Anton Wilhelm von L'Estocq
Encyclopedia
Anton Wilhelm von L'Estocq (16 August 1738 – 5 January 1815) was a Prussian
cavalry
general
best known for his command of the Prussian troops at the Battle of Eylau
.
, Electorate of Hanover
, the son of a Huguenot
Prussian officer. In 1757 he became a cadet officer of the Gensd'armes regiment of Berlin
. During the Seven Years' War
, he participated in the battles of Zorndorf
, Kunersdorf
, and Torgau
. After a battle near Langensalza, he received the Pour le Mérite
.
In 1768 L'Estocq became first lieutenant and served in the hussar
regiment of General Hans Joachim von Zieten
. Initially Zieten's adjutant, he was promoted successively to cavalry captain, major, lieutenant colonel, and colonel. In 1790 King Frederick William II of Prussia
named L'Estocq battalion commander of the Regiment von Eben (2nd Hussar Regiment).
During the First Coalition
against revolutionary France, L'Estocq participated in the battles of Kaiserslautern
, Morsbrunn, and Trippstadt. In 1794 he took command of the 2nd Hussar Regiment, which was stationed in Westphalia
to guard the border with France after the 1795 Peace of Basel
.
in 1803, commanding all troops in the province as head of the 9th Hussar Regiment. In 1805 he was promoted to lieutenant-general.
During the War of the Fourth Coalition
, L'Estocq and his chief of staff, Gerhard von Scharnhorst
, commanded some 15,000 troops based at Thorn
in December 1806 and at Freystadt
in January 1807. Harassed by Marshal Ney
, L'Estocq marched his troops from February 2 – February 8 through snowy and forested East Prussia
; it has been described as "a model of the way in which a flank march in the face of a near and powerful adversary should be conducted".
The Russian
troops of Bennigsen
were hard-pressed by Marshal Davout in the Battle of Eylau
(February 7-February 8, 1807). Leading the last operational unit in the Prussian army, L'Estocq was only able to bring eight battalions, twenty-eight squadrons, and two horse artillery batteries (estimated at 7,000-9,000 men) to the battle; the rest of his soldiers were defending against Ney. Upon the small Prussian contingent's arrival at Preußisch Eylau
, Bennigsen wanted it split up to reinforce his weakened Russian troops. Scharnhorst, however, advised L'Estocq to strike with his cavalry around the Russian lines at Davout's exhausted troops; the sudden attack threw the French into disarray. Following the battle, L'Estocq's corps retreated to Preußisch Friedland
to maintain coalition communications with Russia.
and Scharhorst the Pour le Mérite
. While the Prussian Army
had been crushed at Jena-Auerstedt
, L'Estocq's troops restored honor to the demoralized military. Colmar Freiherr von der Goltz
wrote, "it was at Eylau in 1807, and not the War of Liberation
in 1813, that the old army vindicated itself before the tribunal of history". Von der Goltz attributed the success to Scharnhorst's planning and L'Estocq's initiative and willingness to attack.
After the coalition defeat in the Battle of Friedland
and the humiliating Treaties of Tilsit
, L'Estocq was part of an investigatory commission into the causes of Prussia's defeat in the Fourth Coalition. Because of his successful cooperation with L'Estocq, Scharnhorst successfully lobbied for attaching a chief of staff to each field commander in 1813.
L'Estocq became Governor of Berlin
on 12 November 1808, and of Breslau in 1814. After his death in Berlin on 5 January 1815, L'Estocq was buried in the cemetery of the city's garrison church three days later.
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
general
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
best known for his command of the Prussian troops at the Battle of Eylau
Battle of Eylau
The Battle of Eylau or Battle of Preussisch-Eylau, 7 and 8 February 1807, was a bloody and inconclusive battle between Napoléon's Grande Armée and a Russian Empire army under Levin August, Count von Bennigsen near the town of Preußisch Eylau in East Prussia. Late in the battle, the Russians...
.
Biography
L'Estocq was born in CelleCelle
Celle is a town and capital of the district of Celle, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The town is situated on the banks of the River Aller, a tributary of the Weser and has a population of about 71,000...
, Electorate of Hanover
Electorate of Hanover
The Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg was the ninth Electorate of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation...
, the son of a Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
Prussian officer. In 1757 he became a cadet officer of the Gensd'armes regiment of Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. During the Seven Years' War
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...
, he participated in the battles of Zorndorf
Battle of Zorndorf
The Battle of Zorndorf was a battle fought on August 25, 1758 during the Seven Years' War, fought between the forces of the Russians troops under the command of Count William Fermor – and a Prussian army under King Frederick the Great...
