Heinrich Sigismund von der Heyde

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Heinrich Siegmund von der Heyde (1703–1765),
image on the base of the equestrian statue of Friedrich II. In Berlin. The statue here holds the map of Kolberg in its hands.

Heinrich Sigismund von der Heyde , according to several sources also "von der Heyden" or "von Heyden", (* 1703 in Tzschacksdorf in Niederlausitz ; † May 4, 1765 in Kolberg ) was a Prussian officer and fortress commander of Kolberg.

Life

Origin and family

He was the son of Heinrich Siegmund von der Heyde , heir to Tzschacksdorf and Magdalene Sophie von Stutterheim from the Sellendorf family.

Career

He joined Infantry Regiment No. 3 (Alt-Anhalt) in 1718 . In 1726 he became an ensign , 1731 second lieutenant , 1736 premier lieutenant and 1740 staff captain . In 1741 he received his first grenadier company with which he also fought in the First Silesian War . In 1744 and 1745 he found himself in Bohemia and Moravia. He was injured several times in the Battle of Hohenfriedberg , but stayed with his troops until the end. There should then have been disagreements between him and General Leopold von Anhalt-Dessau . So in 1747 he moved to Garrison Regiment No. 2 ( Röder ). There he became major and commander of a grenadier company on June 5, 1753 , which belonged to the grenadier regiment in Königsberg . On December 13, 1755 he became the commander of the Friedrichsburg Fortress near Königsberg.

In 1757 he fought from here against the invading Russian troops , but after the battle of Groß-Jägersdorf and a new Russian advance in 1758 he had to retreat with the crew to the Kolberg fortress.

Kolberg 1st siege

In Kolberg he became vice-commandant and on October 3rd the Russian general Johann Palmbach closed the fortress. He attempted several attacks and then withdrew on the night of October 29th to October 30th, and Heyden also repulsed a surprise attack on October 31st. For this he was promoted from king to colonel and awarded the Pour le Mérite .

Kolberg 2nd siege

Commemorative coin from 1760 from the National Maritime Museum , Greenwich, London

The second siege took place on August 26, 1760. A combined force from Sweden and Russians enclosed the fortress on land and sea. Heyden was able to defend Kolberg until relief from General Paul von Werner reached the city on September 18 and the opposing troops fled. A commemorative coin was minted to commemorate this act. (Actually two: one with the image of General Werner, one with the image of Colonel Heyden). The king sent one gold and twenty silver coins with a personal letter of thanks to Heyden.

Kolberg 3rd siege

The strategic value of Kolberg was still high for the Russians, and so there was another siege under General Romanzow on September 3, 1761. This time the General von Württemberg was supposed to secure the surrounding area. But he too soon had to struggle with supply problems and ultimately had to leave. The troops under General von Platen managed to break through to Kolberg, but an attempt to break out on October 17th failed and Platen had to get himself to safety. On December 17, 1761, the fortress surrendered because of hunger.

Heyden went into Russian captivity and the Russians were able to winter in Pomerania.

To Kolberg

After the death of Tsarina Elisabeth , the Prussian friendly Peter III came. came to power and ended the fighting, released the Prussian prisoners of war. Heyden was initially used again in Königsberg in the Friedrichsburg Fortress, but the actual commander died in April 1763 and Heyden was now appointed to his place. But he could not come back to Kolberg until August. He remained in command here until his death in 1765 and was buried in the Marienkirche in Kolberg.

After the second siege of Kolberg, Friedrich is said to have said: I am not infaillible; I was greatly mistaken in this man . Heyden's heroism did not pay off financially, as a commandant he received a salary of 600 thalers, which was increased to 800 shortly before his death.

His actions impressed people for a long time. His image is immortalized on the equestrian statue of Frederick the Great .

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Heyde, Heinrich Sigismund from the
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Heyde, Heinrich Siegmund from the
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German officer and fortress commander
DATE OF BIRTH 1703
PLACE OF BIRTH Tzschacksdorf, Lower Lusatia
DATE OF DEATH May 4, 1765
Place of death Kolberg