August Karl Von Goeben (1816-1880) was a Prussian general of infantry. The Kingdom of Prussia existed from 1701 until 1918, and from 1871 was the leading kingdom of the German Empire, comprising in its last form almost two-thirds of the area of the Empire. ... Infantry of the 36th Ulster Division, in the First World War Infantry are soldiers who fight primarily on foot, mainly with small arms and operate within organized military units. ...

General von Goeben

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Early Career

Born at Stade on the 10th of December 1816, he aspired from his earliest years to the Prussian service rather than that of his own country, and at the age of seventeen obtained a commission in the 24th regiment of Prussian infantry. But there was little scope there for the activities of a young and energetic subaltern, and, leaving the service in 1836, he entered the Carlist army campaigning in Spain. In the five campaigns which he made in the service of Don Carlos he had many and various vicissitudes of fortune. He had not fought for two months when he fell, severely wounded, into the hands of the Spanish Royal troops. After eight months detention he escaped, but it was not long before he was captured again. This time his imprisonment was long and painful, and on two occasions he was compelled to draw lots for his life with his fellow-captives. When released, he served till 1840 with distinction. In that year he made his way back, a beggar without means or clothing, to Prussia. The Carlist lieutenantcolonel was glad to be re-admitted into the Prussian service as a second lieutenant, but he was still young, and few subalterns could at the age of twenty-four claim five years meritorious war service. In a few years we find him serving as captain on the Great General Staff, and in 1848 he had the good fortune to be transferred to the staff of the IV. army corps, his immediate superior being Major von Moltke. The two coming men became fast friends, and their mutual esteem was never disturbed. In the Baden insurrection Goeben served with distinction on the staff of Prince William, the future emperor. Staff and regimental duty (as usual in the Prussian service) alternated for some years after this, till in 1863 he became major-general commanding the 26th infantry brigade. In 1860, it should be mentioned, he was present with the Spanish troops in Morocco, and took part in the battle of Tetuan. View of the old harbor of Stade in 1987. ... Carlism was a conservative political movement in Spain, purporting to establish an alternative branch of the Bourbons in the Spanish throne. ... Don Carlos is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi. ... Graf Moltke Helmuth Karl Bernhard von Moltke (October 26, 1800 - April 24, 1891), who became Helmuth, Graf von Moltke in 1870, was a famous Prussian Field Marshal. ...

Wars

In the first of Prussia's great wars (1864) he distinguished himself at the head of his brigade at Rackebull and Sonderburg. In the war of 1866 Lieutenant-General von Goeben commanded the 13th division, of which his old brigade formed part, and, in this higher sphere, once more displayed the qualities of a born leader and skilful tactician. He held almost independent command with conspicuous success in the actions of Dermbach, Laufach, Kissingen, Aschaffenburg, Gerchsheim, Tauberbischofsheim and Würzburg. The mobilization of 1870 placed him at the head of the VIII. (Rhineland) army corps, forming part of the First Army under Steinmetz. It was his resolute and energetic leading that contributed mainly to the victory of Spicheren (6th August), and won the only laurels gained on the Prussian right wing at Gravelotte (18th August). Under Manteuffel the VIII. corps took part in the operations about Amiens and Bapaume, and on the 8th of January 1871 Goeben succeeded that general in the command of the First Army, with which he had served throughout the campaign as a corps commander. A fortnight later he had brought the war in northern France to a brilliant conclusion, by the decisive victory at the battle of St. Quentin (19th of January 1871). The close of the Franco-German War left Goeben one of the most distinguished men in the victorious army. He was colonel of the 28th infantry, and had the grand cross of the Iron Cross. He commanded the VIII. corps at Coblenz until his death in 1880. Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg (in Danish: Slesvig-Holsten-Sønderborg-Lyksborg (or Glücksborg)), from Glücksburg in northernmost Germany, is a line of the House of Oldenburg (Danish: Oldenborg), to which the royal houses of Denmark, Norway, and the former royal house of Greece belong. ... Aschaffenburg is a city in Bavaria, Germany. ... Tauberbischofsheim is a German town in the north-east of Baden-Württemberg on the river Tauber with a population of c. ... The title of this article contains the character ü. Where that letter is unavailable or undesired, the name may be represented as Wurzburg or Wuerzburg. ... Battle of St. ... Battle of Gravelotte Main article: Battle of Gravelotte Battle of Sedan Main article: Battle of Sedan The French were soundly defeated in several battles owing to the military superiority of the Prussian forces and their commanders. ...

General von Goeben left many writings. His memoirs are to be found in his works Virr Jahre in Spanien (Hanover, 1841), Reise-und Lagerbriefe aus Spanien und vom spanischen Heere in Marokko (Hanover, 1863) and in the Darmstadt Allgemeine Militärzeitung. The former French port (Queuleu) at Metz was renamed Goeben after him, and the 28th infantry bears his name. A statue of Goeben by Schaper was erected at Coblenz in 1884.