Joseph Philipp Vukasović

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Josef Philipp Vukasović (from Dom i Sviet , 1888)

Joseph Philipp Freiherr Vukasović ([ ˈʋukaːsoʋitɕ ], Croatian Josip Filip Vukasović ; often also written Vukassovich , Wukassovich , Vukassevich or Vukaszovich ), (* 1755 in St. Peter (Bruvno) , Lika , Croatian military border ; † August 9, 1809 in Vienna ) was a Croatian nobleman , Austrian field marshal lieutenant and knight of the Military Maria Theresa Order . His work in road construction continues to have an impact today, including planning Luisenstrasse , which was only completed after his death.

origin

Like many Croatian aristocratic families, the Vukasović family originally came from another region of the Balkans and, in 1537, after the fall of the city of Klis from the Ottomans, fled Dalmatia to Croatia, to the city of Senj . Many members of the family served in the Austrian army, others gained influence in the town's bourgeoisie, which in 1655 led to admission to the patriciate of the town and admission to the nobility. In 1667 the family was raised to the nobility by Emperor Leopold I , this was confirmed by the Croatian Parliament in 1719. The Senj City Museum is housed in the splendid house that the prosperous family built in the 17th century and lived in in the 18th century. In the 18th century, the Vukasović family also emerged through their generous support of the Paulans in Senj and the church of St. Nicholas, which was destroyed in the 19th century.

Joseph Philipp Vukasović was born in 1755 as the son of border officer Peter Vukasović and his wife Anna Bašić, who herself came from an old family of officers.

Military career

Early years

As the son of a border officer in the Lika, Vukasović received his school education in a "regimental education center". It was in such an institution, probably in Vienna, that the Empress became aware of him. She presented the young Vukasović as the "most well-behaved pupil" with twelve ducats. When the Empress later learned that the boy had sent the ducats to his father because he was living in poor conditions in Dalmatia without a pension , she was impressed by the boy's behavior and therefore gave him another 24 ducats and the father an annual pension. In the older literature it is stated that his namesake David Vukasović (* 1774, † unknown), a cadet in the Austrian army, received his military training at the Theresian Military Academy . Due to this similarity of names, it is excluded that Joseph Philipp Vukasović would have received his military training there. Other publications indicate that Joseph Philipp Vukasović studied civil engineering at a military academy. This justifies the assumption that he too was trained at the Theresian Military Academy in Wiener Neustadt.

In Montenegro

After a few years Vukasović came into a border regiment, in which he participated in the Bavarian War of Succession in 1778 and 1779 . After its end, his regiment returned to the military border . In 1787 Vukasović traveled to Montenegro as a lieutenant and acquired knowledge of the country which he benefited from at the beginning of the Turkish War (1788–1789). When this war broke out, Vukasović, who had meanwhile been promoted to captain, was commissioned with the Pasha of Shkodra (Scutari) to negotiate with the inhabitants of Montenegro, Albania and Herzegovina and to conclude treaties and alliances against Turkey . In March he was in Montenegro, initially supported by the population.

When Vukasović's unit was trapped by the superior Turkish forces in March 1779, the locals fled home and no one stayed behind to assist him in his retreat as a guide on the way back to Cetinje and Kotar. Vukasović tried to get through with his unit without help and set Žabljak and Spuž (near Danilovgrad ) on fire. When the Montenegrins discovered that Vukasović's battalion , which had shrunk to 117 men, was not the vanguard of a large armed force, they supported the Turks. The hostile attitude of the population was reinforced by the fact that it was now clear that they could not expect the liberation from the Turks from Vukasović's small unit.

Knight's Cross of the Military Maria Theresa Order

Vukasović managed to take 60 Montenegrins hostage for his security for the surprising departure from Cetinje, to place them in the valley of Njegošće as human shields in front of his troops and to continue his march. In contemporary reporting, Vukasović's role was presented positively, his “glorious boldness”, his presence of mind and his “honorable and prudent” approach were emphasized. Since the enterprise brought advantages for Austria despite the large own losses Vukasović was in the XV. Doctorate from November 15, 1788, awarded the Knight's Cross of the Military Maria Theresa Order and appointed major .

Soon afterwards he established the so-called Gyulay'sche Freicorps, partly from Montenegrins, partly from troops recruited in the Lika and in the Austrian coastal region , and became lieutenant colonel and its commander. The Freicorps consisted of twelve companies of infantry and four squadrons of hussars with a total strength of 3,000 men. In 1790 he came back as its commander to the Likaner border regiment (Croatian lički graničari ) and in 1794 was appointed colonel.

In Croatia

In 1790 Vukasović took part in the campaign of the K. uk Croatian Army Corps under the command of Feldzeugmeister Joseph Nikolaus Baron de Vins in the occupied territories of Turkish Croatia . He distinguished himself during the Battle of Cetingrad .

Wars against Napoleon

In the wars against France , Vukasović commanded the Karlstadt (Karlovacer) battalion, defended the La Certosa monastery near Loano for nine hours in 1795 , but was forced to surrender and captured. In the 1796 campaign he distinguished himself with Voltri and Masone , was then dispatched to Monte Fasce on April 12 and received orders to set off for Dego . An error in the date of the order led to the fact that he did not appear on the battlefield with 6,000 grenadiers until April 15, although the Battle of Dego had already taken place the day before. However, his late arrival with his five battalions brought confusion into the French army , because the French army believed that they had the whole Beaulieu corps in front of them. Vukasović's unit was able to temporarily take 500 prisoners and defend itself against the French army for two hours, but then had to retreat to Acqui via Spigno .

