Johann Adolf von Zezschwitz

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Johann Adolf von Zezschwitz

Johann Adolf Freiherr von Zezschwitz (born March 1, 1779 in Taubenheim (Spree) , †  March 3, 1845 ) was a Saxon lieutenant general and minister of war .

origin

He came from the Meissnian nobility family Zezschwitz and was the nephew of the Saxon general of the cavalry Hans Gottlob von Zezschwitz . His parents were Friedrich Gottlieb von Zezschwitz (* May 22, 1743; † August 6, 1810) and his wife of the Englishwoman Sarah Foster (* April 12, 1751; † March 1, 1829).

Life

Zezschwitz was brought up in the Evangelical Brethren in Uhyst (Spree) . In 1796 he began studying law at the University of Leipzig . Despite good performance, he followed his ancestors into the Saxon army, where he was promoted to lieutenant in the Carabiniers regiment as early as 1797 . During the autumn campaign of 1806 he was an orderly officer on his uncle's staff. From this he was sent to King Friedrich August I with the news of the defeat at Jena and Auerstedt , whom he got to know.

In 1809 he moved into the field as sous-chief of the general staff of the 2nd Saxon Division (General von Polenz ) of the 9th French Army Corps commanded by Marshal Bernadotte , attracted the marshal's attention and was involved with the drafts for the redesign of the Saxon army Country sent. When these plans were implemented, Zezschwitz, who was promoted to Premier Lieutenant in 1807 and became a captain in 1809 and soon afterwards a major, became a general staff officer in the cavalry division commanded by Lieutenant General von Gutschmidt . When the war broke out in 1812 , he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and given command of the “Prince Clemens” Uhlan regiment . On July 27, 1812, he and three squadrons of the Prussian Army Department of General Heinrich von Klengel were taken prisoner by the Russians in the battle of Kobrin .

He did not return to Saxony until the end of 1813. In the 1814 campaign he took part in the staff of the Commander-in-Chief of the 3rd German Army Corps, to which the newly established Saxon troops belonged, Duke Karl August von Sachsen-Weimar , in Flanders and in northern France. After the peace treaty he accompanied the duke on a trip to Paris and England. When the 3rd Corps was disbanded at the beginning of June and a separate corps was formed from the Saxon troops under the command of Lieutenant General Freiherr von Thielmann , Colonel von Zezschwitz became chief of its general staff.

In mid-April 1815, Thielmann entered Prussian service and left the corps. As a result, Zezschwitz took over the management of the business during the 1815 campaign and the May events of Liège . He then led the troops to Westphalia, where they were divided into a Prussian and a Saxon part. About the events of this time he wrote down an act-like representation of the royal Prussian decimation of the Saxon army , which remained true to his oath, in the year 1815 , which was published in Leipzig in 1850.

The Duke of Wellington's occupying army in France included a contingent of 5,000 Saxons who were under the command of Heinrich Adolph von Gablenz . Zezschwitz was chief of the general staff there and promoted to major general in 1817 , before returning to his homeland at the end of 1818.

He went first as Federal - Military representative to Frankfurt and was in 1821 the successor Zeschaus as president of the Royal Saxon war Administrative Chamber . Ten years later this position was converted and Zezschwitz became Minister of State and War . Quick-witted and eloquent, he rendered important services to the army in the meeting of the estates until he had to resign for health reasons.

On September 5, 1839, he was appointed in command of the Königstein Fortress .

family

He married Karoline Wilhelmine von Bölzig on July 5, 1802 (* March 5, 1782; † January 1, 1856). The couple had several children:

  • Robert Eduard (June 11, 1808 - October 24, 1880) Court Marshal ⚭ 1833 Harriet Foster (March 4, 1810 - April 21, 1872)
  • Otto Herrmann (June 17, 1811; † October 23, 1859), Rittmeister ⚭ 1834 Marianne Foster (* October 22, 1806; † July 8, 1883)
  • Oskar Friedrich (born May 13, 1819; † June 8, 1891), kuk Major General ⚭ 1842 Louise Karoline von Glasenapp (born September 2, 1817; † June 21, 1892)

literature

personal data
SURNAME Zezschwitz, Johann Adolf von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Saxon Lieutenant General, Minister of War
DATE OF BIRTH March 1, 1779
PLACE OF BIRTH Taubenheim (Spree)
DATE OF DEATH March 3, 1845