Heinrich Wilhelm von Freytag
Encyclopedia
Heinrich Wilhelm von Freytag (March 17, 1720, Estorf - January 2, 1798, Hannover ) was an officer in the service of the Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg (Hanover).
17 April 1759 he commanding 9 companies of Jägers & 2 squadrons of Prussian Hussars.
Promoted Field Marshal in 1792, he was appointed to raise and command the 3,873 man Hanoverian electoral contingent to the Holy Roman Empire
. This force was absorbed into the general army mobilization at the end of 1792. Freytag commanded the Hanoverian troops and the 13-15,000 man Austro-Hanoverian corps under the Duke of York
in the Flanders Campaign
in 1793, seeing action at Rüme (St.Amand) 1 May, Famars
23rd, the Siege of Valenciennes
13 June-28 July, and Cæsar’s Camp 7/8 August. In the Siege of Dunkirk
he commanded the left wing covering column. On 6 September he was driven back by Houchard
at the Battle of Hondschoote, where he was wounded and captured, but rescued the following day by Wallmoden
’s counter-attack. He resigned soon after due to poor relations with the Duke of York & was replaced by Wallmoden.
Freytag died on 2nd January 1798 in Hanover
.
Fortescue claims that his 21-mile front in advance of Hondschoote was badly chosen, stamped him as a believer in the cordon system, and that a shorter front around the village would have been better. But Burne
persuasively challenges this by citing 5 reasons for the weakness of Hondschoote - “it is difficult to see on what grounds Fortescue asserts that ‘the position at Hondschoote would have covered the besiegers quite as efficiently and with less risk’. In my opinion Freytag occupied the best possible position; his mistake was that he was forgetful of the principal of maintenance of the objective - namely, to cover the besieging army - till pulled up sharply and rightly by the Duke… The fact that even without the Duke’s aid Freytag very nearly held up the French is a clear indication that with it the victory would almost certainly have gone to the Allies”.
The Duke of York criticised his actions in the battle thus: “On the 6th of September, the day of the first attack upon the Field Marshal’s Corps, He never would believe that the Enemy had forced the post on His left and turned His left flank in spite of repeated reports that were sent to Him, nor was it till six in the evening, that he consented to retreat, which he did in two Columns. Instead however of sending the Artillery and baggage with General Count Walmoden’s Column which was the furthest from the Enemy, He chose to take them in the rear of His own Column. I shall not touch upon the subject of His and my brother Adolphus’s being taken prisoners. I do not imagine there can be two opinions on the subject. I will only say that in consequence of this misfortune, everything would have been lost if it had not been for the presence of mind and coolness of Count Walmoden”.
Career
B.1720 in Estorf, Freytag rose to prominence during the Seven Years War, organising & commanding a corps of light infantry, the Freytag Jägers. at the Battle of BergenBattle of Bergen (1759)
The Battle of Bergen on 13 April 1759 saw the French army under de Broglie withstand an allied British, Hanoverian, Hessian, Brunswick army under Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick near Frankfurt-am-Main during the Seven Years' War.-Background:...
17 April 1759 he commanding 9 companies of Jägers & 2 squadrons of Prussian Hussars.
Promoted Field Marshal in 1792, he was appointed to raise and command the 3,873 man Hanoverian electoral contingent to the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
. This force was absorbed into the general army mobilization at the end of 1792. Freytag commanded the Hanoverian troops and the 13-15,000 man Austro-Hanoverian corps under the Duke of York
Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany
The Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany was a member of the Hanoverian and British Royal Family, the second eldest child, and second son, of King George III...
in the Flanders Campaign
Flanders Campaign
This feature refers to the conflict that took place during the Wars of the French Revolution 1792–1801.For the Low Countries campaigns of the War of the Grand Alliance 1688–97 see Nine Years' War...
in 1793, seeing action at Rüme (St.Amand) 1 May, Famars
Battle of Famars
The Battle of Famars was fought on 23 May 1793 during the Flanders Campaign of the War of the First Coalition. An Allied Austrian, Hanoverian, and British army under Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld defeated the French Army of the North led by General François Joseph Drouet Lamarche...
