Inhaber
A Proprietor, or Inhaber, was a term used in the
Practical application
When the Inhaber was a famous or royal person, a second colonel was chosen from among the nobility to perform his duties.[1] For example, on 16 September 1789, Friedrich Joseph, Count of Nauendorf, led a successful raid on the island of Borecs in the Danube, which garnered massive amounts of supplies from the Turkish forces.[2] On 9 November of that year, he led four squadrons of his regiment to capture Gladova, 10 miles (16 km) from the so-called Iron Gates of the Danube;[3] he was afterward given command of Hussar Regiment H5 Wurmser, named for Dagobert Sigmund von Wurmser. After Wurmser's death, the regiment became known as Nauendorf.[4]
Authority and powers
The Inhaber possessed wide powers. First, he could appoint company officers, or at least held the right of refusal. Second, he had considerable legal authority over his regiment, much like that of a feudal lord. A Colonel-Inhaber/Colonel Proprietor was originally a noble (or wealthy aristocrat) who raised the regiment. Subsequently, a noble or an officer who had achieved some distinction was appointed to the regimental position as an "honorary" appointment. Each regiment was identified by the Inhaber's name as well as a number, and when the Inhaber changed so did the regimental name.[5]
There were exceptions to this practice: If the appointment was honorary, a "second" colonel was appointed who would fulfill the duties of the colonel.
The Inhaber usually held the position for life: For example,
The Imperial Russian military also used this system, and regiments frequently bore the name of a geographic region from which it was originally raised. For example,
References
- ^ Stephen Herold. The Austrian Army in 1812. In: Le Societé Napoléonienne. Retrieved 31 December 2009.
- ^ (in German) Fr. Vaníček. Specialgeschichte der Militärgrenze: aus Originalquellen und Quellenwerken geschöpft. Wien: Aus der Kaiserlich-Königlichen Hof- und Staatsdruckerei, 1875, pp. 447–448.
- ^ J. R. McCulloch. "Gladova." A dictionary, geographical, statistical, and historical of the various countries, places, and principal natural objects in the world. London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, 1854, p. 903.
- ^ (in German) Jens-Florian Ebert. Die Österreichischen Generäle 1792–1815: Friedrich Freiherr von Hotze. Accessed 15 October 2009;
- ^ Herold. The Austrian Army in 1812.
- ^ Herold. The Austrian Army in 1812.
- ^ Stephen Millar, Austrian Infantry Regiments and Their Commanders 1792-1815: Line Infantry Regiments Nrs. 1-10. In Napoleon Series, Robert Burnham, Editor in chief. 1995-2009. Accessed 31 December 2009.
- ^ (in German) Ebert, "Feldmarschall-Leutnant Fürst zu Fürstenberg," Die Österreichischen Generäle 1792-1815. Retrieved 7 October 2009.
- ^ Herold. The Austrian Army in 1812.
- ^ Herold. The Austrian Army in 1812.
- ^ (in German) Ebert. Die Österreichischen Generäle 1792–1815: Friedrich Freiherr von Hotze; (in German) Katja Hürlimann. Johann Konrad (Friedrich von Hotze) Archived 1 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine. Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz, 15 January 2008 edition, accessed 18 October 2009; and Joseph Lins. "Saint Petersburg." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 17 Oct. 2009.
Sources
- (in German) Ebert, Jens-Florian. Die Österreichischen Generäle 1792–1815: Friedrich Freiherr von Hotze. Accessed 15 October 2009;
- (in German) Hürlimann, Katja. Johann Konrad (Friedrich von Hotze).
- Herold, Stephen. The Austrian Army in 1812. In: Le Societé Napoléonienne. Accessed 31 December 2009.
- Lins, Joseph. "Saint Petersburg." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 17 Oct. 2009.
- McCulloch, J. R. "Gladova." A dictionary, geographical, statistical, and historical of the various countries, places, and principal natural objects in the world. London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, 1854.
- Millar, Stephen. Austrian Infantry Regiments and Their Commanders 1792-1815: Line Infantry Regiments Nrs. 1-10. In Napoleon Series, Robert Burnham, Editor in chief. 1995–2009. Accessed 31 December 2009.
- (in German) Vaníček, Fr. Specialgeschichte der Militärgrenze: aus Originalquellen und Quellenwerken geschöpft. Wien: Aus der Kaiserlich-Königlichen Hof- und Staatsdruckerei, 1875.