Baron Franjo Jelačić Bužimski | |
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| Born | (1746-04-14)14 April 1746 |
| Died | 4 February 1810(1810-02-04) (aged 63) |
| Allegiance |  Habsburg Monarchy Austrian Empire |
| Branch | Army |
| Years of service | 1763–1810 |
| Rank | Feldmarschall-Leutnant |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Military Order of Maria Theresa (1799) |
| Relations | Josip Jelačić, son Ana Portner von Höflein, wife |
| Other work | Inhaber Infantry Regiment Nr. 62 |
BaronFranjo Jelačić Bužimski (English:Franz Jellacic / Francis Yellachich of Buzhim;German:Franz Jellačić von Buzim;Hungarian:Ferenc Jellacsics de Buzim; 14 April 1746 – 4 February 1810) was aCroatian military officer and nobleman, a member of theHouse of Jelačić. He began his service in theHabsburg army as aGrenz infantry officer and fought against theOttoman Empire. During theFrench Revolutionary Wars he received promotion to the rank ofgeneral officer and won an outstanding victory atFeldkirch. His later career proved that his martial abilities were limited. He twice led independent division-sized forces in theNapoleonic Wars, with unhappy results. He wasProprietor (Inhaber) of an Austrian infantry regiment from 1802 until his death.
Born in 1746 atPetrinja in theKingdom of Croatia of the Habsburg Monarchy, Jelačić became an officer cadet in the 1st BanatGrenz Infantry Regiment in 1763. He was appointed toCaptain in 1772 andMajor in 1783. He participated in theAustro-Turkish War (1787–91) and earned promotion toOberstleutnant (lieutenant colonel). Still serving with the Grenz infantry of theHabsburg monarchy army, Jelačić was elevated to the rank ofOberst (Colonel) in 1794. He fought in theWar of the First Coalition on the upperRhine River, at theBattle of Würzburg, and in other actions. His promotion toGeneral-Major came through in March 1797.[1]
On 23 March 1799 at theBattle of Feldkirch in theVorarlberg, Jelačić led his 5,500 soldiers to victory over 12,000 Frenchmen. The Austrians inflicted 3,000 casualties on their enemies at a cost of 900 killed and wounded. His command included the 3rd battalions of theKaunitz Infantry Regiment Nr. 20,De Vins Infantry Regiment Nr. 37, andPeterwardeiner Grenz Regiment Nr. 9; the 2nd battalion of theSt. George Gernz Infantry Nr. 6, and the 1st battalion of theBroder Grenz Infantry Regiment Nr. 7.[2] The French were led by two futureMarshals,André Masséna andNicolas Oudinot.[3] For this remarkable feat, he received promotion toFeldmarschall-Leutnant (Lieutenant Field Marshal)[4] and was awarded the Knight's Cross of theMilitary Order of Maria Theresa. He was also given the title of hereditarybaron. In 1802Emperor Francis II appointed him proprietor ofFranz Jellačić Infantry Regiment Nr. 62, a new Hungarian outfit. This unit should not be confused with theJohann Jellačić Infantry Regiment Nr. 53.[5] In 1801, his wife Ana Portner von Höflein gave birth to their sonJosip Jelačić, who also became a general and supported the Austrian regime during theHungarian Revolution of 1848.[1]
In 1805, Jelačić commanded a corps in the army ofArchduke Ferdinand Karl Joseph of Austria-Este andKarl Mack von Leiberich during theUlm Campaign. At first his troops defendedBiberach an der Riss.[6] Around 6 October, Mack ordered Jelačić to move towardUlm. At this time, Jelačić commanded 15,000 troops organized in 16 infantry battalions, sixJäger companies, and six cavalry squadrons. EmperorNapoleon I of France and hisGrande Armée began to envelop the Austrian army.[7] During theBattle of Wertingen on 8 October, theBattle of Günzburg on 9 October, and theBattle of Haslach-Jungingen on 11 October, the Grande Armée began to close in on its prey.[8] On the 12th, Mack reorganized his army, making Jelačić one of four corps commanders, the others beingJohann Sigismund Riesch,Franz von Werneck, andKarl Philipp, Prince of Schwarzenberg. He then ordered Jelačić to march south toward theTyrol viaOchsenhausen for no explainable reason.[9]
