Hans Joachim von Zieten
| Hans Joachim von Zieten | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Nickname(s) | Zieten aus dem Busch |
| Born |
14 May 1699 Wustrau, Brandenburg |
| Died | 26 January 1786 (aged 86) Berlin |
| Allegiance |
 Prussia
|
| Service/branch | Army |
| Rank | General of Cavalry |
| Commands held | Zieten Hussars |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards |
Pour le Mérite Black Eagle Order Equestrian statue of Frederick the Great |
Hans Joachim von Zieten, sometimes spelled Johann Joachim von Zeithen, (14 May 1699 – 26 January 1786), also known as Zieten aus dem Busch, was a cavalry general in the Prussian Army. He served in four wars and was instrumental in several victories during the reign of Frederick the Great, most particularly at Hohenfriedberg and Torgau. He is also well known for a raid into the Holy Roman Empire during the Second Silesian War, known as Zieten's Ride. After engaging in a reputed 74 duels, and fighting in four wars, he died in his bed at the age of 86.
Zieten was born on 14 May 1699 in the hamlet of Wustrau, now part of Fehrbellin, in the Margraviate of Brandenburg. His father was Joachim Matthias (1657–1720) and his mother, Catharine Jurgass. The family had lived there for several hundred years; records show them founding a Latin School in the mid-fourteenth century. The property was small and the family referred to the ramshackle house as a calliope. His father shared the property with his brother, Hans Dietrich; when the brother died in 1693, the father owned the property outright, valued at 4,000 thalers. Zieten was the third of seven children; by 1720, when his father died, only four children remained. Wustrau came to Zieten and his three sisters. The estate was valued at 8,000 thalers, of which the maintenance of the mother had to be fulfilled and his sisters' inheritances and dowries paid. This left Zieten with about half of the value.
A neighbor, General von Schwendy of Buskow, took Zieten in 1715 as corporal in his regiment in Neuruppin. On 7 July 1722, Zieten became a cadet. Upon his appointment as governor of Spandau, Schwendy, who had been Zieten's mentor, released his regiment to command of Major General Kurt Christoph Graf von Schwerin. In a report to Frederick William I, Zieten was described as "... very small, and of [too] weak [a] voice for commanding." This was sufficient for the so-called soldier-king, who was obsessed with tall men, to overlook Zieten in the promotions lists. On 28 July 1724, Zieten journeyed from Crossen, where his regiment was garrisoned, with a petition for promotion to the King, who then wrote on the margin of the petition that Zieten "shall have his dismissal." Zieten retired to his estates. Two years later, during a stay in Berlin, Zieten heard of the doubling of the dragoon regiment of Wuthenow and obtained a position as lieutenant in this regiment. In 1727, after an argument with his captain (Rittmeister), he was condemned, to a one-year imprisonment on the fortress of Königsberg for disobedience. After returning from the fortress, Zieten challenged the Rittmeister to a duel and he was subsequently cashiered. He went back to Wustrau.
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