AN IMPORTANT MILITARY GENERAL SERVICE 1793 TO A KING’S GERMAN LEGION OFFICER, WHO WAS WOUNDED BEFORE BAYONNE IN 1814. AS SENIOR ADC TO GENERAL VON ALTEN, COMMANDER OF THE 3RD DIVISION AT QUATRE BRAS AND WATERLOO . HE HAD THE HONOUR OF TAKING THE WATERLOO DISPATCHES TO HANOVER ON THE 22ND JUNE 1815 AND WAS REWARDED WITH A PROMOTION AND THE HANOVERIAN GUELPHIC ORDER 3RD CLASS IN 1815. IN LATER LIFE WAS GOVERNOR TO PRINCE ALBERT, FUTURE HUSBAND OF QUEEN VICTORIA AND GIVEN THE TITLE BARON

MILITARY GENERAL SERVICE 1793-1814, 5 CLASPS, CIUDAD RODRIGO, VITTORIA, ST. SEBASTIAN, NIVELLE, NIVE ‘GEO. WICHMANN, LIEUT. 1ST LINE BN. K.G.L.’

Baron George Christian Wichmann, aged 24, was appointed an Ensign in the 1st Line Battalion King’s German Legion on September 20, 1810. Promoted to Lieutenant on October 30, 1812, he served with the regiment in the Peninsula in 1811, 1812 and 1813; in the South of France in 1813 and 1814. Taking part in the assaults on Ciudad Rodrigo and St Sebastian, siege and retreat at Burgos, Tordesillas, battle of Vittoria, crossing of the Bidassoa, battles of Nivelle, Nive, St Etienne and Bayonne. He was slightly wounded before Bayonne on February 27, 1814.

At the storming of the churchyard at St Etienne, before Bayonne, on 27 February. It was intended that the centre of the enemy’s position should be attacked by the Line brigade of the K.G.L. (1st, 2nd and 5th); the right by the 1st and 2nd Light brigade, and the left by the guards. However, the movement against the centre was commenced before that against the flanks, and the brunt of the action fell upon the line battalions of the Legion. Stormed and captured at the point of the bayonet, the entrenched positions on the heights of St Etienne became the object of a French counter-attack late in the afternoon. This was successfully driven back with the bayonet, as was a renewed attempt half an hour later before the French finally gave up their prize. The loss of the Legion on the 27th February was extremely severe, with no less than four officers dead and 23 wounded, for the most part severely, and some 300 casualties amongst the rank and file……………….

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Fitted with silver ribbon buckle, old repair to one side of bottom carriage, otherwise very fine. Accompanied by copies of his service records from the National Archives and a photocopy of page 573 from the book entitled "History of the King's German Legion".

Provenance: Lawson Whalley Collection 1884; Colonel Musgrove Collection 1912; Glendining, April 1926; Wallis & Wallis, July 2005; Dix Noonan Webb, December 2013. His Waterloo medal has not been noted as extent