, Kunersdorf
Battle of Kunersdorf
The Battle of Kunersdorf, fought in the Seven Year's War, was Frederick the Great's most devastating defeat. On August 12, 1759, near Kunersdorf , east of Frankfurt , 50,900 Prussians were defeated by a combined allied army 59,500 strong consisting of 41,000 Russians and 18,500 Austrians under...
, and Torgau
Battle of Torgau
In the Battle of Torgau on 3 November 1760, King Frederick the Great's Prussian army fought a larger Austrian army under the command of Field Marshal Leopold Josef Graf Daun. The Prussians won a costly victory in one of the bloodiest battles of the Seven Years' War.-Background:In August, Daun...
. After a battle near Langensalza, he received the Pour le Mérite
Pour le Mérite
The Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
.
In 1768 L'Estocq became first lieutenant and served in the hussar
Hussar
Hussar refers to a number of types of light cavalry which originated in Hungary in the 14th century, tracing its roots from Serbian medieval cavalry tradition, brought to Hungary in the course of the Serb migrations, which began in the late 14th century....
regiment of General Hans Joachim von Zieten
Hans Joachim von Zieten
Hans Joachim von Zieten , also known as Zieten aus dem Busch, was a cavalry general in the Prussian Army...
. Initially Zieten's adjutant, he was promoted successively to cavalry captain, major, lieutenant colonel, and colonel. In 1790 King Frederick William II of Prussia
Frederick William II of Prussia
Frederick William II was the King of Prussia, reigning from 1786 until his death. He was in personal union the Prince-Elector of Brandenburg and the sovereign prince of the Principality of Neuchâtel.-Early life:...
named L'Estocq battalion commander of the Regiment von Eben (2nd Hussar Regiment).
During the First Coalition
First Coalition
The War of the First Coalition was the first major effort of multiple European monarchies to contain Revolutionary France. France declared war on the Habsburg monarchy of Austria on 20 April 1792, and the Kingdom of Prussia joined the Austrian side a few weeks later.These powers initiated a series...
against revolutionary France, L'Estocq participated in the battles of Kaiserslautern
Battle of Kaiserslautern
The Battle of Kaiserslautern was a battle of the War of the First Coalition , fought near the German city of Kaiserslautern...
, Morsbrunn, and Trippstadt. In 1794 he took command of the 2nd Hussar Regiment, which was stationed in Westphalia
Westphalia
Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...
to guard the border with France after the 1795 Peace of Basel
Peace of Basel
The Peace of Basel of 1795 consists of three peace treaties involving France .* The first of the three treaties of 1795, France made peace with Prussia on 5 April; , * The Second was with Spain on 22 July, ending the War of the Pyrenees; and*...
.
Major-general
Promoted to major-general, L'Estocq was stationed in New East PrussiaNew East Prussia
New East Prussia was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1795 to 1807. It was created out of territory annexed in the Third Partition of Poland and included parts of Masovia and Podlaskie...
in 1803, commanding all troops in the province as head of the 9th Hussar Regiment. In 1805 he was promoted to lieutenant-general.
During the War of the Fourth Coalition
War of the Fourth Coalition
The Fourth Coalition against Napoleon's French Empire was defeated in a war spanning 1806–1807. Coalition partners included Prussia, Russia, Saxony, Sweden, and the United Kingdom....
, L'Estocq and his chief of staff, Gerhard von Scharnhorst
Gerhard von Scharnhorst
Gerhard Johann David Waitz von Scharnhorst was a general in Prussian service, Chief of the Prussian General Staff, noted for both his writings, his reforms of the Prussian army, and his leadership during the Napoleonic Wars....
, commanded some 15,000 troops based at Thorn
Torun
Toruń is an ancient city in northern Poland, on the Vistula River. Its population is more than 205,934 as of June 2009. Toruń is one of the oldest cities in Poland. The medieval old town of Toruń is the birthplace of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus....
in December 1806 and at Freystadt
Kisielice
Kisielice is a town in Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland, with 2,222 inhabitants .- External links :...
in January 1807. Harassed by Marshal Ney
Michel Ney
Michel Ney , 1st Duc d'Elchingen, 1st Prince de la Moskowa was a French soldier and military commander during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was one of the original 18 Marshals of France created by Napoleon I...
, L'Estocq marched his troops from February 2 – February 8 through snowy and forested East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
; it has been described as "a model of the way in which a flank march in the face of a near and powerful adversary should be conducted".
The Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
troops of Bennigsen
Levin August, Count von Bennigsen
Levin August Gottlieb Theophil , Count von Bennigsen was a German general in the service of the Russian Empire....
were hard-pressed by Marshal Davout in the Battle of Eylau
Battle of Eylau
The Battle of Eylau or Battle of Preussisch-Eylau, 7 and 8 February 1807, was a bloody and inconclusive battle between Napoléon's Grande Armée and a Russian Empire army under Levin August, Count von Bennigsen near the town of Preußisch Eylau in East Prussia. Late in the battle, the Russians...
(February 7-February 8, 1807). Leading the last operational unit in the Prussian army, L'Estocq was only able to bring eight battalions, twenty-eight squadrons, and two horse artillery batteries (estimated at 7,000-9,000 men) to the battle; the rest of his soldiers were defending against Ney. Upon the small Prussian contingent's arrival at Preußisch Eylau
Bagrationovsk
Bagrationovsk is a town and the administrative center of Bagrationovsky District of Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located south of Kaliningrad. Population: -History:...
, Bennigsen wanted it split up to reinforce his weakened Russian troops. Scharnhorst, however, advised L'Estocq to strike with his cavalry around the Russian lines at Davout's exhausted troops; the sudden attack threw the French into disarray. Following the battle, L'Estocq's corps retreated to Preußisch Friedland
Debrzno
Debrzno is a town in Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland.The town was first mentioned as Fredeland in a document of 1346, when the manager of the Teutonic Order in Schlochau assigned four Hufen territory to Tylo. 1354 the Grandmaster Winrich von Kniprode granted the Culmer Law to the town....
to maintain coalition communications with Russia.
Honours
For their leadership in the battle, L'Estocq received the Order of the Black EagleOrder of the Black Eagle
The Order of the Black Eagle was the highest order of chivalry in the Kingdom of Prussia. The order was founded on 17 January 1701 by Elector Friedrich III of Brandenburg . In his Dutch exile after WWI, deposed Emperor Wilhelm II continued to award the order to his family...
and Scharhorst the Pour le Mérite
Pour le Mérite
The Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
. While the Prussian Army
Prussian Army
The Royal Prussian Army was the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power.The Prussian Army had its roots in the meager mercenary forces of Brandenburg during the Thirty Years' War...
had been crushed at Jena-Auerstedt
Battle of Jena-Auerstedt
The twin battles of Jena and Auerstedt were fought on 14 October 1806 on the plateau west of the river Saale in today's Germany, between the forces of Napoleon I of France and Frederick William III of Prussia...
, L'Estocq's troops restored honor to the demoralized military. Colmar Freiherr von der Goltz
Colmar Freiherr von der Goltz
Wilhelm Leopold Colmar Freiherr von der Goltz also known as Goltz Pasha, was a Prussian Field Marshal and military writer.-Military career:...
wrote, "it was at Eylau in 1807, and not the War of Liberation
War of the Sixth Coalition
In the War of the Sixth Coalition , a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Sweden, Spain and a number of German States finally defeated France and drove Napoleon Bonaparte into exile on Elba. After Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia, the continental powers...
in 1813, that the old army vindicated itself before the tribunal of history". Von der Goltz attributed the success to Scharnhorst's planning and L'Estocq's initiative and willingness to attack.
After the coalition defeat in the Battle of Friedland
Battle of Friedland
The Battle of Friedland saw Napoleon I's French army decisively defeat Count von Bennigsen's Russian army about twenty-seven miles southeast of Königsberg...
and the humiliating Treaties of Tilsit
Treaties of Tilsit
The Treaties of Tilsit were two agreements signed by Napoleon I of France in the town of Tilsit in July, 1807 in the aftermath of his victory at Friedland. The first was signed on 7 July, between Tsar Alexander I of Russia and Napoleon I of France, when they met on a raft in the middle of the Neman...
, L'Estocq was part of an investigatory commission into the causes of Prussia's defeat in the Fourth Coalition. Because of his successful cooperation with L'Estocq, Scharnhorst successfully lobbied for attaching a chief of staff to each field commander in 1813.
L'Estocq became Governor of Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
on 12 November 1808, and of Breslau in 1814. After his death in Berlin on 5 January 1815, L'Estocq was buried in the cemetery of the city's garrison church three days later.
See also
- Jean Armand de L'Estocq (1692–1767)
- Johann Ludwig von L’Estocq (1712–1779)