Friedrich Rudolf von Rothenburg

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Count Friedrich Rudolf von Rothenburg (born September 9, 1710 Castle Polish Netkau, † December 29, 1751 in Berlin ) was a royal Prussian lieutenant general , lord of the city of Rothenburg an der Oder and knight of the Order of the Black Eagle .

family

Friedrich Rudolf von Rothenburg came from the noble Silesian family von Rothenburg . His parents were Alexander Rudolf von Rothenburg († May 20, 1758), lord of the city of Rothenburg an der Oder, and his wife, Freiin Eva Sophie von Falkenhayn . His father was raised to count on April 14, 1736 . From 1735 he was married to the daughter of the French lieutenant general von Bieuville. The couple had a son who died shortly after giving birth in 1736.

Life

He was tutored at home and was so successful that he joined his brothers at the university in Frankfurt an der Oder as early as 1723 . In 1725 he went to the University of Lunéville under the supervision of the later Prussian privy councilor Senning . But soon he was called back to Berlin, so he was now under the supervision of a Major Gerards. When he visited the court with his brother, they received an offer from General Johann Christian Rulemann von Quadt to join the French regiment Royal Allemand , but their father, the count, did not give permission. So his brother went back to Germany. But Friedrich Rudolf became kapitaine reformé in the Rosen regiment at the beginning of 1727 .

In 1731 he accompanied his French cousin General Konrad Alexander von Rothenburg to Spain. In 1732 he volunteered in Spanish services. With his unit he fought in Africa. On June 30, 1732 he was involved in the Battle of Oran and the subsequent conquest of Oran and Massalquivir . Then he returned to Spain. In 1733 he was back with his regiment in Alsace and became adjutant to General Berwick on the Rhine, and was there during the conquest of Kehl and Trarbach . After the general's death at Philippsburg , he became adjutant general to Marshal Asfeld . After the campaign ended in 1734, he was promoted to colonel .

In 1740 he was brought into Prussian service as colonel of the cavalry by Frederick the Great . Before the Battle of Mollwitz , he met the enemy early on and was able to hold him back until the Prussians were able to line up in battle. He also held up bravely in battle and so after the battle he was given the dragoon regiment of the fallen General Schulenburg . He was also appointed major general on October 31, 1741 . He then accompanied the king to Berlin, from where he was sent to Dresden with orders. From there he marched with a brigade into the battle of Chotusitz on May 17th. In battle he was shot through both arms and in the chest. But for his bravery he was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle on the battlefield . He stayed with the king until the end of the Silesian War . In January 1744 he became governor of Lyk in East Prussia , as did Drost of Bochum in Westphalia . In March of that year he was sent to France, where his mission was successful. This gave the king French support for the invasion of Silesia.

The round table in Sanssouci , painting by Adolph von Menzel

Rothenburg was a member of the famous guests at Sanssouci by Frederick the Great in Sanssouci , Potsdam , according to the still named after him Rothenburg room exists.

In the Second Silesian War he initially accompanied the king and then participated in the retreat from Prague. On May 18, 1745, he was appointed lieutenant general (patent dated June 20, 1742). In the Battle of Hohenfriedberg on June 4, he commanded the right wing of the first meeting under Field Marshal von Buddenbrock . Serious illness threatened to hinder his participation in the Battle of Thrush , whereupon he allowed himself to be carried onto the battlefield. However, after the bars of his stretcher were broken, he spent the remainder of the battle on horseback. When the king marched on Saxony, he led the advance guard with General Winterfeldt . The pursuit of the Prince of Lorraine to Bohemia yielded great booty.

In 1746 he arrived in Berlin with the king. The latter then sent him to Pyrmont to convalesce . However, he came back quickly. Rothenburg remained plagued by gout and colic until his death on December 29, 1751. Because he was Roman Catholic, he was buried in St. Hedwig's Church in Berlin .

He gave the king his first greyhound, his beloved "Biche".

After his untimely death, Friedrich II.

"He had lost a second Caesarion"

The English ambassador, Lawrence, however, wrote on January 26, 1745

“Count R. is mortally hated by everyone here; one accuses him of the intrigues and the defamation and the belittling of others "

For his work on the battlefield, his name was immortalized in 1851 on one of the plaques on the equestrian statue of Frederick the Great .

Works (selection)

  • Battles, sieges and skirmishes in Germany and neighboring countries, from 1618 to 1629 . 3rd edition, Vienna 1835 ( e-copy ).

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Karl Eduard Vehse : History of the German courts since the Reformation , volumes 1–2, p. 248, digitized
  2. ↑ rbb Prussian Chronicle: The Round Table in Sanssouci http://www.preussenchronik.de , accessed on December 2, 2014
personal data
SURNAME Rothenburg, Friedrich Rudolf von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Prussian Lieutenant General, Lord of the City of Rothenburg an der Oder and Knight of the Black Eagle Order
DATE OF BIRTH September 9, 1710
PLACE OF BIRTH Castle Polish Netkau
DATE OF DEATH December 29, 1751
Place of death Berlin