Hieronymus Karl Graf von Colloredo-Mansfeld, 1775-1822

Hieronymus Karl, Graf von Colloredo-Mansfield was an Austrian general who served throughout the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.

Colloredo entered the army in 1792 as an Oberleutnant on Clerfayt's staff. He commanded infantry in the early part of the war.

He commanded one of nine Allied columns at the battle of Famars or Valenciennes (23 May 1793), with the task of watching Valenciennes from the north-east.

He commanding Wurmser's advance guard in 1796 and took part in the campaigns in Switzerland.

In July 1796 he was the temporary commander of the Austrian army when Jourdan made his second crossing of the Rhine. He soon found his position threatened on both flanks, and on 5 July withdrew to the Lahn. After a few days he withdrew further, to the Main.

In 1805 he was promoted to Generalmajor, and commanded the Grenadiers at the battle of Caldiero, helping to fight off several French attempts to capture the village. He was rewarded with the Maria Theresa Order.

In 1809 he commanded a series of rearguard actions.

War of Liberation 1813 - Autumn Campaign
War of Liberation 1813 -
Autumn Campaign

In 1813 he commanded a division on the Allied left during the battle of Dresden, part of the right wing of the Austrian army. His task was to attack Redoubt No. III with 15,000 Austrian troops. His attack got close to the redoubt, but then collapsed under heavy French fire, and had to retreat. On the second day he was in a similar position, on the Austrian right, which was close to the centre of the Allied line. This was the area that the Allies expected Napoleon to attack, but instead he focused on the flanks.

He played a major part in the defeat of Marshal Vandamme at Kulm, a victory that cancelled any benefit that Napoleon had gained from his victory at Dresden.

During the campaign he was promoted to Feldzeugmeister. He began the Leipzig campaign in the Dresden area, reaching Zehista, to the east of Dresden on 8 October. Two days later the Allies besieged Dresden, but Colloredo soon moved off to join the main army. He reached Leipzig on 17 October, the second day of the battle, approaching from the south. He was expected at 6am, but didn't arrive until 10am, and his troops were exhausted from their march. This was one of the reasons that the Allied high command decided not to attack until 18 October.

On 18 October his troops formed I Corps, and were posted on Schwarzenberg's left, under the command of the Prince of Hessen-Homburg. Their task was to advance up the right bank of the Pleisse, to attack Leipzig via Markkleeberg and Losnig. This attack ran into fierce resistance, and Hessen-Homburg was wounded and replaced by Colloredo. His forces were heavily engaged for most of the day, but were unable to make much progress past Losnig. However they did cripple Poniatowski's Polish forces.

His original orders for 19 October included a strong pursuit of Napoleon, but these were cancelled at midnight on 18-19 October, leaving him the role of pressing Leipzig from the south.

He took part in the invasion of France of 1814 and was badly wounded at Troyes in February.

He was said to have had a lively spirit and a strong constitution.

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How to cite this article: Rickard, J (23 October 2017), Hieronymus Karl Graf von Colloredo-Mansfeld, 1775-1822 , http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/people_colloredo_mansfeld.html

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