Wild Geese

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The flight of the Wild Geese ("wild geese", Irish Na Géanna Fiáine ) refers to the emigration of an Irish Jacobite army under the command of Patrick Sarsfield from Ireland to France , as agreed in the Treaty of Limerick on October 3, 1691. In a broader sense, the Irish soldiers and their descendants are referred to as Wild Geese , who tried to escape English rule over Ireland and sometimes held high military functions in the continental armies of Europe .

history

Religious conflicts and the mostly bloody suppression of the Irish uprisings against English supremacy ( Battle of Kinsale , 1601) forced many Irish to emigrate as early as the beginning of the 17th century . It was mostly simple soldiers who set out for the mainland. Only after the signing of the Limerick Treaty in 1691 and the flight of Jacob II after the defeat of his Catholic troops against the Protestant Wilhelm III. of Orange in the Battle of the Boyne , however, the actual "flight" of the Irish wild geese to the continent should begin. The English tried to push back the Catholic faith in Ireland and passed a number of penal laws that were directed against the Catholic upper class in Ireland. Attempts were made not only to break the power of the long-established noble families, but also to suppress Irish culture, the Gaelic language and ancient customs, rites and customs of the Irish people. To escape this dreary situation, many Irish chose to emigrate. They called themselves "Wild Geese" and came to the mainland in their thousands to serve the Catholic rulers of Europe in the hope of encountering their old enemy, England, on one battlefield or another. Many of them went on to Spain , Russia , but above all to France , where they were recruited into the Irish regiments of Louis XIV . Many also went to Austria , where they entered the service of the Habsburgs , there were at least 1,500 officers .

Irish in Spanish service

The first Irish force to be used as a separate combat unit was an Irish regiment of the Spanish Army in Flanders during the Eighty Years' War in the 1580s. The regiment was formed by the English Catholic William Stanley in Ireland from Irish soldiers and mercenaries in order to get these people - as requested by the English crown - to leave their Irish homeland.

On behalf of Elizabeth I, Stanley was to lead the Irish regiment in Flanders on the English side into battle to support the United Provinces of Holland . In 1585, however, Stanley defected to the Spanish for religious reasons and bribery. The unit fought in Holland until 1600 when it was disbanded due to heavy combat losses and illness. After the flight of the Counts from Ireland began in 1607 , Hugh O'Neill (2nd Earl of Tyrone ) and Rory O'Donnell (1st Earl of Tyrconnell ) left their homeland with several leaders and followers from Ulster . They hoped to get Spanish support in a renewed rebellion, Philip III. however did not want to resume the war with England and declined to support.

Irish in the service of the Habsburg Monarchy

Field Marshal Franz Moritz von Lacy ( HGM )
Johann Sigismund Macquire of Inniskillen
Field Marshal Laval Nugent of Westmeath (HGM)
Vice Admiral Alfred Ritter von Barry (HGM)
Naval aviator Gottfried von Banfield (HGM)

As the Irish military historian Harman Murtagh noted, the Habsburg Monarchy was the main employer for the Irish in Central Europe. Their multinational character was particularly advantageous for the advancement of gifted foreigners. Over 100 Irish should achieve the rank of field marshal , general or admiral . The number was correspondingly higher among the lower officer ranks. In the Vienna War Archives there is a list of names of officers of all ranks, in which 1500 soldiers of Irish or presumably Irish descent are listed in the period from 1630 to 1830. The Irish soldiers had an excellent reputation. In the 18th century, Emperor Franz Stephan I stated about the Irish:

“The more Irish there are in Austrian service, the better! So our troops will always keep good discipline; an Irish coward is a very rare occurrence, and while the Irish generally dislike something, they do so in their desire to gain fame. "

- Emperor Franz Stephan I.

During the Thirty Years' War Irish soldiers first made a name for themselves in the Imperial Army , particularly those of the Tyrone and Preston regiments . During the defense of Frankfurt an der Oder in April 1631 against a Swedish army, the Irish regiment was characterized by particular bravery and was completely wiped out, but reorganized as a dragoon regiment under the command of Walter Butler . It was also Walter Butler who would play a special role in the history of the Thirty Years' War: On April 25, 1634, Butler killed the imperial generalissimo Albrecht von Wallenstein together with his compatriot Walter Devereaux on behalf of Emperor Ferdinand II . For this, Butler was awarded the title of count by the emperor and given Bohemian lands.

The first generation of Irish officers in the Imperial Army included Colonel Wilhelm Bourke von Gallstown from County Kilkenny , who entered imperial service in 1633 and, as a colonel in his cavalry regiment, hit the Swedish cavalry hard at the Battle of Nördlingen . For this success he was raised to the rank of count like Butler, rewarded with the Limberg estate, and treasurer of Emperor Ferdinand III. appointed.

