Otto Adolf Weismann von Weißenstein

Baron Otto Adolf Weismann von Weißenstein
Portrait by an unknown author
Nickname(s)	Achilles
Died	3 July [O.S. 22 June] 1773 Kaynardzha
Cause of death	Battle of Küçük Kaynarca
Allegiance	Russia
Service/branch	Imperial Russian Army
Years of service	1744–1773
Rank	Major general
Commands held	13th Belozersk Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars	Seven Years' War  • Battle of Gross-Jägersdorf (WIA)  • Battle of Zorndorf (WIA) War of the Bar Confederation Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774)  • Battle of Larga  • Battle of Kagul  • First Battle of Karasu  • Combat of Gurobal  • Siege of Silistra  • Battle of Küçük Kaynarca †
Awards	2nd and 3rd orders of Saint George Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky

Baron Otto Adolf Weismann von Weißenstein (simplified also as Weismann von Weissenstein or Weismann; Russian: Отто-Адольф Вейсман фон-Вейсенштейн, romanized: Otto-Adol'f Veysman fon-Veysenšteyn) was a Russian nobleman and general from Livonia; he was of Baltic-German descent. One of Catherine's finest generals, along with Alexander Suvorov and Pyotr Rumyantsev.

Weismann, according to the general recognition of his contemporaries, had great military talent and enjoyed unlimited trust and love of troops, his name was the most popular in Rumyantsev's army. By the fold of his talent, fearlessness, speed of action and coup d'œil, he had much in common with Suvorov. Rumyantsev understood that. Suvorov always spoke of Weismann as one of the greatest generals of Catherine's century. In his correspondence, talking about the affairs of Rumyantsev's campaign, he wrote: "Weismann was gone—I was left alone."

Career

In 1744 he enlisted as a private and entered the Seven Years' War, twice wounded at the Battle of Gross-Jägersdorf and at the Battle of Zorndorf.

In 1763 he was colonel, in 1768 commander of the 13th Belozersk Infantry Regiment, with which he was in the war with the Bar Confederation (1768). In 1769, pursuing one of their detachments, Weismann got carried away, crossed the Ottoman border and burned the place of Balta. This served as an external reason for Turkey, instigated by France, to declare war on Russia.

Russo-Turkish War

Main article: Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774)

In the war, Weismann displayed the courage, energy and skill of a military commander, being promoted to major general. For distinction at the Larga and Kagul he was awarded the orders of Sts. George (3rd degree) and Alexander Nevsky. At the head of the detachment, which had the task of monitoring the fortress of Isaccea, with a bold and sudden manoeuvre forced the Turks to clear it.

In 1771 he made a number of brave searches beyond the Danube, where he once captured 170 cannons and destroyed large supplies of food. He was awarded the Order of St. George, 2nd degree, and received a division. The swiftness of his actions earned him the nickname "Achilles" in the Russian army.

In 1773, Weismann was appointed to cross the Danube at Izmail with his division, go up the right bank to Gurobal, 32 km (20 mi) from Silistra/Silistria, and here to cover the crossing of the main forces of Pyotr Rumyantsev's army. Weismann has perfectly executed it, defeated at Karasu an 8,000-strong Turkish detachment observing a course of the river, and through Hîrșova has moved to Gurobal. Standing there 10,000-strong corps of Osman Pasha was attacked by him in the flank and defeated, so that the transfer of the army across the Danube made unhindered. However, during its further movement towards Silistra Weismann had to hand over his division to the senior among the lieutenant generals Stupishin and was appointed head of the vanguard.

Osman Pasha, who was defending Silistra, tried to delay the Russian movement and with 30,000 troops took a favourable position 5.3 km (3.3 mi) below the fortress. Relying on it, he attacked the vanguard with cavalry, but Weismann immediately built his 3 battalions in the infantry square and repelling all attacks, gave time for the cavalry to come up and drive the Ottomans away. Pursuing them, Weismann reached the fortress, where his appearance caused great confusion. Weismann did not dare, however, to take advantage of it and with small forces to take Silistra, as the main forces were still in 2 passages.

With the beginning of the siege of Silistra, Weismann was instructed, together with detachments of Lieutenant Generals Potemkin, Igelström and Stupishin, to take the trenches on the heights in front of Silistra, preventing the bombardment. The attack was made on 29 June [O.S. 18 June] 1773 early in the morning, but only Weismann succeeded, who bypassed the trenches from the rear and drove the Turks out of them, Potemkin and Igelström's columns failed. Weismann kept in the trenches occupied by him the whole day and cleared them at night by order of Rumyantsev, when it became known about Numan Pasha's movement with 20,000-strong corps from Shumen/Shumla to help Silistra. Having withdrawn his troops from Silistra, Rumyantsev instructed Weismann to detain Numan Pasha. Weismann moved against him on 2 July (O.S. 21 June) with a detachment of 5,000 men and on the 3rd July morning (O.S. 22 June) attacked him at Küçük Kaynarca. A hard-fought battle ensued; the janissaries broke through the square in which was Weismann himself, and one of them shot him with a pistol. The bullet pierced his left arm and heart. As he fell, he allegedly only managed to say: "Don't tell people." But his death was noticed by his troops, who fiercely repulsed the Turkish onslaught, drove them from their position and massacred, giving no mercy even to the prisoners.

Rumyantsev replaced Weismann by Suvorov on the front lines of the army at Hîrșova, when it withdrew behind the Danube.

Citations

• Velichko, Konstantin I.; Novitsky, Vasily F.; Schwarz, Alexey V. von; Apushkin, Vladimir A.; Schoultz, Gustav K. von (1911). "ВЕЙСМАНЪ, бар., фонъ Вейсенштейнъ, Отто-Адольфъ" [Weismann, baron, von Weißenstein, Otto Adolf]. Военная энциклопедия (in Russian). Vol. 5: Бомбарда – Верещагин. Moscow: Ivan Sytin. pp. 279–280. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
• Arsenyev, Konstantin; Petrushevsky, Fyodor (1892). "Вейсманъ фонъ-Вейсенштейнъ" [Weismann von Weißenstein]. Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Russian). Vol. 10: Вальтер – Венути. Friedrich A. Brockhaus (Leipzig), Ilya A. Efron (Saint Petersburg). p. 728.