Johann Philipp Cratz von Scharffenstein

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Coat of arms of the noble family Kratz von Scharfenstein

Johann Philipp Cratz von Scharffenstein Freiherr von Riesenberg, Count zu Scharffenstein (* around 1590 - † July 6, 1635 executed in Vienna ) was a nobleman from the family of the Kratz von Scharfenstein , imperial officer in the Thirty Years' War and most recently Swedish field marshal.

Life

origin

Johann Philipp was born the son of Anton Cratz von Scharffenstein († 1619) and his wife Katharina von Metternich († 1624). His brother was Hugo Eberhard Kratz von Scharfenstein († 1663), Bishop of Worms and envoy to the Peace of Westphalia in Münster .

Military career

From February 6, 1617, Johann Philipp Cratz von Scharffenstein was canon in Worms and in 1620 he joined the League's army . He was distinguished by outstanding military achievements. On November 8, 1620, in the Battle of the White Mountain, as a cavalry colonel, he brought about the decision in favor of the emperor. He also took Landsberg and Friedberg from the Swedes . Tilly had designated him as his successor. Eventually Johann Philipp was promoted to imperial general and in 1630 raised to the bohemian count status. However, he fell out several times with Wallenstein , which finally led him to Bavarian service, where on January 1, 1632 he received the rank of general of the artillery and was appointed commander of the Upper Palatinate . In April 1632 he was involved in the raid-like occupation of the imperial city of Regensburg , with which the fighting for Regensburg (1632–1634) began.

As the commander of the Ingolstadt fortress , he was involved in a conspiracy with Georg Wolmar von Fahrensbach . Annoyed by constant insults from Wallenstein, the fortress was to be handed over without a fight to the Swedes under Bernhard von Sachsen-Weimar, who were approaching Regensburg on May 15, 1632 . The conspiracy was exposed after the arrival of the Swedes was delayed. In contrast to Fahrensbach, he was able to escape to the Swedes and then continued to take part in the war as a field marshal on the Swedish side . Under his command, the siege of Forchheim, begun on June 20, 1634 by the Swedish Field Marshal Bernhard von Sachsen-Weimar, developed into a total failure and was canceled on August 14, 1634. In September 1634 during the Battle of Nördlingen he was captured and taken to Vienna. Johann Philipp Cratz von Scharffenstein was sentenced to death as a traitor. On March 26, 1635, the day before his execution, he managed to escape from prison in monk's clothing. Count Stephan Pálffy's hussars captured him again shortly before the Silesian border, where he cut down four horsemen with his own hands. Brought back to Vienna, he was beheaded on July 6, 1635 in the town hall.

In addition to his military successes, Johann Philipp Cratz von Scharffenstein also had considerable financial successes. Although he was considered to be the debtor of Hans de Witte , Wallenstein's financier, he had also lent a considerable sum to the Duke of Lorraine against a pledge of Saargemünd .

family

Johann Philipp was married to Anna Elisabeth Colonna von Fels from the Bohemian line Neudeck , the couple had several children, including:

  • Eleonora Barbara Marie (* November 2, 1629; † February 26, 1680) ⚭ 1654 Count Johann August von Solms-Rödelheim (* June 7, 1623; † November 23, 1680)
  • Lothar Hugo Cratz von Scharffenstein († 1630), Canon of Mainz , Trier and Speyer
  • Karl Dietrich († 1636), imperial military
  • Johann Anton (after 1635), imperial military
⚭ Anna Francisca von Soetern
⚭ Anna Maria zu Salm-Neuviller

Count Johann Anton Cratz von Scharffenstein continued the family line, which, however, already died out with his son Count Hugo Ernst Cratz von Scharffenstein (the grandson of Johann Philipps) in 1721. He died as the last male offspring of the sex. The inheritance of Johann Philipp went to the descendants of his daughter Eleonora Barbara Marie von Solms-Rödelheim. Her great-granddaughter Maria Luise Albertine zu Leiningen-Dagsburg-Falkenburg (1729-1818) became the grandmother and educator of the future Prussian Queen Luise . As a result, the German emperors from the House of Hohenzollern and their descendants of the noble family of the Kratz von Scharfenstein come from.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Peter Engerisser, Pavel Hrnčiřík: Nördlingen 1634. The battle of Nördlingen - turning point of the Thirty Years' War . Heinz Späthling, Weißenstadt 2009, ISBN 978-3-926621-78-8 , p. 29.
  2. ↑ Peter Enge Risser, Pavel Hrnčiřík: Nördlingen 1634. p 74-76.
  3. ^ Anton Ernstberger: Hans de Witte, Wallenstein's financier. Wiesbaden 1954.
personal data
SURNAME Cratz von Scharffenstein, Johann Philipp
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kratz von Scharffenstein, Johann Philipp; Cratz zu Scharfenstein, Johann Philipp
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German field marshal in Swedish service
DATE OF BIRTH around 1590
DATE OF DEATH July 6, 1635
Place of death Vienna