Maximilian Lorenz Graf von Starhemberg ( – 17 September 1689) was an Austrian field marshal as well as the younger brother of

Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg Count Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg (12 January 1638 – 4 January 1701) was military governor of Vienna from 1680, the city's defender during the Battle of Vienna in 1683, Holy Roman Empire, Imperial general during the Great Turkish War, an ...

, who defended Vienna during the

siege of Vienna Sieges of Vienna may refer to: * Siege of Vienna (1485), Hungarian victory during the Austro–Hungarian War. *Siege of Vienna (1529), first Ottoman attempt to conquer Vienna. *Battle of Vienna, 1683, second Ottoman attempt to conquer Vienna. * Cap ...

in 1683.

Life

Starhemberg was born around 1640, the second son of Count Konrad Balthasar von

Starhemberg The House of Starhemberg () is the name of an old and distinguished Austrian nobility, Austrian noble family originating from Upper Austria, specifically Steyr and :de:Burgstall Steinbach, Steinbach. Members of the family played important po ...

(1612-1687) by his first wife, Countess Anna Elisabeth von Zinzendorf and Pottendorf (1608-1659). Between 1662 and 1664, Starhemberg worked as a chamberlain for Archduke Charles Joseph of Austria and

Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I (Leopold Ignaz Joseph Balthasar Franz Felician; ; 9 June 1640 – 5 May 1705) was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary, List of Croatian monarchs, Croatia, and List of Bohemian monarchs, Bohemia. The second son of Ferdinand III, Holy Rom ...

. In 1664, Starhemberg joined the imperial army as a captain during the Austro–Turkish war of 1663–64. Folloqing the war, Starhemberg was promoted to lieutenant colonel. Starhemberg served the Spanish king during the

War of Devolution The War of Devolution took place from May 1667 to May 1668. In the course of the war, Kingdom of France, France occupied large parts of the Spanish Netherlands and County of Burgundy, Franche-Comté, both then provinces of the Holy Roman Empire ...

in 1667–68 and was in turn promoted to colonel. Starhemberg, as a

general of the cavalry General of the Cavalry () was a General officer rank in the cavalry in various states of which the modern states of German and Austria are successors or in other armies which used the German model. Artillery officers of equivalent rank were called ...

later led troops during the

Siege of Visegrád The siege of Visegrád was fought between the forces of the Holy Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire as part of the Great Turkish War. The Holy Roman Empire, led by Charles V, Duke of Lorraine captured the castle of Visegrád after a three-day s ...

, part of the

Great Turkish War The Great Turkish War () or The Last Crusade, also called in Ottoman sources The Disaster Years (), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League (1684), Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lith ...

. Starhemberg was later distinguished by the royal family for his efforts during the siege, which successfully pushed the Ottomans out of Visegrád. Starhemberg, alongside his brother Ernst, led Imperial troops against a besieged Ottoman force during the unsuccessful siege of Buda the same year. In 1688, Starhemberg chose his final resting place where he would reside after his death. Starhemberg also wrote his will in 1688. Starhemberg and an Imperial force held out against France during the Siege of Philippsburg in 1688. After about a monthlong siege, Starhemberg and his men surrendered the fortress and went to Ulm. Following the defeat, Starhemberg was acquitted by a military court from any wrongdoing, after questioning. In 1689, Starhemberg was promoted to Feldmarschall (field marshal).

Death and funeral

Starhemberg was hit with a bullet on 6 September 1689 during the Siege of Mainz and died 11 days later, on 17 September 1689. Starhemberg had chosen to be buried in

Bildstein Bildstein is a municipality in the district of Bregenz in the Austrian state of Vorarlberg Vorarlberg ( ; ; , , or ) is the westernmost States of Austria, state () of Austria. It has the second-smallest geographical area after Vienna and, al ...

the year before, and he was buried there on 11 October 1689.

Personal life

Starhemberg married Dorothea Polixena von Scherffenberg in 1664. They had 1 child. Before joining the Imperial Army, Starhemberg signed a marriage contract that ensured his wife would be taken care of in the event of his death.

References

{{reflist 1689 deaths Starhemberg family Field marshals of Austria People of the Great Turkish War People of the Nine Years' War People of the War of Devolution People of the Austro-Turkish War (1663–64) Generals of the Holy Roman Empire Military personnel of the Nine Years' War Field marshals of the Holy Roman Empire