Maurus Meyer from Schauensee

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Maurus Meyer von Schauensee (partly also Meyer-Schauensee ; born August 14, 1765 in Lucerne ; † September 26, 1802 in Saint-Domingue ) was a Swiss patrician and French general .

Origin and family

Meyer von Schauensee came from the Lucerne patrician family Meyer , who had called themselves Meyer von Schauensee since 1749 after they had inherited the property. His father was the Lucerne politician and bailiff Franz Rudolf Dietrich Meyer von Schauensee (1725–1801). His brothers were the politician Franz Bernhard Meyer von Schauensee , the canon Ludwig Meyer von Schauensee (1768–1841) and the general Friedrich Fridolin Meyer von Schauensee (1777–1860). Anna Maria Rüttimann-Meyer von Schauensee was his sister.

Life

Meyer von Schauensee was initially characterized in his youth by a great enthusiasm for literature and science. However, he then followed his big brother Franz Bernhard and joined the Swiss Guard in Paris in 1784 . He also followed his brother in enthusiasm for educational ideas . He became a member of the Freemasons .

Meyer von Schauensee joined the French Revolution while he was still distinguished by his mediating activities in 1789 and swore the constitutional oath in 1791. In this course he became a French citizen and, under Marie-Joseph Motier, Marquis de La Fayette , part of the French General Staff. Lucerne then considered withdrawing his citizenship. He took part in the First Coalition War in the Pyrenees Campaign. He was imprisoned in Foix in 1793 and 1794 for alleged anti-revolutionary statements and all his papers were confiscated.

Meyer von Schauensee was appointed Brigadier General after his release from prison in 1795 and fought against the insurgents of the Vendée . In the campaign of 1796 he was in action in Italy. In 1798 he returned to his homeland for a while. There he drafted a plan for the reorganization of the Swiss defense system for the Helvetic Republic , but it was not implemented. He also criticized the French occupiers and advocated moderate liberal positions and a federal state. Nevertheless, he returned to Italy in French service. During the siege of Mantua he was taken prisoner by Austria and remained there until 1800. Military studies he wrote during this period.

Meyer von Schauensee got into an argument with Napoleon Bonaparte after his release in 1800 , which is why he was transferred to overseas commands. In 1801 he became chief of staff and commander of the landing force in the Mediterranean Sea War against England and in 1802 finally chief of staff of the French Antilles Army and was supposed to lead the operation against the uprising on Saint-Domingue . But shortly after his arrival there, he died of yellow fever .

literature

  • Markus Lutz : Nekrolog of memorable Swiss from the eighteenth century. Sauerländer, Aarau 1812, p. 325 f.
  • Hans Dommann: General Maurus Meyer von Schauensee 1765–1802 as a witness of the French and Helvetic revolution. In: Central Switzerland yearbook for local history. Volume 15/16, 1951/1952, pp. 9-31.
  • Josef Feldmann: Franz-Bernhard and Maurus Meyer von Schauensee. According to documents from the Archives nationales de France. In: The history friend. Announcements from the Historical Association of Central Switzerland . Volume 108, 1955, pp. 111-126.
  • Leonhard Haas : General Maurus Meyer von Schauensee and the French Revolution. Polygraphischer Verlag, Zurich 1956.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Edgar Bonjour :  Meyer. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 17, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1994, ISBN 3-428-00198-2 , p. 289 f. ( Digitized version ).
  2. ↑ Mark Lischer: Meyer of Schauensee, Franz Rudolf Dietrich. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
  3. ^ Waltraud Hörsch: Meyer von Schauensee, Ludwig. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
  4. ↑ Markus Lischer: Meyer von Schauensee, Friedrich Fridolin. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
personal data
SURNAME Meyer von Schauensee, Maurus
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Meyer-Schauensee, Maurus
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss general
DATE OF BIRTH August 14, 1765
PLACE OF BIRTH Lucerne
DATE OF DEATH September 26, 1802
Place of death Saint-Domingue