Ernst von Rüchel Ernst von Rüchel ( 21 July 1754 – 14 January 1823 ) was a Prussia n general who fought in the army of the Kingdom of Prussia during the French Revolutionary Wars . Afterward he held various appointments as a diplomat and a military inspector . In 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars he held an important army command but was involved in the crushing defeat at the Battle of Jena - Auerstedt . Wounded , he managed to escape the French pursuit , but never commanded troops in combat again . Early career . Rüchel was born on 21 July 1754 in Ziezeneff in Prussian Pomerania ( modern Cieszeniewo , Poland ) . With the rank of Oberst ( colonel ) , Rüchel fought against the First French Republic during the War of the First Coalition . During the Siege of Mainz from 10 April to 23 July 1793 , he commanded a brigade consisting of the " Thadden " and " Legat " Fusilier Battalions and the " Wolframsdorf " Grenadier Battalion . After promotion to General - Major , he led the Prussian contingent during the Second Battle of Wissembourg . The units coming under his orders were eight battalions in the Infantry Regiments " Kleist " # 12 , " Wolframsdorf " # 37 , and " Hertzberg " # 47 , two foot jäger companies , three squadrons of the " Wolfradt " Hussar Regiment # 6 , one and a half horse artillery batteries , and a half 6 - pound foot battery . On 23 May 1794 , Rüchel led a column in a minor Prussian victory at the Battle of Kaiserslautern . On this occasion he led three battalions each of the Infantry Regiments " Rüchel " # 30 and " Wolframsdorf " , the " Ernst " Fusilier Battalion # 19 , three foot jäger companies , three squadrons each of the " Eben " Hussar Regiment # 2 and " Voss " Dragoon Regiment # 11 , two foot artillery batteries , and one horse artillery battery . At the Peace of Basel in 1795 , Prussian abandoned the First Coalition to concentrate her energies on the Third Partition of Poland . 1806 and later . In 1806 Rüchel was the commander - in - chief of the Infantry Regiment # 2 . During the War of the Fourth Coalition , Rüchel was given command of the westernmost of the three Prussian armies . The other two armies were led by Charles William Ferdinand , Duke of Brunswick and Frederick Louis , Prince of Hohenlohe - Ingelfingen . In early October , Hohenlohe ' s army assembled near Rudolstadt and Brunswick ' s at Erfurt . Rüchel ' s army was split between Eisenach and Gotha with Karl August , Grand Duke of Saxe - Weimar - Eisenach ' s division farther south at Schmalkalden and Johann Friedrich von Winning ' s detachment at Vacha . Emperor Napoleon I of France thrust his 180 , 000 - man army through the Frankenwald , winning the Battle of Schleiz on 9 October and the Battle of Saalfeld on 10 October . The Prussian high command concentrated their armies on the west bank of the Saale River . They planned for Brunswick to move north toward Halle , while Hohenlohe covered his eastern flank by defending at Jena . On 14 October , Brunswick ' s army ran head on into Louis Davout ' s III Corps near Auerstedt and was badly defeated . Meanwhile , Napoleon fell on Hohenlohe at the Battle of Jena with the bulk of his army . Rüchel had been told to stay at Weimar until Saxe - Weimar ' s division arrived . He made the soldierly decision to march at once with his 15 , 000 troops to assist Hohenlohe . Unfortunately , by the time his corps arrived , the battle was lost . Historian David G . Chandler argues that Rüchel was unfairly criticized for his belated appearance . He received news of the battle at 9 : 00 AM and left his camp at Weimar immediately . His troops marched five kilometers in one hour , then they deployed from march columns into platoon columns with flank guards out and the artillery at the ready . At 10 : 30 AM , he got a misleading note from Hohenlohe saying that the battle was going well . Around noon Hohenlohe sent him another message asking for immediate assistance . Just before his troops reached Kapellendorf around 1 : 00 PM , a courier brought news that the Prussian army was defeated . It took Rüchel a total of four hours to move 12 kilometers , including the time it took to break camp ; this was not a slow pace by Prussian standards . He brought 15 , 000 troops and 40 field pieces to the battlefield . Altogether , there were 25 squadrons from five cavalry regiments , three foot jäger companies , 14 musketeer battalions from seven infantry regiments , four fusilier battalions , two grenadier battalions , three foot batteries , and two horse batteries . Christian Karl August Ludwig von Massenbach , Hohenlohe ' s chief of staff , directed Rüchel to move east from Kapellendorf . Dutifully , he advanced his corps across the Herressener Bach in echelon order , but with both flanks in the air . Chandler notes that the unwise decision to attack was Hohenlohe ' s . Soon after it was committed to battle , Hohenlohe rode up to take personal command of the corps . Though the French V Corps of Marshal Jean Lannes was stopped in its tracks , Rüchel ' s left was soon turned by one of Marshal Nicolas Soult ' s IV Corps divisions . Instructing his cavalry to cover a retreat , Rüchel ordered his infantry to fall back . His cavalry came under a terrific bombardment by French artillery and the regiments were thrown into confusion . At this moment , Marshal Joachim Murat directed the French Reserve Cavalry into the contest , with a division of cuirassiers in the lead . Without cavalry protection , Rüchel ' s troops were ridden over and sent fleeing to the rear in irretrievable rout . Wounded , Rüchel narrowly avoided capture during the next few weeks . During the maneuvers that ended in the Battle of Eylau on 7 and 8 February 1807 , Rüchel commanded the 4 , 000 - strong Prussian garrison of Königsberg . At that time , Anton Wilhelm von L ' Estocq led the 9 , 000 - man Prussian field force . Rüchel died on 14 January 1823 in Haseleu , Pomerania .