Wilhelm von Freytag Heinrich Wilhelm von Freytag ( March 17 , 1720 , Estorf – January 2 , 1798 , Hannover ) was an officer in the service of the Electorate of Brunswick - Lüneburg ( Hanover ) . Career . B . 1720 in Estorf , Freytag rose to prominence during the Seven Years War , organising & commanding a corps of light infantry , the " Freytag Jägers " . at the Battle of Bergen 17 April 1759 he commanding 9 companies of Jägers & 2 squadrons of Prussian Hussars . Promoted Field Marshal in 1792 , he was appointed to raise and command the 3 , 873 man Hanoverian electoral contingent to the Holy Roman Empire . This force was absorbed into the general army mobilization at the end of 1792 . Freytag commanded the Hanoverian troops and the 13 – 15 , 000 man Austro - Hanoverian corps under the Duke of York in the Flanders Campaign in 1793 , seeing action at Rüme ( St . Amand ) 1 May , Famars 23rd , the siege of Valenciennes 13 June - 28 July , and Cæsar ’ s Camp 7 / 8 August . In the Siege of Dunkirk he commanded the left wing covering column . On 6 September he was driven back by Houchard at the Battle of Hondschoote , where he was wounded and captured , but rescued the following day by Wallmoden ’ s counter - attack . He resigned soon after due to poor relations with the Duke of York & was replaced by Wallmoden . Freytag died on 2nd January 1798 in Hanover . Assessment . He knew the Duke of York from when the Prince studied in Hanover in the 1780s . Relations between the two were seriously strained right from the beginning of the campaign . At St . Amand 1st May York tried to locate him & Bussche to bring their troops forward , “ but found neither at home , because they too had ridden out to reconnoitre , which annoyed the Duke very much , because he had expected to find them in their quarters . The Duke then went to Rüme , but first ordered the Light Dragoons to advance . The Field Marshal , however , forbade their marching , and it was only after fresh orders that they set out , but arrived too late … The Field Marshal declined to sit by the Duke at his table that day , and left before the joints were served ” . Fortescue claims that his 21 - mile front in advance of Hondschoote was badly chosen , stamped him as a believer in the cordon system , and that a shorter front around the village would have been better . But Burne persuasively challenges this by citing 5 reasons for the weakness of Hondschoote – “ it is difficult to see on what grounds Fortescue asserts that ‘ the position at Hondschoote would have covered the besiegers quite as efficiently and with less risk ’ . In my opinion Freytag occupied the best possible position ; his mistake was that he was forgetful of the principal of maintenance of the objective – namely , to cover the besieging army – till pulled up sharply and rightly by the Duke … The fact that even without the Duke ’ s aid Freytag very nearly held up the French is a clear indication that with it the victory would almost certainly have gone to the Allies ” . The Duke of York criticised his actions in the battle thus : “ On the 6th of September , the day of the first attack upon the Field Marshal ’ s Corps , He never would believe that the Enemy had forced the post on His left and turned His left flank in spite of repeated reports that were sent to Him , nor was it till six in the evening , that he consented to retreat , which he did in two Columns . Instead however of sending the Artillery and baggage with General Count Walmoden ’ s Column which was the furthest from the Enemy , He chose to take them in the rear of His own Column . I shall not touch upon the subject of His and my brother Adolphus ’ s being taken prisoners . I do not imagine there can be two opinions on the subject . I will only say that in consequence of this misfortune , everything would have been lost if it had not been for the presence of mind and coolness of Count Walmoden ” .