|
Gustav
Eduard von Hindersin
(18.07.1804 - 25.01.1872)
place of birth: Wernigerode, Provinz
Sachsen (Prussian Saxony)
Königreich
Preußen: General-Inspektor
der Artillerie, General der Infanterie
Prussian general of Scottish ancestry who, although born the
son of a priest, spent his early life in great poverty. These early
struggles contributed to his developing an iron strength of character.
Entering the Prussian artillery in 1820 he became an officer in 1825
and was posted to the Great General Staff in 1841. In 1849, he served
as a major on the staff of General Peucker, who commanded a corps in
the suppression of the Baden insurrection.
Hindersin fell into the hands of the
insurgents while engaged at Ladenburg. In the
Danish war of 1864, he was a lieutenant general and directed the
artillery operations against the lines of Düppel.
For his services, he was elevated into the German nobility by King of
Prussia Wilhelm I. Soon afterwards, von Hindersin became Inspector
General of Artillery. Von Hindersin's experience at Düppel
had convinced him that the days of the smooth-bore gun were past, and
he now devoted himself to the rearmament and reorganization
of the Prussian artillery.
Far more important was his work in connection
with the field and horse batteries. In 1864, only one battery in four
had rifled guns, but by the outbreak of the Austro-Prussian
War of 1866, the ratio was five to eight. Besides the
superiority of the rifled gun, these battles proved there was a marked
absence of tactical efficiency within Prussian artillery, which was
almost always outmatched by that of the enemy. Indeed, the German
artillery played by far the most important part in the victories of the
Franco-German War of 1870. Von Hindersin
accompanied the Kaiser’s headquarters as Chief of Artillery, observing
the actions at Gravelotte and Sedan,
as well as the Siege of Paris.
|