Irish officers of the first generation were not only successful militarily but also diplomatically. Olivier Wallis and Walsh von Carrickmines from County Dublin , who were already successful in the battles near Lützen and Nördlingen , achieved a reconciliation between Catholic and Protestant princes of Germany in the negotiations on the Peace of Prague and, moreover, an alliance between them for joint action by the Reich against Sweden and France. He, too, was ennobled and given lands. His grandson, Franz Wenzel Graf Wallis fought in the 7th Austrian Turkish War , rose to field marshal and was also appointed by Emperor Karl VI. appointed a member of the Court War Council. A cousin of Franz Wenzels, Field Marshal Georg Olivier , also fought in the Turkish Wars and the War of the Spanish Succession in southern Italy, his son Michael Johann , also Field Marshal, headed the Court War Council from 1791 until his retirement in 1796, which he had headed interim for a short time in 1789 .

During the second Turkish siege of Vienna in 1683, Irish soldiers once again distinguished themselves. A captain Thaddeus O'Hussey is known who fended off the Turkish sapper attacks against the city ​​fortifications of Vienna . Franz Graf Taaffe, who founded a dynasty in Austria that was to last until 1919 and from which the later Austrian Prime Minister Eduard Taaffe , childhood friend of Emperor Franz Joseph I , was to emerge is of particular importance . Taaffe was at the forefront in 1683 when the blood flag of Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa Pasha was captured. Taaffe was then promoted to field marshal and imperial chamberlain. In 1694 he was the first Irishman to be accepted into the Order of the Golden Fleece .

In the age of Maria Theresa and the three Silesian Wars , several Irish again emerged through special military and political acts. It was above all Field Marshal Maximilian Ulysses Browne , who brought the troops of Frederick II of Prussia to a standstill in the battle of Prague , was seriously wounded and subsequently died of his wounds; and Field Marshal Franz Moritz von Lacy , who was successful in several battles of the Seven Years War and reformed the Austrian army. A long-time officer in the Imperial Army was Field Marshal Laval Nugent von Westmeath , who distinguished himself in the coalition wars against Napoleon and during the revolution of 1848/1849 in the Austrian Empire .

The Banfield family is of particular importance. Sun earned battleship Lieutenant Richard Banfield of Clonmel and Castle Lions Awards in the war in the Adriatic in 1866 against Italy in defending the Dalmatian coast Nobility and Military Merit Cross . His son Gottfried von Banfield became particularly famous , whose heroic deeds as an Austrian naval pilot during the First World War ran parallel to those of the Red Baron . Gottfried von Banfield was the most successful Austro-Hungarian naval aviator and was awarded the Great Military Merit Medal in 1916, which was awarded to only 30 people as a "special and highest recognition" from the emperor.

List of the most important Irish soldiers and politicians in the Habsburg service

  • Walter Butler von Roscrea (around 1600–1634), colonel in the Thirty Years War
  • Jakob Butler von Roscrea, brother of Walter Butler, also a colonel in the Thirty Years War
  • Walter Devereaux, captain in the Thirty Years War and involved in the murder of Wallenstein
  • Wilhelm Bourke von Gallsttown, Colonel in the Thirty Years War
  • Olivier Walsh von Carrickmines and Baron von Wallis (1600–1667), major general in the Thirty Years War, last commanding general across the Tisza
  • Ernst Georg Freiherr von Wallis (1637–1689), son of Olivier, field marshal lieutenant , died during the siege of Mainz in 1689.
  • Georg Olivier Graf von Wallis , Baron von Karighmain (1673–1744), son of Ernst Georg, governor of Messina, field marshal.
  • Franz Wenzel Graf Wallis, Baron von Karighmain (1696–1774), cousin of Georg Olivier, fought in the 7th Austrian Turkish War, field marshal
  • Thaddeus O'Hussey, captain at the time of the Second Turkish Siege of Vienna
  • Franz Graf Taaffe (1639–1704), Field Marshal at the time of the Turkish Wars
  • Nikolaus Taaffe (1677–1769), colonel at the time of the War of the Polish Succession, then promoted to general
  • Johann Andreas von Hamilton (1679–1738), fought in the War of the Spanish Succession, confidante of Prince Eugene of Savoy
  • Julius Franz Xaver Count Hamilton, member of the Imperial Court Council under Emperor Charles VI.
  • Wilhelm O'Kelly, General in the Seven Years War
  • Maximilian Ulysses Browne (1705–1757), Field Marshal in the Seven Years War
  • Franz Moritz von Lacy (1725–1801), Field Marshal in the Seven Years War
  • Johann Sigismund Macquire Graf von Inniskillen (1710–1767), field marshal lieutenant in the Seven Years' War
  • Karl Count Kavanagh (1709–1777), governor of Prague
  • Karl Claudius Graf O'Donnell (1715–1771), general of the cavalry
  • Franz Ernst Graf von Wallis (1729–1784), son of Franz Wenzel, Vice-Appeal Court President and Oberst Hof feudal judge in Bohemia
  • Michael Johann Graf von Wallis (1732–1798), son of Franz Wenzel, field marshal, 1789 and 1791 to 1796 President of the Court War Council
  • Heinrich Graf O'Donnell (1769–1834), officer in the Seven Years War
  • Thomas Freiherr von Plunkett (1716–1779), field marshal lieutenant, city commandant of Antwerp
  • Johann Baptist Graf Taaffe (1733–1765), member of the Imperial Court Council
  • Cornelius MacNenny, Maria Theresa's private secretary
  • Dillon John Count O'Kelly von Gallagh and Tycooly, Imperial Councilor and Imperial Ambassador to the Saxon Court
  • Olivier Remigius Count von Wallis (1742–1799), son of Franz Wenzel, Feldzeugmeister
  • Joseph Count O'Donnell von Tyrconnell (1755–1810), President of the Court Chamber
  • Richard Nugent († 1757), officer, died in the Battle of Leuthen
  • Eduard Nugent († 1758), officer, died in the Battle of Olomouc
  • Jakob Nugent († 1760), officer, died in the battle of Torgau
  • Oliver Nugent († 1789), officer, died in the Turkish War
  • Laval Nugent of Westmeath (1777-1862), Field Marshal in the French Revolutionary Wars and 1848/49
  • Johann Freiherr von O'Brien Graf auf Thomond (1775-1830), lieutenant colonel in the coalition wars
  • Jakob Ludwig Graf Rice of Dingle, tried to save his sister Marie Antoinette from the scaffold on behalf of Emperor Joseph II
  • James Brady, Imperial Admiral
  • Heinrich Bailly, Imperial Admiral
  • Joseph Graf von Wallis (1767–1818), son of Franz Ernst, Oberstburggraf of the Kingdom of Bohemia, 1810 Chairman of the Court Chamber, later Minister of State and Conference, finally President of the Supreme Court
  • George Forbes of Granard (1685–1765), first Grand Admiral in the Austrian Navy
  • Richard Barry, Admiral and Defender of Venice, 1859
  • Maximilian O'Donell von Tyrconell (1812–1895), adjutant and lifesaver of Emperor Franz Joseph I in 1853
  • Alfred Ritter von Barry (1830–1907), Vice Admiral
  • Eduard Graf Taaffe (1833–1895), Prime Minister
  • Georg Graf von Wallis (1856–1928), educator of Emperor Charles I and Crown Prince Otto , major general and titular field marshal lieutenant
  • Richard Banfield of Clonmel and Castle Lyons, lieutenant of the line
  • Gottfried von Banfield (1890–1986), naval aviator

