Andreas Hofer (November 22, 1767 – February 20 1810) was a
TirolGerman Tyrol is a historical region in the Alps now divided between Austria and Italy. It includes largely ethnic German areas of historical County of Tyrol: the Austrian state of Tyrol and the Italian region known as the Alto Adige/Südtirol but not the largely Italian-speaking Trentino...
ean innkeeper and
patriotPatriotism is love of and/or devotion to one's country. The word comes from the Greek patris, meaning fatherland. However, patriotism has had different meanings over time, and its meaning is highly dependent upon context, geography and philosophy....
. He was the leader of a rebellion against
NapoleonNapoleon Bonaparte later known as Napoleon I, and previously Napoleone di Buonaparte, was a military and political leader of France whose actions shaped European politics in the early 19th century.Born in Corsica and trained as an artillery officer in mainland France, Bonaparte rose to prominence...
's forces.
He was an innkeeper turned politician who fought for Austria against the French during the War of the Third Coalition. In 1809, he became the leader of a rebellion against Franco-Bavarian forces that sparked the
War of the Fifth CoalitionThe War of the Fifth Coalition, fought in the year 1809, pitted a coalition of the Austrian Empire and the United Kingdom against Napoleon's French Empire and Bavaria. Major engagements between France and Austria, the main participants, unfolded over much of Central Europe from April to July, with...
. He was subsequently captured and executed.
Andreas Hofer was born 1767 in
St. Leonhard in PasseierSt. Leonhard in Passeier ; ) is a comune in Bolzano-Bozen in the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about 80 km north of Trento and about 35 km north of Bolzano ....
, Tyrol.
Andreas Hofer (November 22, 1767 – February 20 1810) was a
TirolGerman Tyrol is a historical region in the Alps now divided between Austria and Italy. It includes largely ethnic German areas of historical County of Tyrol: the Austrian state of Tyrol and the Italian region known as the Alto Adige/Südtirol but not the largely Italian-speaking Trentino...
ean innkeeper and
patriotPatriotism is love of and/or devotion to one's country. The word comes from the Greek patris, meaning fatherland. However, patriotism has had different meanings over time, and its meaning is highly dependent upon context, geography and philosophy....
. He was the leader of a rebellion against
NapoleonNapoleon Bonaparte later known as Napoleon I, and previously Napoleone di Buonaparte, was a military and political leader of France whose actions shaped European politics in the early 19th century.Born in Corsica and trained as an artillery officer in mainland France, Bonaparte rose to prominence...
's forces.
He was an innkeeper turned politician who fought for Austria against the French during the War of the Third Coalition. In 1809, he became the leader of a rebellion against Franco-Bavarian forces that sparked the
War of the Fifth CoalitionThe War of the Fifth Coalition, fought in the year 1809, pitted a coalition of the Austrian Empire and the United Kingdom against Napoleon's French Empire and Bavaria. Major engagements between France and Austria, the main participants, unfolded over much of Central Europe from April to July, with...
. He was subsequently captured and executed.
Early life
Andreas Hofer was born 1767 in
St. Leonhard in PasseierSt. Leonhard in Passeier ; ) is a comune in Bolzano-Bozen in the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about 80 km north of Trento and about 35 km north of Bolzano ....
, Tyrol. His father was an innkeeper of the
Sandhof inn and Andreas followed in his footsteps when he inherited the establishment. He also traded wine and horses in northern Italy and learned the language. He married Anna Ladurner. In 1791 he was elected into the Tyrolean
LandtagA Landtag is a representative assembly or parliament in German-speaking countries with some legislative authority.The German word "Landtag" is composed of the words Land which names a political entity comparable to a federal state and the word Tag...
. In dialectical German he was known as a "wirth" (proprietor) and thus ever after "The Sandwirth."
In the war of the
Third CoalitionThe War of the Third Coalition spanning from 1803 to 1806 saw the defeat of an alliance of Austria, Portugal, Russia, and others by France and its client states under Napoleon I. Great Britain was the only country still at war with France after the Treaty of Pressburg and the resumption of...
against the French he became a sharpshooter and later a
militiaThe term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
captain. When Tyrol was transferred from
AustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.3 million people in Central Europe. It borders both Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west...
to
BavariaBavaria , with an area of and almost 12.5 million inhabitants, is located in the southeast of Germany and is the largest state of Germany by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
(France's ally) in the Treaty of Pressburg in 1805, Hofer became a leader of the anti-Bavarian movement. In January 1809, he was part of a delegation to
ViennaVienna is the capital of the Republic of Austria and also one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.7 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre. It is the 10th largest city by...
to ask
EmperorThe phrase Emperor of Austria describes an hereditary imperial title and position proclaimed in 1804 by the Austrian Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor Francis II and continually held by him and his immediate successors until the Habsburg dynasty was overthrown in 1918.In the face of aggressions by...