Jelačić's troops escaped theSurrender of Ulm and made it to the Vorarlberg nearLake Constance.[10] Napoleon assignedMarshalPierre Augereau and his 12,000-man corps to hunt down Jelačić.[11] In a series of small actions, Augereau drove the Austrians steadily back and managed to split their forces apart.[12] Jelačić surrendered to Augereau with his remaining 4,000 troops in theCapitulation of Dornbirn on 13 November.[11] Under the terms of surrender, the Austrians were repatriated to Bohemia with the promise not to fight against France for one year. One thousand of his cavalry, under General-Major Christian Wolfskeel von Reichenberg and Colonels Wartensleben and Kinsky, made a remarkable march throughBavaria and reachedBohemia in safety.[12] Another portion of the Vorarlberg force underPrince Viktor Rohan tried to reachVenice but was caught 40 kilometres (25 mi) short of its goal. Rohan surrendered toLaurent Gouvion Saint-Cyr andJean Reynier atCastelfranco Veneto.[13] Jelačić soon retired from military service.[1]
Brought out of retirement for theWar of the Fifth Coalition, Jelačić took command of an infantry division inJohann von Hiller's VI Armeekorps. Originally, the division included two line infantry brigades under Konstantin von Ettingshausen and Josef Hoffmeister von Hoffeneck.[14] On the outbreak of war, Hoffmeister's brigade was exchanged for the light brigade of Karl Dollmayer von Provenchères.[15] The division was detached from VI Armeekorps and sent to occupyMunich. After the Austrian defeats at the battles ofAbensberg,Landshut, andEckmühl from 20 to 22 April 1809, Hiller retreated rapidly east and Jelačić was ordered back toSalzburg.[16]
Jelačić's 10,000-man division was assigned to the army ofArchduke John of Austria.[17] On 29 April the Bavarians occupied Salzburg as Jelačić slipped away to the south.[18] He successfully defended the Lueg Pass nearGolling an der Salzach on 1 and 4–5 May, twice defeating a Bavarian brigade.[19] He sent Provenchères and almost all of his cavalry to join the main army.[20] John desired Jelačić to join him, but his orders were ambiguously worded. Misinterpreting his orders as requiring him to hold his isolated position, he stayed in place until 19 May. When Jelačić finally realized his danger and withdrew towardGraz, it was too late. Believing his artillery to be of little use in the mountains, he sent most of it ahead of his column, retaining only four cannons. On 25 May,Paul Grenier's 12,000 to 15,000 strong Franco-Italian corps caught up with his division at theBattle of Sankt Michael nearLeoben on 25 May. Without sufficient artillery and cavalry support, Jelačić's 9,000 troops were overwhelmed, suffering 423 dead, 1,137 wounded, and 4,963 captured. French losses numbered only 670.[17][21][22] HistorianGunther E. Rothenberg called Jelačić "a remarkably unlucky and inept general."[23]
Jelačić and his survivors joined Archduke John's retreat acrossHungary. At theBattle of Raab, he commanded 7,500 infantry of the right flank division. With help from the army reserve, his soldiers drove off the first Franco-Italian attack, but the action ended in an Austrian defeat.[24] He commanded his division at theBattle of Wagram but John's army arrived too late on the field to have any effect on the outcome.[25] He died on 4 February 1810 atZalaapáti in modern-day Hungary.[1]
| Military offices | ||
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| Preceded by vacant | Proprietor (Inhaber) of Infantry Regiment # 62 1802–1810 | Succeeded by Theodore, Freiherr von Wacquant-Geozelles |
| International | |
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| People | |
