Joseph of Novak

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Siegmund Joseph Freiherr von Novak

Sigmund Joseph Freiherr von Novak , also Siegmund Joseph Freiherr von Novak (born March 16, 1774 in St. Peter in Krain ; † February 12, 1860 in Graz ) was an Austrian officer ( Lieutenant Field Marshal ) and knight of the Military Maria Theresa Order of Slovenian descent.

Origin and family

Joseph was born the fifth of nine children to the wealthy Franz Joseph (von) Novak and his wife Theresa Rožanec. The family must have already been ennobled, as he was entitled "von Novak" even before he was promoted to the baron rank. The officer was married and had three children. Nevertheless, this baronial branch of the family seems to have died out in the male line.

Life

Battle of Caldiero 1805
Battle of the Nations near Leipzig 1813
Knight's Cross of the Military Maria Theresa Order

Although Novak attended high school from Ljubljana , but his great love for the military led him already on January 15, 1790 Cadet into Infantry Regiment. 26 enter and the Turkish Wars participate, where he, among others, in the attacks on the fortress Czettin was used . After finishing, he entered the civil service in Rudolfswerth as an intern . But this activity did not satisfy him. So he gave up the multi-year practice and hurried back under the banner when the wars against France broke out. This new entry dated February 18, 1793, because he was assigned as a cadet to the Kaunitz Infantry Regiment No. 20. After many sieges and skirmishes, which brought him promotion to lieutenant on March 22, 1797 because of his service , it was the first and second battles of Zurich and the one near Hohenlinden , where Novak - meanwhile advanced to lieutenant - demonstrated his military skills . In June 1805 promoted to captain , now again in the Hohenlohe-Bartenstein Infantry Regiment No. 26, he fought in the army in Italy. He was so successful in the battle of Caldiero through extraordinary determination and bravery that he not only received the public recognition of Archduke Charles , but also became one of the youngest of his charge to become major out of order. He also received the Knight's Cross of the Military Maria Theresa Order by unanimous chapter resolution on April 2, 1806, confirmed in the 71st doctorate on May 28 of that year.

Paris, victorious entry of the high allies in 1814

This happened as follows: When the attacks by the French at Colognola were repulsed on October 30, 1805 , another enemy column stormed Redoubt No. 10. Novak, who had been detached with his division to defend a slope, hurried along without being asked his company to the aid of the regiment division, which was besieged in the redoubt. He threw himself in the rear of the enemy, knocked the commander of the storming detachment down on the parapet, killed a large number of enemy soldiers and forced the rest of them to flee. Archduke Karl says in relation to the battle of Caldiero: "Captain Novak excelled because he and his company rushed at the enemy with his company with felled bayonets and in this way recaptured the trench."

In the era of peace that has come, Novak was with Infantry Regiment No. 37 and in February 1809 came to Broder Border Regiment No. 7 in the same capacity , participated in the campaign of that year with the 5th Army Corps, making himself noticeable through the courage and insightful leadership of his battalion. On April 20, 1809, he was seriously wounded in the battles of Rohr and Siegburg .

Due to his extraordinary merits, General Count Hardegg was named among the award winners on the events near Dresden and Kulm , and was seriously wounded again in the Battle of Leipzig . He advanced to lieutenant colonel on November 10, 1813 . Due to the extraordinary merits of the officer in the pursuit of the French army through Switzerland, the emperor promoted him to colonel on February 27, 1814, again except for the rank tour, and to commander of the Szekler border regiment no.1 on April 16 of that year. On the victorious march to Paris he took part in the division of Field Marshal Lieutenant Count Anton von Hardegg . In the following year Novak worked in the army in Northern Italy under Count von Frimont with the same courage and zeal.

Novak was elevated to the hereditary-Austrian baron status on October 24, 1816 and promoted to major general on March 21, 1827 (rank of September 24, 1926) . In this function he served as a brigadier destroy in Gospitsch , then in Karlstadt .

His appointment as field marshal lieutenant and general in Peterwardein took place on June 25, 1833, before he, who had been seriously wounded three times during his career, retired on February 8, 1836 after 45 years of honorable service. He was buried in the family crypt at the St. Leonhard cemetery in Graz.

coat of arms

1816: Shield divided transversely by red and blue. In the upper red field an arm in armor with a saber swung to the cut in one hand. In the lower blue field on a green hill two olive trees. On the shield rests the baron's crown, on which a crowned tournament helmet rises, from whose crown three flowing ostrich feathers, the right one red, the left one blue, the middle one silver. The helmet covers are red on the right, blue on the left, and lined with silver on both sides.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Archive link ( Memento of the original from September 7, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / home.amis.net
  2. ↑ http://www.austro-hungarian-army.co.uk/mmto4.htm
  3. ↑ Military newspaper No. 16, of Saturday, February 25, 1860, p. 125
  4. ↑ a b Dr. Jaromir Hirtenfeld : “The Military Maria Theresa Order and its Members”, 2nd volume, Verlag der Buchhandlung für Militärliteratur Karl Prohaska, Vienna 1857, p. 788 f.
  5. ^ Johann Georg Megerle von Mühlfeld: "Österreichisches Adelslexikon des eighteenth u. Nineteenth century containing all from 1701 to 1820 ”, Verlag Mörschner and Kasper, Vienna 1822, p. 82
  6. ^ A b Antonio Schmidt-Brentano: The kk or kuk Generalität 1816-1918, Austrian State Archives, 1907, p. 128
  7. ↑ Constantin von Wurzbach: "Biographisches Lexikon des Kaiserthums Oesterreich", Part 20, KK Hof- und Staatsdruckerei, Vienna 1869, p. 409
personal data
SURNAME Novak, Joseph of
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Novak, Sigmund Joseph Freiherr von (full name); Siegmund; Novak, Baron of
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian officer (field marshal lieutenant) and knight of the Military Maria Theresa Order
DATE OF BIRTH March 16, 1774
PLACE OF BIRTH St. Peter in Carniola
DATE OF DEATH February 12, 1860
Place of death Graz