Friedrich Joseph, Count of Nauendorf

Who was Friedrich Joseph, Count of Nauendorf?

Friedrich Joseph of Nauendorf, a general and field marshal in Habsburg service during the French Revolutionary Wars, was noted for his intrepid and daring raids.

Like most Austrian generals of the French Revolutionary Wars, he joined the military as a young man, and served in the War of Bavarian Succession, in which he took part in its first action by successfully repelling a Prussian border raid, which earned him the admiration of the Empress Maria Theresa's son, Joseph. His continued success in the Habsburg Border wars with the Ottoman Empire added to his reputation as a commander.

In the Wars of the First and Second Coalitions, his forces were vital to the successful relief of Mainz, and his commands captured the French siege train and most of the supplies during the French evacuation. In the campaigns in Swabia, he commanded the advanced guard, and later the center of the main column at the Battle of Stockach on 25 March 1799. At the First Battle of Zürich in 1799, he commanded the right wing in the Austrian victory of André Massena's force. After the Swabian and Swiss campaigns, he retired in poor health, and died in 1801.