Wilhelm von Fircks (General, 1794)

Wolf Wilhelm Bernhard Christian Ernst Freiherr von Fircks (born March 30, 1794 in Berlin , † February 2, 1862 in Breslau ) was a Prussian major general .

Life

origin

Wilhelm was a son of the Lord on Volkstedt and chamberlain Ernst Wilhelm von Fircks (1770-1816) and his wife Charlotte Wilhelmine Luise, born von Klüx (1771-1834). She was a daughter of the Prussian Lieutenant General Wolfgang Heinrich Ernst von Klüx .

Military career

Fircks visited the Berlin Cadet House and was sent home on December 14, 1807 after the Fourth Coalition War was lost . In 1809 he joined the Silesian Rifle Battalion of the Prussian Army as a rifleman and was promoted to second lieutenant by early July 1811 . During the Wars of Liberation Fircks took part in the siege of Erfurt and in the battles near Großbeeren , Bautzen , Dresden , Kulm , Meißen, Geißhübel, Peterswalde, Laon , Paris , Gue-a-Treme, May, La Ferte and Claye . In Leipzig he was wounded and awarded the Iron Cross II. Class and the Order of Saint Anna III. Class excellent.

On October 3, 1816, Fircks joined the adjutant and as an adjutant to his uncle, Major General von Klüx . On March 29, 1816 he was promoted to Prime Lieutenant and returned to the Silesian Rifle Battalion on August 14, 1816. There he received the on September 24th 1820 character as a captain and company commander , and on March 19, 1821, the related patent . He was appointed commander of the 2nd Rifle Division on February 16, 1827 and promoted to major on March 30, 1834 . At the beginning of September 1835 he was accepted into the Order of St. John . On April 17, 1839 Fircks became director of the division school of the 7th Division . On January 18, 1844 he was allowed to use the title of baron. At the end of March 1844 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and at the beginning of November 1844 was given command of the fusilier battalion in the 10th Infantry Regiment . Fircks was promoted to colonel on March 27, 1847, initially with the command of the 23rd Infantry Regiment, and on January 13, 1948, he was appointed regimental commander. Already on April 6, 1848 he received his parting with inn and the permission to wear the regimental uniform. Once adopted, he was awarded the character as a major general on 20 January 1857 before March 30, 1858 Pension zur disposition was made. On the occasion of King Wilhelm I's coronation celebrations , Fircks received the Order of the Red Eagle III on October 18, 1861 . Class with a bow. He died in Breslau on February 2, 1862.

In his assessment in 1847, his brigade commander wrote: “Completely agree with the conduite of 1846 as to spiritual and moral qualities. The previous achievements as regimental commander justify the foresight that Colonel von Fircks will have the means to meet the requirements of this important sphere of activity. Anyone who served with the hunters for 36 uninterrupted years must, however, first adapt to the training of a line infantry regiment. Colonel von Fircks eagerly strives for it. On the occasion of the command against the insurrection in Cracow in 1846, the then Lieutenant-Colonel von Fircks was under my command as battalion commander. He was detached and did a completely satisfactory job. "

family

Fircks married on October 4, 1820 in Carolath Ordalie Princess von Schoenaich-Carolath (1796-1837). She was a daughter of Prince Heinrich Karl Erdmann zu Carolath-Beuthen (1759-1817) and his first wife Amalie von Sachsen-Meiningen (1762-1798). General Heinrich zu Carolath-Beuthen was her brother. The following children were born from the marriage:

• Heinrich (1821–1901), Prussian lieutenant a. D., heir to Alt-Görzig

⚭ April 19, 1853 Agnes von Bredow (1832–1854), daughter of Ferdinand Friedrich Karl von Bredow (1795–1857) and Caroline Charlotte Louise Sophie von Bredow (1803–1844)

⚭ December 16, 1865 Ida Elise Weinstrauch (1848–1904)

• Alma Luise Caroline Adelheid Blanka Clothilde (1822–1887), Lady of Honor of the Order of Theresa ⚭ 1851 Heinrich zu Carolath-Beuthen (1783–1864)
• Chlothar (1824–1896), since 1857 Count von Blankensee-Fircks ⚭ Marie Auguste Countess von Blankensee (1834–1884), on Wugarten and Zemlin

After the death of his first wife, he married Ernestine von Rabe (1802–1866), widowed von Warburg, in Breslau on March 17, 1840 . The couple had a son:

• Karl Ernst Wilhelm (1840–1896), Prussian Major General ⚭ Anna von Prittwitz and Gaffron (1849–1927)

literature

• Kurt von Priesdorff : Soldier leadership . Volume 6, Hanseatische Verlagsanstalt Hamburg, undated [Hamburg], undated [1938], DNB 367632810 , pp. 364–365, no. 1989.
• Gothaisches genealogical pocket book of the baronial houses for the year 1859. P. 186 f.
• Gothaisches genealogical pocket book of the baronial houses for the year 1916. P. 222 f.