reception

  • In the Vienna Museum of Military History , the topic was presented in the form of the special exhibition “The Wild Geese - The Wild Geese. Irish soldiers in the service of the Habsburgs ” (September 2003 to February 2004). Over a hundred exhibits were exhibited, which trace the history of Irish soldiers in the Habsburg service. Many of the objects can still be seen today in the museum's permanent exhibition, such as the field marshal's cane of Field Marshal Franz Moritz Graf Lacy or the Knight's Cross of the Military Maria Theresa Order , which Field Marshal Laval Graf Nugent-Westmeath was awarded.
  • The 2005 class of the Theresian Military Academy , the training center for officers of the Austrian Armed Forces in Wiener Neustadt , was named after one of the most successful Wild Geese, namely Field Marshal Lieutenant Karl O'Donell von Tyrconell .


literature

  • Heeresgeschichtliches Museum (Hg.): Die Wildgänse - The Wild Geese. Irish soldiers in the service of the Habsburgs. Catalog for the special exhibition (September 17, 2003 to February 8, 2004), Vienna 2003

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Christoph Hatschek: The wild geese - Na Génna Fiáine, in: Heeresgeschichtliches Museum (Hg.): The Wild Geese. Irish soldiers in the service of the Habsburgs. Catalog for the special exhibition, Vienna 2003
  2. ^ Harmann Murtagh: Irish Soldiers abroad, 1600–1800, in: Thomas Bartlett, K. Jeffrey (eds.): A Military History of Ireland, Cambridge 1995, p. 300
  3. ^ Austrian State Archives / War Archives, manuscript: Irishmen in the Imperial Army, compiled by Wilhelm Kraus and Leopoldine Berczovits, Vienna 1955/57, quoted in. at Declan M. Downey: The wild geese and the double-headed eagle. Irish integration in Austria from 1630 to 1918, in: Heeresgeschichtliches Museum (Hg.): The Wild Geese. Irish soldiers in the service of the Habsburgs. Catalog for the special exhibition, Vienna 2003
  4. ↑ Quotation from JCO Callaghan, among others: The British Brigades in the Service of France, Glasgow 1870, 601 f.
  5. ↑ Declan M. Downey: The wild geese and the double-headed eagle. Irish integration in Austria from 1630 to 1918, in: Heeresgeschichtliches Museum (Hg.): The Wild Geese. Irish soldiers in the service of the Habsburgs. Catalog for the special exhibition, Vienna 2003, p. 45
  6. ↑ Declan M. Downey: The wild geese and the double-headed eagle. Irish integration in Austria from 1630 to 1918, in: Heeresgeschichtliches Museum (Hg.): The Wild Geese. Irish soldiers in the service of the Habsburgs. Catalog for the special exhibition, Vienna 2003, p. 53
  7. ↑ The wild geese are returning home , entry from November 22, 2002 on bmlv.gv.at, accessed on November 3, 2012