Hieronymus Freiherr Ziemiecki von Ziemiecin
Hieronymus
Freiherr von Ziemiecki was born on the 7th of September 1817 at Kalisch and
received his military education at the Royal Saxon Noble Cadet School in Dresden
from which he graduated on the 1st of July 1833 as a Portépée-Junker in the
1st Saxon Reiter Regiment. Commissioned as a Leutnant in 1834 and promoted to
Oberleutnant in 1839 he served as the adjutant to Prinz August of
Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha from the 1st of October 1846 until the middle of February
1848. Promoted to Rittmeister in December 1847 he was assigned to the
General Headquarters in Dresden on the 1st of March 1848 and on the 1st of
October the same year he was appointed as the adjutant to the cavalry brigade.
Assigned as a squadron commander in the 2nd Reiter Regiment on the 1st of May
1849 he participated in the fighting against the revolutionaries in Dresden and
at Lebda. He then took over a flying column of rifle and mounted troops with
which he pacified the villages of Northern Saxony.
On the 24th of September 1851 he transferred into the army of
the Duchy of Nassau as a Major as the personal adjutant of Herzog Adolph and
chief of the military chancery. He was promoted to Oberstleutnant on the 7th of
May 1855 and to Oberst in 1862. He was at this time described by his colleagues as being
well-educated and polite, but it was also known that he and some other catholic
officials at the court of Duke Adolph formed a clique which had considerable
influence on the politics of the Duke. This influence was in the 1860's mainly
in favour of
Austria
. This also led to the re-uniforming of the army of Nassau in 1862, when it was
outfitted following the Austrian fashion apart from the infantry which still
retained their Prussian based uniforms. Promoted to Generalmajor and Adjutant
General in 1865, Freiherr von Ziemiecki involved himself in the instruction of
the troops as well as in diplomatic missions on behalf of the Duke. He was
appointed the plenipotentiary for the Federal Ninth Corps to the Federal
Military Commission on the 1st of March 1866 and took part in the
Austro-Prussian war with the Federal Eight Corps.
Following
the defeat, Freiherr von Ziemiecki on behalf of the Duke released the army
of Nassau from its oath and with the incorporation of the Duchy of Nassau into
the state of Prussia he transferred into Austrian service on the 16th of
February 1867 as a Generalmajor. He was appointed commander of the 4th Infantry
Division on the 3rd of July 1869 followed by his promotion on the 2nd of October
of the same year to Feldmarschall-Lieutenant. Assigned as the military commander
in Kassa on the 29th of July 1874, he was appointed a privy councillor on the
9th of April 1876 and on the 20th of December the same year as the regimental
colonel or Inhaber of Infantry Regiment Number 36. He retired on the 1st of
April 1878 and was promoted to the brevet rank of Feldzeugmeister (mit Titel und
Charakter) with effect from the 6th
March 1878. Hieronymus Freiherr Ziemiecki von Ziemiecin died at Krakow on
the 25th of February 1906.
Among the General's many orders and decorations were the
following: Order of the Iron Crown 2nd Class, Knight's Cross of the Order of
Leopold, Grand Cross of the Royal Württemberg Friedrichs Order, Grand Cross of
the Royal Belgian Leopold Order, Grand Cross of the Royal Greek Order of the
Redeemer, Grand Cross of the Duchy of Nassau Order of Adolph with Swords,
Commanders Cross of the Saxon Order of Albrecht First Class, Commanders Cross of
the Royal Swedish Sword Order, Commanders Cross of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
Order of the Oak-Crown, Commanders Cross of the Duchy of Anhalt House Order of
Albert the Bear, Commanders Cross Second Class of the Imperial Russian Order of
Saint Anne, Commanders Cross Second Class of the Imperial Russian Order of
Stanislaus with Crown, Commanders Cross of the Royal Prussian Red Eagle
Order, Commanders Cross of the French Legion of Honour, Commanders Cross of the
Royal Württemberg Crown Order, Commanders Cross of the Grand Duchy of Hesse
Order of Philipp, Commanders Cross of the Electoral Hesse Order of Wilhelm,
Commanders Cross of the Grand Duchy of Sachsen-Weimar Order of the White Falcon,
Knights Cross of the Royal Portuguese Tower and Sword Order and holder of the
Duchy of Nassau Campaign Medal 1866.
Freiherr Ziemiecki von Ziemiecin
as pictured in the 1889 "Armee Album"
Many thanks to David Müldner for the photograph of Freiherr
Ziemiecki as an officer in Nassau service and additional text information.
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