Baron Ferenc Ottinger (

Sopron Sopron (; german: Ödenburg, ; sl, Šopron) is a city in Hungary on the Austrian border, near Lake Neusiedl/Lake Fertő. History Ancient times-13th century When the area that is today Western Hungary was a province of the Roman Empire, a ...

, 1792 –

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, 8 April 1869) was a

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Franz Josef I of Austria Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...

, a Cavalry

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

and one of the leading generals in the

Hungarian Revolution of 1848 The Hungarian Revolution of 1848 or fully Hungarian Civic Revolution and War of Independence of 1848–1849 () was one of many European Revolutions of 1848 and was closely linked to other revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas. Although t ...

Career

In 1814 and 1815 as lieutenant on the Emperor's side he fought in the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

in Italy. From 1839 until 1846 Ottinger was the Captain of the Emperor's 1st Army. In 1848, at the start of the Hungarian Revolution, Ottinger was a

Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. I ...

and

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

in Buda. After the

Batthyány The House of Batthyány () is the name of an ancient and distinguished Hungarian Magnate family. Members of this family bear the title Count/Countess ( Graf/Gräfin) Batthyány von Német-Ujvar respectively, while the title of Prince (Fürst) vo ...

Government formed, it offered him a post as Secretary of War, but he rejected it. Until the government nominated Lázár Mészáros as Secretary of War, Ottinger was the Ministry of Defence's council chairman. In 1848 he became the captain of the Hungarian army at

Dráva The Drava or Drave''Utrata Fachwörterbuch ...

, against Josip Jelačić. When the conflict started Ottinger lost faith and decamped to Jelačić. After that — on the side of the Emperor — Ottinger fought in many battles. On 28 December 1848 he won a battle against Kornél Görgey at Bábolna. With Ottinger's contribution the Emperor's Army won the Battle of Mór on 30 December 1848. Ferenc Ottinger lost the battle against

Mór Perczel Sir Mór Perczel de Bonyhád ( hu, Bonyhádi lovag Perczel Mór, german: link=no, Ritter Moritz Perczel von Bonyhád; 11 November 1811, Bonyhád, Tolna county – 23 May 1899, Bonyhád), was a Hungarian landholder, general, and one of the lea ...

on 22 January 1849 at

Szolnok Szolnok (; also known by other #Name and etymology, alternative names) is the county seat of Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok county in central Hungary. A City with county rights, city with county rights, it is located on the banks of the Tisza river, i ...

. In the Battle of Káty on 7 June 1849 Ottinger destroyed the 8th Army and received the Military Order of Maria Theresa medal and the title of Baron. After the Revolution Ottinger was a

and in 1866 he retired as a Cavalry General.

References

* Nobili, Johann. ''Hungary 1848: The Winter Campaign''. Edited and translated Christopher Pringle. Warwick, UK: Helion & Company Ltd., 2021. Hungarian soldiers 19th-century Hungarian people Hungarian Revolution of 1848 1792 births 1869 deaths Austrian Empire military personnel of the Napoleonic Wars {{Hungary-mil-bio-stub