Francis IIFrancis II was the last Holy Roman Emperor, ruling from 1792 until 6 August 1806, when he dissolved the Empire after the disastrous defeat of the Third Coalition by Napoleon at the Battle of Austerlitz...
of Austria for support for a possible uprising. The Emperor gave his assurances and the delegation returned home.
Hofer begun to secretly organize insurrection, visiting villagers and holding councils of war in local inns. Reputedly he was so much on the move that he signed his messages "Andreas Hofer, from where I am" and letters to him were addressed to "wherever he may be". At the same time other leaders organized their own forces elsewhere in the Alps. Hofer became a leader of a militia contingent in
Passeier ValleyThe Passeier Valley is the valley of the Passer river, in the mountains of South Tyrol, northern Italy. The Passer river is a left-bank tributary to the Adige. At the mouth of the valley, where the two rivers join, stands the town of Meran...
.
Armed rebellion begins
The Tyrolean
rebellionRebellion is a refusal of obedience or order. It may, therefore, be seen as encompassing a range of behaviors from civil disobedience and mass nonviolent resistance, to violent and organized attempts to destroy an established authority such as the government. Those who participate in rebellions are...
began on April 9, 1809. The previous night organizers dumped sacks of sawdust into the River Inn as a sign to start the rebellion. When the sawdust floated through Innsbruck and to the Inntal, it alerted the rebels. Village bells summoned men to fight with muskets and farmyard implements. They soon overran smaller Bavarian garrisons and surprised a column of French infantry that was passing through the area.
On April 11 Tyrolean militia defeated a Bavarian force in
Sterzingthumb|220px|left|Torre delle Dodici in Sterzing.Sterzing is an Italian comune in the province of Bolzano-Bozen in the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol...
which led to the occupation of
InnsbruckInnsbruck is the capital city of the federal state of Tyrol in western Austria. It is located in the Inn Valley at the junction with the Wipptal , which provides access to the Brenner Pass, some south of Innsbruck...
before noon. When the French and Bavarians counterattacked the next night, the Tyroleans fought them in the city until the Tyroleans won on the morning of the 13th. Hofer and his allies advanced south, taking Bozen and
TrentTrento is an Italian city located in the Adige River valley in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol...
.
Hopes of a successful rebellion waned when Napoleon defeated the Austrian forces of Archduke Charles of Austria. Austrian troops withdrew from Tyrol and Hofer pulled back to the mountains. The Bavarians reoccupied Innsbruck on May 19, but when Napoleon's troops left, the rebellion flared again.
Hofer takes command
Hofer became the effective commander-in-chief of the Tyrolean rebels, with the support of other leaders like Josef Speckbacher and Father Joachim Haspinger. He commanded a force of Tyroleans approximately 20,000 strong, together with a couple of hundred Austrian soldiers who had joined them after the retreat of the Austrian army.
In
IselbergThe Bergisel is a hill that lies to the south of Innsbruck, Austria, in the area of Wilten, where the Sill river meets the Inn Valley.The name is derived from the Latin name burgusinus , which then became Bergisel in German...
on May 25 and May 29 Hofer's troops again defeated the Bavarians and drove them out of the country. Hofer's troops retook Innsbruck on May 30.
On May 29 Hofer received a letter from Emperor Francis in which he promised not to sign any peace treaty that would include giving up Tyrol. An Austrian
intendantThe title of intendant has been used in several countries through history. Traditionally, it refers to the holder of a public administrative office...
came to rule Tyrol and Hofer returned to his home.
Napoleon defeated Austrian troops in the
Battle of WagramThe Battle of Wagram was the most important military engagement of the War of the Fifth Coalition and took place on the Marchfeld plain, on the north bank of the Danube. An important site of the battle was the village of Deutsch-Wagram, 10 kilometres northeast of Vienna, which would give its name...
on July 6. On July 12 the
Armistice of ZnaimThe Armistice of Znaim was a ceasefire agreed between Archduke Charles and Napoleon I on 12 July 1809 following the Battle of Znaim, effectively ending hostilities between Austria and France in the War of the Fifth Coalition....
ceded Tyrol to Bavaria again. Napoleon sent 40,000 French and Bavarian troops to take over Tyrol and they reoccupied Innsbruck.
