Karl von Gemmingen-Hornberg (1846–1923)

Karl Ludwig Eberhard von Gemmingen-Hornberg (born November 8, 1846 in Vienna , † May 30, 1923 in Heidelberg ) was a Prussian major general .

Life

origin

Karl came from the old noble family Gemmingen . He was the son of Adolph Freiherr von Gemmingen-Hornberg (1822-1902) and his wife Sarolta, née Countess Batthyány von Nemét-Ujvar (born January 18, 1823 in Szentlőrinc ; † January 9, 1892 in San Remo ). His father was a grand ducal Hessian chamberlain and lord of Franconian Crumbach . His christening father was Count Karl Batthyány.

Military career

Gemmingen attended grammar school in Darmstadt from 1859 to 1863 and then joined the body squadron of the 2nd cavalry regiment of the Grand Ducal Hessian Army on December 16, 1862 . After he had passed the officer's examination on July 21, 1864, he was appointed portepee corporal shortly thereafter and was promoted to lieutenant on August 31, 1864 . At the same time he was transferred to the 1st cavalry regiment . With the regiment Gemmingen took part in the 1866 campaign against Prussia in the battles near Aschaffenburg , Treufurth and Gerchsheim . On September 18, 1866, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Second Class of the Order of Philip the Magnanimous for his achievements . Gemmingen was then on July 2, 1868 as first lieutenant adjutant of the cavalry brigade. From there, in May 1870, he was assigned to the Great General Staff in Berlin . With the mobilization for the Franco-Prussian War he returned to his cavalry brigade and took part in the battles at Vionville , Gravelotte , Noisseville , Beaune-la-Rolande , the battles at la Ferté Aubin and Montbarrois and the siege of Metz . Awarded the Iron Cross II. Class, Gemmingen was returned to the General Staff after the end of the war.

On January 1, 1872, Gemmingen was accepted into the Prussian Army and promoted to captain on April 17 the following year . In the following years he then held various staff functions. First from April 1874 to the end of March 1876 with the General Staff of the V Army Corps , then until mid-April 1878 with the General Staff of the 21st Division . Subsequently, Gemmingen was transferred to the Dragoon Regiment No. 8 as Rittmeister and squadron chief . He stayed here for almost two years, then returned to the General Staff and became major on September 18, 1880 . As such, Gemmingen was transferred to the General Staff of the IV Army Corps on July 6, 1882 . From there, on April 18, 1885, he was transferred to the Great General Staff while at the same time being assigned to the Gouvernement of Cologne.

With the lifting of this command, Gemmingen was transferred to Cuirassier Regiment No. 8 on February 1, 1887 . There he was placed à la suite of the regiment on March 8, 1887 and entrusted with its leadership. On July 7, 1887, he was finally appointed regimental commander, and in this position on September 17, 1887 Lieutenant Colonel and on March 24, 1890 to Colonel promoted. Gemmingen gave up the regiment on August 22, 1891, was entrusted with the command of the 16th Cavalry Brigade and finally appointed brigade commander on March 11, 1892. He then moved to the family estate in Franconian-Crumbach .

With the character of major general Gemmingen was put up for disposal on April 18, 1893 with a pension .

family

Gemmingen married on June 3, 1911 in Michelfeld with the distantly related Gabriele Freiin von Gemmingen-Hornberg (born January 6, 1865 in Michelfeld), daughter of the Michelfeld landlord August von Gemmingen . Since the couple left no descendants and Karl's brothers Gustav (1849-1897) and Otto (1852-1892) had died comparatively young, the Gemminger family property in Fränkisch-Crumbach came to Karl's nephew Adolph Anton (1886-1963), who later became the district administrator in The castle.

Karl von Gemmingen and his wife Gabriele are buried in the Bergfriedhof in Heidelberg. In the crypt of the Sarolta Chapel in Fränkisch-Crumbach, built as a mausoleum for Karl's mother Sarolta, there is a memorial plaque for Karl von Gemmingen.

literature

• Carl Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig Stocker : Family Chronicle of the Barons of Gemmingen , Heidelberg 1895, pp. 302–304 (calls his nickname Karl ).
• Walter von Hueck: Lineage of the Barons von Gemmingen , Limburg an der Lahn 1966
• Kurt von Priesdorff : Soldier leadership . Volume 9, Hanseatische Verlagsanstalt Hamburg, undated [Hamburg], undated [1941], DNB 986919780 , pp. 433-434, no. 2994 (gives his nickname Ludwig ).