Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher

Fürst von Wahlstatt, 1742–1819

Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher was born on 16 December 1742 at Rostock. At the age of 15 he joined a Swedish cavalry regiment at the rank of Leutnant. Blücher was captured near Friedland in 1760, at the Kavalpass border crossing to Pomerania, by hussars of the Prussian Husaren-Regiment von Belling (Nr. 8). Given the choice of a prisoner of war camp or service in the Prussian army, Blücher joined the von Belling regiment. In 1770 he participated in the campaign against Poland, which nearly cost him his military carreer. Young Rittmeister Blücher is said to have tortured a Polish priest to extract a confession from him. King Frederic the Great of Prussian wanted good relations with Poland, and Blücher fell into disgrace. Blücher left the Prussian army in 1773 when he was passed over for promotion. When Frederic the Great died in 1786, Blücher was recalled to active service. He was promoted to Major and returned to his old regiment to command a squadron of hussars.

Prussian Field-Marshal von Blücher In 1789 Blücher received the order Pour le Merite, followed by the order of the Red Eagle in 1794. He fought at Jena and Auerstedt in 1806, and received the order of the Black Eagle in 1807. Blücher served as commander in chief in Swedish Pomerania, and as gouvernor of Pomerania and Neumark until 1811. He was promoted to General of Cavalry in 1809, Supreme Commander of the Silesian Army in 1813, und General-Fieldmarshal on 21 October 1813, following the allied victory at the Battle of Nations at Leipzig.

During the night of 1 January 1814 Blücher’s Silesian Army crossed the Rhine at Kaub. Paris fell to the allies on 31 March and Napoleon abdicated on 11 April. In 1815, Blücher again received the supreme command of the Prussian Army which fought victoriously at the Battle of Waterloo / Belle-Alliance on 18 June. Blücher became a member of the Prussian State Assembly in 1817. The first Blücher monument was erected during his lifetime at his birthplace Rostock. Blücher died on 12 September 1819 and was buried at his farm Krieblowitz in Silesia. On 26 August 1853, Blücher’s cask was moved to his Mausoleum on the Katzbach river where he had fought his first major victory against the French Napoleonic Army.

Available Miniatures

Blücher at Leipzig, 1813 1:30 del Prado Kavallerie 001
British and Prussian Allied General Staff, 1:72 Italeri 6065
Russian and Prussian Chiefs of Staff, 1:72 Strelets 002
Blücher, 1:72 JS 72/0144
Blücher, 20 mm Kennington NP6
Blücher & Staff, 20 mm Hinton Hunt BB95
Blucher and Generals, 15 mm Minifigs 99NPC

Blücher’s Campaign History

Swedish Pomerania, 1760
Poland, 1770
Palatinate, Engagement at Kirrweiler, Luxemburg, Kaiserslautern,
Morschheim, Weidenthal, Edesheim, and Edenkoben, 1794
Jena and Auerstedt, 1806
Lützen, Bautzen, Katzbach, and Leipzig, 1813
Kaub, Champaubert, Montmirail, Chateau Thierry, La Rothière,
Méry, Vauchamps, Craonne, and Laon, 1814
Ligny, and Waterloo, 1815

Bibliography

Allevi, Piersergio: Miniatures, p. 164
Haythornthwaite, Philip: Uniforms of Waterloo in Colour, plate 65
Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon, 6. Auflage 1905–1909

The marble bust of Generalfeldmarschall von Blücher pictured above may be seen at the Walhalle Ruhmes- und Ehrenhalle an der Donau at Regensburg, Germany.

Frequently Asked Questions

For further information and updates, please join us on facebook or in the Miniatures Forum.

Prussian Napoleonic Miniatures