Friedrich Wilhelm , Fürst zu Hohenlohe - Kirchberg Friedrich William , Fürst zu Hohenlohe - Kirchberg was born in Kirchberg , Hohenlohe , ( now part of Baden - Württemberg , Germany ) on 2 December 1732 . He was a member of an old comital and , subsequently , princely ( " Fürstlich " ) family of Hohenlohe , with extensive properties on the plateau south of the Main river , between the Imperial City of Schwäbisch Hall and the old Franconian city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber . He served a distinguished career in Austrian military in the Seven Years War , the War of Bavarian Succession , and the French Revolutionary Wars . An experienced , if old - fashioned , general , he was chosen to mentor the young Archduke Charles , who was assigned to his staff during the 1792 campaign in France . From 1780 until his death , he was the Colonel - Proprietor of the 17th Infantry Regiment . Early career . Hohenlohe - Kirchberg began his military career in 1756 , when he joined the Habsburg regiment , the 29th Infantry Regiment " Braunschweig - Wolfenbüttel " as a young man . He served as a captain of grenadiers in the Seven Years War . He was twice wounded , first at the famous Battle of Leuthen , and later at the Battle of Landshut , during the storming of Prussian redoubt s . In 1758 , he was promoted to major , in 1761 , to lieutenant colonel , and in 1764 , to colonel . He served under Gideon von Laudon in the short War of the Bavarian Succession , also called the Potato War for its lack of battles but its intense raiding of the enemy ' s food supplies . After this conflict , which took place in Bohemia ( present - day Czech Republic ) , he was promoted to Lieutenant Field Marshal ( " Feldmarschal - Leutnant " ) and served in the Austro - Turkish War , again under the command of von Laudon . He orchestrated the Austrian victory over the Turks at Persenji . After the Walachia campaign , he received the Commander ' s Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa and was appointed as Colonel - Proprietor ( Inhaber ) of the 17th Infantry Regiment , a position he held until his death in 1796 . On 15 October 1789 , he was promoted again , to general of infantry , or " Feldzeugmeister " , and appointed as Commanding General in Transylvania , in the so - called Siebenbürgen . French Revolutionary Wars . In 1792 , he was initially placed in command of the 50 , 000 Austrian forces in the Upper Rhine Valley . In August , his forces crossed the Rhine by Mannheim , and participated in the bombardment of Thionville , on the Moselle , in early September . Although the invading forces of the allies readily captured Longwy on 23 August and slowly marched on to Verdun , which was even less defensible than Longwy . The Duke of Brunswick now began his march on Paris and approached the defiles of the Argonne . In combination with the Army of Condé and Hessian troops , a portion of his force , 15 , 000 , covered the left ( southern ) flank of the Prussian advance on Valmy . As a seasoned and experienced officer , he had been chosen as a mentor for the young Archduke Charles , and the archduke was assigned to his force ; they were not at Valmy , but could hear the cannonade . The Duke of Brunswick ' s force was to engage the northern flank of the French army , called the Army of the Sedan , while Hohenlohe - Kirchberg ' s force engaged the southern flank ( Army of the Metz ) . In December of 1792 , Hohenlohe - Kirchberg ' s forces defended Trier from the Army of the Moselle so well that its commander , General of Division Pierre de Ruel , marquis de Beurnonville , was removed from his command by his superiors in Paris . On 31 December , Hohenlohe - Kirchberg was awarded the Grand Cross of Military Order of Maria Theresa for his success at Trier . In May 1793 , his forces played a decisive role in the victory at the Battle of Famars . He was appointed as General Quarter Master and Chief of Staff to the Coalition ' s main army in Flanders , succeeding General Karl Mack . As part of the Belgian Corps under Field Marshal Saxe - Coburg - Saalfeld he played a decisive role in the action at Avesnes - le - Sec and later at the Battle of Fleurus ( 1794 ) . Subsequently , Hohenlohe - Kirchberg commanded a corps on the upper Rhine and was responsible for the recapture of Speyer from the French on 17 September 1794 . This was his final military action ; he retired from service in early 1795 because of his failing health and died in 1796 . Family . Born in the family county of Hohenlohe , Friedrich Wilhelm ( William ) was the first son of Karl August , Fürst zu Hohenlohe - Kirchberg and his second wife , Susanne Margarete Louisa , Gräfin von Auersperg . Eight other children followed until her death 12 September 1748 . His father remarried ( 21 January 1749 ) and had four more children . In 1770 , Friedrich Wilhelm married the divorced Frederike , Countess of Reuss zu Greiz ( Greiz 9 July 1750 – Prague 14 June 1816 ) ; they had no children . He died in Prague , Bohemia , 10 August 1796 . Sibling connections . Seven of his 12 siblings died before the age of ten . The surviving siblings were :