Gustav von Alvensleben

Gustav von Alvensleben
Born(1803-09-30)30 September 1803
Eichenbarleben, Prussia
Died30 June 1881(1881-06-30) (aged 77)
Gernrode, Imperial Germany
Allegiance Kingdom of Prussia
German Empire Imperial Germany
Service / branchPrussian Army
Years of service1821-72
RankGeneral der Infanterie
CommandsIV Corps
Battles / warsAustro-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
AwardsPour le Mérite
RelationsConstantin von Alvensleben

Gustav von Alvensleben (30 September 1803 – 30 June 1881) was a Prussian General der Infanterie.

Biography

[edit]

Early life

[edit]

Alvensleben was born in Eichenbarleben in 1803, to the Low German noble family of Alvensleben. His parents were Gebhard Johann von Alvensleben (1773–1856), a Lieutenant-Colonel in the Royal Prussian Army, and his kinswoman Caroline Friederike Eleonore von Alvensleben (1773–1826). Gustav had four brothers; two of them, Werner and Constantin, would go on to serve in the military as generals.

Military career

[edit]

Alvensleben joined the Prussian Army in 1821, serving in the Kaiser Alexander Guards Grenadiers Regiment No. 1 as a Second Lieutenant.[1] In 1849, Alvensleben became Chief of Staff of the Prussian Corps in the insurrection in Baden and, in 1850, Chief of Staff of the VIII Army Corps. He went on to become the military governor of the Prussian Rhine Province and Westphalia in 1854, became a major-general in 1858, and the personal adjutant of King William I of Prussia in 1861. In this position he signed the Alvensleben Convention with Russia to co-ordinate Russian and Prussian politics throughout the Polish January Uprising.[2]

Having served in the Royal headquarters in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, Alvensleben led the peace negotiations with George V of Hanover. On 30 October 1866 he took over the command of the IV Corps. In 1868 Alvensleben was promoted to General der Infanterie and commanded the IV Corps in the Battles of Beaumont and Sedan during the Franco-Prussian War.[3]

Alvensleben retired on 10 October 1872, and died unmarried and childless on 30 June 1881 in Gernrode.

Honours and awards

[edit]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Biography at Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (in German)
  2. ^ Biography[permanent dead link] at Neue Deutsche Biographie (in German)
  3. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Alvensleben, Constantin von s.v. Gustav von Alvensleben" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 1 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 775.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Rangliste de Königlich Preußischen Armee (in German), Berlin: Ernst Siegfried Mittler & Sohn, 1881, p. 11 – via hathitrust.org
  5. ^ a b c "Königlich Preussische Ordensliste", Preussische Ordens-Liste (in German), 1, Berlin: 24, 33, 925, 1877 – via hathitrust.org
  6. ^ "Königlich Preussische Ordensliste", Preussische Ordens-Liste (in German), 3, Berlin: 7, 1877 – via hathitrust.org
  7. ^ "Herzoglicher Haus-orden Albrecht des Bären", Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Herzogtum Anhalt, 1867, p. 21
  8. ^ "Großherzogliche Orden", Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Großherzogtum Baden, Karlsruhe, 1880, pp. 65, 120 – via blb-karlsruhe.de{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  9. ^ "Königliche Orden", Hof- und – Staatshandbuch des Königreichs Bayern (in German), Munich: Druck and Verlag, 1879, pp. 17, 27, 67 – via hathitrust.org
  10. ^ Ruith, Max (1882). Der K. Bayerische Militär-Max-Joseph-Orden. Ingolstadt: Ganghofer'sche Buchdruckerei. p. 88 – via hathitrust.org.
  11. ^ "Herzogliche Sachsen-Ernestinischer Hausorden", Staatshandbücher für das Herzogtums Sachsen-Altenburg, 1869, p. 30
  12. ^ "Königliche Ritter-orden", Staatshandbuch für den Freistaat Sachsen (1873) (in German), Dresden, 1873, pp. 35, 131{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  13. ^ "Königliche Orden", Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Königreichs Württemberg, 1873, p. 34
  14. ^ "Ritter-Orden", Hof- und Staatshandbuch der Österreichisch-Ungarischen Monarchie, Vienna, 1879, pp. 67, 75, retrieved 13 November 2021 – via alex.onb.ac.at{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  15. ^ V. M. Shabanov (2004). Military Order of the Holy Great Martyr and Victorious George: A Nominal List, 1769-1920. Moscow. p. 928. ISBN 5-89577-059-2.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)