Trenck, Franz, Freiherr von der, 1711-49, Austrian officer and adventurer, b. Reggio di Calabria, Italy. A daring soldier known for his duels and love affairs, he raised at his own expense (1741) a Croatian regiment for Maria Theresa in the War of the Austrian Succession. Its atrocities led to his court-martial (1747) and to his life imprisonment in the notorious Spielberg fortress at Brno (Brünn), where he died. His memoirs, published several decades later, increased Trenck's notorious reputation.

Friedrich Freiherr von der Trenck (February 1726– 25 July 1794) was a Prussian officer, adventurer, and author.

Life

Von der Trenck was born in Königsberg, East Prussia. He entered the Prussian army in 1740 and became an orderly officer of King Frederick II of Prussia. However, he was imprisoned one year later, in 1745, at Glatz under the guard of Heinrich August de la Motte Fouqué. It is unclear whether the imprisonment was due to an affair with Princess Anna Amalia, the younger sister of the king, or it was because of the relation with his cousin Franz Freiherr von der Trenck, who served in Austria.

In 1746, von der Trenck escaped from the fortress of Glatz (Kłodzko). Then, in 1749, he obtained an employment as Rittmeister of an imperial cuirassier regiment in Hungary. In 1753, he went to Danzig for family reasons, but was again captured, on the orders of Frederick II, and was sent to the "Sternschanze" (literally: Star-shaped Redoubt) in Magdeburg. To prevent him from attempting to escape, they fastened his hands, feet, and body with heavy chains and manacles. In 1763, he was released through the intervention of Empress Maria Theresa.

During the next ten years, von der Trenck led an active life. He busied himself in writing literature, running a wine trading business, and travelling to England and France.

By the order of Austria, von der Trenck was sent, as an observer of the events of the French Revolution, to Paris, where he was accused as a spy and executed by the guillotine in 1794, two days before the fall of Robespierre and the end of the Terror.

Literature and Film

In 1972 Fritz Umgelter directed a five part TV series Die merkwuerdige Lebensgeschichte des Friedrich Freiherrn von der Trenck, which was shown the following year on the public channel ZDF. The series showed von der Trenck in a romantic light, highlighting his nobility of character and honourable behaviour on various occasions. The role of von der Trenck was played by Matthias Habich.

In 2003, ZDF broadcast a two-part series Trenck = Zwei Herzen gegen dir Krone. The leading roles were played by Ben Becker and Alexandra Maria Lara..

His life was also the basis of the novel Trenck by Bruno Frank

Notes

References

External links

• Works by Friedrich Freiherr von der Trenck at Project Gutenberg