Karl Aloys zu Fürstenberg (1760–1799) was a soldier in the Austrian service. He achieved the rank of Field Marshal, and died at the Battle of Stockach. The third son of a cadet branch of the Fürstenberg, at his birth his chances of inheriting the family title of Fürst zu Fürstenberg were slight; he was prepared instead for a military career, and a tutor was hired to teach him the military sciences. He entered Habsburg military in 1777, at the age of seventeen years, and was a member of the field army in the short War of the Bavarian Succession. His career progressed steadily during the Habsburg War with the Ottoman Empire. During the French Revolutionary Wars, he fought with distinction again for the First Coalition, particularly at Ketsch and Frœschwiller. He was stationed at key points to protect the movements of the Austrian army. With a force of 10,000, he defended the German Rhineland at Kehl, and reversed a bayonet assault by French troops at Bellheim; his troops also overran Speyer without any losses. By the end of the War of the First Coalition, at the age of 35, he had achieved the rank of Field Marshal. During the War of the Second Coalition, he fought in the first two battles of the German campaign, at Ostrach, 21 March 1799, and at Battle of Stockach, 25 March 1799. At the latter, while leading a regiment of grenadiers, he was hit with French case shot and knocked off his horse. He died shortly afterward.

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_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1791:

The Polish Constitution of May 3, one of the earliest codified national constitutions in the world, was adopted by the Sejm. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_May_3%2C_1791

1815:

Austrian troops led by Frederick Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza defeated the forces under King Joachim Murat of Naples at the Battle of Tolentino, the decisive battle of the Neapolitan War. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Tolentino

1837:

The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, the oldest university in the eastern Mediterranean, was founded. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_and_Kapodistrian_University_of_Athens

1915:

Canadian physician and Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae wrote In Flanders Fields, later considered one of the most notable poems written during World War I. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Flanders_Fields

1920:

Relying on the 11th Soviet Red Army operating in neighboring Azerbaijan, Bolsheviks attempted to stage a coup d'etat in Georgia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1920_Georgian_coup_attempt

1947:

A new Constitution of Japan went into effect, providing for a parliamentary system of government, guaranteeing certain fundamental rights, and relegating the Japanese monarchy to a purely ceremonial role. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_Japan

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

rax (v): 1. To stretch after sleep. 2. To stretch, to reach out, to hand http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rax

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

To everything (turn, turn, turn)

There is a season (turn, turn, turn) And a time for every purpose under heaven. --Pete Seeger http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Pete_Seeger