Hugo von Kottwitz

Hugo Karl Ernst Freiherr von Kottwitz (6 January 1815 – 13 May 1897) was a Silesian General of the Infantry and veteran of the Austro-Prussian War.

Ancestry

Hugo's paternal ancestry was the Kottwitz family, a Polish-Silesian family which traces it roots to the 13th century and had connections with the Order of the Teutonic Knights. The earliest Kottwitz was Hugo de Kottwitz who lived in the late 1100s and the early 1200s. The family were well-respected in the German lands and were praised by various monarchs including Frederick Barbarossa and Frederick II.

Hugo's maternal ancestry was the Birckhahn family. Birckhahn's were a noble family who traced their roots to Mecklenburg but moved to Prussia. Several Birckhahn's were high-ranking military and political figures, including: Jakob von Birckhahn (1580–1585), district administrator and chief magistrate of Riesenburg, Jakob Albrecht von Birkhahn (1733–1801), Prussian major general, Wilhelm von Birckhahn (1744–1819), District Administrator of the Pless district, Siegmund Ernst von Birckhahn, Prussian captain, 1745 Knight of the Order Pour le Mérite.

Early life Hugo was born in Silesia in 1815 to Karl Emil Rudolf Freiherr von Kottwitz (1785–1857) and Auguste von Birckhahn (1791–1863).

For the duration of the mobile deployment during the Franco-Prussian War, Kottwitz was appointed commander of the 33rd Infantry Brigade on 18 July 1870. This brigade consisted of the Hanseatic Regiments Nos. 75 and 76. It was subordinate to the 17th Infantry Division and part of the VIII Army Corps under the command of the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg. Kottwitz participated in the encirclement of Metz, Toul, and Paris. In November 1870, he was part of the German advance towards Le Mans. His brigade's successful attack on the town of Loigny and the subsequent holding of this position were crucial to the victory at the Battle of Loigny and Poupry on 2 December 1870. After the capture of Orléans, he participated in the decisive victory over the Army of the Loire at Le Mans.

Family On 26 October 1839, Hugo married Alwine Adelaide Rosalie Charlotte von Eicke (1819–1892). Hugo and Alwine had two children: Hugo Karl Alfred Eugen Kottwitz and Alfred Kurt Ludwig Kottwitz.