23rd, the Siege of Valenciennes
Siege of Valenciennes
The Siege of Valenciennes, also known as the Siege of Utrecht, took place from November 1676 to March 1677, during the Franco-Dutch War. A French army besieged the city of Valenciennes, which was then a part of the Spanish Netherlands and defended by a small army of the Holy Roman Empire. The city...
13 June-28 July, and Cæsar’s Camp 7/8 August. In the Siege of Dunkirk
Siege of Dunkirk (1793)
See also the Battle of HondschooteThe Siege of Dunkirk took place in 1793 when British, Hanoverian, Austrian, and Hesse-Kassel troops under the command of Prince Frederick, Duke of York besieged the fortified French border port of Dunkirk as part as the Flanders campaign of the French Revolutionary...
he commanded the left wing covering column. On 6 September he was driven back by Houchard
Jean Nicolas Houchard
Jean Nicolas Houchard was a French General of the French Revolution and the French Revolutionary Wars.-Biography:...
at the Battle of Hondschoote, where he was wounded and captured, but rescued the following day by Wallmoden
Johann Ludwig, Reichsgraf von Wallmoden-Gimborn
Johann Ludwig Reichsgraf von Wallmoden-Gimborn was a German lieutenant-general and art collector.-Life:He was an illegitimate son of George II of Great Britain by his mistress Amalie von Wallmoden...
’s counter-attack. He resigned soon after due to poor relations with the Duke of York & was replaced by Wallmoden.
Freytag died on 2nd January 1798 in Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
.
Assessment
He knew the Duke of York from when the Prince studied in Hanover in the 1780s. Relations between the two were seriously strained right from the beginning of the campaign. At St. Amand 1st May York tried to locate him & Bussche to bring their troops forward, “but found neither at home, because they too had ridden out to reconnoitre, which annoyed the Duke very much, because he had expected to find them in their quarters. The Duke then went to Rüme, but first ordered the Light Dragoons to advance. The Field Marshal, however, forbade their marching, and it was only after fresh orders that they set out, but arrived too late… The Field Marshal declined to sit by the Duke at his table that day, and left before the joints were served”.Fortescue claims that his 21-mile front in advance of Hondschoote was badly chosen, stamped him as a believer in the cordon system, and that a shorter front around the village would have been better. But Burne
Alfred Burne
Alfred Higgins Burne was a soldier and military historian. He invented the concept of Inherent Military Probability; in battles and campaigns where there is some doubt over what action was taken, Burne believed that the action taken would be one which a trained staff officer of the twentieth...
persuasively challenges this by citing 5 reasons for the weakness of Hondschoote - “it is difficult to see on what grounds Fortescue asserts that ‘the position at Hondschoote would have covered the besiegers quite as efficiently and with less risk’. In my opinion Freytag occupied the best possible position; his mistake was that he was forgetful of the principal of maintenance of the objective - namely, to cover the besieging army - till pulled up sharply and rightly by the Duke… The fact that even without the Duke’s aid Freytag very nearly held up the French is a clear indication that with it the victory would almost certainly have gone to the Allies”.
The Duke of York criticised his actions in the battle thus: “On the 6th of September, the day of the first attack upon the Field Marshal’s Corps, He never would believe that the Enemy had forced the post on His left and turned His left flank in spite of repeated reports that were sent to Him, nor was it till six in the evening, that he consented to retreat, which he did in two Columns. Instead however of sending the Artillery and baggage with General Count Walmoden’s Column which was the furthest from the Enemy, He chose to take them in the rear of His own Column. I shall not touch upon the subject of His and my brother Adolphus’s being taken prisoners. I do not imagine there can be two opinions on the subject. I will only say that in consequence of this misfortune, everything would have been lost if it had not been for the presence of mind and coolness of Count Walmoden”.