Ludwig Yorck von Wartenburg
| Johann David Ludwig Graf Yorck von Wartenburg | |
|---|---|
Portrait by Ernst Gebauer, 1835
|
|
| Born |
26 September 1759 Potsdam, Brandenburg Kingdom of Prussia |
| Died | 4 October 1830 (aged 71) Klein-Öls, Silesia (today Oleśnica Mała, Poland) |
| Allegiance |
 Kingdom of Prussia Dutch Republic
|
| Service/branch |
Prussian Army Dutch Army |
| Years of service | 1772–1779 1782–1785 1785/1786–1821 |
| Rank |
Generalfeldmarschall (Prussia) Captain (Netherlands) |
| Battles/wars |
War of the Bavarian Succession Kościuszko Uprising Napoleonic Wars |
| Awards |
Grand Cross of the Iron Cross Pour le Mérite Order of St. George |
Johann David Ludwig Graf Yorck von Wartenburg (26 September 1759 – 4 October 1830) was a Prussian Generalfeldmarschall instrumental in the switching of the Kingdom of Prussia from a French alliance to a Russian alliance during the War of the Sixth Coalition. Ludwig van Beethoven's "Yorckscher Marsch" is named in his honor.
The Field Marshal's surname is Yorck; Wartenburg is a battle-honour appended to the surname as a title of distinction (cf. Britain's Montgomery of Alamein).
Yorck's father, David Jonathan von Yorck, was born in Rowe in the Prussian Province of Pomerania (today Rowy, Poland), to Jan Jarka, a Lutheran pastor, whose family came from a small manor in Gross Gustkow (hence the name von Gostkowski) and traced its origins from Pomeranian Kashubians. David Jonathan von Yorck served as a captain (Hauptmann) in the Prussian Army under King Frederick the Great; Yorck's mother Maria Sophia Pflug was the daughter of a Potsdam artisan. Their son Ludwig was born in Potsdam, however, the couple did not marry until 1763. Ludwig's father changed his name from Jark(a) to Yorck to make it look more English (York) and dropped the von Gostkowski.
...
Wikipedia