Albert, Frederick Augustus
ALBERT, FREDERICK AUGUSTUS, king of Saxony (18281902), was born on the 23rd of April 1828, being the eldest son of Prince John, who succeeded to the throne in 1854. His education was, as is usual with German princes, to a great extent military, but he attended lectures at the university of Bonn. His first experience of warfare was in 1849,'when he served as a captain in the campaign of Schleswig-Holstein against the Danes. When the war of 1866 broke out, the crown-prince was placed in command of the Saxon forces opposing the Prussian army of Prince Frederick Charles. No attempt was made to defend Saxony; the Saxons fell back into Bohemia and effected a junction with the Austrians. They took a prominent part in the battles by which the Prussians forced the line of the Iser and in the battle of Gitchin. The crown-prince, however, succeeded in effecting the retreat in good order, and in the decisive battle of Koniggratz (see SEVEN WEEKS' WAR) he held the extreme loft of the Austrian position. The Saxons maintained their post with great tenacity, but were involved in the disastrous defeat of their allies. During these operations the crown-prince won the reputation of a thorough soldier; after peace was made and Saxony had entered the North German confederation, he was placed in command of the Saxon army, which had now become the XII. army corps of the North German army, and in this position carried out the necessary reorganization. He was a firm adherent of the Prussian alliance. On the outbreak of war in 1870 he again commanded the Saxons, who were included in the 2nd army under Prince Frederick Charles, his old opponent. At the battle of Gravelotte they formed the extreme left of the German army, and with the Prussian Guard carried out the attack on St Privat, the final and decisive action in the battle. In the reorganization of the army which accompanied the march towards Paris the crown-prince was given a separate command over the 4th army (army of the Meuse) consisting of the Saxons, the Prussian Guard corps and the IV. (Prussian Saxony) corps. He was succeeded in command of the XII. corps by his brother Prince George, who had served under him in Bohemia. He took a leading part in the operations which preceded the battle of Sedan, the 4th army being the pivot on which the whole army wheeled round in pursuit of Macmahon; and the actions of Buzancy and Beaumont on the 29th and 30th of August were fought under his direction; in the battle of Sedan itself, with the troops under his orders, he carried out the envelopment of the French on the east and north. His conduct in these engagements won for him the complete confidence of the army, and during the siege of Paris his troops formed the north-east section of the investing force. After the conclusion of the armistice he was left in command of the German army of occupation, a position which he held till the fall of the Commune. On the conclusion of peace he was made an inspector-general of the army and field-marshal. On the death of his father on the 29th of October 1873 he succeeded to the throne. His reign was uneventful, and he took little public part in politics, devoting himself to military affairs, in which his advice and experielice were of the greatest value, not only to the Saxon corps but to the German army in general. In 1897 he was appointed arbitrator between the claimants for the principality of Lippe. King Albert married in 1853 Carola, daughter of Prince Gustavus of Vasa, and granddaughter of the last king of Sweden of the house of Holstein. He died on the 19th of June 1902.
Note - this article incorporates content from Encyclopaedia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, (1910-1911)
