von Schleusing. His mother Dorothea was born Cölestin von Gossow. In the course of time the family owned several manors, including in the East Prussian districts of Friedland , Gumbinnen and Rastenburg . On June 14, 1815, Franz Friedrich Schleussing, gentleman on both sides, was raised to the nobility in the Kingdom of Prussia .

Franz von Schleussing first attended high school in Rastenburg for a few years . In 1830 he joined the 1st Prussian Jägerabteilung as an ensign , which had been garrisoned in Rastenburg since 1817. In 1844 he was promoted to second lieutenant and in 1846 to prime lieutenant and department adjutant . Although he never received a high school diploma , in 1846 he was a member of the celebratory committee for the preparation of the three-centenary of his former high school in Rastenburg, one of the oldest high schools in East Prussia .

In the election for the Frankfurt National Assembly in 1848 Schleussing was confirmed by the electors of the 10th constituency, which included the districts of Rastenburg and Lötzen . Immediately after the election, he traveled to Frankfurt am Main and was able to take part in the move of the MPs to the Paulskirche in Frankfurt . He was with nine other active officers, two generals , Supreme , majors , captains and one lieutenant , one of the few military that a mandate received at the National Assembly. In a meeting on June 5, 1848, the motion was made to form a committee for the organization of the German land army and independence from the will of the territorial governments . Just four days later, on June 9, 1848, Schleussing was appointed to the newly formed Commission for People's Armament and Army. She immediately began working out plans for strengthening the armed forces in the individual federal states. Schleussing, he joined the casino faction , also voted for a motion to increase the total strength of the armed forces to two percent of the total population. But he resolutely rejected proposals to set up a legal militia alongside the regular army. Vigilante groups and rifle guilds had submitted such petitions. He stayed in lively contact with the voters in his constituency, and he always passed on any information he received. For example, in October 1848, when protection against traffic restrictions was requested, in May 1849, when the trade association in Rastenburg sent an address to the National Assembly for the immediate implementation of an imperial constitution and a request from a businessman from Lötzen to remedy the plight of the proletarians in the district Concerning Lötzen , which was forwarded to the Committee on Economics. He voted no to a motion that the individual countries should immediately swear their entire armed power to the imperial constitution . In the vote on May 16, 1849, whether the unilaterally ordered termination of the mandate should be recognized or rejected, Schleussing was already absent without excuse. On the following day the President of the National Assembly announced the resignation of MP Schleussing, which was not accompanied by a statement of reasons. His undated entry in the parliamentary album read:

Times of the reorganization of states require the wisdom and courage of their best men; but their minds must also be glowing with benevolence for all fellow citizens and with holy love for the fatherland, so that that goal may be achieved.

After the end of his parliamentary work in May 1849, he was transferred as Prime Lieutenant to the 3rd Jäger Battalion in Lübben in the Spreewald . Promoted to captain two years later , he returned to his old unit, which was now called the 1st Prussian Jäger Battalion and had been garrisoned in Braunsberg since the summer of 1848 . Schleussing remained an active hunter officer in Braunsberg until 1858, where his sons also attended the local high school. In the same year he resigned from active service with the character as a major. He was allowed to wear his previous uniform and civil care was promised. From 1860 to 1873, as a major on disposition, he was deputy commander of a Landwehr battalion in Insterburg , where he also served as district commander. He was not involved in the campaigns of the Wars of Unification , but received the Service Award Cross and the Red Eagle Order, 4th class. In 1873 he finally retired.

Franz von Schleussing died on December 5, 1887, at the age of 78 in Rastenburg. As a Freemason, he was a member of the Great National Mother Lodge “To the Three Worlds” .

literature

• Bernhard-Maria Rosenberg: The East Prussian MPs in Frankfurt 1848/49. Biographical contributions to the history of political life in East Prussia. Grote, Berlin / Cologne 1970, pages 143-146.

Web links

• Entry about Franz von Schleussing in the parliamentarian portal (BIOPARL)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d} Bernhard-Maria Rosenberg: The East Prussian delegates in Frankfurt 1848/49. Biographical contributions to the history of political life in East Prussia. Grote, Berlin / Cologne 1970, pages 143-146
2. ^ Ernst Heinrich Kneschke : New general German nobility lexicon . Volume 8, Voigt, Leipzig 1868, page 203
3. ↑ ^{a b c d} Entry about Franz von Schleussing in www.bioparl.de
4. ^ Robert A. Minder: Freemason Politicians Lexicon. From Salvador Allende to Saad Zaghlul Pascha. Studienverlag, Innsbruck 2004, ISBN 3-7065-1909-7 , page 131.