Count Rutger von Ascheberg | |
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Governor-General of Gothenburg and Bohus and Dalsland | |
In office 1679–1693 |
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Governor-General of Scania, Halland and Blekinge | |
In office 1680–1680 |
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Preceded by | Johan Gyllenstierna |
Succeeded by | None — office abolished |
Governor-General of Scania and Halland | |
In office 1680–1693 |
|
Preceded by | None |
Succeeded by | Otto Vellingk (Scania only) |
Personal details | |
Born |
Berbonen, Courland |
June 2, 1621
Died | April 17, 1693 Gothenburg, Sweden |
(aged 71)
Spouse(s) | Magdalena Eleonora von Bussech |
Children | 25 children, including Margareta von Ascheberg |
Count Rutger von Ascheberg (June 2, 1621 – April 17, 1693) was a soldier, officer and civil servant in Swedish service, being appointed Lieutenant General in 1670, General in 1674, Field Marshal in 1678, Governor General of the Scanian provinces, in 1680, and Royal Councilor in 1681.
Ascheberg was born on the estate Berbonen in Courland on 2 June 1621. He was of an old Westphalian family that had emigrated to Courland in the 16th century. His parents were Wilhelm von Ascheberg and Margaretha von der Osten.
At the age of 13 he served as page for Colonel Brink of the Swedish army fighting in the Thirty Years' War in Germany. He was present at a number of major battles, including the Battle of Nördlingen in 1634.
In 1639 he left the army for studies in France. At the age of 19 he was drafted to a Hessian cavalry regiment in Swedish service. He distinguished himself at the Battle of Wolfenbüttel 1641. In the Battle of Breitenfeld in 1642 he was wounded and captured by the enemy, but later rescued. During the remaining part of the Thirty Years' War, Ascheberg fought under Field Marshals Lennart Torstenson and Carl Gustaf Wrangel. He distinguished himself on a number of occasions and was made Cornet in 1644, Captain Lieutenant in 1645 and Rittmeister in 1646.