Ernst von Mansfeld

Peter Ernst II von Mansfeld (often shortened in Ernst von Mansfeld ) was one of the most famous active men of war at the beginning of the Guerre Thirty Year old. It was born towards 1580 and died the November 29th 1629 with Rakowitza, village of Bosnia.

He was the illegitimate son of Peter Ernst I von Mansfeld, governor of Luxembourg and Brussels; he passed his youth in the palate of his father to Luxembourg and was high in the faith Catholique. He entered the military career and fought first of all in Hungary near his half-brother Charles (1543-1595), senior officer of the army of the Germanic Roman Holy roman Empire. He was used also for the Netherlands the archduke Léopold, brother of the emperor. For its announced states of service, it was legitimated by the emperor Rodolphe II. However, a not held promise (it was private heritage of his father in the Netherlands) made it pass in the row of the enemies of Habsbourg.

It joined the camp of the Protestants in 1610 and served their cause henceforth, becoming their main leader of war when the revolt of Bohemia burst or it was dispatched with 2 000 men by the duke, Charles-Emmanuel of Savoy. He took Pilsen (Plzen) but was beaten by the imperial ones ordered by Buquoy with the Bataille of Sablat the June 10th 1619. He offered then his services to Ferdinand II but practically remained without employment during the events which ended in the escape of Prague of the Elector Palatine and king elected Frederic V.

This one offered soon the command to him of its army, which it folded up in Haut-Palatinat in 1621. Tilly continued it in this retirement but did not manage to neutralize it. Haut-Palatinat, it passed in Rhenish Palatinat. It released Frankenthal and took Haguenau. In company of the Elector Palatine who had joined it, they inflicted a defeat with the count de Tilly with the Bataille of Wiesloch the April 25th 1622 then plundered the Alsace and the Hesse. But the devastations of the troops carried out by Mansfeld were not limited to the enemy regions, they were also exerted with the detriment of the areas of which it was to ensure defense, which shocked strong its silent partner.

Frederic V was finally constrained to lay off it with its troops. He united then with the count Christian of Brunswick against Rodolphe II of the Holy roman Empire and together, they passed in Lorraine, devastating all on their passage. Then they forced a stopping of the Spaniards to the battles of Fleurus the August 29th 1622, to go to carry hand-strong to besieged Bergen-COp-Zoom. It thus passed to the service United Provinces then occupied the Eastern Frise, taking thestrong ones and inflicting severe exactions on the populations. Chief of mercenaries and mercenary himself, Mansfeld often suspended his military campaigns to find funds, i.e. to sell his services with highest offerer. In this activity, it was of a remarkable skill.

Towards 1624 it made three voyages to London where it was acclaimed like a hero by the rabble, and at least with Paris. The king of England Jacques Ier ardently wished to provide him subsidies and men to reconquer Palatinat (his/her daughter Elisabeth Stuart being the woman of Frederic V) but it was only in January 1626 which Mansfeld and its army of “made people of bag and cords” passed by again of Dover in the Netherlands. The same year, the engagements began again following the intervention of king de Danemark, Christian IV. He returned to Germany to take part in it and took a command in the Danish army. The April 25th 1626, Albrecht von Wallenstein inflicted to him a very heavy defeat with the bridge of Dessau. Very quickly, he managed to raise a new army which he intended to direct against the hereditary grounds of the House of Austria. Continued by Wallenstein, it moved then towards the Hungary where it hoped to find the support of the prince of Transylvania Gabriel Bethlen.

But this last changed policy then and signed the peace of Nikolsburg with the emperor. Mansfeld was constrained to lay off its army. It left towards Venice to raise new troops there but fell seriously sick on the way. He died reconciled with the Catholic church. He was buried with Spalato.

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