Georg von Derfflinger (20 March 1606 – 14 February 1695) was a

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

in the army of

Brandenburg-Prussia Brandenburg-Prussia (german: Brandenburg-Preußen; ) is the historiographic denomination for the early modern realm of the Brandenburgian Hohenzollerns between 1618 and 1701. Based in the Electorate of Brandenburg, the main branch of the Hohenz ...

during and after the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648).

Early years

Born 1606 at Neuhofen an der Krems in Austria, into a family of poor Protestant peasants, Derfflinger had to leave his home due to

religious persecution Religious persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual or a group of individuals as a response to their religion, religious beliefs or affiliations or their irreligion, lack thereof. The tendency of societies or groups within soc ...

under the Catholic Habsburg dynasty in the course of the

Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...

. He probably fought side-by-side with insurgent

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

n nobles led by Jindřich Matyáš Thurn and served in the armed forces of various Protestant combatant powers, at first in the

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

army, but most of the time in that of

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. Until the 1648

Peace of Westphalia The Peace of Westphalia (german: Westfälischer Friede, ) is the collective name for two peace treaties signed in October 1648 in the Westphalian cities of Osnabrück and Münster. They ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) and brought pe ...

he distinguished himself as an able and daring cavalry leader and gained a reputation for brilliance and bravery, which in 1654 persuaded Elector

Frederick William of Brandenburg Frederick William (german: Friedrich Wilhelm; 16 February 1620 – 29 April 1688) was Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia, thus ruler of Brandenburg-Prussia, from 1640 until his death in 1688. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he is ...

to offer Derfflinger a senior position in his army.

Personality

Derfflinger was supposedly a notorious drunkard who constantly drank

schnapps Schnapps ( or ) or schnaps is a type of alcoholic beverage that may take several forms, including distilled fruit brandies, herbal liqueurs, infusions, and "flavored liqueurs" made by adding fruit syrups, spices, or artificial flavorings to ne ...

, but his fondness for alcohol did not impede his military abilities. His marriage in 1646 to an heiress of the Brandenburg nobility had already secured him a number of possessions, which he was able to augment with estates granted to him for his military exploits. A lifelong soldier, Derfflinger had no formal education, but was entrusted by the Elector with numerous important military tasks and played a central role in the reform of the Brandenburgian cavalry and

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieg ...

. He had a very stormy relationship with Frederick William and argued with him incessantly, at one point quitting. In order to gain back the Elector's employ, he wrote down a list of incredible demands, which included a clause stipulating that no man charge into battle ahead of him and that he take a certain percentage of plunder and captured officers from every engagement. Georg von Derfflinger

Brandenburg service

In 1674, Derfflinger was elevated to a ''

Reichsfreiherr (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , literally "free lord" or "free lady") and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire ...

'' by Emperor Leopold I. A year later, he was decisive in defeating the Swedes and driving them out of Brandenburg. He impersonated a Swedish officer (a feat he was able to do because he had served in the armies of Sweden), and was able to convince the Swedes to open the gates of

Rathenow Rathenow () is a town in the district of Havelland in Brandenburg, Germany, with a population of 24,063 (2020). Overview The Protestant church of St. Marien Andreas, originally a basilica, and transformed to the Gothic style in 1517-1589, and the ...

, allowing him and 1,000 nearby dragoons to storm the fortress. He was also a commander in the

Battle of Fehrbellin The Battle of Fehrbellin was fought on June 18, 1675 (Julian calendar date, June 28th, Gregorian), between Swedish and Brandenburg-Prussian troops. The Swedes, under Count Waldemar von Wrangel (stepbrother of '' Riksamiral'' Carl Gustaf Wrange ...

, where he won a decisive victory over the Swedes under

Charles XI Charles XI or Carl ( sv, Karl XI; ) was King of Sweden from 1660 until his death, in a period of Swedish history known as the Swedish Empire (1611–1721). He was the only son of King Charles X Gustav of Sweden and Hedwig Eleonora of Holstein ...

, who were occupying Brandenburg, pillaging the countryside, and abusing the locals. His last military campaign was in 1690 against King

Louis XIV of France , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of V ...

, when he was 84 years old. Derfflinger died at his estates in Gusow.

Legacy

The Imperial German Navy's

battlecruiser The battlecruiser (also written as battle cruiser or battle-cruiser) was a type of capital ship of the first half of the 20th century. These were similar in displacement, armament and cost to battleships, but differed in form and balance of at ...

SMS ''Derfflinger'' was named after him.

References

Bibliography

* Gerd-Ulrich Herrmann, ''Freiherr von Derfflinger'', Stapp-Verlag 1997, . * Citino, Robert M. ''The German Way of War: From the Thirty Years War to the Third Reich''. University Press of Kansas. Lawrence, KS, 2005. {{DEFAULTSORT:Derfflinger, Georg von 1606 births 1695 deaths 17th-century German people 17th-century Austrian people Field marshals of Prussia Austrian untitled nobility Prussian nobility German people of Austrian descent People from Linz-Land District People from the Margraviate of Brandenburg German people of the Thirty Years' War