One of the great generals of the Seven Years War was Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick and Luneburg, brother-in-law of Frederick the Great of Prussia. He also held a Prussian commission.

Ferdinand became commander of the Hanoverian Army succeeding HRH William Augustus Duke of Cumberland, or 'Stinking Willie' as he was known in Scotland after Culloden. King George II blamed Cumberland for the lack of success of his army (his as Elector of Hanover) and had been negotiating with Alte Fritz about the possible appointment of an experienced Prussian officer to command. Frederick proposed the idea to Ferdinand who spent some time considering. The task was daunting, to say the least. The army was made up of not only Hanoverians but troops from various small German states. For instance:- "At the battle of Vellinghausen on 15/16 July 1761, Prince Ferdinand's army consisted of formations commanded and composed as follows:

1. The Erbrinz of Brunswick - four large 'brigade groups' of Hanoverian infantry, cavalry and artillery.

2. Lt. General Conway - two British infantry brigades and one British cavalry brigade.

3. Lt. General Howard - an infantry brigade and a cavalry brigade, both British, and a 'brigade group' of two German infantry battalions and British and Hanoverian artillery.

4. Lt. General Prinz von Anholt - three infantry brigades (Hessian, Brunswick and Hanoverian) and a British cavalry brigade.

5. Lt. General von Watigneau - two infantry brigades of Hessian, Brunswick and Hanoverian troops and a Hanoverian and Brunswick cavalry brigade.

6. Lt. General the Marquis of Granby - a number of infantry and cavalry brigades and some artillery composed of British, Brunswick, Hanoverian, Prussian, Hessian and British 'foreign legion' troops.

These major subordinate commands were not permanently organised as such, but indeed altered at every operation. They do not seem to have any definite collective name, but were sometimes referred to as 'columns' and sometimes as 'corps', (Lt. General Sir Reginald Savory, "His Brittanic Majesties Army in Germany during the Seven Years War" Oxford Clarendon Press 1966 - quoted in Col. H.C.B. Rogers "The British Army of the Eighteenth Century". P. B. S. Bookclub. 1977 pp 101-102). C. in C. in those days - as now, were in political as well as military administrative positions and Ferdinand coming from a purely military post was not keen. Staff in the Seven Years War were less then thick on the ground. Ferdinand had a private secretary, von Westphalen and with him and two a.d.c's he was more or less forced by Richelieu's movements northward to take over lest a bad position should rapidly deteriorate into a worse.

Ferdinand was either extraordinarily lucky or chose his private secretary brilliantly. Christian Heinrich Philipp, Edler von Westphalen was a postmaster's son from Brunswick. He was well educated and seems to have completed a Grand Tour (Germany, France, Italy) which most young men of aristocratic family undertook as a finishing process to their education. One has only to look at the Bridges near Inveraray to realize that that particular Duke of Argyll who had them erected had gained from such a Grand Tour.

V. Westphalen became chief of military planning, political adviser and privy counsellor and on a few occasions gave orders 'for' his chief when the Duke was absent. He married, later, a Scottish lady, Miss Jean Wishart, sister-in-law of Col. Beckwith who commanded a brigade of Highlanders and grenadiers under Granby. (See Appendix III, Savory. pp 458-459 for a resume of his career.)

Ferdinand and co. came in on a situation no C.in C. would like (unless he's play a w/g campaign). The Brunswick contingent had been ordered home by the ruling Duke and they secretly arranged to do so. However the secret was leaked and the Brunswickers were escorted back by Hanoverian troops to their camp at Stadt. The Landgraf of Hessekassel on learning Ferdinand was to command had countermanded his own orders to his troops to return home.

Stiffen the Old "Moral Fibre"

During the next days Ferdinand went about seeing things for himself - not wearing his greatcoat but all his orders on - to show who he was and to stiffen the old "moral fibre", within three days (!) Ferdinand was moving towards the enemy. The alternative was to take a defensive position with his back to the sea and spend the winter with probably loss of morale. Richelieu was moving down to the river Alder and his troops at Celle burned down the local orphanage with the orphans inside. The Hanoverian General Freiherr von Sporeken was on the other side of the river and his troops could see and hear all this.

Exhausted as they were they could not wait to get at the French because of this outrage. Ferdinand wrote Richilieu a sharp letter! "one would think one was dealing with an army of Prussians" he wrote (Ferdinand - Richilieu, Altenhagen. 13 Dec 1757. von Westphalen III p72.)

Ferdinand seems to have decided to let the ire of the troops carry them forward but the weather, the under fed oxen dragging the bridging pontoons were unable to move at even their snail's pace. The French were in superior numbers and well warned so Ferdinand decided R & R was the best thing, with piquets sniping at each other across the river.

On Christmas Eve Ferdinand gave the order to withdraw and on New Years Day 1758 the troops were all back between Uelzen and Luneburg, roughly north south, with both Prussia and U.K. sending pontoons, guns, men and material, in a month they were feeling rested and well fed and equipped, ready to get on with the business. Ferdinand may have had his doubts but only his secretary knew about it if he did.

Richilieu's army was, to quote Savory p56 "ill fed, ill led, sodden, sick and sullen, thinking only of returning to France" and so Richilieu soon did. He asked to be relieved and set off a week before his replacement could arrive. Louis de Bourbon-Conde, Comte Clermont arrived to command with no help from the man he relieved whatsoever. Everything was in such a bad way that the apocryphal story is Clermont wrote to his King:- "I found your Majesty's army divided into 3 parts. The part which is above the ground is composed of pillagers and marauders-, the second part is underground, and the third is in hospital. Should I retire with the first or wait until I join one of the others?" (Savory p58).

While Clermont was deciding to withdraw Ferdinand launched a strike with the intention of pinning him in his distressing debilitating conditions.

The Brittanic army split into two columns, sloshed its way across Luneburg heath and on 21st Feb. reached Verden (that old garrison town with its on the Aller where I spent 1953 with HQ 7 ARMD DIV). The French were taken by surprise! This was waging war in winter!! Although Clermont had ordered the bridges at Verden destroyed they had not been. The French officer in charge may have thought the flooded state of the Aller would do it for him.

The Erbrinz of Brunswick got seven squadrons, four battalions and some guns across the Verden bridge, already under water. The French garrison had withdrawn to Bremen. The Erbrinz went straight on to Hoya, between Verden and Nienburg. Here the prince seized the crossing over the Weser in a small action in which his troops inflicted 300 casualties, took 200 prisoners and lost themselves 13 killed and 73 wounded. The Family of Brunswick were finding the spotlight of fortune.

Sources

"His Britannic Majesty's Army in Germany during the Seven Years War" Savorv Facsimile Athena Books. 1989.
"The British Army of the Eighteenth Century" Col. H.C.B. Rogers Purnell Book Services 1977.
"Uniforms of the Seven Years War 1756-63" John Mollo, Malcolm McGregor. Blandford.