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PICCOLOMINI, OCTAVIO, PRINCE (1599-1656)

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Originally appearing in Volume V21, Page 581 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

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PICCOLOMINI
PICCOLOMINI, OCTAVIO, PRINCE (1599-1656)

PICCOLOMINI, OCTAVIO, See also:
PRINCE
PRINCE (Lat. princeps, from primus capio, " I am the first to take "; Ital. principe, Fr. prince)
PRINCE (1599-1656) , See also:

DUKE (corresponding to Fr. duc, Ital. duca, Ger. Herzog)

duke of See also:

AMALFI

Amalfi, See also:

AUSTRIAN

Austrian See also:

general, was See also:

BORN, IGNAZ, EDLER VON (1742–1791)

born on the 1 ith of See also:

NOVEMBER (Lat. novem, nine)

November 1599 in See also:

Florence, and carried a See also:

pike in the See also:

SPANISH

Spanish service at the See also:

AGE (Fr. age, through late Lat. aetaticum, from aetas)

age of sixteen. Two years later, on the outbreak of the See also:

THIRTY

Thirty Years' See also:

War in Bohemia, he was appointed a See also:

CAPTAIN (derived from Lat. ca put, head, through the Low Lat. capitanus)

captain in a See also:

CAVALRY (Fr. cavalerie, Ger. Kavallerie or Reiterei, derived ultimately from late Lat. caballus, horse)

cavalry See also:

REGIMENT (from Late Latin regimentum, rule, regere, to rule, govern, direct)

regiment sent by the See also:

GRAND

grand duke of See also:

Tuscany to the See also:

EMPEROR (Fr. empereur, from the Lat. imperator)

emperor's See also:

army, and he fought with some distinction under Bucquoy at the Weisser See also:

BERG (Ducatus Montensis)

Berg and in See also:

Hungary. In 1624 he served for a See also:

SHORT, FRANCIS JOB (1857– )

short See also:

time in the Spanish army and then as See also:

LIEUTENANT

lieutenant-See also:

COLONEL (derived either from Lat. column, Fr. colonne, column, or Lat. corona, a crown)

colonel of See also:

PAPPENHEIM, GOTTFRIED HEINRICH, COUNT OF (1594—1632)

Pappenheim's cuirassier regiment in the war in the Milanese. In 1627 he re-entered the Imperial service as colonel and captain of the lifeguard of See also:

WALLENSTEIN (properly WALDSTEIN), ALBRECHT WENZEL EUSEBIUS VON

Wallenstein, duke of See also:

FRIEDLAND

Friedland. In this capacity he soon See also:

fell into disgrace for practising See also:

EXTORTION (Lat. extorsio, from extorquere, to twist out, to take away by force)

extortion at See also:

STARGARD

Stargard in See also:

POMERANIA (German, Pommern)

Pomerania, but his adroitness secured him, after no See also:

long See also:

INTERVAL

interval, the See also:

RANK (O.Fr. rant or rent, mod. rang, generally connected with the O.E. and O.H.G. bring, a ring)

rank of " colonel of See also:

HORSE (a word common to Teutonic languages in such forms as hors, hros, ros; cf. the Ger. ross)

horse and See also:

FOOT

foot." About this time the See also:

APPOINTMENT, POWER OF

appointment of his younger See also:

BROTHER

brother to the See also:

arch-bishopric of See also:

SIENA

Siena secured him a position of See also:

INFLUENCE (Late Lat. influentia, from influere, to flow in)

influence in the See also:

DIPLOMATIC

diplomatic See also:

WORLD

world. Diplomatic See also:

TALENT (Lat. talentum, adaptation of Gr. TaXavrov, balance, ! Recollections of a First Visit to the Alps (1841); Vacation Rambles weight, from root raX-, to lift, as in rXi vac, to bear, 1-aXas, and Thoughts, comprising recollections of three Continental

talent was indeed almost the birthright of a member of an See also:

ITALIAN

Italian See also:

FAMILY

family, that had seen two of its members occupying the papal See also:

CHAIR (in. Mid. Eng. chcere, through O. Fr. chaire or chaiere, from Lat. cathedra, later caledra, Gr. xaOi3pa, seat, cf. "cathedral"; the modern Fr. form chaise, a chair, has been adopted in English with a particular meaning as a form of carriage; chaire

chair, and Wallenstein freely made use of his subordinate's capacity for negotiation and intrigue. In the events of the Mantuan War Piccolomini took a prominent See also:

PART

part in the dual role of the subtle diplomatist and the plundering soldier of See also:

FORTUNE, ROBERT (1813-188o)

fortune. At this moment came the invasion of See also:

Germany by Gustavus See also:

ADOLPHUS, JOHN LEYCESTER (1795-1862)

Adolphus. Piccolomini was interned at See also:

FERRARA

Ferrara as a See also:

HOSTAGE (through Fr. ostage, modern otage, from Late Lat. obsidaticum, the state of being an obses or hostage; Med. Lat. ostaticum, ostagium)

hostage for the ratification of a treaty, but he added his See also:

VOICE (Fr. voix, from Lat. vox)

voice to the general See also:

CALL (from Anglo-Saxon ceallian, a common Teutonic word, cf. Dutch kallen, to talk or chatter)

call for Wallenstein's reappointment as See also:

COMMANDER

commander-in-See also:

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

chief. He was not, however, included in the See also:

list of promotions that followed the duke's reappearance, and he served under General Holk, an officer brought in from the Danish service, in the preliminary operations and in the See also:

BATTLE

battle of See also:

LUTZEN

Lutzen. His ambition was gratified when, on See also:

READING

reading the See also:

OFFICIAL (Late Lat. QJicialis, for class. Lat. apparitor, from officium, office, duty)

official See also:

REPORT (O.Fr. report or raport, modern rapport, from O.Fr. reporter, mod. rap porter, Lat. reportare, to bring back, in poetical use only, of bringing back an account, news, &c.)

report of the battle, the emperor made him a generalfeldwachtmeister. At the same time, however, Holk was created a See also:

field See also:

MARSHAL (med. Lat. marescalcus, from O.H.Ger. marah, horse, and scalc, servant)

marshal at Wallenstein's instance, much to his See also:

RIVAL

rival's chagrin.

In the See also:

CAMPAIGN

campaign of 1633 Piccolomini held the command of an important detachment posted at See also:

KONIGGRATZ (Czech, Hradec Kralove)

Koniggratz to See also:

bar the enemy's advance from See also:

SILESIA

Silesia into Bohemia. See also:

HISTORY

History repeated itself on the same ground in 1756, 1778 and 1866; in the first of these cases it was a Piccolomini, grand-See also:

NEPHEW

nephew of Octavio, who commanded the Austrians; in the last the victorious Prussians passed over the See also:

ESTATE (through O. Fr. estat, mod. flat, from Lat. status, state, condition, position, stare, to stand)

estate of See also:

NACHOD

Nachod, which after 1635 was a hereditary See also:

possession of the family. In May Wallenstein entered Silesia with the See also:

main army with the unavowed See also:

OBJECT

object of compel-See also:

LING, PER HENRIK (1776-1839)

ling or persuading the See also:

ELECTORS (Ger. Kurfursten, from Kilren, O.H.G. kiosan, choose, elect, and Furst, prince)

electors of See also:

BRANDENBURG

Brandenburg and See also:

Saxony to make See also:

COMMON

common cause with the emperor against the Swedes. Piccolomini was with him, and, disapproving of the duke's policy, joined in a military See also:

CONSPIRACY (from Lat. conspirare, literally to breathe together, to agree, combine, and especially to form a secret plot)

conspiracy, out of which See also:

GREW, NEHEMIAH (1641-1712)

grew the See also:

DRAMA (literally "action," from Gr. Snail, act or do)

drama that ended with the See also:

MURDER

murder of Wallenstein on the 25th of See also:

FEBRUARY

February 1634. Piccolomini's own part in the tragedy has been set forth for all time in the pages of See also:

SCHILLER, JOHANN CHRISTOPH FRIEDRICH VON (1759-18o5)

Schiller's Walienstein. His See also:

REWARD

reward was his marshal's See also:

BATON (Fr. baton, baston, from Late Lat. basto, a stick or staff)

baton, 100,000 gulden and the beautiful estate of Nachod in the See also:

RIESENGEBIRGE (Bohemian Krkonose)

Riesengebirge. He was Wallenstein's See also:

PUPIL (Lat. pupillus, orphan, minor, dim. of pupus, boy, allied to puer, from root pm- or peu-, to beget, cf. "pupa," Lat. for " doll," the name given to the stage intervening between the larval and imaginal stages in certain insects)

pupil as well as his slayer, and had learned the See also:

art of war from that See also:

MASTER (Lat. magister, related to tnagis, more, as the corresponding minister is to minus, less; the English form is due partly to the O. Eng. maegister, and partly to O. Fr. maistre, mod. maitre; cf. Du. meester, Ger. Meister, Ital. maestro)

master. On the 5th–6th of See also:

SEPTEMBER (Lat. septem, seven)

September in the same See also:

YEAR

year he distinguished himself amongst the foremost in the See also:

GREAT

great victory of See also:

NORDLINGEN

Nordlingen. He soon saw the See also:

NECESSITY (Lat. necessitas)

necessity for following out the lines of military policy laid down by the duke, but neither he nor See also:

Gallas, the new lieutenant-general of the emperor, possessed the capacity for carrying it out, and the war dragged on year after year. Piccolomini was in 1635 allied with a Spanish army, and bitterly complained that their See also:

SLOTH

sloth and caution marred every See also:

SCHEME (Lat. schema, Gr. oxfjya, figure, form, from the root axe, seen in exeiv, to have, hold, to be of such shape, form, &c.)

scheme that he formed. In 1638 he was made a See also:

COUNT (Lat. comes, gen. comitis, Fr. comte, Ital. conte, Span. conde)

count of the See also:

EMPIRE

empire, and in 1639, having been fortunate enough to win a great victory over the See also:

French (See also:

RELIEF

relief of Thionville, See also:

JULY

July 7, 1639), he was rewarded with the See also:

OFFICE (from Lat. officium, " duty," " service," a shortened form of opifacium, from facere, " to do," and either the stem of opes, " wealth," " aid," or opus, " work ")

office of privy councillor from the emperor and with the dukedom of Amalfi from the See also:

king of See also:

Spain. But instead of being appointed, as he hoped, Gallas's successor, he was called in to See also:

ACT (Lat. actus, actum)

act as ad lalus to the See also:

ARCHDUKE (Lat. archidux, Ger. Erzherzog)

Archduke See also:

LEOPOLD (M.H. Ger. Liupolt; O.H. Ger. Liupald, from hut, Mod. Ger. Leute, " people," and paid, " bold," i.e. " bold for the people ")

Leopold Wilhelm, with whom he was defeated in the second battle of See also:

BREITENFELD

Breitenfeld in 1642.

After this he spent some years in the Spanish service and received as his reward the See also:

TITLE (0. Fr. title, mod. titre, from Lat. titulus)

title of See also:

GRANDEE (Span. Grande)

grandee and the See also:

order of the See also:

GOLDEN

Golden Fleece. Some years later, having re-entered the Imperial army, he was again disappointed of the chief command by the selection of the brave See also:

VETERAN

veteran See also:

Peter Melander, Count Holzapfel. But when in 1648 Melander fell in battle at Zusmarshausen, Piccolomini was at last appointed lieutenant-general of the emperor, and thus See also:

con-ducted as generalissimo the final campaign of the weary and desultory Thirty Years' War. Three days after the See also:

COMMISSION (from Lat. commissio, committere)

commission for executing the See also:

peace had finished its labours, the emperor addressed a See also:

LETTER (through Fr. lettre from Lat. littera or litera, letter of the alphabet; the origin of the Latin word is obscure; it has probably no connexion with the root of linere, to smear, i.e. with wax, for an inscription with a stilus)

letter of thanks " to the Prince Piccolomini," and awarded him a See also:

GIFT (a common Teutonic word, cf. Ger. die Gift, gift, das Gift, poison, formed from the Teut. stem gab-, to give, cf. Dutch geven, Ger. geben; in O. Eng. the word appears with initial y, the guttural of later English is due to Scandinavian influence)

gift of 114,566 gulden. Piccolomini died on the 11th of See also:

AUGUST (originally Sextilis)

August 1656. He See also:

LEFT

left no See also:

CHILDREN, LAW RELATING TO

children (his only son Josef Silvio, the " Max " of Schiller's 1Fallenstein, was murdered by the Swedes after the battle of Jankau in 1645), and his titles and estates passed to his brother's son. With the See also:

DEATH

death of the latter's nephew Octavio See also:

AENEAS

Aeneas Josef in 1757, the See also:

LINE

line became See also:

EXTINCT

extinct.

End of Article: PICCOLOMINI, OCTAVIO, PRINCE (1599-1656)

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