After little hesitation, Hofer joined battle again. The French offered a reward for his head. On August 13-14, his Tyroleans defeated the French troops of Marshal
François Joseph LefebvreFrançois Joseph Lefebvre, 1st Duc de Dantzig was Marshal of France during the Napoleonic Wars....
, in
BergiselThe Bergisel is a hill that lies to the south of Innsbruck, Austria, in the area of Wilten, where the Sill river meets the Inn Valley.The name is derived from the Latin name burgusinus , which then became Bergisel in German...
, in a 12-hour battle after a downhill charge. The Tyroleans retook Innsbruck.
Hofer declared himself Imperial Commandant of the Tyrol in the absence of the ruler and for two months ruled the land from Hofburg in the name of the Emperor of Austria. He announced new laws and taxes and minted his own coins. He also sent two men to Britain to ask for assistance. On September 29 he received a medal from the emperor and another promise that Austria would not abandon Tyrol.
Hofer's hopes were dashed on October 14 when the
Treaty of SchönbrunnThe Treaty of Schönbrunn , sometimes known as the Treaty of Vienna, was signed between France and Austria at the Schönbrunn Palace of Vienna on 14 October 1809. This treaty ended the Fifth Coalition during the Napoleonic Wars...
again ceded Tyrol to Bavaria. French and Bavarian troops advanced and Hofer retreated to the mountains. Promised
amnestyAmnesty is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to the positions of innocent persons. It includes more than pardon, in as much as it obliterates all legal remembrance of the offense. The word has the same root as amnesia...
, Hofer and his followers laid down their weapons November 8. Hofer retreated to his home valley.
Final attempt and capture
On November 12, Hofer received false reports of Austrian victories and tried to summon his troops on November 15. This time he had little following and French troops defeated his forces. His subordinate commanders surrendered and asked him to escape over the mountains.
Hofer hid in a hut in the mountains in the Passeiertal and the French announced a reward of 1500
guilderGuilder is the English translation of the Dutch gulden — from Old Dutch for 'golden'. The guilder originated as a gold coin but has been a common name for a silver or base metal coin for some centuries...
s for his head. His neighbor Franz Raffl betrayed him and revealed his hiding place to the authorities; Hofer was captured by Italian troops on January 19, 1810. He was sent to
MantuaMantua is a city in Lombardy, Italy and capital of the province of the same name.Mantua is surrounded on three sides by artificial lakes created during the 12th century. These receive the waters from the Mincio, which descend from Lake Garda...
in chains to face a court martial. Raffl died impoverished in
BavariaBavaria , with an area of and almost 12.5 million inhabitants, is located in the southeast of Germany and is the largest state of Germany by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
20 years later.
Court martial and execution
Officers holding the court martial disagreed on the exact sentence until they received a message from Milan. It was supposedly from the Viceroy, transmitting Napoleon's order to "give him a fair trial and then shoot him." Later Napoleon claimed to
Prince MetternichKlemens Wenzel, Prince von Metternich was a German-Austrian politician and statesman and was one of the most important diplomats of his era. He was a major figure in the negotiations before and during the Congress of Vienna and is considered both a paradigm of foreign-policy management and a...
that Hofer was executed against his wishes.
Andreas Hofer was
executed by a firing squadExecution by firing squad is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in times of war. The firing squad is generally composed of several soldiers or peace officers. The method of execution requires all members of the group to fire simultaneously, thus preventing both disruption of the...
on February 20, 1810. He refused a
blindfoldA blindfold is a garment, usually of cloth, tied to one's head to cover the eyes to disable the wearer's sight. It can be worn when the eyes are in a closed state and thus prevents the wearer from opening them...
and gave money to a corporal in charge, telling him to "shoot straight". Hofer became a
martyrA martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce a belief, usually religious.-Meaning:...
in Germany and Austria and a rallying point against the power of Napoleon.
Legacy and monuments
In 1818, his family was given a patent of nobility by the
emperor of AustriaThe phrase Emperor of Austria describes an hereditary imperial title and position proclaimed in 1804 by the Austrian Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor Francis II and continually held by him and his immediate successors until the Habsburg dynasty was overthrown in 1918.In the face of aggressions by...
. In 1823, Hofer's remains were moved from Mantua to Innsbruck, and in 1834, his tomb was decorated with a marble statue. In 1893, a bronze statue of Hofer was erected in Bergisel (
InnsbruckInnsbruck is the capital city of the federal state of Tyrol in western Austria. It is located in the Inn Valley at the junction with the Wipptal , which provides access to the Brenner Pass, some south of Innsbruck...
). There is a large painting depicting his arrest which hangs in the Palace of Maria Theresa in Innsbruck. There is an annual open-air play in Meran based on his life.
Literature