The regiment then moved to Mantua and helped Field Marshal von Wurmser to defend the city. Promoted to major general, he commanded a brigade in Tyrol in September 1797 . On September 3, he was wounded by falling from a horse near San Marco. In the 1799 campaign he captured the French general Sérurier near Verderio , conquered Novara , Vercelli , Arona , Ivrea , the castles of Bardo , Verua , the citadel of Casale , occupied Turin , took Cherasco , appalled the besieged Ceva and took possession of it Mondovìs .

In 1799 he was awarded the newly established Infantry Regiment No. 48 by the Kaiser. Now promoted to field marshal lieutenant, he stood in the 1800 campaign near Bellinzona to prevent Napoléon Bonaparte from crossing the St. Gotthard . Forced to retreat to Milan , he saved supplies that were found in Milan and on his march to Mantua. After retreating over the Mincio , he took over a corps in Tyrol. In the 1805 campaign he commanded in Italy in the Ticino mountains.

In another campaign in 1809 he fought with his division in the Battle of Aspern and lastly in the Battle of Wagram , where he was fatally wounded on July 6th by a cannonball. He was then brought to Vienna for care. Napoleon I himself is said to have valued Vukasović so much that he helped him in the Vienna military hospital. Despite all the doctors' efforts, Vukasović succumbed to his serious injuries on August 9, 1809.

Luisenstrasse

In addition to his military career, Vukasović was also an important engineer. He began the construction of the road over the Vratnik (Wratnigg) to Senj (Zengg) and the Croatian Luisenstraße (Croatian Lujzijana ) via Karlovac (Karlstadt) to Rijeka (Fiume). He could no longer complete Luisenstrasse himself.

Honors

  • Baron (1785)
  • Knight's Cross of the Military Maria Theresa Order (November 15, 1788)
  • Awarded Infantry Regiment No. 48 (1799)
  • Hereditary Barons (April 9, 1802)
  • Grand Cross of the Russian Order of St. Anne

Family table

Coat of arms of the Vukasović family, 1714
Family table of the barons of Vukasović
Joseph Philipp Baron 1785

born 1755 , † August 9, 1809 .
Johanna Pulcheria née Countess Malfatti von Kriegsfeld ,
Stiegenberg and Büchelgrund née. August 8, 1779 . † December 22, 1834 .
Philip

† October 26, 1844
Hermine Freiin von Vlassits
b. August 5, 1823 .
reassessment Theobald Freiherr Seenuss von Freudenberg

 Johanna

born October 30, 1809 .
† around 1865
by Ludwig Neelmayer

Web links

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Enver Ljubović: Senjski uskoci i plemići Vukasovići i njihovi grbovi , p. 69.
  2. ↑ a b Enver Ljubović: Senjski uskoci i plemići Vukasovići i njihovi grbovi , p. 70.
  3. ↑ Enver Ljubović: Senjski uskoci i plemići Vukasovići i njihovi grbovi , p. 63.
  4. ↑ Enver Ljubović: Senjski uskoci i plemići Vukasovići i njihovi grbovi , p. 68.
  5. ↑ a b Enver Ljubović: Senjski uskoci i plemići Vukasovići i njihovi grbovi , p. 71.
  6. ↑ a b c Constantin von Wurzbach: Vukassovich, Joseph Philipp Freiherr , p. 23.
  7. ↑ Constantin von Wurzbach: Vukassovich, Joseph Philipp Freiherr , p. 27.
  8. ↑ Enver Ljubović: Senjski uskoci i plemići Vukasovići i njihovi grbovi , p. 73.
  9. ↑ Constantin von Wurzbach: Vukassovich, Joseph Philipp Freiherr , pp. 23–24.
  10. ^ A b Constantin von Wurzbach: Vukassovich, Joseph Philipp Freiherr , p. 24.
  11. ↑ Jaromir Hirtenfeld: The Military Maria Theresa Order and its Members , p. 1732.
  12. ↑ Constantin von Wurzbach: Vukassovich, Joseph Philipp Freiherr , pp. 24-25.
  13. ↑ a b c d Constantin von Wurzbach: Vukassovich, Joseph Philipp Freiherr , p. 25.
  14. ^ Archibald Alison: History of Europe , Volume 1, p. 399.
  15. ↑ Constantin von Wurzbach: Vukassovich, Joseph Philipp Freiherr , pp. 25-26.
  16. ↑ a b c Constantin von Wurzbach: Vukassovich, Joseph Philipp Freiherr , p. 26.
  17. ↑ a b c without author: Vienna, August 11th . In: Wiener Zeitung , August 12, 1809, p. 1.
  18. ↑ Enver Ljubović: Senjski uskoci i plemići Vukasovići i njihovi grbovi , p. 74.
  19. ↑ a b Julian Pallua-Gall: Vukassovich, Josef Philipp von , p. 377.
personal data
SURNAME Vukasović, Joseph Philipp
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Vukassovich, Josef Philipp von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austro-Hungarian Lieutenant Field Marshal and Knight of the Maria Theresa Order
DATE OF BIRTH 1755
PLACE OF BIRTH St. Peter in Carniola
DATE OF DEATH August 9, 1809
Place of death Vienna